Norma Ann Winstone

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

(born 23 September 1941) is an English jazz singer and lyricist. With a career spanning more than 50 years, she is best known for her wordless improvisations. Musicians with whom she has worked include

Michael Garrick Michael Garrick MBE (30 May 1933 – 11 November 2011)Peter VacheObituary: Michael Garrick ''The Guardian'', 15 November 2011 was an English jazz pianist and composer, and a pioneer in mixing jazz with poetry recitations and in the use of jazz ...

John Surman John Douglas Surman (born 30 August 1944) is an English jazz saxophone, bass clarinet, and synthesizer player, and composer of free jazz and modal jazz, often using themes from folk music. He has composed and performed music for dance performanc ...

, Michael Gibbs,

Mike Westbrook Michael John David Westbrook (born 21 March 1936) is an English jazz pianist, composer, and writer of orchestrated jazz pieces. He is married to the vocalist, librettist and painter Kate Westbrook. Early work Mike Westbrook was born in Hig ...

, as well as pianist John Taylor, who was her former husband.

Biography

Early years and education

Born as Norma Ann Short in Bow, East London, England, she was 10 years old when her family moved to Dagenham,

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Grea ...

.Odeen-Isbister, Sara (5 October 2012)
"Jazz star Norma Winstone on growing up in Dagenham"
'' Barking and Dagenham Post''. Encouraged by her primary school teacher, she applied for and won a scholarship to attend Saturday-school at

Trinity Music College Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance is a music and dance conservatoire based in London, England. It was formed in 2005 as a merger of two older institutions – Trinity College of Music and Laban Dance Centre. The conservatoire has ...

, and after passing her 11-plus exams, she went to Dagenham County High School (where

Dudley Moore Dudley Stuart John Moore CBE (19 April 193527 March 2002) was an English actor, comedian, musician and composer. Moore first came to prominence in the UK as a leading figure in the British satire boom of the 1960s. He was one of the four writ ...

was then a senior pupil). Like Moore, her music teacher there was Peter Cork (1926–2012). At the age of 17 she discovered jazz, listening to

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, in ...

and

Oscar Peterson Oscar Emmanuel Peterson (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian virtuoso jazz pianist and composer. Considered one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, Peterson released more than 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards ...

being played on

Radio Luxembourg Radio Luxembourg was a multilingual commercial broadcaster in Luxembourg. It is known in most non-English languages as RTL (for Radio Television Luxembourg). The English-language service of Radio Luxembourg began in 1933 as one of the earlies ...

Career

Winstone began singing in bands around Dagenham in the early 1960s, and has said of her early experiences: "I've always been on the edge, always felt like I was swimming against the tide and somehow couldn't stop. I met a pianist called Chris Goody and we'd get together and play things. He knew Margaret Busby who was in a publishing company called Alison and Busby. She also wrote lyrics for tunes like '

Naima "Naima" ( ) is a jazz ballad composed by John Coltrane in 1959 that he named after his then-wife, Juanita Naima Grubbs. Coltrane first recorded it for his 1959 album '' Giant Steps'', and it became one of his first well-known works. History Co ...

'. I was inspired by her, though I didn't write words myself at that time, I didn't think I could." Winstone first attracted attention when in the late 1960s she appeared at

Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club is a jazz club that has operated in Soho, London, since 1959. History The club opened on 30 October 1959 in a basement at 39 Gerrard Street in London's Soho district. It was set up and managed by musicians Ronnie Sc ...

sharing the bill with

Roland Kirk Roland (; frk, *Hrōþiland; lat-med, Hruodlandus or ''Rotholandus''; it, Orlando or ''Rolando''; died 15 August 778) was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the ...

