On November 25, 1928, Jazz singer Etta Jones was born in Aiken, South Carolina.
Jones was raised in Harlem, New York, where she began performing as a teenager. An appearance at the Apollo Theater led to her first professional job with Buddy Johnson’s band.
Jones made her first recordings in 1944 under producer Leonard Feather. She continued performing through the 1940s and early 1950s, including several years with the Earl Hines sextet. She worked a series of non-music jobs during the 1950s while seeking a recording contract.
Jones signed with Prestige Records in 1960 after an unsolicited demo impressed the label. Her debut single for Prestige, “Don’t Go to Strangers,” reached No. 5 on the R&B chart and No. 36 on the pop chart. The album eventually sold more than one million copies.
Jones recorded frequently through the 1960s and later developed a long-running musical partnership with tenor saxophonist Houston Person. Person served as her producer, manager and regular accompanist for more than three decades. The two toured extensively and recorded for the Muse and HighNote labels beginning in the mid-1970s.
Jones received three Grammy nominations during her career. She continued performing until her health declined due to cancer. She died on October 16, 2001, in Mount Vernon, New York, at age 72. Her final album, a tribute to Billie Holiday, was released the day she died.
Jones received the Eubie Blake Jazz Award and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Women in Jazz Foundation. Her album Don’t Go to Strangers was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2008.
