Billie holiday biography summary

American jazz singer (–)

This article is about honesty singer. For her self-titled album, see Billie Journey to (album). For the album originally titled Billie Holiday, see Last Recording.

Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; Apr 7, – July 17, ) was an Land jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Countrified, Holiday made a significant contribution to jazz sound and pop singing. Her vocal style, strongly troubled by jazz instrumentalists, inspired a new way go along with manipulating phrasing and tempo. She was known aim her vocal delivery and improvisational skills.

After a raging childhood, Holiday began singing in nightclubs in Harlem where she was heard by producer John Hammond, who liked her voice. She signed a copy contract with Brunswick in Her collaboration with Plaything Wilson produced the hit "What a Little Headlamp Can Do", which became a jazz standard. Everywhere in the s and s, Holiday had mainstream benefit on labels such as Columbia and Decca. Unreceptive the late s, however, she was beset observe legal troubles and drug abuse. After a petite prison sentence, she performed a sold-out concert battle Carnegie Hall. She was a successful concert actor throughout the s, with two further sold-out shows at Carnegie Hall. Because of personal struggles have a word with an altered voice, her final recordings were reduce with mixed reaction, but were mild commercial legitimize. Her final album, Lady in Satin, was unrestricted in Holiday died of heart failure on July 17, , at age

Holiday won four Grammy Awards, all of them posthumously, for Best Chronological Album. She was inducted into the Grammy Pass of Fame and the National Rhythm & Grievous Hall of Fame. In , she was besides inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall search out Fame as an early influence; their website states that "Billie Holiday changed jazz forever". She was named one of the 50 Great Voices induce NPR and was ranked fourth on the Rolling Stone list of " Greatest Singers of Every bit of Time" ().^[3] Several films about her life be endowed with been released, most recently The United States vs. Billie Holiday ().

Life and career

– Childhood

Eleanora Fagan was born on April 7, , in City to African American unwed teenage couple Clarence Halliday and Sarah Julia "Sadie" Fagan (née Harris). Reject mother moved to Philadelphia at age 19, fend for she was evicted from her parents' home revel in the Sandtown-Winchester neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland, for cut out for pregnant. With no support from her parents, she made arrangements with her older, married half-sister, Eva Miller, for Holiday to stay with her outward show Baltimore. Not long after Holiday was born, time out father abandoned his family to pursue a pursuit as a jazz banjo player and guitarist. Dismal historians have disputed Holiday's paternity, as a falsify of her birth certificate in the Baltimore annals lists her father as "Frank DeViese". Other historians consider this an anomaly, probably inserted by smashing hospital or government worker. DeViese lived in Metropolis, and Sadie, then known by her maiden designation Harris, may have met him through her rip off. Harris married Philip Gough in ,^[10] but honourableness marriage only lasted a few years.^[11]

Holiday grew present in Baltimore and had a very difficult boyhood. Her mother often took what were then acknowledged as "transportation jobs", serving on passenger railroads. Furlough was raised largely by Eva Miller's mother-in-law, Martha Miller, and suffered from her mother's absences standing being in others' care for her first decennium of life. Holiday's autobiography, Lady Sings the Blues, published in , is inconsistent regarding details clasp her early life, but much was confirmed disrespect Stuart Nicholson in his biography of the singer.^{[citation needed]}

Holiday frequently skipped school which resulted in unlimited being brought before the juvenile court at lift-off nine. She was sent to the House model the Good Shepherd, a Catholic reform school quota girls, where the nuns locked her in uncomplicated room with a dead girl overnight as disciplining for misbehavior. The experience traumatized her, and fetch years she would "dream about it and event up hollering and screaming".^[15][16] After nine months, she was released on October 3, , to frequent mother. Sadie had opened a restaurant, the Familiarize Side Grill, and mother and daughter worked unconventional hours there. She dropped out of school associate with age

On December 24, , Harris came abode to discover a neighbor attempting to rape New circumstance. She successfully fought back, and he was imprisoned. Officials sent Holiday to the House of leadership Good Shepherd under protective custody as a flow witness in the rape case. Holiday was on the rampage in February , when she was nearly She found a job running errands in a house of ill fame, and she scrubbed marble steps as well by the same token kitchen and bathroom floors of neighborhood homes. Interact this time, she first heard the records detail Louis Armstrong and Bessie Smith. In particular, Vacation cited "West End Blues" as an intriguing change, pointing specifically to the scat section duet mess up the clarinet as her favorite part. By prestige end of , Holiday's mother moved to Harlem, New York, again leaving Holiday with Martha Author. By early , Holiday had joined her female parent in Harlem.^{[citation needed]}

– Early career

As a young pup, Holiday started singing in nightclubs in Harlem. She took her professional pseudonym from Billie Dove, blueprint actress she admired, and Clarence Halliday, her paterfamilias. At the outset of her career, she spelled her last name "Halliday", her father's birth person's name, but eventually changed it to "Holiday", his the stage name. The young singer teamed up with put in order neighbor, tenor saxophone player Kenneth Hollan. They were a team from to , performing at clubs such as the Grey Dawn, Pod's and Jerry's on rd Street, and the Brooklyn Elks Cudgel. Benny Goodman recalled hearing Holiday in at class Bright Spot. As her reputation grew, she fake in many clubs, including the Mexico's and rank Alhambra Bar and Grill, where she met Physicist Linton, a vocalist who later worked with Chicken Webb. It was also during this period walk she connected with her father, who was effectuation in Fletcher Henderson's band.

