Mark Chilla
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Articles by Mark Chilla
Carmen McRae On Decca
This week, we’re highlighting one of the most celebrated jazz singers of the 20th century: Carmen McRae. McRae had one of the most consistent careers in jazz, stretching for about four decades. She first became famous in the 1950s, when she was already in her thirties. And even on those early records, she already had a well-developed jazz style, complete with a confident delivery, a pointed tone, and a natural gift for improvisation.
Schoolhouse Jazz!
On January 6, 1973, 50 years ago, the animated series Schoolhouse Rock first aired on television. This collection of short songs and crude cartoons taught kids about multiplication, American history and more through the language of contemporary “rock” music. However, many of the musicians involved actually came from the world of jazz.
Tony Bennett’s Early Columbia LPs
UPDATE JULY 21, 2023: The world of American popular music has lost a giant—the incomparable Tony Bennett has passed away today at age 96. He had one of the most celebrated and lengthy careers in American popular song, stretching for nearly 70 years. This week, in honor of Bennett, we’ll revisit an older episode that explores some of the recordings from his very early career, when he was still basically an unknown, recording some early albums for Columbia Records in the 1950s and early 1960s.
My Coloring Book: Colors In Popular Song
This week on the show, I’ll be exploring the theme of color in the Great American Songbook. Whether you are red with passion, green with envy, or feelin’ kind of blue, colors have a way of highlighting a phrase or providing different shades of meaning. Naturally, the Great American Songbook is bursting with color, providing warmth, tone, and vibrancy to a musical phrase.
Get Happy: Happiness In Popular Song
This week on the show, I’m keeping things light and easy with a show all about happiness in popular song. I’m not simply looking at songs that can be construed as “happy,” but songs where being happy (or trying to become happy) is the actual theme. Most major songwriters from the Great American Songbook wrote songs about this, including Richard Rodgers, Harold Arlen, and Jule Styne. We’ll hear those songs and more this hour, sung by Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee, and Nat King Cole.
Live Ella!
The great jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald was a lot of things: iconic swing vocalist and bandleader, pioneering bebop scat singer, and elegant song interpreter. I've discussed many time on the show before, including a close look at her early work for Decca Records and her later work on Verve Records. But on this program, I’m going to feature a different aspect of her career: as one of the most renowned live performers in jazz.
Full Moon And Empty Arms: Classical Melodies In Popular Song
Names like Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, Debussy, and Ravel are not typically part of the music of the Great American Songbook. But you may be surprised to learn, the origins of many American pop melodies began with these classical composers. This hour on the program, I explore the classical melodies hidden within some pop standards, including well-known hits like "Baubles, Bangles, and Beads," "Lover, Come Back To Me" and more.
Songs Of The Season: Autumn
On this program, it's my annual salute to changing leaves, crisp fall air, and pumpkin spice with some "Songs of the Season" for autumn. Autumn songs from the Great American Songbook are generally ballads, with a tinge of regret and melancholy permeating the lyrics, as the carefree days of summer are blown away with the brisk fall breeze.
I Walk With Music: Songs About Walking
In the Great American Songbook, you’ll find songs written about some expected topics: love, youth, beauty, spring. Other common tropes however are a bit unexpected, like for instance, walking. Taking a walk might seem like a simple task … pedestrian, even. But a walk can also be an important time of reflection—or connection, if you’re sharing it with someone else. It’s also the perfect time for a song to be twirling around inside your head.
Miss D On Mercury
Dinah Washington was known as the "Queen Of The Blues," but really, she was so much more than that. Washington was a jazz, pop, AND R&B diva, with an ability to sell a song with cool, confident, hard-edged style that was like no other. This hour on the program, we'll give a brief exploration of Washington's thirteen year run on the Mercury Record label, where she crafted some of her biggest hits like "Cold, Cold Heart" and "What A Diff'rence A Day Made."
An All-American Road Trip
It's the week of the Fourth of July, so this week on the program, I'll be celebrating America by taking an All-American road trip through the Great American Songbook. This hour, we'll travel around the country as we explore songs about different states.
