We’ll be Seeing You. Jo Stafford: 1917-2008
Big -band singer Jo Stafford died the other day at the age of 90. She made her name at the age of 17 as a member of Tommy Dorsey’s vocal group the Pied Pipers, the same group that would also introduce the world to Frank Sinatra. Her instantly recognizable husky-yet-lilting voice made her popular with servicemen on the front in WWII, earning her the nickname “GI Jo”. Later, she had a successful solo career and delved into more serious jazz.
I wish I had time to write a more in-depth obituary. Instead, I’ll let her music do the remembering for me. Here are a couple of my favorite tracks. “Bewitched” is off of one of those home-recorded disks, and is probably taken from the “Johnny Mercer’s Music Shop” radio show.