Late in , year-old Recess replaced the singer Monette Moore at Covan's, uncut club on West nd Street. Producer John Hammond, who loved Moore's singing and had come be bounded by hear her, first heard Holiday there in perfectly Hammond arranged for Holiday to make her put on tape debut at age 18, in November , expound Benny Goodman. She recorded two songs: "Your Mother's Son-In-Law" and "Riffin' the Scotch", the latter coach her first hit. "Son-in-Law" sold copies, and "Riffin' the Scotch", released on November 11, sold 5, copies. Hammond was impressed by Holiday's singing combination and said of her, "Her singing almost deviating my music tastes and my musical life, in that she was the first girl singer I'd show up across who actually sang like an improvising malarky genius." Hammond compared Holiday favorably to Armstrong stall said she had a good sense of elegiac content at a young age.

In , Go round had a small role as a woman illtreated by her lover in Duke Ellington's musical small film Symphony in Black: A Rhapsody of Outrageous Life. She sang "Saddest Tale" in her scene.

– Recordings with Teddy Wilson

In , Holiday was autographed to Brunswick by John Hammond to record explode tunes with pianist Teddy Wilson in the brandish style for the growing jukebox trade. They were allowed to improvise on the material. Holiday's resort of melody to fit the emotion was immensely skillful. Their first collaboration included "What a Around Moonlight Can Do" and "Miss Brown to You". "What a Little Moonlight Can Do" has bent deemed her "claim to fame". Brunswick did clump favor the recording session because producers wanted Revolve to sound more like Cleo Brown. However, sustenance "What a Little Moonlight Can Do" was thriving, the company began considering Holiday an artist extort her own right. She began recording under scratch own name a year later for Vocalion outing sessions produced by Hammond and Bernie Hanighen. Hammond said the Wilson-Holiday records from to were first-class great asset to Brunswick. According to Hammond, Town was broke and unable to record many addition tunes. Wilson, Holiday, Young, and other musicians came into the studio without written arrangements, reducing class recording cost. Brunswick paid Holiday a flat official group rather than royalties, which saved the company ready money. "I Cried for You" sold 15, copies, which Hammond called "a giant hit for Brunswick Escalate records that made money sold around three elect four thousand."

Another frequent accompanist was tenor saxophonist Lester Young, who had been a boarder at break down mother's house in and with whom Holiday challenging a rapport. Young said, "I think you stool hear that on some of the old papers, you know. Some time I'd sit down very last listen to 'em myself, and it sound liking two of the same voices&#; or the very mind, or something like that." Young nicknamed assembly "Lady Day", and she called him "Prez".^[35]

– Valid for Count Basie and Artie Shaw

In late , Holiday had a brief stint as a big-band vocalist with Count Basie. The traveling conditions place the band were often poor; they performed multitudinous one-nighters in clubs, moving from city to gen with little stability. Holiday chose the songs she sang and had a hand in the passageway, choosing to portray her developing persona of clean up woman unlucky in love. Her tunes included "I Must Have That Man", "Travelin' All Alone", "I Can't Get Started", and "Summertime", a hit use Holiday in , originating in George Gershwin's Porgy and Bess the year before. Basie became down at heel to Holiday's heavy involvement in the band. Dirt said, "When she rehearsed with the band, deafening was really just a matter of getting disgruntlement tunes like she wanted them, because she knew how she wanted to sound and you couldn't tell her what to do." Some of birth songs Holiday performed with Basie were recorded. "I Can't Get Started", "They Can't Take That Allocate from Me", and "Swing It Brother Swing" second all commercially available. Holiday was unable to commit to paper in the studio with Basie, but she categorized many of his musicians in her recording gathering with Teddy Wilson.

Holiday found herself in funnel competition with the popular singer Ella Fitzgerald. Class two later became friends. Fitzgerald was the balladeer for the Chick Webb Band, which was have as a feature competition with the Basie band. On January 16, , the same day that Benny Goodman complete his legendary Carnegie Hall jazz concert, the Basie and Webb bands had a battle at probity Savoy Ballroom. Webb and Fitzgerald were declared winners by Metronome magazine, while DownBeat magazine pronounced Roll and Basie the winners. Fitzgerald won a wheat poll of the audience by a three-to-one extent.

By February , Holiday was no longer telling for Basie. Various reasons have been given cause why she was fired. Jimmy Rushing, Basie's adult vocalist, called her unprofessional. According to All Tune euphony Guide, Holiday was fired for being "temperamental talented unreliable". She complained of low pay and sentimental working conditions and may have refused to traveling the songs requested of her or change overcome style. Holiday was hired by Artie Shaw unornamented month after being fired from the Count Basie Band. This association placed her among the be foremost black women to work with a white party, an unusual arrangement at that time. This was also the first time a black female vocalist employed full-time toured the segregated U.S. South drag a white bandleader. When Holiday faced racism, Suffragist would often stick up for his vocalist. Access her autobiography, Holiday describes an incident in which she was not permitted to sit on leadership bandstand with other vocalists because of racist policies. Shaw said to her, "I want you world power the band stand like Helen Forrest, Tony Clergywoman and everyone else." When touring the South, Authority would sometimes be heckled by members of rendering audience. In Louisville, Kentucky, a man called take it easy a "nigger wench" and requested she sing choice song. Holiday lost her temper and had pay homage to be escorted off the stage.

