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Keely Smith
The “Queen of Las Vegas” swing, Keely Smith, is one of the last living legends of the great Rat Pack era of the 1950s and ‘60s. For nearly half a century, the Cherokee-Irish singer has thrilled audiences around the world, entertaining music fans with unequaled charm. Keely is perhaps best known for her partnership with Louis Prima, with whom she helped turn Las Vegas into an entertainment mecca for the rich, the famous and everyone in between.
Keely’s royal ascent began in Norfalk, Virginia, where she, aged just 11-years old, became a regular on a popular, Saturday morning children’s radio program, “Joe Brown’s Radio Gang.” By 16, she was singing professionally alongside local big bands, entertaining servicemen at local Army, Navy and Marine bases and, more importantly, getting a chance to experience the swing movement first-hand. However, a chance to audition for Louis Prima, one of the hottest musicians on the scene in a vibrant post-war America, changed everything.
Prima’s forte was his animated, trumpet-carrying swagger that mixed his music with humor and an unforgettable gravel voice. On his visit to Virginia Beach in 1948, he would discover that Keely’s sizzling vocal delivery perfectly suited his established swing orchestra. They went on to tour the country, her with older brother Piggy as her chaperone. The pair soon fell in love, marrying in 1953. Only a few years later, they, Keely pregnant with their first child, brought their unbeatable act to Las Vegas and opened wider horizons for both. What was initially a two week gig at Sahara’s Casbar Lounge went on to help change the face of Las Vegas entertainment.
Louis Prima and Keely Smith gave their audiences a study in contrasts, both musically and physically. She was half his age, and much prettier to look at than the gregarious male Sicilian with broad features and a coarse attitude. But it was her contrasting deadpan humor and clarion vocal tone that brought out the best in their act. Together, Louis and Keely gave Las Vegas a fun-filled musical show that melted the icicles off those neon light fixtures and plastic geraniums.
By 1959, they were the hottest show in town, filling the Sahara Hotel and Casino with a veritable who’s who, from Frank Sinatra, Spencer Tracy and Howard Hughes, to Elvis Presley, John F. Kennedy and Humphrey Bogart. They were “King and Queen of Las Vegas.” “That Old Black Magic” won them a Grammy Award, and Dinah Shore introduced them on her television show as, “the greatest nightclub act in the country.”
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Keely Smith: The Essential Capitol Collection
by Samuel Chell
Keely Smith The Essential Capitol Collection Capitol/EMI 2007
Of all the great American female singers, Keely Smith may be the most naturally gifted. The instrument, the technique, the sense of melodic line all invite the closest analysis and emulation--simply exemplary, textbook examples of the art of singing. How do you explain such a phenomenon? There were no fewer than five Blue Note albums with titles referring to the “incredible" Jimmy Smith; little ...
Continue ReadingKeely Smith: The Essential Capitol Collection
by David Rickert
With the overabundance of female vocalists making records in the fifties, it's not much of a surprise that Keely Smith has become lost in the shuffle today. If known at all, it's probably for her records with Louis Prima and not for her work as a solo artist. This is a shame, for Smith was a more than capable singer who, paired with the right material and terrific arrangements, could turn out splendid recordings.
This collection of Capitol ...
Continue ReadingKeely Smith: Vegas 58 - Today
by Celeste Sunderland
When Keely Smith sings “I've Got A Right To Sing The Blues, you believe her because she's the kind of woman whose authority goes un-argued. But in a way you doubt her because she's also the sort of lady who would always find her way around the blues. Actually, there's very little blues to be had on her new album Vegas '58 - Today. In fact, aside from a few velvety ballads, the band, the audience, and the star are ...
Continue ReadingKeely Smith: Las Vegas '58-Today
by Jim Santella
In her lovely big band tribute to Louis Prima, Keely Smith sings the chestnuts that we remember him by. Her voice is in top form and she's able to provide the kind of intimate humor that she and Prima exhibited together. It's a live session that contains all the natural elements that make you feel like you're there.
When she performs in Las Vegas, everyone feels a part of the show. Smith moves around the audience and brings ...
Continue ReadingKeely Smith: Keely Swings Basie-style with Strings
by Jim Santella
Keely Smith sounds as sweet and sprightly as ever. Recorded earlier this year, she interprets classic standards with a Southern California “who’s who” of big band artists in support. Recalling the legendary Count Basie Orchestra and adding strings, the album makes a genuine tribute to a powerful force in jazz’s history. Frank Collett’s swinging arrangement of “I Can’t Stop Loving You,” in particular, revives the embers with a hot hand. Standout soloists from the orchestra include Pete Christlieb on Smith’s ...
Continue ReadingKeely Smith: Keely Swings Basie Style...with Strings
by Dave Nathan
Surrounded by a bevy of the West Coast's top studio performers, an army of lush strings and tastefully selected popular song gems brilliantly arranged by Dennis Michaels, Frank Collett and Don Menza, Keely Smith shows that she hasn't lost a jot of that wonderful feel for swinging equaled by few of her peers over the years. Still possessing that voice which sang Little Girl Blue to the rough Big Bad Wolf pipes of Louis Prima, this Concord album shows why ...
Continue ReadingKeely Smith: Keely Sings Sinatra
by Mathew Bahl
For vocal tribute albums to amount to more than a collection of standards, there should be either strong stylistic connections between artists (Dee Dee Bridgewater’s Dear Ella ) or strong personal ties (Carol Sloane’s The Songs Carmen Sang ). Keely Sings Sinatra has both. Keely Smith and Frank Sinatra shared a longstanding professional relationship as well as being romantically involved during the 1960s. Unfortunately, nothing on the CD suggests that those associations have given Ms. Smith a greater understanding of ...
