Schuur, Diane

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Diane Schuur

Jazz singer

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. “In 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 letter’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 microphone. 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 her early years was at the Tacoma (Washington) Holiday Inn. “I’ll never forget it,” she told Huzinec. “I forgot the words to ‘Unforgettable.’ I have it on tape with mother in the background saying, ‘Oh, my God.’”

Schuur persisted with her singing and eventually was appearing at some of the top jazz clubs in the Pacific Northwest. A big break in her career came in 1979, when she sang a show-stopping rendition of “Amazing Grace” at the prestigious Monterey Jazz Festival. Getz, impressed with her performance, volunteered his services as mentor and helped her obtain future engagements. Schuur became a regular on the Tonight Show, and was a favorite at the Reagan White House. Regarding a 1986 performance by Schuur at New York City’s famed Blue Note club, reviewer Stephen Holden of the New York Times called her “a vocalist of unusual warmth and power.” Holden added that Schuur’s “emotive directness and … unexpected shifts of intonation” recalled Phoebe Snow, while her “billowing warmth and optimism” recalled “the friendly embrace” of Kate Smith. Reviewing a Carnegie Hall 1987 concert with Mel Torme and Lonette McKee, Holden added other praises, lauding Schuur’s “clear expansive delivery,”

For the Record…

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.

Awards: Grammy Awards for best female jazz performance, 1986, for Timeless, and 1987, for Diane Schuur & the Count Basie Orchestra.

Addresses: Home— Renton, WA. Record company —GRP Records, 555 West 57th St., New York, NY 10019.

her “sophisticated scat technique,” and “phrases [that] roll out on a rich thrilling vibrato.”

Schuur’s debut album, Deedles, was released in 1984, the first of several recordings to showcase her vocal abilities. In 1986, she received her first Grammy, for the album Timeless, and the following year received another, for Diane Schuur & the Count Basie Orchestra. Schuur’s recording with the Basie orchestra has been one of her most successful, topping Billboard’s traditional jazz chart listing for an impressive 33 weeks. Schuur later branched out from her jazz approach to a more rhythm-and-blues-influenced style. Her 1988 album Talkin’ ‘Bout You demonstrated this new venture, and was more pop-orientated than her previous albums. Featuring Ray Charles’s classics, including the title track, Talkin’ ‘Bout You, was well received by music critics. Alanna Nash commented in Stereo Review: “The sheer glory of Schuur’s voice, captured here in an ultra-clean production, makes for one of the most engaging albums of the year—pop, jazz, or anywhere in between.”

In person, Schuur maintains a positive, cheerful outlook on life, which carries through to her performances on stage. “Even though a song might be sad, I’ll try not to drown it,” she was quoted in the New York Times. “Like Johnny Mercer said, I always try to accentuate the positive.” Regarding her Blue Note program, Holden commented on this aspect of Schuur as revealed through her performance of familiar jazz standards. “On all of them, the singer stamped her engaging, somewhat childlike musical personality. As an interpreter of lyrics, Ms. Schuur seems instinctively drawn toward whatever affirmative ideas can be gleaned from a song. In her hands, even a lament such as Irving Berlin’s ‘How About Me’ becomes an expression of the singer’s own resilience and eagerness to forgive.” Holden called Schuur’s singing “as sunny in spirit as it is voluminous.”