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1997 SESSION

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HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 410 On the death of Ella Fitzgerald.

Agreed to by the House of Delegates, January 10, 1997 Agreed to by the Senate, January 16, 1997

WHEREAS, Ella Fitzgerald, a native Virginian whose legendary singing career spanned six decades, died on June 15, 1996; and

WHEREAS, born in Newport News, Ella Fitzgerald soon moved to New York, where she won an amateur talent contest at Harlem's Apollo Theater at the age of 16; and

WHEREAS, her career soon blossomed, and by the mid-1930s, Ella Fitzgerald was already being heralded as the next great jazz singer; and

WHEREAS, by 1940, Ella Fitzgerald had been named the best female jazz singer in the Down Beat magazine jazz poll, a title she won an incredible 18 times in a row, and had earned the appellation "The First Lady of Song"; and

WHEREAS, in the late 1950s, Ella Fitzgerald broadened her repertoire and her appeal by recording the "Songbook" albums, which still stand as the definitive recordings of such American icons as George Gershwin, Cole Porter, and Irving Berlin; and

WHEREAS, as recently as 1990, Ella Fitzgerald was recording prize-winning albums, such as the Grammy-winning "All That Jazz," which included many of the legendary figures of 20th century American jazz music; and

WHEREAS, throughout her long and unparalleled career, Ella Fitzgerald used her instantly recognizable voice, "the most perfect all-around popular jazz vocal instrument of the last half-century," to bring great joy to her millions of fans and admirers; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly mourn the passing of one of the towering figures of American music, Ella Fitzgerald; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates transmit a copy of this resolution to the family of Ella Fitzgerald as an expression of the great respect and affection in which her memory is held by the General Assembly and the people of Virginia.