. Interviewed in 2020, she said: "I went along to a gig at the Charlie Chester Club and I sat in with a drummer called John Stevens and he was incredibly enthusiastic and jumped up and said, 'I'm going to tell

Ronnie Scott Ronnie may refer to: * Ronnie (name), a unisex pet name and given name * "Ronnie" (Four Seasons song), a song by Bob Gaudio and Bob Crewe *"Ronnie," a song from the Metallica album '' Load'' *Ronnie Brunswijkstadion, an association football stadiu ...

about you, he should give you an audition!' ... Eventually, I went to the club, and after reminding Ronnie that eight months before he promised to invite me for an audition, we got it and he gave me four weeks there opposite Roland Kirk. I think I was on cloud nine...." This led to her first radio BBC broadcast, which by chance was heard by singer

Carmen McRae Carmen Mercedes McRae (April 8, 1920 – November 10, 1994) was an American jazz singer. She is considered one of the most influential jazz vocalists of the 20th century and is remembered for her behind-the-beat phrasing and ironic interpre ...

on a visit from the US, who met Winstone and was interviewed for a jazz magazine with her. Winstone joined

's band in 1968. Her first recording came the following year, with

Joe Harriott Joseph Arthurlin Harriott (15 July 1928 – 2 January 1973) was a Jamaican jazz musician and composer, whose principal instrument was the alto saxophone. Initially a bebopper, he became a pioneer of free-form jazz. Born in Kingston, Harriott ...

and

Amancio D'Silva Amancio D'Silva (19 March 1936 – 17 July 1996) was an Indian jazz guitarist and composer, known for his own recordings and his collaborations with other musicians in Britain, notably Joe Harriott and Stan Tracey. Life He was born in Bombay (n ...

, on ''Hum-Dono'' (reissued in 2015). In 1971 she was voted top singer in the '' Melody Maker'' Jazz Poll. She recorded the album ''Edge of Time'' under her own name in 1972. Winstone contributed vocals to

Ian Carr Ian Carr (21 April 1933 – 25 February 2009) was a Scottish jazz musician, composer, writer, and educator. Carr performed and recorded with the Rendell-Carr quintet and jazz-fusion band Nucleus, and was an associate professor at the Guildhall ...

Nucleus Nucleus ( : nuclei) is a Latin word for the seed inside a fruit. It most often refers to: *Atomic nucleus, the very dense central region of an atom * Cell nucleus, a central organelle of a eukaryotic cell, containing most of the cell's DNA Nucl ...

on that band's 1973 release ''Labyrinth'', a jazz-rock concept album based on the Greek myth about the Minotaur. Winstone has worked with many major European musicians and visiting Americans, as well as with most of her peers in British jazz, including Garrick,

, Michael Gibbs,

and her former husband, the pianist John Taylor. With Taylor and trumpeter

Kenny Wheeler Kenneth Vincent John Wheeler, OC (14 January 1930 – 18 September 2014) was a Canadian composer and trumpet and flugelhorn player, based in the U.K. from the 1950s onwards. Most of his performances were rooted in jazz, but he was also active i ...

she performed and recorded three albums for ECM as a member of the trio

Azimuth An azimuth (; from ar, اَلسُّمُوت, as-sumūt, the directions) is an angular measurement in a spherical coordinate system. More specifically, it is the horizontal angle from a cardinal direction, most commonly north. Mathematical ...

between 1977 and 1980; their fifth and last album ''How It Was Then… Never Again'' (1995) was given four stars by '' DownBeat'' magazine. Her own 1987 album ''Somewhere Called Home'', also released on the ECM label, has often been called "a classic". The review by

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

said: "It's not only a watermark of Winstone's career but, in the long line of modern vocal outings released since the romantic vocal tradition of

Fitzgerald The FitzGerald/FitzMaurice Dynasty is a noble and aristocratic dynasty of Cambro-Norman, Anglo-Norman and later Hiberno-Norman origin. They have been peers of Ireland since at least the 13th century, and are described in the Annals of the ...

and

Vaughan Vaughan () (2021 population 323,103) is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located in the Regional Municipality of York, just north of Toronto. Vaughan was the fastest-growing municipality in Canada between 1996 and 2006 with its population increas ...

ended with free jazz and fusion, the disc stands out as one most original yet idyllic of vocal jazz recordings. ... A must for fans looking for something as cozy as a golden age chanteuse, but without all the gymnastic scatting and carbon copy ways of many a contemporary jazz singer." In addition, she made albums with the American pianists

Jimmy Rowles James George Hunter (August 19, 1918 – May 28, 1996), known professionally as Jimmy Rowles (sometimes spelled Jimmie Rowles), was an American jazz pianist, vocalist, and composer. As a bandleader and accompanist, he explored multiple styles in ...

