Ella May Saison (also credited as Ella Mae Saison) is a Filipino singer referred as the original ''Philippine Queen of Soul''.

Career

Saison began her recording career at age 19. Prior to landing a recording contract, she was a soloist for the Artstart Band, specializing in jazz, gospel, and blues. In the Philippines, she is best known for her hits "Till My Heartaches End" written by Vehnee Saturno and "If The Feeling Is Gone", subsequently covered by Passage and

Kyla Kyla may refer to: *Kyla (given name) Kyla is a female given name. It is a derivative of the originally Irish and Scottish Gaels, Gaelic Kyle (given name), ''Kyle''. Kyla may refer to: Music * Kyla (Filipino singer), Filipino R&B singer Melani ...

, respectively. Saison won the Katha Award for Best Female Performer for the song "If the feeling is gone written by Jimmy Borja, and she was also recognized in the Philippines for one

Gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

and one

Platinum Platinum is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a density, dense, malleable, ductility, ductile, highly unreactive, precious metal, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name origina ...

album. A year after her second album release, she signed a recording deal with

Evander Holyfield Evander Holyfield (born October 19, 1962) is an American former professional boxer who competed between 1984 and 2011. He reigned as the undisputed championship (boxing), undisputed champion in the cruiserweight (boxing), cruiserweight division ...

's independent record label, Kats Eye, and released ''So In Love'' in 1997. The songs "So In Love" and "Never Had A Chance" were released as singles. Andrew Rollins and Don Williams were producers, songwriters and musicians on the album except for "Never Had A Chance" which was co-written by Judith Jordan, Ronnie Hammon and Rollins. Jerry Brown was the engineer. The album was recorded at A&M Studios.

Humberto Gatica Humberto Gatica is a Chilean and American recording engineer, mixing engineer and record producer, best known for his work with Celine Dion, Chicago, Michael Jackson, Barbra Streisand, Andrea Bocelli, Josh Groban, Cher and Michael Bublé. Gatic ...

was also an engineer. In addition to working with Humberto Gatica (producer of

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion (born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Power Ballads", Dion's powerful, technically skilled vocals and commercially successful works have had ...

), she has worked with Gerry Brown (producer of

Vanessa Williams Vanessa Lynn Williams (born March 18, 1963) is an American singer, actress, model, producer and dancer. She gained recognition as the first Black woman to win the Miss America title when she was crowned Miss America 1984. She would later Vanes ...

) and artists such as

The Eagles The Eagles are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1971. With five number-one singles, six number-one albums, six Grammy Awards and five American Music Awards, the Eagles were one of the most successful musical acts of the 1970s in ...

and IV Xample. Timothy B. Schmit of The Eagles contributed background vocals to the ''So In Love'' album, as did Eagles contemporary

John David Souther John David Souther (November 2, 1945 – September 17, 2024) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He was "a principal architect of the Southern California sound and a major influence on a generation of songwriters". Souther wrote and ...

. There has been a degree of controversy associated with the credits to ''So In Love''. It is contended that Saison specifically worked with Bryant Woodert (PKA Lucius) of IV Xample, who produced her vocals for the title song to the album. This song, written by Don H. Williams and Andrew Rollins, went on to win an award in the Philippines for best vocal production. Bryant Woodert never received any credit for doing vocal production, though he is listed as a background singer on the album credits (under Lucius of IV Xample). Though Gerry Brown was the engineer for this session, it is contended that he did not participate in any vocal direction, even though he and Andrew Rollins were given the credit for this. Andrew Rollins, who was said to be in New York at the time of the recording, later received the Philippine award for best vocal production. Saison released a single with

CeCe Peniston Cecilia Veronica "CeCe" Peniston (; born September 6, 1969) is an American singer and former beauty queen. In the early 1990s, she scored five number one hits on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot Dance Music/Club Play. Her signature song " Finally" re ...

entitled " Reminiscin", which made the

Billboard Charts The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ' ...

under the "Powerpick Club Play" category, hitting number 30. Peniston's opinion of Saison is as follows: "(In) January 2001, we collaborated on a duet titled " Reminiscin" that charted on 'Billboard's Club Playlist'. I was fortunate to witness the warmth of a beautiful personality and the great talent of a rising star. I hope the world will be allowed to share in this experience too." Saison also performed at the Awards Dinner of the

Republic of South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

and the African Times in honor of President

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela ( , ; born Rolihlahla Mandela; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist and politician who served as the first president of South Africa f ...

. She recently sung the "Star Spangled Banner" at the Countrywide Classic/ATP US Open Series at UCLA last July 17, 2007. In the early 2000s, her focus became more regional than national, when she joined Los Angeles-based covers band Dark Sunday, as lead singer, where she was well received. She returned to the Philippines in 2005, to great acclaim, but then left again for California in the United States where she continues her career. In July 2011, Saison performed "Till My Heartaches End" on ''

Party Pilipinas ''Party '' () is a Philippine television variety show broadcast by GMA Network. Hosted by Regine Velasquez, Ogie Alcasid, Jaya and Janno Gibbs, it premiered on March 28, 2010. The show concluded on May 19, 2013, with a total of 160 episodes. ...

''.

Discography

Albums

*1992: ''Language of Soul'' *1994: ''Full of Love, Full of Soul'' *1996: ''Best of Ella May Saison'' (

Viva Viva may refer to: Companies and organisations * Viva (network operator), a Dominican mobile network operator * Viva Energy, an Australian petroleum company * Viva Entertainment, a Philippine media company * Viva Films, a Philippine film company ...

) *1997: ''So In Love'' (Kats Eye) *2005: Ella May Saison ''Soulful'' (Star Records) *2006: ''Ella May'' (Silver Series, Viva)Being a re-release of Saison material recorded for Viva in the 1990s, most of which was previously released on ''Best of Ella May Saison''.

Compilation albums

*1998: ''The Best of Love Duets (Viva Collection Forever)''

Singles

*1992: "'Til My Heartaches End" *1992: "'One Body One Soul" *1992: "'Hiram Na Sandali" *1993: "If the Feeling Is Gone" *1993: "Goodbye's not Forever" *1994: "Full of Love" *1997: "So in Love" (Kats Eye) *1997: "Never Had A Chance" (Kats Eye) *1999: "I Believe" *2001: " Reminiscin" featuring

( Real Deal) *2005: "Now That Your Gone" (Star Records) *2005: "Ikaw ang Lahat sa Akin" (theme song to the

ABS-CBN ABS-CBN is a leading Philippine media and content company. It serves as the flagship media brand of ABS-CBN Corporation, a subsidiary of Lopez Holdings Corporation. Once the country's largest free-to-air television network, ABS-CBN has since ...

teleserye, ''

Ikaw ang Lahat sa Akin ''Ikaw ang Lahat sa Akin'' (International title: ''Only You'' / ) is a 2005 Philippine television drama series broadcast by ABS-CBN. Directed by Rory Quintos, FM Reyes and Jerome Chavez Pobocan, starring Claudine Barretto, Diether Ocampo, Angeli ...

'') *2014: "Fate Isn't So Kind" (Independent release on iTunes, Cd Baby and Amazon.com)

References

External links

Star Records Bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saison, Ella May 21st-century Filipino women singers Living people GMA Network (company) people Viva Artists Agency Viva Records (Philippines) artists Year of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people) 20th-century Filipino women singers