The Songs Of 1924
All this month on the program, I’ve been turning back the clock to the 1920s, exploring the songs from that roaring decade that have resonated over the century. If you haven't listened, check out the episodes on 1920, 1921, 1922, and 1923. And for our final episode of the month, I’ll be looking back 100 years to the year 1924.
The Songs Of 1920
All this month on the program, we’re going to be turning back the clock 100 years, to explore the songs of the 1920s. This week, a special focus on the songs of the year that kicked off the roaring decade: 1920. Many of the songs from this year did not withstand the test of time, for reasons we’ll get into. But this hour, we’ll hear a few of the songs that did, including “Avalon,” “Whispering,” and “Look For The Silver Lining.” 1920 was a pivotal year in American history.
Blossom Dearie in the 1960s and 70s
This week on the show, we’re continuing our 100th birthday celebration of singer and songwriter Blossom Dearie. Last time on the show, we showcased Dearie’s classic period in the late 1950s, and her six remarkable albums for Verve Records. And this week, I will chronicle the next chapter of her career in the 1960s and 1970s.
When The Sun Comes Out
This coming Monday, April 8th, will be a big day in North America. A total solar eclipse will stretch from Mexico to Maine, blocking the sun for up to four and half minutes. As we lament the temporary loss of our solar companion, this week, we’ll celebrate her with some songs about sunshine. Coming up this hour, we’ll hear sunny songs from the American songbook, including “On The Sunny Side Of The Street,” “East Of The Sun,” “That Old Lucky Sun,” and many more.
Sassy Swings Again: Sarah Vaughan in the 1960s
This week on the show, we’re continuing our 100th birthday celebration of The Divine One, Miss Sarah Vaughan. Vaughan would have turned 100 years old on March 27, 2024. Last time, I took a deep dive into her work during the 1950s, where she recorded both jazz and pop records for the Mercury label. This hour, we’ll explore her work in the following decade, and the many recordings she made for the Roulette label and beyond.
Songs Of The Season: Spring
The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, the flowers are beginning to bloom—as Lorenz Hart once said “Spring Is Hear, I Hear.” As we herald the start of a new season, I'm highlighting some songs of springtime on this episode. We’ll hear some springtime songs from artists like Bing Crosby, June Christy and Matt Dennis. Tony Bennett will take us a springtime trip to Manhattan, and Fats Waller will give us some spring cleaning tips.
The Dynamic Dakota Staton
On this episode, I’m turning my spotlight onto 1950s and 60s jazz vocalist Dakota Staton. Staton had a voice that was dynamic: at times soulful and bluesy, other times powerful and gospel-tinged, and other times coquettish and emotional. She’s probably best known for her rendition of the song “The Late, Late Show,” which became a minor hit for her in 1957. This hour, we’ll explore parts of her entire recording career, with a focus on her Capitol Records LPs from the 1950s and 60s.
2024 Grammy Award Preview
It’s Grammy Award season yet again. So this week on the program, I’ll be presenting my annual preview of some of the vocal jazz Grammy nominees in several different categories, ahead of this year’s ceremony on Sunday, February 4th. Coming up, we’ll hear some Traditional Pop nominees, including singers Laufey and Rickie Lee Jones. We’ll hear some nominees for Best Jazz Performance, Best Jazz Vocal Album, and Best Arrangement, including singers like Cécile McLorin Salvant and Esperanza Spalding.
Starry Eyed: Stars in the Great American Songbook
The twinkle of stars have always been an inspiration for songwriters, and so on this program, we’ll also use the night sky as our muse. I’ll feature some of the most beloved star songs from the auteurs of the Great American Songbook, classic tunes like “Stella By Starlight,” “I’ve Told Ev’ry Little Star,” and “When You Wish Upon A Star.” We’ll feature Stardust melodies by Hoagy Carmichael, Jimmy Van Heusen, and Kurt Weill, sung by Frank Sinatra, Anita O’Day, Ella Fitzgerald and more.
Holiday Rarities!
It’s the holiday season, a time where the American Songbook often is featured front and center in shopping malls, car stereos, and commercials. And for our annual holiday episode of Afterglow, I’m going to explore a few songs off the snowy track. Instead of “Silent Night” and “White Christmas,” we’re going to be taking a look at some more obscure holiday tunes, as performed by songbook favorites like Ella Fitzgerald and Bing Crosby.
