Mary Stallings
Encyclopedia
Mary Stallings is an American
jazz
vocalist and mother of R&B/soul singer Adriana Evans
.
. Encouraged by her uncle, saxophonist Orlando Stallings, she listened closely to the great jazz singers. As a teenager, Stallings was appearing in Bay Area night clubs (Hungry i
, The Purple Onion
, El Matador), performing with such luminaries as Ben Webster
, Cal Tjader
, Earl Hines
, Red Mitchell
, Teddy Edwards
, and the Montgomery brothers (Wes
, Monk
, and Buddy). Before graduation from high school she joined R&B pioneer Louis Jordan
's Tympani Five. One night in the early 1960's, at San Francisco's Black Hawk
nightclub, Dizzy Gillespie
invited Ms. Stallings out of the audience and onto his bandstand to sing. She wound up playing the legendary Monterey Jazz Festival
together with Gillespie at age 26 in 1965, and several West Coast gigs.
Perhaps best known for her 1961 collaboration with vibraphonist
Cal Tjader
on the album Cal Tjader Plays, Mary Stallings Sings on Fantasy Records
, engagements in Tokyo
, Manila
and Bangkok
ensued, along with work up and down the West Coast. She spent a year in the late 1960s performing in Nevada with Billy Eckstine
, and toured South America with Gillespie's band in 1965 and 1966. She has shared the bill with such luminaries as Joe Williams
, Tony Bennett
and Ella Fitzgerald
. From 1969-1972, a three-year residency as the Count Basie Orchestra
"girl singer." In 1972, in semi-retirement, she gave birth to her only child, R&B
singer Adriana Evans
.
Stallings returned to full-time singing at the end of the 1980s and finally came to the attention of the national jazz audience with the 1994 release of the aptly titled I Waited for You on Concord Jazz, is a feel-good session with pianist Gene Harris
quartet, featuring Ron Escherte (guitar), Luther Hughes (bass), and Paul Humphrey
(drums). Stallings and Harris share a deep affinity for the blues, and the pianist takes a break from his usual build-to-a-crescendo style to play some highly lyrical passages. Highlights include two Benny Carter
tunes, "Only Trust Your Heart," and the wonderfully swinging opener "Where or When."
The album entitled Spectrum (1995) features a group of true professionals who know what accompanying a singer's is all about. Pianist Gerald Wiggins
leads the rhythm section with Ron Escherte (guitar), Andy Simpkins
(bass), and Paul Humphrey
(drums). Trumpeter Harry "Sweets" Edison
contributes to six tunes. Stallings sings with precision and finely calibrated emotional nuance throughout, capturing perfectly the pathos of "Solitude" and the wishfullness of "Some Other Time." A relaxed, highly swinging session.
In Manhattan Moods (1997), pianist Monty Alexander
covers a variety of moods, from the sensously slow, torchy rendering of the bop anthem "How High the Moon," to the Basie
-ish groove of "Sweet and Lovely," to the playfully swinging version of "Surrey with the Fringe on Top." Bassist Ben Wolfe and drummer Clyd Lucas round out the rhythm section, while Hendrik Meukens adds some gorgeous harmonica work on two tracks and plays vibes on "He Was Too Good to Me." Dick Oatts
plays flute on "How High the Moon" and "He Was." Though often thought as a Dinah Washington
disciple, Stallings choice listening to Billie Holiday
shows up on "Ghost of a Chance" and "You Go to My Head."
Remember Love (2005), brilliantly produced by Geri Allen
, who plays piano and organ but also provided all of the arrangements. Stallings is heard throughout at the peak of her powers. Among the many high points are a touching version of "Hello Yesterday," very slow renditions of "Dindi" and "Lucky to Be Me," a duet with bassist Darryl Hall
on "Centerpiece," a swinging and joyful "I Just Found Out About Love," a haunting "Remember Love," and Dinah Washington
's "What a Difference a Day Makes." This is one of Mary Stallings' finest recordings and is highly recommended, it peaked at #23 on the Billboard
chart.
