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Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular MusicA B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZMERRILL, Helen(b Helen Milcetic, 21 June 1929, NYC) Jazz singer, very highly rated for her lovely voice and sheer musicality. She turned pro c.1945, then was inactive in the late 1940s but sang with an Earl Hines Sextet '52; made a single for Roost '53 with Jimmy Raney and Red Mitchell; recorded for EmArcy '54-8, including an LP with Clifford Brown arranged by Quincy Jones; 62 tracks included alternate takes now on several CDs on Mercury, Verve and EmArcy, and compiled on The Complete Helen Merrill on Mercury. She recorded for Atlantic '59; went to the UK that year, stayed in Europe and found more success in Italy, then Japan than she had at home. Helen Merrill In Italy '59-62 was once on RCA, later on Liuoto; her Japanese LPs included Helen Merrill In Tokyo on King; she recorded in NYC for Fontana '62 and Milestone '67-8 (albums The Artistry Of Helen Merrill, The Feeling Is Mutual and A Shade Of Difference). She relocated to Japan '67; albums for JVC not released in USA included items with Teddy Wilson and Gary Peacock. She returned to the USA '72 and lived in Chicago; she recorded with John Lewis in Tokyo '76. During the period of the albums Chasin' The Bird and Casa Forte for Inner City in NYC '79-80 she met her soon-to-be husband, ace arranger Torrie Zito. More albums included The Rodgers And Hammerstein Album '82 on DRG; No Tears, No Goodbyes '84 with Gordon Beck on keyboards and Music Makers '86 adding Steve Lacy and Stephane Grappelli were both made in Paris for Owl. Dream Of You '56 on EmArcy with the Gil Evans band was remade '88 as Collaboration, not long before Evans's death. Alone Together and This Is My Night To Cry came out on Emarcy ’89; there were also several songbooks on Pre-Arte (Helen Merrill Sings Irving Berlin, Porter, Kern, Rodgers & Hammerstein) which were short measure and may have been compilations. The Complete Hellen Merrill on Mercury 1954-58 was a CD reissue to treasure. Clear Out Of This World '92 on Antilles included Roger Kellaway, Red Mitchell and Terry Clarke; Brownie: A Homage To Clifford Brown '94 on Verve included trumpets Lew Soloff, Tom Harrell, Roy Hargrove and Wallace Roney. Carrousel '96 on Finlandia was a set of pop songs by Heikki Sarmanto, with a string orchestra (plus horns) arranged and conducted by Zito; she makes them shine like gold, wrote Cadence. Her son Alan is a successful singer and songwriter (see his entry). The Milestone albums The Feeling Is Mutual and A Shade of Difference from 1967-8 have been combined on a Mosaic Select CD as The Helen Merrill--Dick Katz Sessions, with Katz on piano and a superb all-star band including Thad Jones, Gary Bartz, Jim Hall, Ron Carter and Elvin Jones. Casa Forte from Inner City in 1980 with Zito's arrangements is also on Mosaic Select (www.mosaicrecords.com). |