* En anglais uniquement
Not to be confused with British heavy metal/hard rock guitarist Kelly Johnson (who was a member of the all-female headbanger combo
Girlschool back in the late-'70s and early-'80s), the
Kelley Johnson profiled in this bio is an American jazz vocalist who has been active in Seattle since the late '80s.
Kelley Johnson favors a clean, lucid, straightforward vocal style that has inspired a variety of comparisons. There are hints of
Carmen McRae in her warm, intimate phrasing, and her effective use of subtlety brings to mind members of jazz' cool school such as
Chris Connor,
June Christy,
Julie London, and
Anita O'Day.
Johnson has also been compared to the late
Irene Kral, and there are times when she reminds the listener of
Peggy Lee. But unlike
Lee, who was a jazz-influenced pop singer,
Johnson is very much a jazz improviser -- spontaneity is a vital part of what she does. The Seattle resident is also a talented arranger and lyricist who has provided lyrics to
Joe Henderson's "Recorda Me" and other bop or post-bop songs that started out as instrumentals;
Johnson's "Recorda Me" lyrics have been embraced by fellow jazz singer
Tierney Sutton.
Johnson isn't from the Pacific Northwest originally; the singer was born and raised in the Midwest, lived in Milwaukee, WI, and graduated from the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music. While living in Milwaukee, she attracted the attention of hard bop trumpeter
Brian Lynch (who was one of
Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers from 1988-1990) and organist
Melvin Rhyne, among others. While visiting Seattle in the late '80s,
Johnson had a chance to sing with bassist
Buddy Catlett's band and decided to move to the Emerald City. Another person she met in Seattle was singer
Mark Murphy, who visited the Pacific Northwest to teach at
Bud Shank's Jazz Workshop (a jazz education program that veteran alto saxophonist
Shank oversees in Port Townsend, WA).
Johnson ended up studying with
Murphy, who she considers a mentor. Following
Murphy's example,
Johnson eventually got into teaching -- and in 1998, she was invited to teach at
Shank's workshop. 1998 was also the year in which
Johnson's debut album,
Make Someone Happy (which pianist
Fred Hersch produced), was released by the Los Angeles-based Chartmaker label. By straight-ahead jazz standards, the album did relatively well and sold at least 4500 copies. The early 2000s found
Johnson (who married Seattle pianist
John Hansen) teaching at the Cornish College of the Arts and continuing to perform frequently around Seattle. In 2003, she recorded her second studio album, Music Is the Magic, and
Johnson's first live album, Live at Birdland, was due out on the Jazzconnect label in March 2004. ~ Alex Henderson