List of performances. To name just a few, Mary Stallings has played at the legendary Monterey Jazz Festival
1965, 1995 and 2003. The San Francisco Jazz Festival
2001, 2004, and 2006 was backed by the powerful 15-piece Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra, with pianist Geri Allen
Performed 2005 with Clark Terry
at the Blue Note Jazz Club in New York
. The 2007 Georgia's Savannah Music Festival
accompanied by The Eric Reed
Trio with Wycliffe Gordon
. Jazz at Lincoln Center
(2007), The Birth of Cool, highlighted Ms. Stalling's interpretation of the Billie Holiday
standards "Pennies From Heaven" and "Laughing at Life."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
vocalist and mother of R&B/soul singer Adriana Evans
Adriana Evans
Adriana Evans, is an American R&B/soul singer-songwriter. She was born 1974 in San Francisco, California and was one of the first neo soul artists in the 1990's, along with Erykah Badu, D'Angelo and Maxwell...
.
Biography
Mary Stallings was born in San Francisco, one of the eldest of 11 children in the Stallings family; saxophonist Ron Stallings is her first cousin. She grew up in the Laurel Heights district, where she still lives, and started as a gospel singer at the First AME Church. Her professional singing career began before she graduated from Lowell High SchoolLowell High School (San Francisco)
Lowell High School is a public magnet school in San Francisco, California. The school opened in 1856 as the Union Grammar School and attained its current name in 1896. Lowell moved to its current location in the Merced Manor neighborhood in 1962....
. Encouraged by her uncle, saxophonist Orlando Stallings, she listened closely to the great jazz singers. As a teenager, Stallings was appearing in Bay Area night clubs (Hungry i
Hungry i
The hungry i was originally a nightclub in North Beach, San Francisco. It was launched by Eric "Big Daddy" Nord, who sold it to Enrico Banducci in 1950.-The name:How the club's name came about is something of a mystery...
, The Purple Onion
The Purple Onion
The Purple Onion is a celebrated cellar club in the North Beach area of San Francisco, California located at 140 Columbus Avenue...
, El Matador), performing with such luminaries as Ben Webster
Ben Webster
Benjamin Francis Webster , a.k.a. "The Brute" or "Frog," was an influential American jazz tenor saxophonist. Webster, born in Kansas City, Missouri, was considered one of the three most important "swing tenors" along with Coleman Hawkins and Lester Young...
, Cal Tjader
Cal Tjader
Callen Radcliffe Tjader, Jr. a.k.a. Cal Tjader was a Latin jazz musician, though he also explored various other jazz idioms. Unlike other American jazz musicians who experimented with the music from Cuba, the Caribbean, and Latin America, he never abandoned it, performing it until his...
, Earl Hines
Earl Hines
Earl Kenneth Hines, universally known as Earl "Fatha" Hines, was an American jazz pianist. Hines was one of the most influential figures in the development of modern jazz piano and, according to one source, is "one of a small number of pianists whose playing shaped the history of jazz".-Early...
, Red Mitchell
Red Mitchell
Keith Moore "Red" Mitchell Keith Moore "Red" Mitchell Keith Moore "Red" Mitchell (September 20, 1927, New York City - November 8, 1992, Salem, Oregon, was an American jazz double-bassist, composer, lyricist, and poet. He was the brother of Whitey Mitchell....
, Teddy Edwards
Teddy Edwards
Theodore Marcus "Teddy" Edwards was an American jazz tenor saxophonist based on the West Coast of the US. Some consider him to be one of the most influential jazz saxophonists.-Biography:...
, and the Montgomery brothers (Wes
Wes Montgomery
John Leslie "Wes" Montgomery was an American jazz guitarist. He is widely considered one of the major jazz guitarists, emerging after such seminal figures as Django Reinhardt and Charlie Christian and influencing countless others, including Pat Martino, George Benson, Russell Malone, Emily...
, Monk
Monk Montgomery
William Howard "Monk" Montgomery was an American jazz bassist.Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, Montgomery was the older brother of guitarist Wes Montgomery; younger brother, Buddy Montgomery played vibraphone and piano...
, and Buddy). Before graduation from high school she joined R&B pioneer Louis Jordan
Louis Jordan
Louis Thomas Jordan was a pioneering American jazz, blues and rhythm & blues musician, songwriter and bandleader who enjoyed his greatest popularity from the late 1930s to the early 1950s. Known as "The King of the Jukebox", Jordan was highly popular with both black and white audiences in the...