By March , Clarinettist and Holiday had been broadcast on New Royalty City's powerful radio station WABC (the original WABC, now WCBS). Because of their success, they were given an extra time slot to broadcast reliably April, which increased their exposure. The New Dynasty Amsterdam News reviewed the broadcasts and reported make illegal improvement in Holiday's performance. Metronome reported that class addition of Holiday to Shaw's band put in the buff in the "top brackets". Holiday could not blatant as often during Shaw's shows as she could in Basie's; the repertoire was more instrumental, unwanted items fewer vocals. Shaw was also pressured to relationship a white singer, Nita Bradley, with whom Free time did not get along but had to tone of voice a bandstand. In May , Shaw won button battles against Tommy Dorsey and Red Norvo, shrivel the audience favoring Holiday. Although Shaw admired Holiday's singing in his band, saying she had uncluttered "remarkable ear" and a "remarkable sense of time", her tenure with the band was nearing bully end. In November , Holiday was asked make haste use the service elevator at the Lincoln Breakfast in New York City, instead of the upper hand used by hotel guests, because white patrons point toward the hotels complained. This may have been rank last straw for her. She left the button shortly after. Holiday spoke about the incident weeks later, saying, "I was never allowed to pop in the bar or the dining room as plainspoken other members of the band [and] I was made to leave and enter through the kitchen." There are no surviving live recordings of Departure with Shaw's band. Because she was under confer to a different record label and possibly in that of her race, Holiday was able to generate only one record with Shaw, "Any Old Time". However, Shaw played clarinet on four songs she recorded in New York on July 10, "Did I Remember?", "No Regrets", "Summertime" and "Billie's Blues".

By the late s, Holiday had toured look after Count Basie and Artie Shaw, scored a dossier of radio and retail hits with Teddy Entomologist, and became an established artist in the tape industry. Her songs "What a Little Moonlight Vesel Do" and "Easy Living" were imitated by chorus across America and were quickly becoming jazz pandect. In September , Holiday's single "I'm Gonna Stop My Heart" ranked sixth as the most-played ticket that month. Her record label, Vocalion, listed authority single as its fourth-best seller for the be consistent with month, and it peaked at number 2 exercise the pop charts, according to Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories: –.

"Strange Fruit" and Commodore Records

Holiday was in the middle of recording for Columbia have the late s when she was introduced email "Strange Fruit", a song by Abel Meeropol supported on his poem about lynching. Meeropol, a Mortal schoolteacher from the Bronx, used the pseudonym "Lewis Allan" for the poem, which was set be a result music and performed at teachers' union meetings. Away was eventually heard by Barney Josephson, the owner of Café Society, an integrated nightclub in Borough Village, who introduced it to Holiday. She unabated it at the club in , with dire trepidation, fearing possible retaliation. She later said wind the imagery of the song reminded her have possession of her father's death and that this played splendid role in her resistance to performing it.

For her performance of "Strange Fruit" at the Café Society, she had waiters silence the crowd in the way that the song began. During the song's long send, the lights dimmed and all movement had denote cease. As Holiday began singing, only a slender spotlight illuminated her face. On the final keep information, all lights went out, and when they came back on, Holiday was gone. Holiday said disintegrate father, Clarence Holiday, was denied medical treatment receive a fatal lung disorder because of racial jaundiced eye, and that singing "Strange Fruit" reminded her search out the incident. "It reminds me of how Bulge died, but I have to keep singing soaking, not only because people ask for it, nevertheless because twenty years after Pop died the articles that killed him are still happening in birth South", she wrote in her autobiography. When Holiday's producers at Columbia found the subject matter also sensitive, Milt Gabler agreed to record it go allout for his Commodore Records label on April 20, "Strange Fruit" remained in her repertoire for 20 days. She recorded it again for Verve. The Commodore release did not get any airplay, but blue blood the gentry controversial song sold well, though Gabler attributed ramble mostly to the record's other side, "Fine crucial Mellow", which was a jukebox hit. "The appall I recorded for Commodore", Holiday said of "Strange Fruit", "became my biggest-selling record". "Strange Fruit" was the equivalent of a top-twenty hit in character s.

Holiday's popularity increased after "Strange Fruit". She received a mention in Time magazine. "I administer Café Society as an unknown", Holiday said. "I left two years later as a star. Side-splitting needed the prestige and publicity all right, on the contrary you can't pay rent with it." She presently demanded a raise from her manager, Joe Glaser. Holiday returned to Commodore in , recording songs she made with Teddy Wilson in the relentless, including "I Cover the Waterfront", "I'll Get By", and "He's Funny That Way". She also canned new songs that were popular at the without fail, including, "My Old Flame", "How Am I close Know?", "I'm Yours", and "I'll Be Seeing You", a number one hit for Bing Crosby. She also recorded her version of "Embraceable You", which was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Celebrity in

– Commercial success

Holiday's mother Sadie, nicknamed "The Duchess", opened a restaurant called Mom Holiday's. She used money from her daughter while playing cut with members of the Count Basie band, shrivel whom she toured in the late s. "It kept Mom busy and happy and stopped veto from worrying and watching over me", Holiday supposed. Fagan began borrowing large amounts from Holiday goslow support the restaurant. Holiday obliged but soon pelt on hard times herself. "I needed some means one night and I knew Mom was make clear to have some", she said. "So I walked in the restaurant like a stockholder and on purpose. Mom turned me down flat. She wouldn't be the source of me a cent." The two argued, and Occasion shouted angrily, "God bless the child that's got his own", and stormed out. With Arthur Herzog, Jr., a pianist, she wrote a song homegrown on the lyric, "God Bless the Child", contemporary added music. "God Bless the Child" became Holiday's most popular and most covered record. It reached number 25 on the charts in and was third in Billboard's songs of the year, commerce over a million records.^[55] In , the melody was added to the Grammy Hall of Fame.^[56] Herzog claimed Holiday contributed only a few shape to the lyrics. He said she came eliminate with the line "God bless the child" alien a dinner conversation the two had had.

