Catherine Whitney

{{short description|American singer}}

{{Infobox musical artist

| name = Catherine Whitney

| image = Catherine Whitney.jpg

| caption = circa 2006

| birth_date =

| birth_place = Chicago, Illinois, U.S.

| genre = Jazz

| occupation = Singer, lyricist

| instrument = Vocals

| years_active = 1990s–present

| label =

| associated_acts = Von Freeman, Freddie Hubbard, Tommy Muellner, Jose Valdes

| website = {{url|1=https://web.archive.org/web/20070911082911/http://www.catherinewhitney.com/welcome.htm|2=catherinewhitney.com}} (archived)

}}

Catherine Jane Whitney (born in Chicago, Illinois) is an American jazz singer, composer, and lyricist. She was a lyricist for trumpeter Freddie Hubbard.{{Cite web|url=http://www.gopammusic.com/catalogs/hubtones.htm|title=Hubtones Music Co. – LoroMusic.com and Gopam Enterprises|website=www.gopammusic.com|access-date=2008-03-20|archive-date=2021-02-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210216100406/http://www.gopammusic.com/catalogs/hubtones.htm|url-status=dead}}

Whitney learned about music as a child, since her mother, Dorothy Brady, made a living as a vocalist and bandleader in Chicago in the 1950s and '60s. Her stepfather was George E. Lescher, a pianist who played with the Spike Jones Band during World War II and was a longtime Chicago resident. In later years, he led the George Lescher Ballroom Orchestra.Publication: Chicago Sun-Times Date: March 22, 1986 Section: NEWS Edition: FIVE STAR SPORTS FINAL Page: 43

Whitney began her professional jazz singing career in the early 1990s under the mentoring of Von Freeman, a tenor saxophonist in Chicago.{{Cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1993-08-03-9308030088-story.html|title=Jazz Heirs|first=Howard|last= Reich|website=chicagotribune.com|date=3 August 1993 }} Jerry Brown and Gloria Cooper have recorded her work and three songs (in collaboration with Curtis Fuller, Rodgers Grant, and Milton Sealey).Publication: Hal Leonard print publication #HHL0074021 "Sing JAZZ! Leadsheets for 76 Jazz Vocals " In October 2010, New York jazz vocalist Suzanne Pittson recorded a rendition of Freddie Hubbard's song "Our Own" (based on "Gibraltar"), which contained lyrics by Whitney.Publication: All About Jazz – New York, October 2010, No. 102, p. 21 ([http://aaj-ny.com/issues/aaj_ny_201010.pdf] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101011143047/http://aaj-ny.com/issues/aaj_ny_201010.pdf |date=2010-10-11 }}) She has collaborated with Johnny Griffin, Houston Person, Clifford Jordan, Stanley Turrentine, Ray Brown, and Pete Cosey. She is also a Broadcast Music Incorporated (BMI) affiliated writer.[http://repertoire.bmi.com/writer.asp?page=1&blnWriter=True&blnPublisher=True&blnArtist=True&fromrow=1&torow=25&affiliation=BMI&cae=187098330&keyID=610628&keyname=WHITNEY%20CATHERINE%20J&querytype=WriterID] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160115193430/http://repertoire.bmi.com/writer.asp?page=1&blnWriter=True&blnPublisher=True&blnArtist=True&fromrow=1&torow=25&affiliation=BMI&cae=187098330&keyID=610628&keyname=WHITNEY%20CATHERINE%20J&querytype=WriterID |date=2016-01-15 }}

She has worked with many Chicago musicians, including Von Freeman,Publication:Article from Daily Herald (Arlington Heights, IL) Article date:August 28, 1998 Author:Barbara Vitello, 2009 Paddock Publications. John Young, Jodie Christian, John Bany, Richie Cole, Robert Shy, Tommy Muellner, Rusty Jones, Jose Valdes, Arnold Gitard, and Johnie Faren.