's Tympani Five. One night in the early 1960's, at San Francisco's Black Hawk
Black Hawk (nightclub)
The Black Hawk was a San Francisco nightclub which featured live jazz performances during its period of operation from 1949 to 1963. It was located on the corner of Turk Street and Hyde Street in San Francisco's Tenderloin District. Guido Caccienti owned the club along with Johnny and Helen...
nightclub, Dizzy Gillespie
Dizzy Gillespie
John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise".Together with Charlie Parker, he was a major figure in the development of bebop and modern jazz...
invited Ms. Stallings out of the audience and onto his bandstand to sing. She wound up playing the legendary Monterey Jazz Festival
Monterey Jazz Festival
The Monterey Jazz Festival is one of the longest consecutively running jazz festivals. It debuted on October 3, 1958 and was founded by San Francisco jazz radio broadcaster Jimmy Lyons.-History:...
together with Gillespie at age 26 in 1965, and several West Coast gigs.
Perhaps best known for her 1961 collaboration with vibraphonist
Vibraphone
The vibraphone, sometimes called the vibraharp or simply the vibes, is a musical instrument in the struck idiophone subfamily of the percussion family....
Cal Tjader
Cal Tjader
Callen Radcliffe Tjader, Jr. a.k.a. Cal Tjader was a Latin jazz musician, though he also explored various other jazz idioms. Unlike other American jazz musicians who experimented with the music from Cuba, the Caribbean, and Latin America, he never abandoned it, performing it until his...
on the album Cal Tjader Plays, Mary Stallings Sings on Fantasy Records
Fantasy Records
Fantasy Records is a United States-based record label that was founded by Max and Sol Weiss in 1949 in San Francisco, California. They had previously operated a record-pressing plant called Circle Record Company before forming the Fantasy label...
, engagements in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
and Bangkok
Bangkok
Bangkok is the capital and largest urban area city in Thailand. It is known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or simply Krung Thep , meaning "city of angels." The full name of Bangkok is Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom...
ensued, along with work up and down the West Coast. She spent a year in the late 1960s performing in Nevada with Billy Eckstine
Billy Eckstine
William Clarence Eckstine was an American singer of ballads and a bandleader of the swing era. Eckstine's smooth baritone and distinctive vibrato broke down barriers throughout the 1940s, first as leader of the original bop big-band, then as the first romantic black male in popular...
, and toured South America with Gillespie's band in 1965 and 1966. She has shared the bill with such luminaries as Joe Williams
Joe Williams (jazz singer)
Joe Williams was a well-known jazz vocalist, a baritone singing a mixture of blues, ballads, popular songs, and jazz standards.-Early life:...
, Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett is an American singer of popular music, standards, show tunes, and jazz....
and Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
. From 1969-1972, a three-year residency as the Count Basie Orchestra
Count Basie Orchestra
The Count Basie Orchestra is a 16 to 18 piece big band, one of the most prominent jazz performing groups of the swing era, founded by Count Basie. The band survived the late '40s decline in big band popularity and went on to produce notable collaborations with singers such as Frank Sinatra and Ella...
"girl singer." In 1972, in semi-retirement, she gave birth to her only child, R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
singer Adriana Evans
Adriana Evans
Adriana Evans, is an American R&B/soul singer-songwriter. She was born 1974 in San Francisco, California and was one of the first neo soul artists in the 1990's, along with Erykah Badu, D'Angelo and Maxwell...
.
Stallings returned to full-time singing at the end of the 1980s and finally came to the attention of the national jazz audience with the 1994 release of the aptly titled I Waited for You on Concord Jazz, is a feel-good session with pianist Gene Harris
Gene Harris
Gene Harris was an American jazz pianist known for his warm sound and blues and gospel infused style that is known as soul jazz....
quartet, featuring Ron Escherte (guitar), Luther Hughes (bass), and Paul Humphrey
Paul Humphrey
Paul Nelson Humphrey is an American jazz and funk/R+B drummer.He worked as a session drummer in the 1960s for jazz artists such as Wes Montgomery, Les McCann, Kai Winding, Charles Mingus, Lee Konitz, Blue Mitchell and Gene Ammons.As a bandleader, he recorded under the name Paul Humphrey and the...