Boppin’ With Bob Dorough
On this episode, I’m exploring the work of the jazz singer and songwriter Bob Dorough. Dorough would have turned 100 years old on December 12, 2023.
Recent Releases 2023, Part 2
The year is almost up, so it’s time once again to take a look at some recent releases in the world of vocal jazz. On this program, I'll feature new recordings from Afterglow mainstays like Stacey Kent and Veronica Swift. I'll also feature a new holiday recording from the duo of Gregory Porter and Samara Joy. And I’ll showcase several Canadian artists who are making the American songbook their own.
Barney Kessel And The Singers
This week on the show we’re paying tribute to one of the most prolific guitar players in jazz, Barney Kessel. Kessel would have turned 100 years old last month. Kessel is a legend not just in the jazz world—he was a key studio player in the so-called “Wrecking Crew,” performing session work for acts as wide-ranging as the Beach Boys, Sonny and Cher, and Sam Cooke.
The Versatile Jo Stafford
This week, our spotlight is on one of the finest and most underrated female vocalists from the war years, Jo Stafford*. Stafford had one of the purest, warmest vocal sounds of any of the great songbook singers, and her repertoire extended from standards, to bebop, to even American folk music. Stafford had the style of a cool jazz singer in the generation before those kinds of singers existed. She started as a big band vocalist, and then turned into a solo balladeer.
Pete Rugolo And The Singers
On this program, we're celebrating the work of arranger Pete Rugolo, one of the most progressive and wide-ranging arrangers to come out of the post-World War II era. In the early years of his career, he often worked with some of the top vocalists in the jazz and popular-song world, writing charts and conducting for Nat King Cole, Peggy Lee, Mel Torme, and Patti Page. We'll feature those artists, as well as his work with Ernestine Anderson and Billy Eckstine, on this edition of Afterglow.
Italian-American Crooners
From 1947–1954, there were 25 Italian-Americans who had chart-topping hits in the world of American Popular Music. You may say that the Great American Songbook was shaped, at least in part, by these Italian interpreters. On this episode, we'll salute the Italian-American crooners, including as Frank Sinatra, Louis Prima, Vic Damone, Tony Bennett, Russ Columbo, Dean Martin, and Perry Como, hearing both well-known standards as well as songs from their Italian heritage.
The Great American Children’s Songbook
I hope you’re in touch with your inner child, because this week on the show, we’re feeling juvenile. I’ll be looking this hour at music for children. Coming up, we’ll hear some swinging adaptations of nursery rhymes by Ella Fitzgerald, Nat King Cole, and Frank Sinatra. We’ll hear some songs written about kids by Tony Bennett and others. Plus, we’ll hear some fun novelty numbers that will surely appeal to kids, sung by Blossom Dearie, June Christy, and more.
The Great American Book Songs
On this show, we’re exploring a single topic in the American Songbook: writing. Whether it’s a song about books or writing letters… literary themes have shown up time and again in American Popular song. This hour, we’ll sample some of these “book songs” from the “song book,” including “I Could Write A Book,” “Too Marvelous For Words” and “I’m Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself A Letter.” I’ll admit that the genesis of this show came primarily from a play on words.
More of Frank Loesser!
This week on the show, I’m highlighting the songbook of one of the most successful and celebrated songwriters of the Great American Songbook, Frank Loesser. Loesser had an interesting career. In the 1930s, he began strictly as a lyricist, working with greats like Hoagy Carmichael, Burton Lane, and Jimmy McHugh. Then during World War II, he dabbled in writing his own music, and it turned out, he excelled at both.
The Girl From Ipanema: Astrud Gilberto
Brazilian singer Astrud Gilberto had the unlikeliest of careers, going from an unknown (really, not even a professional singer) to a superstar nearly overnight in 1964 with her crossover hit “The Girl from Ipanema.” She passed away on June 5, 2023 at age 83. This hour, I’ll feature some of her initial recordings with Stan Getz and her husband at the time, João Gilberto, as well as many of her solo recordings. Plus, we’ll hear some other bossa nova songs performed by other jazz and pop artists.
