Blossom Dearie
Dearie, a singer, pianist and songwriter, died of natural causes in her sleep on Saturday at her Manhattan, New York apartment, her manager and representative Donald Schaffer has confirmed.
Dearie was born Marguerite Blossom Dearie in East Durham, New York, on April 28 1926 and as a child she studied Western classical piano but switched to jazz music in her teens.
Like many young girls, when Dearie finished high school she moved to New York City to pursue her dream career as a musician and began to sing in various groups before starting a solo career.
In 1952 Dearied moved to France where she has a few hits with a vocal group, the Blue Stars; before she returned to her hometown in the late 1950's which allowed her to record her first six American solo albums.
In 1974 Dearie established her own record label, Daffodil Records; which allowed her to have full control of the recording and distribution of her albums.
Dearie appeared on television throughout her career, most notably giving her voice to the children's educational series Schoolhouse Rock! Her voice can be heard on "Mother Necessity","Figure Eight" and "Unpack Your Adjectives"
Her distinctive voice and songs have been featured on the soundtracks of several films, including Kissing Jessica Stein, My Life Without Me, The Squid And The Whale and The Adventures Of Felix.
she continued to perform in clubs right up until 2006; and she was one of the very few last remaining supper-club performers, she performed regular engagements in London and New York City over many years.
Dearie is survived by an older brother, Barney, a nephew and a niece.
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