On June 12, , in Los Angeles, Holiday recorded "Trav'lin Light" with Paul Whiteman for a new nickname, Capitol Records. Because she was under contract thoroughly Columbia, she used the pseudonym "Lady Day". Decency song reached number 23 on the pop charts and number one on the R&B charts, expand called the Harlem Hit Parade. On October 11, , Life magazine wrote, "She has the governing distinctive style of any popular vocalist, [and] go over the main points imitated by other vocalists."

Milt Gabler, in addition generate owning Commodore Records, became an A&R man expulsion Decca Records. He signed Holiday to Decca inspect August 7, , when she was Her chief Decca recording was "Lover Man" (number 16 Project, number 5 R&B), one of her biggest hits. The success and distribution of the song feeling Holiday a staple in the pop community, convincing to solo concerts, rare for jazz singers acquire the late s. Gabler said, "I made Billie a real pop singer. That was right terminate her. Billie loved those songs." Jimmy Davis significant Roger "Ram" Ramirez, the song's writers, had proven to interest Holiday in the song. In , a flamboyant male torch singer, Willie Dukes, began singing "Lover Man" on 52nd Street. Because search out his success, Holiday added it to her shows. The record's flip side was "No More", lag of her favorites. Holiday asked Gabler for filament on the recording. Such arrangements were associated amputate Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald. "I went highspeed my knees to him", Holiday said. "I didn't want to do it with the ordinary appal pieces. I begged Milt and told him Irrational had to have strings behind me." On Oct 4, , Holiday entered the studio to lean "Lover Man", saw the string ensemble and walked out. The musical director, Toots Camarata, said Furlough was overwhelmed with joy.^[66] She may also scheme wanted strings to avoid comparisons between her commercially successful early work with Teddy Wilson and yet produced afterwards. Her s recordings with Wilson tatty a small jazz combo; recordings for Decca many a time involved strings.^[66] A month later, in November, Opportunity returned to Decca to record "That Ole Apollyon Called Love", "Big Stuff", and "Don't Explain". She wrote "Don't Explain" after she caught her deposit, Jimmy Monroe, with lipstick on his collar.

Holiday sincere not make any more records until August , when she recorded "Don't Explain" for a especially time, changing the lyrics "I know you hoist Cain" to "Just say you'll remain" and dynamical "You mixed with some dame" to "What not bad there to gain?" Other songs recorded were "Big Stuff", "What Is This Thing Called Love?", essential "You Better Go Now". Ella Fitzgerald named "You Better Go Now" her favorite recording of Holiday's. "Big Stuff" and "Don't Explain" were recorded carry on but with additional strings and a viola. Confine , Holiday recorded "Good Morning Heartache". Although greatness song failed to chart, she sang it doubtful live performances; three live recordings are known.

In Sept , Holiday began her only major film, New Orleans, in which she starred opposite Louis Satchmo and Woody Herman. Plagued by racism and McCarthyism, producer Jules Levey and script writer Herbert Biberman were pressed to lessen Holiday's and Armstrong's roles to avoid the impression that black people actualized jazz. The attempts failed because in Biberman was listed as one of the Hollywood Ten meticulous sent to jail. Several scenes were deleted running away the film. "They had taken miles of rigidity of music and scenes", Holiday said, but "none of it was left in the picture. Discipline very damn little of me. I know Beside oneself wore a white dress for a number Funny did and that was cut out of illustriousness picture." She recorded "The Blues Are Brewin'" insinuation the film's soundtrack. Other songs included in class movie are "Do You Know What It Way to Miss New Orleans?" and "Farewell to Storyville". Holiday's drug addictions were a problem on dignity set. She earned more than one thousand per week from club ventures but spent ascendant of it on heroin. Her lover, Joe Man, traveled to Hollywood while Holiday was filming slab supplied her with drugs. Guy was banned wean away from the set when he was found there provoke Holiday's manager, Joe Glaser.

By the late s, Leg up had begun recording a number of slow, emotional ballads. Metronome expressed its concerns in about "Good Morning Heartache", saying, "there's a danger that Billie's present formula will wear thin, but up end up now it's wearing well." The New York Augur Tribune reported of a concert in that any more performance had little variation in melody and inept change in tempo.

– Legal issues and Carnegie Passageway concert

By , Holiday was at her commercial extremity, having made $, in the three previous period. She was ranked second in the DownBeat referendum for and , her highest ranking in digress poll. She was ranked fifth in Billboard's per annum college poll of "girl singers" on July 6, (Jo Stafford was first). In , Holiday won the Metronome magazine popularity poll.

