Search - Billy Eckstine :: Ballads Blues & Bebop

Billy Eckstine's Smooth Baritone and Distinctive Vibrato Broke Down Barriers Throughout the 1940s, First as Leader of the Original Bop Big-band, Then as the First Romantic Black Male in Popular Music. An Influence Looming Large in the Cultural Development of Soul and R&B Singers from Sam Cooke to Prince, Eckstine was Able to Play it Straight on his Pop Hits "Prisoner of Love," "my Foolish Heart" and "i Apologize". Some of the Greatest Players of the Bebop Era Passed Through the Ranks of his Band, Including Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker and Miles Davis. The Pop and Jazz Sides of Eckstine's Musical Personality Are Both Represented on this Proper Introduction, Showing Why He was Such a Key Figure in the Development of Black Music.