– ''Well Kept Secret'', recorded in 1993 – and Fred Hersch. On ''Well Kept Secret'' Winstone sang lyrics she had written to Rowles' composition "The Peacocks", which she had heard on the Bill Evans album '' You Must Believe in Spring'' (1981). With the title "A Timeless Place", Winstone's lyrics were subsequently recorded by others, including Mark Murphy. Well respected as a lyricist, she has also written words to tunes by

Ralph Towner Ralph Towner (born March 1, 1940) is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger and bandleader. He plays the twelve-string guitar, classical guitar, piano, synthesizer, percussion, trumpet and French horn. Biography Towner was born i ...

Egberto Gismonti Egberto Amin Gismonti (born December 5, 1947) is a Brazilian composer, guitarist and pianist. Biography Gismonti was born in the small city of Carmo, Rio de Janeiro, Carmo, state of Rio de Janeiro (state), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, into a musi ...

Ivan Lins Ivan Guimarães Lins (born June 16, 1945) is a Latin Grammy-winning Brazilian musician. He has been an active performer and songwriter of Brazilian popular music (MPB) and jazz for over thirty years. His first hit, "Madalena", was recorded by ...

Steve Swallow Steve Swallow (born October 4, 1940) is an American jazz bassist and composer, known for his collaborations with Jimmy Giuffre, Gary Burton, and Carla Bley. He was one of the first jazz double bassists to switch entirely to electric bass guitar. ...

, and other musicians. In 2001, Winstone was honoured as "Best Vocalist" in the

BBC Jazz Awards The BBC Jazz Awards were set up in 2001 and had the status of one of the premier jazz awards in the United Kingdom (among those presenting the awards were Denis Lawson, Sue Mingus, Humphrey Lyttelton, Ian Carr, Clive James, Mike Gibbs, Julian Jo ...

, also being nominated in 2007 and 2008. In February 2018, Winstone released ''Descansado: Songs for Films'', a collection that

described as "an unusual and provocative album". In 2019, Enodoc Records released the CD ''In Concert'', a remastered recording of an August 1988 performance by Winstone and her ex-husband John Taylor at London's

Guildhall School of Music and Drama The Guildhall School of Music and Drama is a conservatoire and drama school located in the City of London, United Kingdom. Established in 1880, the school offers undergraduate and postgraduate training in all aspects of classical music and jazz ...

, including music by Leonard Bernstein, Steve Swallow, Egberto Gismonti, Ralph Towner and Dave Brubeck, among others, with lyrics by Winstone herself, Johnny Mercer and Margaret Busby. Awarding four stars to this collaboration between Winstone and Taylor, Roger Farbey of ''

All About Jazz ''All About Jazz'' is a website established by Michael Ricci in 1995. A volunteer staff publishes news, album reviews, articles, videos, and listings of concerts and other events having to do with jazz. Ricci maintains a related site, ''Jazz Near ...

'' wrote: "What ''In Concert'' demonstrates above all else is the extraordinarily synergistic relationship that this virtuosic pair shared."

Personal life

In 1972, Winstone married pianist John Taylor, whom she had met in 1966; they divorced after some years, although they later continued their musical partnership. Their two sons, Alex and Leo, are both musicians.

Awards and honours

* 1971: voted top singer in the '' Melody Maker'' Jazz Poll * 2001: "Best Vocalist" in

* 2007:

in the Queen's Birthday Honours * 2009: Skoda Jazz Ahead Award in Bremen for contribution to European Jazz * 2010:

London Awards for Art and Performance The London Awards for Art and Performance is awarded in 11 different art categories, by the London Festival Fringe. It is awarded each year, at a central London venue, and is presented to artists and performers who have made an outstanding contrib ...

* 2010: Lifetime Achievement Jazz Medal from the

Worshipful Company of Musicians The Worshipful Company of Musicians is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. Its history dates back to at least 1350. Originally a specialist guild for musicians, its role became an anachronism in the 18th century, when the centre of ...

