Annika Skoogh sings Anita O’Day
Tuesday 6 September 2022 8pm
Annika Skoogh presents a celebration of Anita O’Day, an american jazz singer widely admired for her sense of rhythm, improvisation and dynamics, presented herself as a hip jazz musician. Described in The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings as ‘ the toughest, most dramatic and most fiercely swinging of all jazz singers’ Anita O’Day is probably best remembered for her performance at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival in the States when she wore a spectacular black dress, white gloves and large hat, an event which was captured in the Jazz On a Summer’s Day documentary (1960) which made her an international superstar.
Born in South America and raised in Sweden, Annika Skoogh is a highly versatile and celebrated multilingual jazz vocalist with a natural talent who is based in Exeter and she brings a special blend of Scandinavian charm and Latin flavour to her performances. She has put together a fine band with some of the best musicians to authentically reproduce Anita O’Day recordings. They focus mostly on recordings from Anita’s collaboration with The Oscar Peterson Quartet ‘Anita Sings The Most’ but also O’Day classics such as Sweet Georgia Brown and Tea For Two. There will be some classic songs by the legendary singer but also some personal song choices.
The band features Annika Skoogh on vocals, UK’s best Oscar Peterson interpreter – pianist Craig Milverton (British Jazz Awards winner in 2010), Steve Dow (guitar), Jim Rintoul (double bass) and Gary Evans (drums).
“…She has a very fine voice and knows how to enhance it to its full quality. She’s a wow!” Marlborough International Jazz Festival
“A singular vocalist capable of both power and sweetness…” St Ives Jazz Club