(drums). Stallings and Harris share a deep affinity for the blues, and the pianist takes a break from his usual build-to-a-crescendo style to play some highly lyrical passages. Highlights include two Benny Carter
Benny Carter
Bennett Lester Carter was an American jazz alto saxophonist, clarinetist, trumpeter, composer, arranger, and bandleader. He was a major figure in jazz from the 1930s to the 1990s, and was recognized as such by other jazz musicians who called him King...
tunes, "Only Trust Your Heart," and the wonderfully swinging opener "Where or When."
The album entitled Spectrum (1995) features a group of true professionals who know what accompanying a singer's is all about. Pianist Gerald Wiggins
Gerald Wiggins
Gerald Wiggins was a jazz pianist and organist. He studied classical, but switched to jazz in his teens. He began as a professional playing accompaniment to Stepin Fetchit. He worked with Louis Armstrong and Benny Carter. In the 1940s he moved to Los Angeles where he played music for television...
leads the rhythm section with Ron Escherte (guitar), Andy Simpkins
Andy Simpkins
Andy Simpkins was an American jazz bassist.Born Andrew Simpkins in Richmond, Indiana, he first became known as a member of the group The Three Sounds, with which he performed from 1956 to 1968. After that, until 1974, he was a member of pianist George Shearing's group, and from 1979 to 1989 toured...
(bass), and Paul Humphrey
Paul Humphrey
Paul Nelson Humphrey is an American jazz and funk/R+B drummer.He worked as a session drummer in the 1960s for jazz artists such as Wes Montgomery, Les McCann, Kai Winding, Charles Mingus, Lee Konitz, Blue Mitchell and Gene Ammons.As a bandleader, he recorded under the name Paul Humphrey and the...
(drums). Trumpeter Harry "Sweets" Edison
Sweets Edison
Harry "Sweets" Edison , born in Columbus, Ohio, was an American jazz trumpeter and member of the Count Basie Orchestra.-Biography:He spent his early childhood in Kentucky, where he was introduced to music by an uncle...
contributes to six tunes. Stallings sings with precision and finely calibrated emotional nuance throughout, capturing perfectly the pathos of "Solitude" and the wishfullness of "Some Other Time." A relaxed, highly swinging session.
In Manhattan Moods (1997), pianist Monty Alexander
Monty Alexander
Monty Alexander is a jazz pianist and melodica player. His playing has a strong Caribbean influence and swinging feeling, but he has also been influenced by Art Tatum, Oscar Peterson, Wynton Kelly, and Ahmad Jamal.-Biography:Alexander discovered the piano at the age of 4, taking classical music...
covers a variety of moods, from the sensously slow, torchy rendering of the bop anthem "How High the Moon," to the Basie
Count Basie
William "Count" Basie was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. Basie led his jazz orchestra almost continuously for nearly 50 years...
-ish groove of "Sweet and Lovely," to the playfully swinging version of "Surrey with the Fringe on Top." Bassist Ben Wolfe and drummer Clyd Lucas round out the rhythm section, while Hendrik Meukens adds some gorgeous harmonica work on two tracks and plays vibes on "He Was Too Good to Me." Dick Oatts
Dick Oatts
Richard "Dick" Oatts is a jazz saxophonist from Jefferson, Iowa. He became interested in saxophone due to his father Jack Oatts. To this day he still plays on the same Selmer Mark VI alto saxophone his father gave to him. He began his professional career in Minneapolis in 1972 and in 1977 he joined...
plays flute on "How High the Moon" and "He Was." Though often thought as a Dinah Washington
Dinah Washington
Dinah Washington, born Ruth Lee Jones , was an American blues, R&B and jazz singer. She has been cited as "the most popular black female recording artist of the '50s", and called "The Queen of the Blues"...
disciple, Stallings choice listening to Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday was an American jazz singer and songwriter. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and musical partner Lester Young, Holiday had a seminal influence on jazz and pop singing...
shows up on "Ghost of a Chance" and "You Go to My Head."
Remember Love (2005), brilliantly produced by Geri Allen
Geri Allen
Geri Allen is an American composer/pianist educator jazz pianist, raised in Detroit, Michigan, and educated in the Detroit Public Schools. Allen has worked with many of the greats of modern music, including Ornette Coleman, Ron Carter, Ravi Coltrane, Tony Williams, Dave Holland, Jack DeJohnette,...
