Sunday, July 21, 2024

Born #OTD 1929: Sensual jazz vocalist Helen Merrill


Born to Croatian immigrant parents in New York City, Helen Merrill (née Jelena Ana Milcetic) was destined to sing, performing in jazz clubs by the tender age of fourteen. Over a career spanning six decades, she worked with a veritable ‘who’s who’ of performers and luminaries, including Quincy Jones, Clifford Brown, Chet Baker, Stan Getz, Ennio Morricone, and Gil Evans. She became a notable star in Europe and, beginning in the late 1960s, Japan. Wishing this nightingale a very happy 95th journey around the sun.

Photo: An evocative album cover graces us, as the veritable siren of song, Helen Merrill, is captured in a moment of serene introspection. The image, part of a series extolling the ‘Great Women of Song’ by Verve Records, showcases her in profile against a bewitching, deep magenta backdrop. Her platinum blonde tresses are styled in soft, voluminous waves. With her eyes gently closed and lips slightly parted, she appears lost in the celestial melodies that dance within her soul. Her dexter hand rests gracefully near her chin, fingertips brushing against it with tenderness. 

Copyright 2024, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, BLUESKY - @arthurnewhook.bsky.social. DONATIONS GRATEFULLY ACCEPTED at https://tinyurl.com/ArthurNewhook.

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