Diana Krall
Diana Krall is an accomplished singer,
and jazz pianist. Diana was born in British Columbia Canada in
1964. She learned to play piano when she was just
four-years-old. Everyone is her family are musicians. When she
was in high school she played in a jazz group, and at just
fifteen played in many restaurants in Nanaimo. She won a
scholarship from Vancouver International Jazz Festival at 17
years old to go to Berklee College of Music. She stayed for one
and a half years.
When she played in Nanaimo, Ray Brown, a famous bass player and
ex-husband of Ella Fitzgerald told her to move to Los Angeles,
California and improve her talents with Jimmy Rowles, a
pianist. She did, and began to sing with him. This move led her
to into a circle of producers and teachers who could further
her career. In 1990 she went to New York and married the
British musician Elvis Costello, on musician Elton John's
estate in 2003. Diana and Elvis had twins Dexter Henry Lorcan
and Frank Harlan James in 2006.
Listening to her fathers huge jazz music albums is what helped
Diana be the musician she is today. She lost her mother to
multiple myeloma in 2002, and her mentors Ray Brown and
Rosemary Clooney in just a few short months of each other. Her
younger sister is a strong supporter of her jazz music
career.
Her first album came out in 1993, called Stepping Out. John
Clayton and Jeff Hamilton were part of that record. Tommy
LiPuma heard it and produced her next album Only Trust Your
Heart in 1995. Her next album was called All For You: A
Dedication to the Nat King Cole Trio, in 1996. That was
nominated for a Grammy award and was on the jazz charts in
Billboard magazine for seventy weeks. In 1997 Love Scenes was a
hit record with Russell Malone on guitar, and Christian McBride
on bass guitar.
In 2000, Diana went on a tour with Tony Bennett and was
nominated for more Grammy awards. The Look of Love album went
platinum, the following year. It went to number one on the
Canadian charts, and on the Billboard 200, top ten. In 2001
Diana toured the world. The Paris Olympia concert was recorded,
and Diana Krall-Live in Paris was released and went to the top
of Billboard jazz charts, number 5 in Canada and the top 20 of
Billboard 200. On the recording was a cover of Billy Joel's
"Just The Way You Are" and "A Case Of You" by Joni
Mitchell.
Diana also wrote with her husband after they were married, and
wrote her own songs. The Girl in the Other Room was the result
of her work, in 2004. This year, she was in a Lexus ad. Diana
also sang "Dream a Little Dream of Me" with Hank Jones, a
famous pianist. In 2003 she received an honorary doctorate from
University of Victoria. In 2004 she was included in the
Canada's Walk of Fame.

November 16, 1964
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