Laura Fygi (born 27 August 1955) is a Dutch jazz singer. Fygi's father was a Dutch businessman, a director of

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...

, and her mother an Egyptian belly dancer. She was raised in

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

, until her father's death in the late 1960s, when she moved back to the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

with her mother. She was then under the care of a French-speaking

governess A governess is a largely obsolete term for a woman employed as a private tutor, who teaches and trains a child or children in their home. A governess often lives in the same residence as the children she is teaching. In contrast to a nanny, th ...

before being adopted by the principal of her school. During the 1980s, she was a member of

Centerfold The centerfold or centrefold of a magazine is the inner pages of the middle sheet, usually containing a portrait, such as a pin-up or a nude. The term can also refer to the model featured in the portrait. In saddle-stitched magazines (as opp ...

, a Dutch disco band which was popular in the Netherlands, Europe, and Japan. In the early 1990s, she began a solo career and recorded her debut album with

Toots Thielemans Jean-Baptiste Frédéric Isidor, Baron Thielemans (29 April 1922 – 22 August 2016), known professionally as Toots Thielemans, was a Belgian jazz musician. He was mostly known for his chromatic harmonica playing, as well as his guitar and whistl ...

. During her career, she has worked with

Johnny Griffin John Arnold Griffin III (April 24, 1928 – July 25, 2008) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Nicknamed "the Little Giant" for his short stature and forceful playing, Griffin's career began in the mid-1940s and continued until the month of ...

Michel Legrand Michel Jean Legrand (; 24 February 1932 – 26 January 2019) was a French musical composer, arranger, conductor, and jazz pianist. Legrand was a prolific composer, having written over 200 film and television scores, in addition to many son ...

Clark Terry Clark Virgil Terry Jr. (December 14, 1920 – February 21, 2015) was an American swing and bebop trumpeter, a pioneer of the flugelhorn in jazz, and a composer and educator. He played with Charlie Barnet (1947), Count Basie (1948–51), Duke ...

and the

Pasadena Roof Orchestra The Pasadena Roof Orchestra (PRO) is a contemporary band from England that specialises in the jazz and swing genres of music of the 1920s and 1930s, although their full repertoire is considerably wider. The orchestra has existed since 1969, a ...

and considers

Julie London Julie London (née Peck; September 26, 1926 – October 18, 2000) was an American singer and actress whose career spanned more than 40 years. A torch singer noted for her sultry, languid contralto vocals, London recorded over thirty albums ...

one of her influences. She has sung in English, Chinese, French, Portuguese, and Spanish.

Discography

* ''Introducing'' (Mercury, 1991) * ''Bewitched'' (Verve Forecast, 1993) * ''The Lady Wants to Know'' (Verve Forecast, 1994) * ''Turn Out the Lamplight'' (Mercury, 1995) * ''Watch What Happens When Laura Fygi Meets Michel Legrand'' (Philips, 1997) * ''Dream Your Dream'' (Mercury, 1998) * ''Live'' (Mercury, 1998) * ''Laura Fygi's Tunes of Passion'' (Z Music, 1999) * ''The Latin Touch'' (Mercury, 2000) * ''Change'' (Mercury, 2001) * ''Laura Fygi at Ronnie Scott's'' (Verve, 2003) * ''The Christmas Album: The Very Best Time of Year'' (Verve, 2004) * ''Rendez-Vous'' (Universal/Verve 2007) * ''Songs from Movies and Musicals'' (Universal, 2009) * ''The Best Is Yet to Come'' (T2/Out of the Blue, 2011) * ''Flower'' (Starsing/Gold Typhoon, 2012) * ''Jazz Love'' (Universal 2016) * Laura Goes East (2020)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fygi, Laura 1955 births Living people Dutch women singers Dutch jazz singers Dutch people of Egyptian descent Dutch adoptees Musicians from Amsterdam Spanish-language singers Torch singers