Irene Daye (January 17, 1918,

Lawrence, Massachusetts Lawrence is a city located in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, on the Merrimack River. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 89,143. Surrounding communities include Methuen, Massachusetts, Methuen ...

– November 1, 1971,

Greenville, South Carolina Greenville ( ; ) is a city in Greenville County, South Carolina, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 70,720 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, sixth-most pop ...

) was an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

singer.

Early life

Daye began her career at age 17 by singing in Dan Murphy's Musical Skippers

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...

while still in high school in 1935, continuing with Murphy through 1937. She then worked briefly with Mal Hallett before beginning work with

Gene Krupa Eugene Bertram Krupa (January 15, 1909 – October 16, 1973) was an American jazz drummer, bandleader, and composer. Krupa is widely regarded as one of the most influential drummers in the history of popular music. His drum solo on Benny Goodman ...

, with whose orchestra she sang from 1938 to 1941. Krupa and Daye recorded 63 titles together, with her biggest hit being "Drum Boogie", which was recorded in the last session she did with Krupa. After leaving Krupa, Daye retired from music at the age of 23, marrying Corky Cornelius.

Anita O'Day Anita Belle Colton (October 18, 1919 – November 23, 2006), known professionally as Anita O'Day, was an American jazz singer and self-proclaimed “song stylist” widely admired for her sense of rhythm and dynamics, and her early big band appe ...

took her spot in Krupa's orchestra. Daye had a daughter in 1943, but Cornelius (then in the Casa Loma Orchestra) died suddenly later that year, after which she returned to her singing career.

Marriage and death

From 1944 to 1950, she sang with Charlie Spivak, then married him in 1950 and retired from performance, working as her husband's manager until her death in 1971 at age 53 from cancer, in

Discography

* Gene Krupa, ''Gene Krupa and His Orchestra 1939–1940'' (Classics, 1995) * Charlie Spivak, ''Charlie Spivak and His Orchestra 1943–1946'' (Hindsight, 1994)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Daye, Irene 1918 births 1971 deaths 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women singers American jazz singers American women jazz singers Jazz musicians from Massachusetts People from Lawrence, Massachusetts Singers from Massachusetts