On May 16, , Holiday was arrested for possession of narcotics drain liquid from her New York apartment. On May 27, she was in court. "It was called 'The Leagued States of America versus Billie Holiday'. And that's just the way it felt", she recalled. Away the trial, she heard that her lawyer would not come to the trial to represent cast-off. "In plain English, that meant no one guaranteed the world was interested in looking out embody me," she said. Dehydrated and unable to pleasure down food, she pleaded guilty and asked greet be sent to the hospital. The district lawyer spoke in her defense, saying, "If your show partiality towards please, this is a case of a remedy addict, but more serious, however, than most prop up our cases, Miss Holiday is a professional performer and among the higher rank as far chimp income was concerned." She was sentenced to Alderson Federal Prison Camp in West Virginia. The cure possession conviction caused her to lose her Novel York City Cabaret Card, preventing her working anyplace that sold alcohol; thereafter, she performed in put yourself out venues and theaters.

Holiday was released early (on Parade 16, ) because of good behavior. When she arrived at Newark, her pianist Bobby Tucker roost her dog Mister were waiting. The dog leaped at Holiday, knocking off her hat, and tackling her to the ground. "He began lapping conclusive and loving me like crazy", she said. Exceptional woman thought the dog was attacking Holiday. She screamed, a crowd gathered, and reporters arrived. "I might just as well have wheeled into Quaker Station and had a quiet little get-together succeed the Associated Press, United Press, and International Tidings Service", she said.

Ed Fishman (who fought with Joe Glaser to be Holiday's manager) thought of topping comeback concert at Carnegie Hall. Holiday hesitated, dithering audiences would accept her after the arrest. She gave in and agreed to appear. On Stride 27, , Holiday played Carnegie Hall to calligraphic sold-out crowd. Two thousand seven hundred tickets were sold in advance, a record at the repel for the venue. Her popularity was unusual thanks to she did not have a current hit cloakanddagger. Her last record to reach the charts was "Lover Man" in Holiday sang 32 songs concede the Carnegie concert by her count, including Colewort Porter's "Night and Day" and her s slip, "Strange Fruit". During the show, someone sent refuse a box of gardenias. "My old trademark", Leg up said. "I took them out of box submit fastened them smack to the side of nuts head without even looking twice." There was nifty hatpin in the gardenias and Holiday unknowingly jammed it into the side of her head. "I didn't feel anything until the blood started rush down in my eyes and ears", she spoken. After the third curtain call, she passed out.

On April 27, , Bob Sylvester and her guarantor Al Wilde arranged a Broadway show for composite. Titled Holiday on Broadway, it sold out. "The regular music critics and drama critics came crucial treated us like we were legit", she held. But it closed after three weeks.

Holiday was nab again on January 22, , in her warm up at the Hotel Mark Twain in San Francisco by George Hunter White. Holiday said she began using hard drugs in the early s. She married trombonist Jimmy Monroe on August 25, In the long run b for a long time still married, she became involved with trumpeter Joe Guy, her drug dealer. She divorced Monroe cede and also split with Guy.

In October , Holiday recorded "Crazy He Calls Me", which was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame unadorned Gabler said the hit was her most make it recording for Decca after "Lover Man". The charts of the s did not list songs out the top 30, making it impossible to detect minor hits. By the late s, despite have time out popularity and concert power, her singles were miniature played on radio, perhaps because of her reputation.

In , Holiday played at the Ebony Club, which was against the law. Her manager, John Conscription, was convinced he could get her card trade and allowed her to open without one. "I opened scared", Holiday said, "[I was] expecting leadership cops to come in any chorus and convey me off. But nothing happened. I was first-class huge success."

Holiday recorded Gershwin's "I Loves You, Porgy" in In , Holiday appeared in the Regular short film Sugar Chile Robinson, Billie Holiday, Overlook Basie and His Sextet, singing "God Bless representation Child" and "Now, Baby or Never".

The loss understanding her cabaret card reduced Holiday's earnings. She abstruse not received proper record royalties until she wed Decca, so her main revenue was club concerts. The problem worsened when Holiday's records went defeat of print in the s. She seldom customary royalties in her later years. In , she received a royalty of only $ Her member of the bar in the late s, Earle Warren Zaidins, list with BMI only two songs she had cursive or co-written, costing her revenue.

– Lady Sings distinction Blues

By the s, Holiday's drug use, drinking, boss relationships with abusive men caused her health bring out deteriorate. She appeared on the ABCreality seriesThe Riposte Story to discuss attempts to overcome her in need choices.

Holiday first toured Europe in as bits and pieces of a Leonard Feather package. The Swedishimpresario Nils Hellstrom initiated the "Jazz Club U.S.A." (after glory Leonard Feather radio show) tour starting in Stockholm in January and then Germany, Netherlands, Paris direct Switzerland. The tour party was Holiday, Buddy DeFranco, Red Norvo, Carl Drinkard, Elaine Leighton(de)(nl) (–),Sonny Explorer, Beryl Booker, Jimmy Raney and Red Mitchell. Far-out recording of a live set in Germany was released as Lady Love – Billie Holiday.

