Carla White
{{short description|American jazz singer}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Carla White
| image =
| birth_name = Carla Ruth White
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1951|9|15}}
| birth_place = Oakland, California, U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|2007|05|09|1951|09|15}}
| death_place = New York City
| genre = Jazz
| occupation = Singer
| years_active = 1980–2007
| label = Stash, Milestone, Evidence, Vartan, Jazz Cats, DIW, Bright Moon Records
}}
Carla Ruth White (September 15, 1951 – May 9, 2007) was an American jazz vocalist.
Biography
White was born in Oakland, California, and raised in New York City, where she studied jazz dance.{{cite web |last1=Yanow |first1=Scott |title=Carla White |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/carla-white-mn0000171602/biography |website=AllMusic |accessdate=13 September 2019}} She began singing and acting in high school. She moved to London in 1969 to attend Webber-Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art. She returned to New York City and took music lessons intermittently during the 1970s with Lennie Tristano and Warne Marsh.{{cite book |last1=Yanow |first1=Scott |title=The Jazz Singers: The Ultimate Guide |date=2008 |publisher=Backbeat |isbn=978-0-87930-825-4 |page=109}} In 1979 she met trumpeter Manny Duran, who became her mentor. They formed the White-Duran Band and recorded the album Andruline for Stash. White died from cancer on May 9, 2007, in New York.{{Cite web |date=May 20, 2007 |title=Carla White Obituary |url=https://obituaries.seattletimes.com/obituary/carla-white-1080129317 |url-status=live |access-date=June 25, 2025 |website=The Seattle Times Obituaries}}
Personal life
White was the niece of Broadway costume designer Miles White.{{Cite news |date=February 20, 2000 |title=Paid Death Notice: WHITE, MILES |work=New York Times, Late Edition |publisher=New York Times Company |location=New York |page=49}}{{Cite news |date=September 16, 1984 |title=Dwain Houston White Obituary |work=New York Times |location=New York |page=44}}
Discography
= As leader/co-leader =
| class="wikitable"
!Dates recorded !Title !Label !Year Released !Notes |
| March 21-22, 1983
|Andruline |1984 |Co-leader with Manny Duran (trumpet). Recorded with Ed Howard (bass), Peter Madsen (piano), and Taro Okamoto (drums). |
| December 20, 1985
April 25-27 1986 |Orient Express |Milestone |1987 |Recorded with Peter Barshay (bass), Manny Duran (trumpet, "The Man with the Trumpet"), Ed Howard (bass), Tim Horner (drums), Jeremy Kahn (piano), and Peter Madsen (piano). Recorded “Orient Express” and “ I’ll Remember April” with Kahn and Barshay on December 20, 1985. White wrote the tracks "Orient Express" and "Snowbound." |
| April 4-6, 1988
|Mood Swings |Milestone |1988 |Recorded with Peter Madsen (piano), Phil Bowler (bass), Tim Horner (drums), Lew Tabackin (tenor saxophone, flute), and Joshua Breakstone (guitar). |
| September 4-5, 1991
|Listen Here |Evidence |1995 |Recorded with Lew Tabackin (tenor saxophone, alto flute) Peter Madsen (piano) Dean Johnson (Bass) Lewis Nash (drums). Madsen composed "Dream" using the poetry of Langston Hughes. |
| October 29, 1994
|In Mexico |Jazz Cat |2000 |Recorded with Roberto Aymes (contra bass, musical direction), Fernando Toussaint (drums) , and Luis Zepeda (piano). |
| April 21-22 1995{{Cite news |last=Provizer |first=Norman |date=April 20, 1995 |title=Country Club Hosts Pianist Grant |work=Rocky Mountain News |pages=14D}}
|Live at Vartan Jazz |Vartan Jazz |1998 |Recorded with Jerry Hahn (guitar), Joe LaBarbera (drums), Mark Soskin (piano), and Harvie Swartz (bass). Liner notes mistakenly state that this album was recorded in 1996. |
| July 26-27, 1996
|The Sweetest Sounds |DIW |2000 |Recorded with Steve Berrios (percussion), Dean Johnson (bass), Peter Madsen (piano), Tom Rainey (drums), and Lew Tabackin (tenor saxophone). White wrote the track "But I Was Wrong." |
| September 8-9, 2001
|A Voice in the Night |Bright Moon Records |2005 |Recorded with John Hart (guitar), Dean Johnson (bass), Claudio Roditi (trumpet, flugelhorn), and Matt Wilson (drums). White wrote the track "Peace of Mind." |
= Other recordings =
| class="wikitable"
!Album !Year !Notes |
| Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty Original Soundtrack
|2001 |White featured on credits track "Can't Say Goodbye to Yesterday," composed by Rika Muranaka. Recorded with Onaje Allan Gumbs (piano), Don Braden (saxophone), Robin Eubanks (trombone), Kenny Davis (bass), Eugene Jackson (drums), and the Felix Farrar Orchestra. |
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20080331203334/http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/musician.php?id=11307 All About Jazz Carla White Biography]
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:White, Carla}}
Category:20th-century American singers
Category:20th-century American women singers
Category:American women jazz singers
Category:American jazz singers
Category:Deaths from cancer in New York (state)
Category:Jazz musicians from California
Category:Milestone Records artists