Back in 2019, while creating the New Year's Eve Show - A Tribute to Frank, Ella, and Friends - with the Minnesota Jazz Orchestra, I was put back in touch with listening deeply to the music of Ella Fitzgerald.

Known as The First Lady of Song, Queen of Jazz, Lady Ella and my favorite - the songwriters' singer, her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, intonation, and a "horn-like" improvisational ability is simply unsurpassed. One of my favorite quotes attributed to Ella is - "It isn't where you came from; it's where you're going that counts." This simple statement sums up her life. Music was her haven. 

My current Ella obsession is her version of "Caravan" from the 2009 Verve release titled "Twelve Nights In Hollywood." This tune is the definition of sultry and smokey.