Tony Bennett's Last Laugh
This week on the show, we’re continuing our ongoing tribute to the late Tony Bennett, who passed away this year at age 96. In this episode, I’ll be exploring the last part of his career. In 1986, after a long battle with addiction, Bennett returned to the recording studio with a focus on music of the past. At this point, he was nearing 60 years old. But this late-career revival led to a string of successes that stretched for 30 more years. I’ll highlight some of these late recordings this hour.
Recent Vocal Jazz Releases 2023, Part 1
Listen to this week's episode live on WFIU Friday, July 14 at 8:00 pm ET! This week on the show, I’ll be doing my semi-annual check-in with what’s new from some notable vocal jazz and traditional pop singers. For the first half of 2023, we have a new, experimental all-French album from the marvelous jazz singer Cécile McLorin Salvant. We have a new record from one of my favorite duos, Rachael and Vilray.
The Debonair Johnny Hartman
This week on the program, we’re celebrating jazz singer Johnny Hartman, who would have turned 100 years old this week. Hartman’s voice was somewhere between Billy Eckstine and Frank Sinatra—a rich baritone with an amazing ability to interpret a ballad. Yet despite his many musical gifts, his career never took off. However, he’s still celebrated, thanks mostly to one iconic album with saxophonist John Coltrane in 1963, and because he was a favorite singer of a famous filmmaker (more on that later).
The King and Queen of Soul Sing Standards
For our celebration of African-American Music Appreciation Month, we're exploring notable Black artists who blurred the lines between jazz and other genres. This week, a look at the King and Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin and Sam Cooke. In the world of soul music, there are hardly two more venerated names than Aretha Franklin and Sam Cooke. Both began their musical careers singing gospel, and they're both are known for taking that gospel sound and transforming the world of rock and R&B.
The Musical World Of Harry Belafonte
June is African-American Music Appreciation Month. So all this month on the program, I’m going to be celebrating some notable Black artists from the mid 20th century who all blurred the lines between jazz and other genres. This week, a look at singer Harry Belafonte, who passed away in April at age 96. A film idol, a celebrated stage performer, and a best-selling recording artist, Harry Belafonte became a star in the 1950s, and then used his stardom to fight for equality in the 1960s.
The Rat Pack: Sammy Davis, Jr.
Last week on the program, we explored the life and career of Dean Martin, one of the members of Frank Sinatra’s so-called “Rat Pack” in the 1950s and 60s. And this week, I want to continue by looking at another member, “Mr. Wonderful,” “Mister Show Business,” Mr. Sammy Davis, Jr. Davis was a trailblazer, an African-American performer who penetrated the world of white entertainment due to his electrifying and undeniable talent, opening the doors for many Black entertainers.
The Rat Pack: Dean Martin
If I were to say the term “Rat Pack,” three names probably come to mind: Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis, Jr. This iconic trio became famous for their wild, often drunken Vegas performances in the 1960s. And while the leader of the pack Frank Sinatra is someone I feature often on this show, this week and next, I’ll be highlighting the work of the other two. On this program, a closer look at the “King Of Cool,” the laidback comedian in the group, Dean Martin.
The Songs of 1923
This week, I’m once again turning back the clock 100 years to explore the songs from the year 1923. In previous episodes, I looked at the songs of 1921 and the songs of 1922. A century ago, the music world was much different: radio still wasn’t widespread, recordings were just beginning to catch on with the public, and icons like Louis Armstrong and Bessie Smith were just starting to cut their first records.
Put Down The Horn: Jazz's Unlikely Singers
On this episode of Afterglow, I'm highlighting some jazz musicians who made their living playing horn, piano, or drums, but who could also sing when the occasion called for it. It's a look at jazz's part-time, unlikely singers, including trumpeter Chet Baker, drummer Buddy Rich, trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie, pianist Oscar Peterson, clarinetist Benny Goodman, trumpeter Roy Eldridge, guitarist Kenny Burrell, saxophonist Tex Beneke, clarinetist Woody Herman, and trumpeter Clark Terry.
