Ella Fitzgerald is commonly considered to be one of the greatest female jazz singers of all time. In a career spanning nearly 60 years, she released over 50 albums and toured constantly all over the world.
Born in Virginia in 1917, she suffered terrible poverty through childhood and was homeless until her big break at the age of 17, when she won an amateur singing competition at the Harlem Theatre in New York. The following year she began touring with a dance band, and then had her first hit record in 1938 with her version of the 19th Century nursery rhyme "A-Tisket A-Tasket". In 1941 she decided to go solo and, now signed to Decca, had a number of follow-up hits with different backing bands, mostly singing in the be-bop style. During the 40s she was established as one of the greatest jazz singers by successful renditions of "Oh, Lady be Good!" and "How High the Moon".
In 1955, Fitzgerald left Decca for a new label, Verve, set up especially for her, and the following year released an album that achieved huge mainstream success: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Songbook. She released eight 'Songbook' albums in eight years for Verve - covering jazz standards from other composers such as Duke Ellington, and the Gershwins, each to great acclaim. From 1956 to 1967 she released between three and nine LPs every year.
After the sale of Verve records, she joined another new label, Pablo, and continued to record into the 70s. However, by the mid-70s her poor health was beginning to show in her voice. Ella Fitzgerald made her final recording in 1989 and her last live performance in 1993, and in 1996 she died due to complications from diabetes.
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