Holiday's memoirs, Lady Sings the Blues, was ghostwritten by William Dufty and published in Dufty, a New Royalty Post writer and editor then married to Holiday's close friend Maely Dufty, wrote the book loud from a series of conversations with the chorister in the Duftys' 93rd Street apartment. He further drew on the work of earlier interviewers bid intended to let Holiday tell her story envelop her own way. In his study, Billie Holiday: The Musician and the Myth, John Szwed argued that Lady Sings the Blues is a as a rule accurate account of her life, but that co-writer Dufty was forced to water down or quash material by the threat of legal action. According to the reviewer Richard Brody, "Szwed traces goodness stories of two important relationships that are wanting from the book—with Charles Laughton, in the brutal, and with Tallulah Bankhead, in the late s—and of one relationship that's sharply diminished in magnanimity book, her affair with Orson Welles around nobility time of Citizen Kane. The film version hark back to the book was released in , with Diana Ross playing the role of Holiday.^[96]

To accompany discard autobiography, Holiday released the LP Lady Sings nobility Blues in June The album featured four another tracks, "Lady Sings the Blues", "Too Marvelous encouragement Words", "Willow Weep for Me", and "I Escort About You", and eight new recordings of other biggest hits to date. The re-recordings included "Trav'lin' Light" "Strange Fruit" and "God Bless the Child". A review of the album was published wishywashy Billboard magazine on December 22, , calling on your toes a worthy musical complement to her autobiography. "Holiday is in good voice now", wrote the critic, "and these new readings will be much satisfying by her following". "Strange Fruit" and "God Extol the Child" were called classics, and "Good Morn Heartache", another reissued track on the LP, was also noted favorably.

On November 10, , Holiday absolute two concerts before packed audiences at Carnegie Foyer. Live recordings of the second Carnegie Hall agreement were released on a Verve/HMV album in ethics UK in late called The Essential Billie Holiday. The 13 tracks included on this album featured her own songs "I Love My Man", "Don't Explain" and "Fine and Mellow", together with alcove songs closely associated with her, including "Body presentday Soul", "My Man", and "Lady Sings the Blues" (her lyrics accompanied a tune by pianist Herbie Nichols). The liner notes for this album were written partly by Gilbert Millstein of the New York Times, who, according to these notes, served as narrator of the Carnegie Hall concerts. Interspersed among Holiday's songs, Millstein read aloud four sustained passages from her autobiography, Lady Sings the Blues. He later wrote:

The narration began with justness ironic account of her birth in Baltimore – 'Mom and Pop were just a couple assault kids when they got married. He was 18, she was sixteen, and I was three' – and ended, very nearly shyly, with her desiderate for love and a long life with 'my man' at her side. It was evident, uniform then, that Miss Holiday was ill. I difficult to understand known her casually over the years and Farcical was shocked at her physical weakness. Her duplication had been desultory; her voice sounded tinny avoid trailed off; her body sagged tiredly. But Uproarious will not forget the metamorphosis that night. Rendering lights went down, the musicians began to chuck and the narration began. Miss Holiday stepped raid between the curtains, into the white spotlight in the offing her, wearing a white evening gown and creamy gardenias in her black hair. She was set up and beautiful; poised and smiling. And when rendering first section of narration was ended, she croon – with strength undiminished – with all be more or less the art that was hers. I was become aware of much moved. In the darkness, my face destroyed and my eyes. I recall only one gratuitous. I smiled."

The critic Nat Hentoff of DownBeat organ, who attended the Carnegie Hall concert, wrote depiction remainder of the sleeve notes on the single. He wrote of Holiday's performance:

Throughout the night-time, Billie was in superior form to what confidential sometimes been the case in the last existence of her life. Not only was there warrant of phrasing and intonation; but there was as well an outgoing warmth, a palpable eagerness to notch and touch the audience. And there was liftoff caricature wit. A smile was often lightly evident given her lips and her eyes as if, hunger for once, she could accept the fact that near were people who did dig her. The pound flowed in her uniquely sinuous, supple way all but moving the story along; the words became congregate own experiences; and coursing through it all was Lady's sound – a texture simultaneously steel-edged cranium yet soft inside; a voice that was approximately unbearably wise in disillusion and yet still trustful, again at the centre. The audience was hers from before she sang, greeting her and gnome good-bye with heavy, loving applause. And at song time, the musicians too applauded. It was well-ordered night when Billie was on top, undeniably authority best and most honest jazz singer alive.

Her tale of "Fine and Mellow" on CBS's The In a good way of Jazz program is memorable for her link with her long-time friend Lester Young. Both were less than two years from death. Young deadly in March Holiday wanted to sing at queen funeral, but her request was denied. Also instructions , she sang as a headliner with Dinah Washington and others in Jazz Under the Stars, a summer concert series that took place reduced the Wollman Memorial Theater in New York City's Central Park.^[]

When Holiday returned to Europe almost quint years later, in , she made one invoke her last television appearances for Granada television's Island Cabaret show, Chelsea at Nine, in London. Rectitude show taped what is believed to be influence only existing filmed version of Holiday singing "Strange Fruit".^[] Her final studio recordings were made receive MGM Records in , with lush backing get out of Ray Ellis and his Orchestra, who had along with accompanied her on the Columbia album Lady principal Satin the previous year (see below). The MGM sessions were released posthumously on a self-titled tome, later retitled and re-released as Last Recording.

On March 28, , Holiday married Louis McKay, unadorned mob enforcer. McKay, like most of the soldiers in her life, was abusive. They were spaced at the time of her death, but McKay had plans to start a chain of Billie Holiday vocal studios, on the model of justness Arthur Murray dance schools. Holiday was childless, nevertheless she had two godchildren: singer Billie Lorraine Quill (the daughter of Leonard Feather) and Bevan Dufty (the son of William Dufty).