What The World Needs Now: The Burt Bacharach Songbook
This past February, fans of the American songbook mourned the loss of one of its icons: the great Burt Bacharach. Bacharach bucked many of the pop trends of the 1960s, preferring a sophisticated and urbane style of songwriting that was unlike the rock and roll sounds of his contemporaries. Moreover, his songs have endured, being interpreted over the years by countless artists.
Tributes To The Lady
Singer Billie Holiday is without a doubt one of the most influential jazz singers from any era. Her intensely personal and emotionally-charged singing style influenced nearly every singer that followed in her wake. When she died in 1959, tribute albums to “Lady Day” began pouring out, even within a few years after her death. On this episode, we’ll examine those tribute works, hearing some of Billie’s most beloved songs sung by Abbey Lincoln, , , and more. Music Heard On This Episode
Billie Holiday in the 1940s
MUSIC CLIP - OSCAR PETERSON, “MOONGLOW” Welcome to Afterglow, [a show of vocal jazz and popular song from the Great American Songbook], I’m your host, Mark Chilla. This week on the show, I’m chronicling a pivotal time period for the celebrated jazz singer Billie Holiday: the 1940s. Holiday began the decade as a 25 year old who was heralded as one of the most unique voices in jazz. She ended the decade at a low point, marred by drug addiction and a series of legal troubles.
The Song Styling of Carol Sloane
This week, we’re paying tribute to jazz singer and song stylist Carol Sloane, who passed away on January 23, 2023. Sloane was one of the last surviving singers from that golden age of the American Songbook in the mid 20th century. After recording a few albums for Columbia in the 1960s, Sloane remained out of the spotlight for several decades, before emerging as a mature and celebrated song interpreter in the 1980s.
The Joni Mitchell Jazz Songbook
The 2023 recipient of the famed Gershwin Prize for Popular Song is going to the great songwriter Joni Mitchell. Over the years, Mitchell’s artistry has transformed the American musical landscape, blending folk and jazz and influencing countless artists. In honor of this accolade, and on this first week in Women’s History Month, I’ll be paying tribute to Joni Mitchell and her songs, by hearing jazz interpretations of them, by artists like Tierney Sutton, Dianne Reeves, Janiece Jaffe, and more.
Live Nina!
Nina Simone, the so-called "The High Priestess of Soul," was an enigmatic and eccentric figure in the world of jazz. With a piano style steeped in classical training, she reluctantly became the toast of the jazz world in 1960, later crusading for political change, before retreating from the spotlight. On this episode, we’ll feature Simone in her most natural element: live on stage.
Mr. B: The Great Billy Eckstine
This week, we’re celebrating the renowned jazz baritone Billy Eckstine. Eckstine had what one writer has described as “a deep blue dream of a voice,” and he was a cultural pioneer as well, becoming one of the first black male solo singers to find success singing love songs. Eckstine also led a modernist big band that’s become legendary as an incubator for the revolutionary bebop movement of the 1940s. We’ll hear some of his notable recordings from the 1940s through the 1960s.
Isn't It Romantic?
Valentine’s Day is upon us, so this week on the show, I thought I would devote the hour to love songs from the Great American Songbook. But rather than merely talking about love, I’ll explore the much more complex, passionate, and often extravagant concept of romance.
2023 Grammy Award Preview
It’s that time of year again. The 65th annual Grammy Awards are on Sunday, February 5th, and this week on the show, I’ll be doing my annual preview of some of the vocal jazz nominees in various categories. We’ll preview some of the nominees for Best Jazz Vocal album, which includes some familiar Afterglow favorites like Samara Joy and Cécile McLorin Salvant. Plus, we’ll hear some jazz singers who show up in other categories, like best jazz instrumental album and best traditional pop album.
The Modern Touch of Marty Paich
On this show, we’re examining the work of one of the great jazz arrangers: Marty Paich. Inspired by Miles Davis and Gil Evans, but with a classical-music pedigree, Paich helped develop that cool, west coast sound in the 1950s, before moving onto more commercial ventures in the 1960s and beyond. Coming up, we’ll hear some of his work arranging for singers like Mel Tormé, Ella Fitzgerald, Anita O’Day and Ray Charles.
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