Shirley Bunnie Foy, also known as Bunny Foy (October 13, 1936 – November 24, 2016), was an American jazz singer, songwriter, and percussionist.

Biography

Shirley Bunnie Foy was born in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Ha ...

, New York. She was raised in a family of musicians and during her childhood she discovered gospel music,

spirituals Spirituals (also known as Negro spirituals, African American spirituals, Black spirituals, or spiritual music) is a genre of Christian music that is associated with Black Americans, which merged sub-Saharan African cultural heritage with the ex ...

, and blues. At the age of 17, she started her career touring the Atlantic coast and Canada with a

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

group called The Dell-Tones. The ensemble was formed by Della Griffin,

Gloria Lynne Gloria Lynne (born Gloria Wilson; November 23, 1929 – October 15, 2013), also known as Gloria Alleyne, was an American jazz vocalist with a recording career spanning from 1958 to 2007. Career Lynne was born in Harlem in 1929 to John and Mary W ...

, Sonny Til, and Slide Hampton. Foy settled in Paris in 1959, and after an engagement at La Calvados, a jazz club near the

Champs-Élysées The Avenue des Champs-Élysées (, ; ) is an avenue in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France, long and wide, running between the Place de la Concorde in the east and the Place Charles de Gaulle in the west, where the Arc de Triomphe is l ...

, she toured with pianist Pierre Franzino (her future husband), in France, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, and North Africa. In 1960 she participated in the first Jazz Festival of Antibes/Juan-les-Pins. In 1965 she performed in New York with

Archie Shepp Archie Shepp (born May 24, 1937) is an American jazz saxophonist, educator and playwright who since the 1960s has played a central part in the development of avant-garde jazz. Biography Early life Shepp was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, but ...

. During the following years, she collaborated with trumpeter

Charlie Shavers Charles James Shavers (August 3, 1920 – July 8, 1971) was an American jazz trumpeter who played with Dizzy Gillespie, Nat King Cole, Roy Eldridge, Johnny Dodds, Jimmie Noone, Sidney Bechet, Midge Williams, Tommy Dorsey, and Billie Holiday ...

, bassist

Arvell Shaw Arvell Shaw (September 15, 1923 – December 5, 2002) was an American jazz double-bassist, best known for his work with Louis Armstrong. Life and career He was born on September 15, 1923 in St. Louis, Missouri. Shaw learned to play tuba in high ...

, drummer Jo Jones, and saxophonist Curtis Porter. During her career, she worked in the U. S. 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 ...

, drummer Art Blakey, pianist

Randy Weston Randolph Edward "Randy" Weston (April 6, 1926 – September 1, 2018) was an American jazz pianist and composer whose creativity was inspired by his ancestral African connection. Weston's piano style owed much to Duke Ellington and Thelonious ...

, organist Lou Bennett, vibraphonist Milt Jackson and in Italy with guitarists

Franco Cerri Franco Cerri (29 January 1926 – 18 October 2021) was an Italian guitarist and double bassist. Biography Cerri was born in Milan and learned to play guitar when he was 17. In 1945 he became a member of the group led by Gorni Kramer and joined ...

and Bruno De Filippi, bassist/arranger

Pino Presti Giuseppe Prestipino Giarritta (born 23 August 1943), professionally known by his pseudonym Pino Presti, is an Italian bassist, arranger, composer, conductor and record producer from Milan. He is a 5th-dan black belt in Shotokan Karate. Pre ...

, bassist Stefano Cerri, pianists

Enrico Intra Enrico Intra (born 3 July 1935 in Milan, Italy) is an Italian jazz pianist, composer, Conductor (music), conductor. During his long career, Intra has collaborated with such notable musicians as Gerry Mulligan, Franco Cerri, Lee Konitz, Milt Jackso ...

and Renato Sellani, drummers Gil Cuppini,

Tullio De Piscopo Tullio De Piscopo (born 24 February 1946 in Naples, Italy) is an Italian drummer, percussionist and singer- songwriter. De Piscopo was born in Naples. His father was an orchestra percussionist. In 1969 he moved to Turin and two years later he move ...

and Gianni Cazzola, American clarinetist/arranger

Tony Scott Anthony David Leighton Scott (21 June 1944 – 19 August 2012) was an English film director and producer. He was known for directing highly successful action and thriller films such as '' Top Gun'' (1986), '' Beverly Hills Cop II'' (1987), ''D ...

, and Jamaican pianist Sonny Taylor, among others. After the 1990s Foy lived in Nice, France, and continued her jazz career with musicians such as saxophonist Sébastien Chaumont, pianists Ronnie Rae and Jean-Sébastien Simonoviez, trumpeter François Chassagnite, drummers Laurent Sarrien and Yoann Serra, and bassists Bibi Rovère, Fabrice Bistoni, and Dodo Goya. Her last album, '' Shirley Bunnie Foy (60th Anniversary)'', was dedicated to the singer on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of her career. The album was produced by

and Mad of Jazz and Claudio Citarella. It consists of 17 songs performed by Foy from 1954–2009 and features Tony Scott, Archie Shepp, Franco Cerri, Pierre Franzino, and Lou Bennett. Foy died of a heart attack on in Nice on November 24, 2016.

Discography

As leader

* ''May-O'' (

BASF BASF SE () is a German multinational chemical company and the largest chemical producer in the world. Its headquarters is located in Ludwigshafen, Germany. The BASF Group comprises subsidiaries and joint ventures in more than 80 countries ...

, 1974) * '' Shirley Bunnie Foy (60th Anniversary)'' (MAP Golden Jazz, 2013)

As guest

George Braith George Braith (born George Timothy Braithwaite on June 26, 1939) is a soul-jazz saxophonist from New York. Career Braith is known for playing multiple horns at once, a technique pioneered by Roland Kirk. Braith is credited with the invention of ...

– ''

Musart Discos Musart is a Mexican record label founded in 1948. It is headquartered in Mexico City and remains one of the country's biggest labels, focusing on Mexican music, as well as international releases licensed from various labels around the world. ...

'' (

Prestige Prestige refers to a good reputation or high esteem; in earlier usage, ''prestige'' meant "showiness". (19th c.) Prestige may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Films * ''Prestige'' (film), a 1932 American film directed by Tay Garnet ...

1967) *

– ''Messa d'oggi'', (Ri-Fi/Golden Jazz, 1975) * Archie Shepp – ''

A Sea of Faces ''A Sea of Faces'' is an album by avant-garde jazz saxophonist Archie Shepp recorded in Milan, Italy, on August 4 and 5, 1975, and released on the Italian Black Saint label. It features performances by Shepp with Charles Greenlee, Dave Burrell, ...

'', (

Black Saint Black Saint and Soul Note are two affiliated Italian independent record labels. Since their conception in the 1970s, they have released albums from a variety of influential jazz musicians, particularly in the genre of free jazz. History Black S ...

, 1975) *

/Tony Scott – ''Franco, Tony e Pompeo'', (Mallobia, 1976) * Franco Cerri – ''Un Suo Modo de Dire'', (Dire, 1977) * Franco Cerri – ''Noi Duero'', (Mallobia, 1978) * Dodo Goya – ''1956/2006 Anniversary of The Jazz Festival at the Sanremo Casino'', (Splasc(h), 2006) * Jean-Sébastien Simonoviez – ''Transition Cosmic Power'', ( Black & Blue, 2007)

References

External links

AllMusic
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Foy, Shirley 1936 births 2016 deaths American women jazz singers American jazz singers 20th-century African-American women singers People from Harlem Jazz musicians from New York (state) 21st-century African-American people 21st-century African-American women American expatriates in France