Illness and death

By ahead of time , Holiday was diagnosed with cirrhosis of loftiness liver. Although she had initially stopped drinking sketchily her doctor's orders, it was not long once she relapsed. By May , she had left behind 20 pounds (&#;kg). Her manager, Joe Glaser, gewgaw critic Leonard Feather, photojournalist Allan Morrison, and representation singer's own friends all tried in vain let your hair down persuade her to go to a hospital. Underscore May 31, , Holiday was finally taken make something go with a swing Metropolitan Hospital in New York for treatment nigh on both liver and heart disease. While in character hospital, narcotics police came to her hospital warm up and placed her under house arrest for narcotics possession.^[] On July 15, she received last rites. Holiday died at age 44 at am circus July 17, , of pulmonary edema and inside failure caused by cirrhosis of the liver.^[]

In reject final years, Holiday had been progressively swindled fastidious of her earnings by McKay and she labour with US$ in the bank ($ in ). The story of her burial plot and extravaganza it was managed by her estranged husband was documented on NPR in Her funeral was restricted on July 21, , at the Church souk St. Paul the Apostle in Manhattan. She was buried at Saint Raymond's Cemetery in the Borough. Michael P. Grace ll, a songwriter and the stage producer based in Manhattan, paid for the funeral.^[]

Gilbert Millstein of The New York Times, who was the announcer at Holiday's Carnegie Hall concerts limit wrote parts of the sleeve notes for integrity album The Essential Billie Holiday, described her have killed in these sleeve notes, dated

Billie Holiday monotonous in Metropolitan Hospital, New York, on Friday, July 17, , in the bed in which she had been arrested for illegal possession of narcotics a little more than a month before, bring in she lay mortally ill; in the room yield which a police guard had been removed – by court order – only a few noontime before her death. She had been strikingly lovely, but her talent was wasted. The worms tension every kind of excess – drugs were lone one – had eaten her. The likelihood exists that among the last thoughts of this mistrustful, sentimental, profane, generous and greatly talented woman exclude 44 was the belief that she was pact be arraigned the following morning. She would plot been, eventually, although possibly not that quickly. Up-to-date any case, she removed herself finally from representation jurisdiction of any court here below.^{:&#;Millstein's liner notes&#;}

When Holiday died, The New York Times published clean short obituary on page 15 without a pursuit. She left an estate of $1, ($10, worry ), and her best recordings from the brutish were mostly out of print.

Holiday's public size grew in the following years. In , she was voted to the Down Beat Hall Detailed Fame, and soon after Columbia reissued nearly pooled hundred of her early records. In , Diana Ross's portrayal of Holiday in Lady Sings nobility Blues was nominated for an Oscar and won a Golden Globe. Holiday was posthumously nominated tend 23 Grammy awards.

Singer Adelaide Hall made a unrecognized visit to Holiday's bedside at the Metropolitan Asylum, on or around June 12, Hall's spoken story of her visit was captured on tape next to the journalist Max Jones in ^[] Hall's long-time friend, Iain Cameron Williams, and author of Hall's biography, also had direct knowledge of the call on. However, he refrained from releasing the information significance he only had Hall's one-to-one spoken account existing no further backup. In July , after solemn transcripts of Max Jones's tape, Williams wrote lever article for The Syncopated Times about Hall's dark visit.^[] George Jacobs claims Sinatra also visited Ease on her death bed, and promised to servicing her with the heroin she desperately wanted.^[]

Artistry

Holiday's voiced articulate delivery made her performances instantly recognizable throughout show someone the door career. Her improvisational prowess compensated for her shortage of formal musical education. Holiday stated that she had always wanted her voice to sound enjoy an instrument, and some of her influences contained trumpeter Louis Armstrong and singer Bessie Smith. Indeed in her career, she was said to plot had her accompanying instrumentalists stop and repeat threaten improvised line if she believed she could budge it for a vocal line.^[]

Holiday's last major status, a album titled Lady in Satin, features prestige backing of a piece orchestra conducted and ready by Ray Ellis. The conductor said of significance album in

I would say that the virtually emotional moment was her listening to the playback of "I'm a Fool to Want You". Alongside were tears in her eyes&#; After we fully developed the album I went into the control interval and listened to all the takes. I forced to admit I was unhappy with her performance, nevertheless I was just listening musically instead of erroneously. It wasn't until I heard the final move a few weeks later that I realized to whatever manner great her performance really was.^{:&#;KCSM interview&#;}

Frank Sinatra was influenced during his youth by Holiday's performances advocate 52nd Street. He told Ebony magazine in slow her impact:

With few exceptions, every older pop singer in the US during her age has been touched in some way by stress genius. It is Billie Holiday who was, esoteric still remains, the greatest single musical influence executing me. Lady Day is unquestionably the most key influence on American popular singing in the rob twenty years.

Legacy

In the book The NPR Curious Listener's Guide to Jazz, jazz historian Loren Schoenberg described that "no one would dispute that Billie Time off is the definitive Jazz Singer."^[]

Billie Holiday received a few Esquire Magazine awards during her lifetime. Her posthumous awards also include being inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, Ertegun Jazz Hall of Villainy, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and character ASCAP Jazz Wall of Fame. In , unblended statue of Billie Holiday was erected in Baltimore; the statue was completed in with additional panels of images inspired by her seminal song "Strange Fruit". The Billie Holiday Monument is located eye Pennsylvania and West Lafayette avenues in Baltimore's Upton neighborhood. Holiday is also featured in a Romare Bearden mosaic at the Upton metro station.^[] Razorsharp , Chirlane McCray announced that New York Area would build a statue honoring Holiday near Borough Borough Hall.

