A "new" jazz singer for you guys to check out - Beverly Kenney

Sure, she's no Doris Day, but I think she's got a wonderful voice!

 

Sounded good,and no,I had never heard of her,and part of that may be because she committed suicide almost 55 years ago,depressed seeing her style of music give way to Elvis and the rest.Wiki says she performed an original composition "I Hate Rock 'N Roll" on a Steve Allen show,which figures since Steve really loathed R'N R(and I like Allen a lot).Wiki also states the fascination with her in Japan,which figures.She fits into that "mysterious,sultry,melancholy"style and with such a limited catalog,the potential unfulfilled life can be mesmerizing.Amazed that NPR hasn't investigated her life.
In passing,Doris Day indeed has wonderful chops and,though she had roots as a big band singer,I'd still file Doris in the pop/MOR,easy listening section.With just about anything I've heard from Ms. Day,she seems to be fittting into the arrangement.Ms.Kenney,however,is leading where the song is going to-the sign of a potentially great jazz performer.

 

I like her singing, I'm lucky to find all of her Decca and 2 of the LP's she did for Roost (I'm missing the Johnny Smith LP). She did have decent chops, Beverly Kenney was no Anita O'Day or Peggy Lee. Of all of her albums, my favorite one is "Beverly Kenney Sings For Playboys" with Ellis Larkins from 1957.



P.S. Her albums on the collector's market aren't cheap, a mint copy of the "Playboys" LP sold for $565.

 

Big fan here.

 

First heard about her about 4 or 5 years ago due to this Forum. Love her voice. Highly recommend the Roost and Decca compilations.

 

She kinda reminds me of Blossom Dearie who also has light, girlish voice

 

The only footage I've found of her on YT.

 

That Hefner guy doesn't help much.Better stick to his day job.Remember,hipsters didn't start in 2014.

 

Such a shame, it's too bad she couldn't have enough faith in her talents to not feel threatened by rock & roll and embrace it, the way the great Peggy Lee did, or at least learned to live with it like Sinatra. Anyway i think she sounds fabulous and i'll definitely be on the hunt for some of her material, THANKS to the OP.

 

She may have been depressed over a recent break up. In any event she may have had bouts with depression all her life.

 

All correct unfortunately.It wasn't her first suicide attempt either.

 

Not the same, but you can see why this thread brings it to mind. I once owned the album.

 

Here's the downer:



Nice voice as noted, but even lyrics aside, that 50s-Sweetie-Pie content and delivery practically begged for hard rock to displace it a decade later.

 

Listening to her CD'S today, what a unique sound.

 

I can't quarrel with that, but it has to be kept in mind that she was a kid when she made her records, and a kid, alas, when she took her own life. We'll never know if she'd have found a way to negotiate the turbulence of sixties music. Who knows what she might have made of Brazilian repertoire, for example, which would've suited her voice nicely.

 

The girl was a loner who had a talent to sing but as a loner she had no skills to build a supportive social network around her. She also had a mental disposition of melancholia which occasionally did slide into episodes of depression. At the time of her death she was broke - she loved singing but the three albums she recorded brought her no decent financial rewards. As the linked article below says, she had the misfortune to arrive on the stage five seconds before the Rock 'n' Roll tsunami swept away the established music order. What also made the world darker for her was the fact that the critics savaged mercilessly her singing and music. One April evening all this and maybe something else on top of it became too much for her fragile and sensitive soul and she chose to leave the world.
All of you, please find yourself a free time one Sunday afternoon, get a cup of tea or coffee and slowly read, and contemplate, this article - The Bluegrass Special | »

 

I've noticed there seems to be a recent increase in interest in Beverly on jazz sites. Made me write an email to Mosaic suggesting they consider a set. I don't know if it's contractually possible to combine the Decca and Roost material, but that would make a nice set. We'll see what they think.

 

I had never heard of her! Thanks for sharing!

 

There are 2 Double Cd sets on the Fresh Sounds label which includes every record she made. It also has the Playboy show and
some very rare radio broadcast's. I would recommend to anyone interested in her singing.

 

Yeah, but that's Fresh Sound. . . not legitimate, and not as good sounding or well-documented (im0) as possible via Mosaic.

 

Her phrasing is really good. I had not heard of her before.

By the way, the Ken & Beverly album is a bit confusing as it has "Eleanor Rigby" on it. She committed suicide in 1960, right? Unless that's a different "Eleanor Rigby", I'm not sure she could have been as prescient as to sing a song that hadn't been written yet.

 

An understandable confusion. Actually, Beverly Kenney is not part at all of the album being highlighted by John B Good. Released around 1967, the album features instead a couple named Ken Jensen and Beverly Ryman. John was just saying that the name "Beverly Kenney" brought memory of the name "Ken & Bev." (I happen to know about this because the couple was also mentioned in another thread that I was watching. )

 

Sir, you must cover the waterfront

 

Great voice! I'll have to check out some of her albums. Thanks!