Biography

A powerful and sensitive jazz song stylist, singer Carmen McRae got her start as a piano player and songwriter ("Dream of Life") in the 1940s, gradually expanding her circle of influence throughout the '50s as a vocalist with Johnny Mercer, Duke Ellington, and Benny Carter. Though limited technically, her dramatic and nuanced readings of jazz standards placed her at the forefront of a group of peers that included Betty Carter and Nancy Wilson. McRae died in 1994, leaving a legacy of classic recordings.

Top Tracks

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• A Child Is Born

• A Fine Romance

• A Foggy Day (in London Town)

• All This Could Lead To Love

• Baby, It's Cold Outside

• Bess, You Is My Woman Now

• Blue Moon

• Body And Soul

• Breakfast In Bed

• Bye Bye Blackbird

• Comes Love

• Dear Ruby (ruby, My Dear)

• Dindi

• Don't Talk

• Dream Of Life

• Easy To Love

• Ellington Medley: Satin Doll/mood Indigo/i Don't Know About You/it Don'

• Exactly Like You

• Falling In Love With Love

• Fine And Mellow

• Flying

• For Once In My Life

• God Bless The Child

• Good Jelly Blues

• How Long Has This Been Going On?

• I Can't Get Started

• I Didn't Know What Time It Was

• I Don't Stand A Ghost Of A Chance With You

• I Got A Date With Rhythm

• I Have The Feeling I've Been Here Before

• I Hear Music

• I Only Have Eyes For You

• I Sold My Heart To The Junkman

• I Stay In The Mood For You

• I Thought About You

• I Thought I Knew You Well

• I Want You

• If That's The Way You Feel

• I'll Be Seeing You

• I'll Wait And Pray

• I'm A Dreamer

• I'm Always Drunk In San Francisco

• I'm An Errand Girl For Rhythm

• I'm Glad There Is You

• I'm Gonna Laugh You Right Out Of My Life

• I'm Putting All My Eggs In One Basket

• In Walked Bud

• It Could Happen To You

• It's Over Now

• Like A Lover

• Love For Sale

• Love Is Here To Stay

• Loverman

• Man, That Was A Dream

• Midnight Sun

• Miss Brown To You

• More Than You Know

• My Funny Valentine

• My Romance

• Nice Work If You Can Get It

• Old Devil Moon

• Opus X

• Paint Your Pretty Picture

• 'round Midnight

• Speak Low

• Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most

• Still We Dream (ugly Beauty)

• Summer Is Gone

• Summertime

• 'tain't Nobody's Bizness If I Do

• The Ballad Of Thelonious Monk

• The End Of A Beautiful Friendship

• The Real Thing Happened To Me

• The Shadow Of Your Smile

• The Sound Of Silence

• Them There Eyes

• These Foolish Things

• They Can't Take That Away From Me

• Tip Toe Gently

• Too Much In Love To Care

• Two Sleepy People

• Until The Real Thing Comes Along

• What Is There To Say?

• What Is This Thing Called Love?

• Whatever Lola Wants

• When Sunny Gets Blue

• When You Get Around To Me

• You And I

• You Know Who

• You'd Be So Easy To Love

• You're The Top

Discography

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• Riviera Summit

  Starburst Records (UK) / Starburst Recordings

  2001

• Carmen McRae & Her Trio Live

  Records

  1999

• Dream of Life

  Qwest / Warner Bros.

  1998

• Fine and Mellow: Live at Birdland West

  Concord Jazz / Concord

  1987

• Live at the Great American Music Hall, San Francisco

  Great American Music Hall

  1987

• Any Old Time

  Denon Records

  1986

• You're Lookin' at Me (A Collection of Nat King Cole Songs)

  Concord Jazz / Concord

  1983

• For Lady Day, Vol. 2

  Novus

  1983

• Heat Wave

  Concord Jazz

  1982

• Live at Bubba's

  Master Dance Tones

  1981

• Two for the Road

  Concord Jazz

  1980

• As Time Goes By: Live at the Dug

  JVC Compact Discs

  1977

• Can't Hide Love

  Blue Note

  1976

• At the Great American Music Hall

  Blue Note

  1976

• Carmen McRae: Live and Doin' It

  Mainstream

  1975

• I Am Music

  Blue Note

  1975

• November Girl

  Rearward

  1975

• It Takes a Whole Lot of Human Feelings

  Charly Records

  1973

• The Great American Songbook

  Atlantic

  1972

• In Person

  Mainstream

  1972

• Just a Little Lovin'

  Collectables

  1970

• Song Time

  Hindsight

  1969

• Sound of Silence

  1968

• Portrait of Carmen

  WEA/Warner

  1967

• For Once in My Life

  Atlantic

  1967

• Woman Talk: Live at the Village Gate

  Mainstream

  1965

• Alive!

  Legacy / Columbia/Legacy

  1965

• Haven't We Met?

  1965

• Second to None

  1965

• Alfie

  Copyright

  1965

• Bittersweet

  Koch Jazz / Koch Jazz

  1964

• Live at Sugar Hill, San Francisco

  STEREO TIM / Stereo Time

  1963

• Something Wonderful

  Collectables

  1962

• Take Five Live

  Columbia

  1961

• Sings Lover Man and Other Billie Holiday Classics

  Jazz

  1961

• Tonight Only

  Columbia

  1961

• Book of Ballads

  Universal Distribution

  1960

• When You're Away

  KAPP

  1960

• Something to Swing About

  1959

• Birds of a Feather

  Decca

  1958

• Carmen for Cool Ones

  1958

• Blue Moon

  Verve

  1957

• After Glow

  Decca

  1957

• Mad About the Man

  Decca

  1957

• Boy Meets Girl

  Decca

  1957

• Torchy!

  MCA Japan

  1955

• Easy to Love

  Bethlehem High Fidelity

  1954