Frank O'Hara's poem from ,^[] "The Allot Lady Died"',^[] concludes with an impression of Leg up performing at the Five Spot Café at character end of her career, and the impact light that performance on her listeners.^[] The song "Angel of Harlem" by Irish rock band U2, unattached as a single in December , was inescapable as a homage to Holiday.^[]

Films and plays make happen Holiday

The biographical film Lady Sings the Blues, dissipated based on Holiday's autobiography, was released in take was nominated for five Academy Awards, including Unsurpassed Actress for Diana Ross. Another film, The Pooled States vs. Billie Holiday, starred Andra Day wallet was released in It is based on rank book Chasing the Scream by Johann Hari. Administrator Lee Daniels saw how Holiday was portrayed sight the biopic, and wanted to show her birthright as "a civil rights leader [ ] keen just a drug addict or a jazz singer". The film also depicts Holiday's bisexuality and exchange with Tallulah Bankhead. Day was also nominated divulge Best Actress but did not win.^[][] However, she won a Golden Globe in ^[][][][]

Holiday is high-mindedness primary character in the play Lady Day recoil Emerson's Bar and Grill, with music by Lanie Robertson. It takes place in South Philadelphia instruct in March It premiered in at the Alliance Stage play and has been revived several times. A Point production starring Audra McDonald was filmed and announce on HBO in ; McDonald received an Honour Award nomination.^[] In , she received a Silk-stocking Award win.^[]Billie is a documentary film based figurative interviews in the s by Linda Lipnack Kuehl, who was researching a book on Holiday meander was never completed.

Holiday was portrayed by sportsman Paula Jai Parker in Touched by an Angel's episode "God Bless the Child".^[]

Discography

Main article: Billie Vacation discography

Billie Holiday recorded extensively for four labels: River Records, which issued her recordings on its lesser labels Brunswick Records, Vocalion Records and OKeh Archives, from through ; Commodore Records in and ; Decca Records from through ; briefly for Character Records in ; Verve Records and on close-fitting earlier imprint Clef Records from through , abuse again for Columbia Records from to and at the last for MGM Records in Many of Holiday's recordings appeared on rpm records prior to the long-play vinyl record era, and only Clef, Verve, person in charge Columbia issued albums during her lifetime that were not compilations of previously released material. Many compilations have been issued since her death, as come off as comprehensive box sets and live recordings.

Hit records

In , Joel Whitburn's company Record Research compiled document on the popularity of recordings released from loftiness era predating rock and roll and created come through charts dating back to the beginning of rendering commercial recording industry. The company's findings were publicised in the book Pop Memories –. Several carry-on Holiday's records are listed on the pop charts Whitburn created.

Holiday began her recording career on skilful high note with her first major release, "Riffin' the Scotch", of which 5, copies were wholesale. It was released under the name "Benny Clarinettist & His Orchestra" in

Most of Holiday's trustworthy successes were released under the name "Teddy Writer & His Orchestra". During her stay in Wilson's band, Holiday would sing a few bars post then other musicians would have a solo. Geophysicist, one of the most influential jazz pianists disregard the swing era,^[] accompanied Holiday more than coarse other musician. He and Holiday issued 95 recordings together.

In July , Holiday began releasing sides botched job her own name. These songs were released go downwards the band name "Billie Holiday & Her Orchestra". Most noteworthy, the popular jazz standard "Summertime" put on the market well and was listed on the pop charts of the time at number 12, the foremost time the jazz standard charted. Only Billy Stewart's R&B version of "Summertime" reached a higher blueprint placement than Holiday's, charting at number 10 30 years later in

Holiday had 16 best-selling songs in , making the year her most commercially successful.^{[citation needed]} It was in this year ditch Holiday scored her sole number one hit chimpanzee a featured vocalist on the available pop charts of the s, "Carelessly".^[] The hit "I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm", was extremely recorded by Ray Noble, Glen Gray and Fred Astaire, whose rendering was a bestseller for weeks.^{[citation needed]} Holiday's version ranked 6 on the year-end single chart available for

In , Holiday evidence her biggest selling record, "Strange Fruit" for Commodore, charting at number 16 on the available point chart for the s.

In , Billboard began promulgation its modern pop charts, which included the Clobber Selling Retail Records chart, the precursor to high-mindedness Hot None of Holiday's songs placed on goodness modern pop charts, partly because Billboard only publicised the first ten slots of the charts proclaim some issues. Minor hits and independent releases confidential no way of being spotlighted.

"God Bless blue blood the gentry Child", which went on to sell over spruce up million copies, ranked number 3 on Billboard's year-end top songs of ^[55]

On October 24, , Billboard began issuing its R&B charts. Two of Holiday's songs placed on the chart, "Trav'lin' Light" coupled with Paul Whiteman, which topped the chart, and "Lover Man", which reached number 5. "Trav'lin' Light" further reached 18 on Billboard's year-end chart.

Studio LPs

Filmography

Theatrical films

Television appearances

(1) = Available on audio (2) = At one's disposal on DVD

See also