Continue ReadingKeely Smith (1929-2017)
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JazzWax by Marc Myers
Keely Smith, a vocalist best known in the 1950s at nightclubs and on TV as the stone-faced half of a husband-and-wife comic duo in which she impatiently waited out and mocked the rubbery crooning style of mate Louis Prima before delivering a sincere pop rendition of her own, died on December 16. She was 89. After their divorce in 1961, the split left fans wondering whether the personality differences that made their on-stage act so successful were, in part, rooted ...
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The Intimate Keely Smith
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
Keely Smith spent the 1950s in the shadow of her husband, Louis Prima. Both Smith and Prima were superbly talented for different reasons. Prima was a natural showman, a terrific musician and a high-energy R&B crooner. But Smith was the better vocalist. As Prima's straight-faced sidekick, Smith occasionally joined him in a comedic duet. When she did, she'd always take the song seriously for a bit to show off her chops. Your ears immediately took notice and you wanted to ...
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Capitol/EMI to Release Swingin' New Hits Collections for Louis Prima and Keely Smith
Source:
All About Jazz
Jump, Jive An' Wail: The Essential Louis Prima Presents 26 of the Grammy-Winner's Best, Including “I Wan'na Be Like You (The Monkey Song)," “Jump, Jive An' Wail," “Just A Gigolo/I Ain't Got Nobody," and “Buona Sera"
Keely Smith: The Essential Capitol Collection Features 27 Tracks, Including a Previously Unreleased Live Recording and Duets with Prima and Frank Sinatra Hollywood, California - On July 17, Capitol/EMI will release new single-disc hits collections for Louis Prima and Keely Smith on CD and ...
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Jack Kleinsinger's Highlights in Jazz Presents Keely Smith in Concert Thursday, May 10, 2007 @ 8PM at Tribeca Performing Arts Center
Source:
Jim Eigo, Jazz Promo Services
Thursday, May 10, 2007 @ 8pm Keely Smith In Concert Musical Director Dennis Michaels Jack Kleinsinger and Highlights In Jazz are pleased to present the return engagement of Keely Smith to close the Spring season Thursday, May 10, 2007 @ 8pm at Tribeca Performing Arts Center. The incomparable Tony Bennett has gone on record naming Keely Smith “one of the greatest jazz-pop singers of all time." Merv Griffin says it best--"Keely is awesome!" Nat Hentoff writing ...
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Keely Smith, "The Queen of Swing," Set to Play NYC's Cafe Carlyle April 3-28
Source:
O&M Co.
CAFE CARLYLE PRESENTS “THE QUEEN OF SWING"
KEELY SMITH
LEGENDARY POP-JAZZ ICON MAKES HER CAFE CARLYLE DEBUT FOUR WEEKS ONLY APRIL 3-28
New York, NY - The Carlyle Hotel (James McBride, Managing Director) welcomes legendary pop/jazz vocalist Keely Smith to the Cafe Carlyle (located in The Carlyle Hotel - 35 East 76th Street at Madison Avenue) for a four-week debut engagement. Beginning Tuesday, April 3rd and playing through Saturday, April 28th, Ms. Smith, hailed as “The Queen of Swing," will ...
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Keely Smith Opens "Highlights In Jazz" 33rd Season Thursday, October 6 at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center
Source:
All About Jazz
September 28, 2005 To: Listings/Critics/Features From: JAZZ PROMO SERVICES Press Contact: JIM EIGO, [email protected] For Immediate Release Keely Smith Opens “Highlights In Jazz" 33rd Season at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center Thursday, October 6, 2005 at 8PM New York, NY September 1, 2005 Jack Kleinsinger's “Highlights in Jazz," New York's longest running jazz series is pleased to announce that legendary vocalist Keely Smith will open their 33rd season Thursday, October 6, 2005 at 8PM. Keely Smith (b. Dorothy Jaqueline Keely ...
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Keely Smith Opens "Highlights In Jazz" 33rd Season Thursday, October 6 at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center
Source:
All About Jazz
September 28, 2005 To: Listings/Critics/Features From: JAZZ PROMO SERVICES Press Contact: JIM EIGO, [email protected] For Immediate Release Keely Smith Opens “Highlights In Jazz" 33rd Season at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center Thursday, October 6, 2005 at 8PM New York, NY September 1, 2005 Jack Kleinsinger's “Highlights in Jazz," New York's longest running jazz series is pleased to announce that legendary vocalist Keely Smith will open their 33rd season Thursday, October 6, 2005 at 8PM. Keely Smith (b. Dorothy Jaqueline Keely ...
read more
Keely Smith Opens "Highlights In Jazz" 33rd Season Thursday, October 6 at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center
Source:
All About Jazz
September 1, 2005 To: Listings/Critics/Features From: JAZZ PROMO SERVICES Press Contact: JIM EIGO, [email protected] For Immediate Release Keely Smith Opens “Highlights In Jazz" 33rd Season at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center Thursday, October 6, 2005 at 8PM New York, NY September 1, 2005 Jack Kleinsinger's “Highlights in Jazz," New York's longest running jazz series is pleased to announce that legendary vocalist Keely Smith will open their 33rd season Thursday, October 6, 2005 at 8PM. Keely Smith (b. Dorothy Jaqueline Keely ...
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