CABIN IN THE SKY ethel waters Lena Horne LASER DISC

Ethel Waters

Release Date: April 13, 2010

Collectors' Choice Music ( December 15, 2004 ), Genre: Jazz Vocal

At long last, the first serious biography of entertainment legend Lena Horne -- the celebrated star of film, stage, and music who became one of the first African-American icons. At the 74th annual Academy Awards in 2002, Halle Berry thanked Lena Horne for paving the way for her to become the first black recipient of a Best Actress Oscar. Though limited, mostly to guest singing appearances in splashy Hollywood musicals, "the beautiful Lena Horne, " as she was often called, became a pioneering star for African Americans in the 1940s and fifties. Now James Gavin, author of Deep in a Dream: The Long Night of Chet Baker, draws on a wealth of unmined material and hundreds of interviews -- one of them with Horne herself -- to give us the defining portrait of an American icon. Gavin has gotten closer than any other writer to the celebrity who has lived in reclusion since 1998. Incorporating insights from the likes of Ruby Dee, Tony Bennett, Diahann Carroll, Arthur Laurents, and several of Horne's fellow chorines from Harlem's Cotton Club, Stormy Weather offers a fascinating portrait of a complex, even tragic Horne -- a stunning talent who inspired such giants of showbiz as Barbra Streisand, Eartha Kitt, and Aretha Franklin, but whose frustrations with racism, and with tumultuous, root-less childhood, left wounds too deep to heal. The woman who emerged was as angry as she was luminous. From the Cotton Club's glory days and the back lots of Hollywood's biggest studios to the glitzy but bigoted hotels of Las Vegas's heyday, this behind-the-scenes look at an American icon is as much a story of the limits of the American dream as it is a masterful, ground-breaking biography.

The Soundtrack Factory

Draws on previously untapped sources and first-person interviews to profile the mid-twentieth-century Hollywood actress and singer, evaluating her painful childhood, the challenges she faced as a barrier-breaking African-American performer, and the ways in which she inspired such performers as Barbra Streisand, Eartha Kitt, and Aretha Franklin.

THE “DEFINITIVE” (VANITY FAIR ) BIOGRAPHY OF LEGEND LENA HORNE—THE CELEBRATED STAR OF STAGE, MUSIC, AND FILM WHO BLAZED A TRAIL FOR AFRICAN AMERICANS IN HOLLYWOOD AND BEYONDDrawing on a wealth of unmined material and hundreds of interviews— one of them with Lena Horne herself—critically acclaimed author James Gavin gives us a “deftly researched” (The Boston Globe) and authoritative portrait of the American icon. Horne broke down racial barriers in the entertainment industry in the 1940s and ’50s even as she was limited mostly to guest singing appearances in splashy Hollywood musicals. Incorporating insights from the likes of Ruby Dee, Tony Bennett, Diahann Carroll, and Bobby Short, Stormy Weather reveals the many faces of this luminous, complex, strong-willed, passionate, even tragic woman—a stunning talent who inspired such giants as Barbra Streisand, Eartha Kitt, and Aretha Franklin.

Personnel includes: Lena Horne (vocals); Lennie Hayton, Marty Paich (conductor); Hymie Schertzer, Danny Bank, Romeo Penque, Al Cohn, Toots Mondello, Bud Shank, Herb Geller (saxophone); Charlie Shavers, Shorty Baker, Jimmy Maxwell, Doc Severinsen, Ernie Royal, Harry "Sweets" Edison, Don Fagerquist (trumpet); Jimmy Cleveland, Urbie Green, Chauncey Welsh (trombone); Gene Di Novi (piano); Kenny Burrell, Howard Roberts, Al Viola (guitar); George Duvivier (bass); Joe Marshall, Jr., John Cresci, Shelley Manne (drums).Producers: E.O. Walker, Joe Carlton, Dennis Farnon, Henri Rene, Dick Pierce.Recorded at Webster Hall, New York, New York 1956 & 1957. Originally released on RCA (1375). Includes liner notes by Farah Griffin.All tracks have been digitally remastered.This is part of Bluebird's First Editions series.One of Lena Horne's finest studio outings, 1957's STORMY WEATHER (not to be confused with other similarly named releases) features the Brooklyn-born singer at the height of her powers. On these sessions--conduc

The second half of the 1950s was a relatively active period for Lena Horne as a recording artist. Regularly appearing at the country's top nightclub venues, such as the Waldorf Astoria in New York and the Cocoanut Grove in Los Angeles, she had an exclusive recording contract with RCA Victor that resulted in regular releases. The British Avid Easy label takes advantage of the 50-year copyright on recordings in Europe to compile this 57-track, two-hour-and-37-minute two-CD set, containing Horne's four RCA LPs of the period, Lena Horne at the Waldorf Astoria, Stormy Weather, Give the Lady What She Wants, and A Friend of Yours: Songs by Burke and Van Heusen, plus the four-song EP Lena Horne at the Cocoanut Grove. The Waldorf Astoria album, recorded live, gives a good sense of her vibrant, authoritative stage show and was a Top 30 hit in 1957. Stormy Weather, a studio LP most of which was recorded just after the Waldorf Astoria shows, did not chart, but has attracted great attention since for its collection of tor

Glossy all-black MGM musical with Eddie "Rochester" Anderson as a gambler whose soul becomes the prize in a contest between God and the Devil. Lena Horne, Ethel Waters, Rex Ingram, Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington are featured; Vincente Minnelli's first directing assignment. Songs include "Shine, " "Happiness Is a Thing Called Joe, " "Li'l Black Sheep, " more. 98 min. Standard; Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital mono; Subtitles: English, Spanish, French; audio commentary; theatrical trailer; bonus short "Studio Visit" (1946).