Deedles blues lyrics diane schuur biography

American jazz musician (born 1953)

Musical artist

Diane Joan Schuur (born December 10, 1953), nicknamed "Deedles", is an American jazz singer and pianist. As of 2015, Schuur had released 23 albums, and had extended her jazz repertoire to include essences of Latin, gospel, pop and country music. Her most successful album is Diane Schuur & the Count Basie Orchestra, which remained number one on the Billboard Jazz Charts for 33 weeks. She won Grammy Awards for best female jazz vocal performance in both 1986 and 1987 and has had three other Grammy nominations.

Schuur has performed in venues such as Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, and the White House, and has performed with many artists including Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra, Quincy Jones, and Stevie Wonder. Co-performers on Schuur's albums have included Barry Manilow, José Feliciano, Maynard Ferguson, Stan Getz, Vince Gill, Alison Krauss, and B.B. King. Her album with B.B. King was number one on the Billboard Jazz Charts. She was Johnny Carson's guest on NBC's The Tonight Show eleven times.

Schuur has been blind from birth due to retinopathy of prematurity. She has absolute pitch memory and a clear vocal tone. In 1996, she was a guest performer on Sesame Street, where she was interviewed by Elmo and described to him how a blind person can learn to use other senses to adapt in the world. In 2000 she was awarded the Helen Keller Achievement Award by the American Foundation for the Blind.

Early life

Schuur was born on December 10, 1953, in Tacoma, Washington, two months premature and weighing less than three pounds. Complications of prematurity resulted in her total loss of vision. Her twin brother, David, had normal vision at birth but some hearing loss. She also has a younger sister. Schuur grew up in Auburn, Washington, a southern suburb of Seattle. She attended the Washington School for the Bli

Running On Faith includes blues, straight-ahead jazz, gospel and a few tunes that don’t fit a category. Opening with Percy Mayfield’s “Walking On A Tightrope” Schuur sings “the blues and I, we know each other,” commencing the arc of this musical journey. In addition to the reprise of the Dinah Washingt

Diana Schuur: A leading vocalist in contemporary jazz, Diane Schuur is as eclectic as she is brilliant.

Nicknamed “Deedles” as a child (her mother’s endearment), Tacoma-born Schuur grew up steeped in traditional American jazz, courtesy of both parents: David Schuur was a local police captain and amateur pianist, and Joanie Schuur kept a formidable collection of Duke Ellington and Dinah Washington albums in their suburban-Seattle home.

Not surprisingly, Dinah Washington is often listed as Schuur’s major vocal influence. She learned the iconic singer’s “What a Difference a Day Makes” while still a toddler and began developing her own rich, resonant vocal style. Jazziz Magazine describes her approach as one that encompasses her whole lifetime of singing: “Schuur’s vocal chops move from little-girl innocence to bawdy-mama blues in a hair’s breadth, but always at the service of the song.” Schuur is also an accomplished pianist, accompanying herself onstage as well as on many of her recording projects.

Her most recent album is an homage to two of her important mentors, both jazz giants: Frank Sinatra and Stan Getz. I Remember You (With Love To Stan and Frank), released in 2014, also commemorates her “official” discovery by towering sax virtuoso Getz at the 1979 Monterey Jazz Festival. “She’s consistently combined fine artistic efforts with the pizazz of an entertainer and held sway in both concert halls and small clubs,” observed All About Jazz’s Victor L. Schermer in his rave review. “Her style incorporates both subtle jazz interpretation and the power of rhythm and blues.”

I Remember You finds Schuur in an intimate setting, surrounded by her quintet, with compositions both understated and sophisticated. Featuring all-new arrangements by Grammy winner Alan Broadbent, the material blossoms under Schuur’s improvisational scatting and de

Born c. 1954; grew up in Auburn, WA; daughter of David (a police captain) and Joan Schuur. Education: Attended State School for the Blind, Vancouver, WA. Addresses: Publicist--Solters & Digney, 8383 Wilshire Blvd #649, Beverly Hills, CA 90211, website: http://www.solterspr.com. Website--Diane Schurr Official Website: http://www.dianeschuur.com.

Two-time Grammy winner Diane Schuur is considered one of contemporary jazz's leading vocalists. She has been compared to jazz greats Dinah Washington, Ella Fitzgerald, and Sarah Vaughan, and is noted for her expressive and powerful vocal deliveries. Blind from birth, the talented and effervescent singer, nicknamed "Deedles," has earned the admiration of many of jazz's greatest musicians. "Diane's got a great ear," saxophonist David Sanborn told Mary Huzinec in People. "She 's a natural singer with an easy way of phrasing in the tradition of the great song interpreters." Fellow saxophone master Stan Getz concurred. "She can sing almost any style, from scat to country ballads that can tear your heart out," he told Huzinec. "I n my opinion, Diane's got all the equipment to be one of the greats. She's the logical successor to Ella and Sarah."

Schuur grew up in suburban Seattle and was encouraged by both her parents to sing. Her early childhood music heroines were Vaughan and Washington, and Schuur's favorite song was the latter's "What a Difference a Day Makes." Teased by other children for singing like an adult, Schuur retreated to practicing in the closet to emulate her idols. Her mother heard her, as Schuur related to Paul Tough in Savvy: "One day my mom yanked me out of the closet and said 'Here's the micro phone. I'm going to put on a record, and you're going to sing it.'" Schuur complemented her singing with a few music lessons and by the time she was ten had largely taught herself the piano and was performing in local clubs. One memorable performance of h er early years was at the Tacoma (Washington) Holid