Elaine Delmar (born 13 September 1939) is a British singer and actress, with a long career in stage acting, music recording and concert performances. Born in

Harpenden Harpenden () is a town and civil parish in the City and District of St Albans in the county of Hertfordshire, England. The population of the built-up area was 30,240 in the 2011 census, whilst the population of the civil parish was 29,448. Har ...

, she is the daughter of Jamaican jazz trumpeter

Leslie "Jiver" Hutchinson Leslie George "Jiver" Hutchinson (6 March 1906 – 22 November 1959) was a Jamaican jazz trumpeter and bandleader. Hutchinson played in the band of Bertie King in Jamaica in the 1930s, then moved to England, where he played with Happy Blake's C ...

. After learning the piano as a child, Delmar became a singer and toured with her father's band from the age of sixteen. In 1952, she appeared in ''

Finian's Rainbow ''Finian's Rainbow'' is a musical with a book by E. Y. Harburg and Fred Saidy, lyrics by Harburg, and music by Burton Lane, produced by Lee Sabinson. The original 1947 Broadway production ran for 725 performances, while a film version was re ...

'' in

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

. She sang with

Coleridge Goode George Coleridge Emerson Goode (29 November 1914 – 2 October 2015) was a British Jamaican-born jazz bassist best known for his long collaboration with alto saxophonist Joe Harriott. Goode was a member of Harriott's innovatory jazz quintet thro ...

's group The Dominoes for a month in Germany in the mid-1950s, before going solo. She appeared in the

Ken Russell Henry Kenneth Alfred Russell (3 July 1927 – 27 November 2011) was a British film director, known for his pioneering work in television and film and for his flamboyant and controversial style. His films in the main were liberal adaptation ...

film ''

Mahler Gustav Mahler (; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century Austro-German tradition and the modernism ...

'' (1974).

Early life

Elaine Delmar was born on 1 September 1939 in

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

. Her parents were father

Jiver Hutchinson Leslie George "Jiver" Hutchinson (6 March 1906 – 22 November 1959) was a Jamaican jazz trumpeter and bandleader. Hutchinson played in the band of Bertie King in Jamaica in the 1930s, then moved to England, where he played with Happy Blake's Cub ...

, a jazz trumpeter born in Jamaica, and mother Phyllis, both of whom moved to the UK in the 1930s. She spent her childhood with her younger brother and sister living in North London, where she attended the Trinity Grammar School in Wood Green (now known as Woodside High School. Elaine began learning the piano when she was six, going on to play the instrument on the radio during the BBC's ''

Children's Hour ''Children's Hour'', initially ''The Children's Hour'', was the BBC's principal recreational service for children (as distinct from "Broadcasts to Schools") which began during the period when radio was the only medium of broadcasting. ''Childre ...

'' when she was thirteen. She began touring with her father at the age of sixteen, singing with his band at performances in venues such as US Air Force bases. Delmar was on tour with him when he was killed in a road accident in 1959.

Career

Singer

Delmar's professional singing career began in the mid-1950s when she was selected by bassist

and

Lauderic Caton Lauderic Caton (31 August 1910 – 19 February 1999) was a Trinidadian guitarist who settled in Britain in 1940. He was an early proponent of the use of electric guitar in Britain, particularly in jazz music. According to Val Wilmer, "he exercis ...

to sing with their quartet, ''The Dominoes''. She spent a month with them at the ''Club Ecstase'' in

Bad Harzburg Bad Harzburg (; Eastphalian: ''Bad Harzborch'') is a spa town in central Germany, in the Goslar district of Lower Saxony. It lies on the northern edge of the Harz mountains and is a recognised saltwater spa and climatic health resort. Geogra ...

, Germany. Goode later said in his autobiography that "I think it's fair to say that we started off her career". Delmar left the Dominoes after her spell with them in Germany and launched a solo career, including playing at clubs and carrying out overseas tours. In 2010, she featured in concert with

Wynton Marsalis Wynton Learson Marsalis (born October 18, 1961) is an American trumpeter, composer, teacher, and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. He has promoted classical and jazz music, often to young audiences. Marsalis has won nine Grammy Awar ...

Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra is an American big band and jazz orchestra led by Wynton Marsalis. The Orchestra is part of Jazz at Lincoln Center, a performing arts organization in New York City. History In 1988 the Orchestra was formed a ...

Acting

Delmar made her first stage appearance in the late 1950s when she was cast in the play ''

'' in a revival production in Liverpool. She then joined the cast of the

Richard Rodgers Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American Musical composition, composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers was one of the most ...

musical drama ''

No Strings ''No Strings'' is a musical theatre, musical drama with book by Samuel A. Taylor and words and music by Richard Rodgers. ''No Strings'' is the only Broadway theatre, Broadway score for which Rodgers wrote both lyrics and music, and the first musi ...

'' in London's West End, as an understudy for

Beverly Todd Beverly Todd (born July 11, 1946) is an American actress, producer and writer. She is known for her roles in films '' Brother John'' (1971), '' Moving'' (1988), '' Lean on Me'' (1989) and ''The Bucket List'' (2007). On television, Todd appeared ...

. In 1972 she was part of the original London cast of the musical ''

Cowardy Custard ''Cowardy Custard'' is a musical revue and was one of the last Noël Coward shows staged during his life. It was devised by Gerard Frow, Alan Strachan and Wendy Toye. A book, also titled ''Cowardy Custard'', was published in connection with the ...

'' at the

Mermaid Theatre The Mermaid Theatre was a theatre encompassing the site of Puddle Dock and Curriers' Alley at Blackfriars in the City of London, and the first built in the City since the time of Shakespeare. It was, importantly, also one of the first new thea ...

, which was based on the songs of

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time'' magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and ...

. In 1977 she took on her biggest stage position, a starring role in ''

Bubbling Brown Sugar ''Bubbling Brown Sugar'' is a musical revue written by Loften Mitchell based on a concept by Rosetta LeNoire and featuring the music of numerous African-American artists who were popular during the Harlem Renaissance, 1920–1940, including Duke ...

'', and then went on to appear in both the London and

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

versions of '' Jerome Kern in Hollywood''. Another role, in which she was casts purely as an actress, was ''

A Map Of The World ''A Map of the World'' (1994) is a novel by Jane Hamilton. It was the Oprah's Book Club selection for December 1999. It was made into a movie released in 1999 starring Sigourney Weaver, Julianne Moore, David Strathairn, Chloë Sevigny, Louise F ...

'' at the

Royal National Theatre The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. I ...

. She was also cast as the Bohemian Princess in the

film ''

''.

Personal life

As of 2009, Delmar was living in the north London suburb of

Hadley Wood Hadley Wood is an affluent suburb in the north of Greater London, close to the border with Hertfordshire. It appears to be a stand-alone village surrounded by Green Belt land, however, under the Local Government Act 1972 it is part of the ...

Discography

* ''A Swinging Chick'' * ''But Beautiful'' * ''Elaine Delmar and Friends'' * ''Nobody Else But Me'' * ''S'Wonderful''

Theatre appearances

* ''

'' (1952/1953) * ''

'' (1961)... at

Her Majesty's Theatre Her Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre situated on Haymarket, London, Haymarket in the City of Westminster, London. The present building was designed by Charles J. Phipps and was constructed in 1897 for actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, ...

* ''

'' (1972)... at the

* ''

'' (1977)... at the

Royalty Theatre The Royalty Theatre was a small London theatre situated at 73 Dean Street, Soho. Established by the actress Frances Maria Kelly in 1840, it opened as Miss Kelly's Theatre and Dramatic School and finally closed to the public in 1938.

* ''Map of the World''... at the

* ''Jerome Kern in Hollywood''... in London and New York

References

External links

Elaine Delmar official website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Delmar, Elaine 1939 births Living people People from Hadley Wood People from Harpenden English women singers English jazz singers Musicians from Hertfordshire British women jazz singers