Jo Stafford

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About Jo Stafford

An almost breathtakingly versatile singer, Jo Stafford rose to prominence as a member of the vocal group the Pied Pipers, with whom she made some of the most memorable recordings of the WWII era, but left in 1944 for a solo career. Her sultry, soulful jazz voice, one to rival Ella Fitzgerald’s, lent itself expertly to the songbook pop of the 1940s. Stafford’s contributions to comedy in the ‘50s & ‘60s, with husband Paul Weston, cannot be overlooked; under the name Jonathan & Darlene, the pair created humor in an innovative Ernie Kovacs style as Weston speeded up suddenly and Stafford sang off-key, often stumbling over the lyrics. Stafford retired from music entirely in 1975, coming out of hermitage for one appearance (to honor Frank Sinatra) before her death in 2008 at 90.

HOMETOWN
Coalinga, CA, United States
BORN
12 November 1917
GENRE
Pop

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