Sunday, August 15

Abbey Lincoln R.I.P.


Jazz singer, songwriter, and activist Abbey Lincoln passed away yesterday in Manhattan at the age of 80. Abbey is perhaps most famous for her movie appearances, including the Jayne Mansfield hit "The Girl Can't Help It", "For Love of Ivy" with Sidney Poitier and Spike Lee's "Mo' Better Blues". While Abbey's singing style was often compared to Billie Holiday she sang with more articulation in a deeper register, giving her voice a darker tone. “Her utter individuality and intensely passionate delivery can leave an audience breathless with the tension of real drama,” Peter Watrous wrote in The New York Times in 1989. “A slight, curling phrase is laden with significance, and the tone of her voice can signify hidden welts of emotion.”


Video courtesy of ftheGOP
Quotes courtesy of the New York Times

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