Morgana King
None of the more than 30 albums recorded by singer Morgana King beginning in the mid-'50s were embraced by the size of the audience that bought tickets to see the first two chapters of The Godfather film trilogy, in which King acted in the role of Mama Corleone. But it would be wrong to assume she had more impact as an actress than as a vocalist. Her acting roles, few and far between, were chosen with care, but did not have the resonance of some of her finest recordings. Millions saw her onscreen in the Godfather films, but her performance was certainly overshadowed by performers such as Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino, not to mention the famous turn by Marlon Brando as her husband. Another role of King's was in the 1997 film A Brooklyn State of Mind; she also appeared in several television productions.
It is possible that there are actors and actresses who have named Morgana King as a great inspiration. Yet, the results of a simple Internet search under her name only yielded dozens of quotes from vocalists and other musicians about the great influence of her recordings and singing style, not her work before the camera. It might not be a surprise when a young female singer gushed about King's albums, but these fans also included deeper thinkers such as classical bass virtuoso Gary Karr. References to her music also show up regularly in fiction as a kind of mood-setting device, such as: "It was a beautiful day in Malibu. He got up, made a coffee and put on a Morgana King record."
Some record collectors might be surprised to realize that a complete set of King sides might eliminate any elbow room for, say, the discography of one of the prolific blues guitarists with this regal surname. Morgana King sides can be divided into several periods. It took her almost eight years to peak at whatever commercial success she was going to have with the 1964 A Taste of Honey album, thus ending the early years. She was then absorbed into the Atlantic and Reprise corporation and an exemplary series of releases by singers such as Big Joe Turner, Ruth Brown, Lavern Baker, and Ray Charles. The label's greatest producers stared the oncoming rock & roll in the eye, never forgetting their basic R&B orientation. Within a few years, a subcategory developed, seen through paisley glasses. The material became more philosophical, the increasing intellectual depth not surprisingly accompanied by the audience stampeding in the opposite direction. This might make sense, though; while 1965's The Winter of My Discontent is a masterpiece, 1968's Gemini Changes is laughably pretentious.
By the early '70s she was eager to get into films, the music business pushing away any and all veteran talent. Later in the decade she launched the mature period of her career, though, once again recording as more of a jazz-flavored artist for Muse, a label which in itself indicates a disinterest in pop culture. The label was loyal to her, regularly recording her through the following decade. This material was reissued in the late '90s by the 32 Jazz label, whose honcho, Joel Dorn, also presided over the reissue of her Reprise sides. If a special sort of bittersweet feeling pervaded her later performances, perhaps it had something to do with this return to her jazz singing roots. Her father had been a performer of folk and popular music on voice and guitar, and she had begun singing in nightclubs such as Basin Street in New York City when she was in her mid-twenties.
Only a few years earlier, she had been immersed in classical studies at the Metropolitan School of Music. Basin Street may have been in the same city, but it must have seemed like a completely different musical world. The formal training undoubtedly filled in aspects of her musical walk where some of her peers might have had to limp. For this reason alone, some listeners find her efforts the most swinging of the '60s generation of pop singers. It meant much critical acclaim during her career, if not great commercial success. At many stages, King seemed to have been making other plans. For the 1960 Encyclopedia of Jazz by Leonard Feather, she listed this ambition: "To become a dramatic actress."
© Eugene Chadbourne /TiVo
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Four Classic Albums (Digitally Remastered)
Jazz - Erschienen bei Avid Entertainment am 30.01.2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
It's A Quiet Thing
Pop - Erschienen bei Rhino - Warner Records am 01.01.1965
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Sings The Blues
Jazz - Erschienen bei Mercury Records am 30.03.1958
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Morgana King Sings the Blues
Internationaler Pop - Erschienen bei Trunk Records am 21.02.2023
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
New Beginnings
Pop - Erschienen bei Verve Reissues am 01.11.1973
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
For You, For Me, Forevermore
Jazz - Erschienen bei Mercury Records am 31.03.1956
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
I Just Can't Stop Loving You
Jazz - Erschienen bei Savoy am 01.01.1991
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Gemini Changes
Pop - Erschienen bei Rhino - Warner Records am 01.01.1967
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Five Classic Albums: Storyville Presents Miss Teddi King / George Wein Presents Now in Vogue / Live at 30th Street / Out of the Blue / Folk Songs a La King (Remastered)
Teddi King, Carol Sloane, Morgana King
Jazz - Erschienen bei Avid Entertainment am 15.03.2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wild Is Love
Pop - Erschienen bei Rhino - Warner Records am 12.05.2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Miss Morgana King
Jazz - Erschienen bei Mainstream Records am 01.02.2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Original Recordings Collection (A Timeless Selection)
Jazz - Erschienen bei Sector Records am 24.10.2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Sings The Blues (The Duke Velvet Edition)
Jazzgesang - Erschienen bei Finest Recordings am 20.03.2024
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
The Greatest Hits Collection
Jazzgesang - Erschienen bei Music Manager am 24.04.2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Ultimate Collection
Jazzgesang - Erschienen bei Master Classics Records am 01.05.2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
For You, For Me, Forever More (Remastered)
Jazz - Erschienen bei RevOla am 02.07.2019
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
I Love You Much Too Much
Jazzgesang - Erschienen bei Jazz Arena am 07.10.2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Let Me Love You
Jazzgesang - Erschienen bei Poppydisc am 31.03.1958
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo