The album received glowing praise one critic called it “as auspicious a jazz vocal debut as the world has heard.” The music industry agreed, and the album was nominated for a Grammy Award, as were all of Elling’s first ten albums. In 1995, Elling recorded a demo tape, which eventually made its way to Blue Note Records they signed him and released Close Your Eyes later that year.

He has listed singer Mark Murphy, known for his skill at improvisation and vocalese, and singer/trumpeter Chet Baker as important early influences. “Eventually Saturday night won out over Sunday morning.' Elling left the University of Chicago in 1992, only one credit short of his master’s degree.įor the next few years, Elling worked a variety of jobs-mover, wedding singer-in addition to his club gigs.

'By day I was reading Kant and Schleiermacher, trying to get a handle on that, and at night I was sitting-in in clubs, and, of course, you can't do both and be effective,” he later said. He found himself torn between his studies and music. He wasn’t paid much, but the club’s pianist became an important teacher and mentor. It was while he was living in Chicago that he began singing weekly at a small jazz club. In 1989, he entered the divinity school at the University of Chicago, studying for a master’s degree in philosophy of religion, and considering an academic career. His childhood musical instruction was fairly standard he sang in the school choir and played a few different instruments.Įlling didn’t discover jazz until he was a student at Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota, where he majored in history and minored in religion. His father was the music director of a Lutheran church, and Elling was educated at private Lutheran schools. Elling is a jazz singer and lyricist who has become one of the best contemporary practitioners of vocalese, the art of writing lyrics to previously recorded instrumental solos.Įlling was born in Chicago and grew up not far away, in Rockford, Illinois. On November 2, 1967, Kurt Elling was born.

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