Billie Holiday

A detailed Summary of Billie Holiday


Billie Holiday was known, as one of America's most memorable and influential all-time great jazz vocalist. The inspiration for many aspiring singers today, Holiday had a singular voice steeped in aching emotion and fueled by an uncanny sense of swing. She not only stamped her distinctive signature on such standards as "Night And Day," but she also contributed remarkable originals to the jazz canon, including "Strange Fruit" and "God Bless The Child." Influenced by Bessie Smith and Louis Armstrong, Holiday not only sang with passion and conviction, but she also improvised with a trumpeter's sensibility. Born Eleanore Harris on April 7, 1915. Her father Clarence Holiday and mother Sadie Fagan were teenagers who resized in Baltimore, Maryland at the time. Her father was a professional guitarist and Banjo player whose parents didn't approve of marriage cause of their lifestyle felt it was a scandal. After three years her parents decided to marry. Her father called her Bill, because she was a tomboy. Eleanor hated her


name and took right to the name Bill. She liked the actress Billie Dove, so she decided to go from Bill to Billie Holiday.

Billie loved imitating popular songs by her favorite singer Bessie Smith. By age 14, she began to sing in a nightclub called Pod's and Terry's that paid her $18.00 a week. After years of singed, the club decided to change their name. It had become a hot spot that songwriters, producers, promoters and agents hung out. An agent named Joe Glaser heard Billie sing and signed her on the spot. After a short spur of prostitution, she finally made her professional debut as a singer. By the time she was twenty the jazz world seemed to be at Billie Holiday's feet. John Hammond signed her to Columbia records for her debut record along with Benny Goodman and his band.

Billie lived a very hard life going up. Her childhood was of poverty and unhappiness. By the age 10 she was well developed that the men viewed her different. She was later raped and sent to a Catholic home for girls. Billie

Some common words found in the essay are:
Billie Holiday's, Holiday Billie, Baltimore Maryland, Holiday America's, Pod's Terry's, Joe Glaser, Orleans Tragedy, Benny Goodman, York's Carnegie, Night Day, bessie smith, billie holiday's, billie holiday,

Approximate Word count = 690
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Music

join now Save Paper

Related Essays

  • Billie Holiday Billie Holiday Hi, I am Eleanor Fagan Gough, or most of you know me as Lady Day or Billie Holiday. I am known, as one of Americaamp39s ... 576 words
  • Billie Holiday Billie was born Eleanora Harris to her father Clarence Holiday and mother Sadie Fagan who were just fifteen and thirteen years old, respectively, at the time ... 649 words
  • The Life of Billie Holiday Billie Holiday, probably the singularly most popular jazz vocalist of all time, was plagued by tragedy her entire life. Her grandfather ... 1092 words
  • holiday Billie Holiday Billie Holiday was born April 7th, 1915, in Baltimore. ... Like many successful musicians Billie Holidayamp39s is a tragic one. ... 643 words
  • Billy Holiday ... Billie Holiday, known as Lady Day, recorded ampquotStrange Fruitampquot on April 20, 1939 at Brunswickamp39s World Broadcasting Studios with Frankie Newtonamp39s Cafe Society Band ... 494 words

Professional Essays

  • Maya Angelouamp39s Autobiography ... in Los Angeles. There, she meets the legendary Billie Holiday during the final months of the singeramp39s life. Her quest for fulfillment ... 1321 words
  • Anita Oamp39Day ... She learned from the way Billie Holiday held notes, ampquotshaping and flatting for effect,ampquot and from Ella Fitzgeraldamp39s ampquotsly, littlegirl quality and her scattingampquot O ... 3965 words
  • Strange Fruit ... In Strange Fruit the lyrics of Lewis Allan vocals by Billie Holiday overlap with the melody in a manner that evokes a similar list of adjectives to describe ... 1050 words
  • Blues and Dinah Washington ... the rest of her life. She began to listen to secular music, coming to idolize Billie Holiday. She perfected her flawless diction ... 1613 words
  • Harlem Renaissance ... Billie Holiday, the great blues singer of the era, served as the inspiration of the rock group U2 in its song Angel of Harlem. Alicias ... 2050 words
  • The Oppression of Black Women ... We see Browns 311 submission after her beating, a submission in which she views herself as an image in a Billie Holiday song, If I get beat by my poppa ... 1882 words


Saved Paper

Save your papers so you can locate them quickly!

Newest Essays

Testimonials

  • "Thank You So Much!!! You have saved me once again!!!"
    Jack M.
  • "With so many papers to chose from, I was able to get ideas to help me with all of my classes. Thank You!"
    Brian P.
  • "I've used this site for the last 3 years to help me come up with ideas for my papers."
    Sara J.
  • "I use this site every week to help me write my own papers!"
    Rachel W.
  • "I love this site!!!"
    Marie N.
Home Join Now Support
Acceptable Use Policy About us FAQ
All papers are for research and reference purposes only!
© 2002-2009 DirectEssays.com. All Rights Reserved.