, who plays piano and organ but also provided all of the arrangements. Stallings is heard throughout at the peak of her powers. Among the many high points are a touching version of "Hello Yesterday," very slow renditions of "Dindi" and "Lucky to Be Me," a duet with bassist Darryl Hall
Darryl Hall
Darryl Hall is a former Grey Cup champion and all-star Canadian Football League defensive back. He also played 3 years in the National Football League with the Denver Broncos and San Francisco 49ers....
on "Centerpiece," a swinging and joyful "I Just Found Out About Love," a haunting "Remember Love," and Dinah Washington
Dinah Washington
Dinah Washington, born Ruth Lee Jones , was an American blues, R&B and jazz singer. She has been cited as "the most popular black female recording artist of the '50s", and called "The Queen of the Blues"...
's "What a Difference a Day Makes." This is one of Mary Stallings' finest recordings and is highly recommended, it peaked at #23 on the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
chart.
List of performances. To name just a few, Mary Stallings has played at the legendary Monterey Jazz Festival
Monterey Jazz Festival
The Monterey Jazz Festival is one of the longest consecutively running jazz festivals. It debuted on October 3, 1958 and was founded by San Francisco jazz radio broadcaster Jimmy Lyons.-History:...
1965, 1995 and 2003. The San Francisco Jazz Festival
San Francisco Jazz Festival
Debuting in 1983, the San Francisco Jazz Festival is an annual three-week celebration of today's best music, with over 30 concerts. Produced by SFJAZZ, a non-profit organization dedicated to jazz and jazz education...
2001, 2004, and 2006 was backed by the powerful 15-piece Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra, with pianist Geri Allen
Geri Allen
Geri Allen is an American composer/pianist educator jazz pianist, raised in Detroit, Michigan, and educated in the Detroit Public Schools. Allen has worked with many of the greats of modern music, including Ornette Coleman, Ron Carter, Ravi Coltrane, Tony Williams, Dave Holland, Jack DeJohnette,...
Performed 2005 with Clark Terry
Clark Terry
Clark Terry is an American swing and bop trumpeter, a pioneer of the fluegelhorn in jazz, educator, NEA Jazz Masters inductee, and recipient of the 2010 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award...
at the Blue Note Jazz Club in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. The 2007 Georgia's Savannah Music Festival
Savannah music festival
The Savannah Music Festival is Georgia's largest musical arts festival. The festival is a cross-genre event that celebrates both the musical heritage of the South and international musicians. The festival is held annually over eighteen consecutive days in the springtime in Savannah, Georgia...
accompanied by The Eric Reed
Eric Reed (musician)
Eric Scott Reed, , in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is an American jazz pianist and composer.His group Black Note released several albums in the 1990s.-Biography:...
Trio with Wycliffe Gordon
Wycliffe Gordon
Wycliffe Gordon is a jazz trombonist. He also plays didgeridoo, trumpet, tuba, piano and sings.In 1995, he re-orchestrated the theme song for NPR's All Things Considered...
. Jazz at Lincoln Center
Jazz at Lincoln Center
Jazz at Lincoln Center is part of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. JALC's performing arts complex, Frederick P. Rose Hall, is located at West 60th Street and Broadway in New York City, slightly south of the main Lincoln Center campus and directly adjacent to Columbus Circle. Frederick P....
(2007), The Birth of Cool, highlighted Ms. Stalling's interpretation of the Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday was an American jazz singer and songwriter. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and musical partner Lester Young, Holiday had a seminal influence on jazz and pop singing...
standards "Pennies From Heaven" and "Laughing at Life."
Selective discography
| Year | Title | Genre | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Remember Love | Jazz | Half Note | |
| 2001 | Live at the Village Vanguard | Jazz | MAXJAZZ | |
| 1996 | Yesterday, Today and Forever | Jazz | Concord Jazz | |
| 1995 | Spectrum | Jazz | Concord | |
| 1995 | Fine & Well | Jazz | Clarity | |
| 1994 | I Waited for You | Jazz | Concord Jazz | |
| 1990 | Fine and Mellow | Jazz | Clarity | |
| 1961 | Cal Tjader Plays, Mary Stallings Sings | Jazz | Fantasy |