* 2010: Honorary Fellow at Trinity Laban Conservatoire * 2013: Honorary Member of the Royal Academy of Music * 2015: Jazz Vocalist of the Year, Parliamentary Jazz Awards * 2015:

BASCA The Ivors Academy (formerly the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors – BASCA) is one of the largest professional associations for music writers in Europe. The academy exists to support, protect, and campaign for the interests ...

Gold Badge Award"2015 Gold Badge Award Recipients Revealed"
''M Magazine'', 16 September 2015. * 2017: Jazz FM Award for Vocalist of the year

Discography

As leader

* ''Edge of Time'' (Argo, 1972) * ''Live at Roncella Jonica'', with Kenny Wheeler (Izemz/Polis, 1985) * ''Somewhere Called Home'' (ECM, 1987) * ''M.A.P.'', with John Wolfe Brennan (L+R, 1990) * ''Far to Go'' (Grappa, 1993) * ''Well Kept Secret'' (Hot House, 1995) * ''Siren's Song'', with Kenny Wheeler (Justin Time, 1997) * ''Manhattan in the Rain'' (Sunnyside, 1998) * ''Like Song, Like Weather'', with John Taylor (Koch, 1999) * ''Songs & Lullabies'', with Fred Hersch (Sunnyside, 2003) * ''Chamber Music'' (EmArcy, 2003) * ''It's Later Than You Think'' with the NDR Big Band (Provocateur, 2006) * ''Children of Time'', with Michael Garrick (Jazz Academy, 2006) * ''Amoroso... ..Only More So'', with Stan Tracey (Trio, 2007) * ''Distances'' (ECM, 2008) * ''Yet Another Spring'', with Michael Garrick (Jazz Academy, 2009) * ''Stories Yet to Tell'' (ECM, 2010) * ''Mirrors'' with Kenny Wheeler (Edition, 2013) * ''Dance Without Answer'' (ECM, 2014) * ''Descansado: Songs for Films'' (ECM, 2018) * ''In Concert'', with John Taylor, 1988 (Enodoc Records, 2019) With

* ''

'' ( ECM, 1977) * ''

The Touchstone The Touchstone is a novella by American writer Edith Wharton. Written in 1900, it was the first of her many stories describing life in old New York. Stephen Glennard, the novella's protagonist, is suddenly impoverished and unable to marry the ...

'' (ECM, 1978) * '' Départ'' (with

) (ECM, 1979) * '' Azimuth '85'' (ECM, 1985) * '' How It Was Then... Never Again'' (ECM, 1995)

As guest

With

and

* ''Hum-Dono '' (Columbia UK, 1969) With

* ''

Labyrinth In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth (, ) was an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by t ...

'' (Vertigo, 1973) With

Eberhard Weber Eberhard Weber (born 22 January 1940, in Stuttgart, Germany) is a German double bassist and composer. As a bass player, he is known for his highly distinctive tone and phrasing. Weber's compositions blend chamber jazz, European classical music, m ...

* '' Fluid Rustle'' (ECM, 1979) With

* '' Song for Someone'' (Incus, 1973) * '' Music for Large and Small Ensembles'' (ECM, 1990)

References

External links

* – official website
Norma Winstone
in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

''
"Norma Winstone"
Improvised Music Company.
"10 Tracks by Norma Winstone I Can't Do Without… by vocalist/composer Nicky Schrire"
''London Jazz News'', 20 May 2021.
"Birthday Wishes and Greetings for Norma Winstone at 80"
''London Jazz News'', 23 September 2021. *John Devenish
"For Norma Winstone, the voice is an instrument"
Jazz.FM91, 9 March 2022. {{DEFAULTSORT:Winstone, Norma 1941 births Living people 20th-century English singers 20th-century English women singers 21st-century English singers 21st-century English women singers Alumni of Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance Azimuth (band) members British women jazz singers ECM Records artists Edition Records artists EmArcy Records artists English jazz singers English lyricists Members of the Order of the British Empire Nucleus (band) members Sunnyside Records artists