Sings ballads for lovers

Ella Fitzgerald's life reads like a storybook. At the time she received her first break, she was a sixteen-years-old orphan living on the streets of New-York. "She didn't use soap and water"., said Charles Linton, a fellow singer from the Chick Webb orchestra. Born on April 25, 1918 in Newport News, Virginia (she died on June 15, 1996 at the age of 79), she grew up in abject poverty and taught herself to sing without any formal training. She had nothing, and was by no means beautiful, but her great musical talent was enough to make her win one of the most celebrated talent contest at the Apollo Theater in Harlem. In 1935, the famous drummer Chick Webb was looking for a girl singer for his orchestra and hired her. From then on, her fame continued to grow and when jazz producer Norman Granz took her under his wing, she became an international star celebrated everywhere she went to sing her songs. Besides playing and recording with the most prestigious musicians of the period, she participated in one of the most ambitious projects Granz ever attempted: the song book series. These were sets of albums, each devoted to songs by just a single composer or team of composers sung by Ella. Many of the ballads carefully chosen here belong to these song books, which present tunes by Cole Porter, Richard Rodgers & Lorenz Hart, Duke Ellington, and George and Ira Gershwin. Backing her on these sides - which primarily feature Ella in a small group format - are such giants as Ben Webster, Oscar Peterson, Barney Kessel and Stuff Smith, as well as her regular working rhythm section of the fifties, consisting of pianist Paul Smith, bassist Ray Brown (who has her husband), and drummer Louie Bellson.Including 12-page booklet with english and french liner.