“I was born in detroit, michigan back in 1928. born in Detroit, Michigan on Mickey Mouses’ birthday, Nov. 18, 1928”
She began singing as a child in Detroit and moved to New York in the early 50s, she married Parker’s pianist, Duke Jordan, and studied with Lennie Tristano, but it was not until the early 60s that she made her first recordings.
In the mid-60s her work encompassed jazz liturgies sung in churches and extensive club work, but her appeal was narrow even within the confines of jazz. By the late 70s jazz audiences had begun to understand her uncompromising style a little more and her popularity increased – as did her appearances on record
A 1983 duo set with bassist Harvie Swartz, “Old Time Feeling”, comprises several of the standards Jordan regularly features in her live repertoire, while 1990’s “Lost And Found” pays tribute to her bebop roots. Jordan is one of only a tiny handful of jazz singers who fully deserve the appellation and for whom no other term will do.
