Eydie Gormé

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Eydie Gormé
Birth name Edith Gormezano
Born August 16, 1931 (1931-08-16) (age 76)
Origin Bronx, New York City, U.S.
Genre(s) Big band, Swing, pop standards
Occupation(s) Singer, Actor
Years active 1955 - Present
Website http://www.steveandeydie.com/

Eydie Gorme, Alternative spelling Eydie Gormé[1] (born Edith Gormezano; August 16, 1931) is an American singer credited heavily, along with husband Steve Lawrence, with helping to keep the classic Traditional pop music repertoire alive and well. She still continues to entertain and tour with husband Steve.

Throughout her long career she has been the recipient of numerous awards including the Grammy Award, and an Emmy Award. The couple's striking union of broad ballads and breezy swing has combined with the endurance of their marriage and their comic facility to make them American institutions---even though neither of the couple, as separate performers or together, has put a single into the American Top 40 since 1963.

Contents

[edit] Early years

Gormé was born Edith Gormezano in Bronx, New York, the daughter of Fortune and Nessim Gormezano, who was a tailor.[2] Her parents were Sephardic Jewish immigrants, her father from Sicily and her mother from Turkey.[3][4] She graduated from William Howard Taft high school in 1946 (legendary film director Stanley Kubrick attended the school at the same time), and worked for the United Nations as a translator, using her fluency in the Spanish language.

She made her recording debut in 1950 with Tommy Tucker Orchestra and Don Brown and a second recording which featured Dick Noel. MGM issued these two recordings on 78rpm vinyl.

Early releases:

A: Powder And Paint Original Issue: On 78 rpm vinyl only on MGM 10758

A: Cherry Stones Original Issue: On 78 rpm vinyl only on MGM 10767

Big Band Years:

She also hired out as a singer, working in the big bands of former Glenn Miller singer Tex Beneke In 1951 Eydie made several radio transmission recordings that have been issued on vinyl LP and recently on CD, in 1952 Eydie Gormé went on to record solo and her first recordings were issued on the Coral label.

[edit] Tonight Show start

She caught both her big break and her life partner when she and singer Steve Lawrence were booked to the original The Tonight Show, then hosted by Steve Allen. Andy Williams was also a singer on the Tonight Show during this period.

[edit] Marriage

The couple were married in Las Vegas on December 29, 1957. They had two sons, one of whom predeceased them. They became famous on stage for their banter, which usually involved tart yet affectionate and sometimes bawdy references to their married life, which remains a feature of their stage style even now. (A typical exchange: Lawrence---"Baby, you're the only thing I've invested in that's doubled." Gormé---"Now you have to figure out how to make me split.")

In 1995 Gorme and Lawrence were honored for their lifetime contribution to song by the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

[edit] Solo/duo

Gormé enjoyed a few hit singles on her own, none selling bigger than 1963's "Blame it on the Bossa Nova", which was also her final foray into the Top 40 pop charts. Still, she won a Grammy Award for Best Female Vocal Performance in 1967, for her version of "If He Walked Into My Life", from the stage musical Mame. Like her husband, Gormé has appeared on numerous television shows over the years, including The Carol Burnett Show and The Nanny. She and Lawrence appeared together on Broadway in the unsuccessful musical Golden Rainbow, the gestation of which is covered in very unflattering detail in William Goldman's 1968 book The Season.

Eydie Gorme on the cover of her 1964 album titled "Eydie Gorme Canta En Español con Los Panchos
Eydie Gorme on the cover of her 1964 album titled "Eydie Gorme Canta En Español con Los Panchos

Gorme also gained unique crossover success in the Latin Music market through a series of albums she made in Spanish. One album being her bestselling album: Eydie Gorme, Canta en Español (Sings in Spanish) with a trio of musicians called Los Panchos. The second album is called Cuatro Vidas (Four Lives). The last album with Los Panchos is a Christmas collection titled Blanca Navidad.

As a duo with her husband, their show name was "Steve and Eydie". In 1960, Steve and Eydie were awarded the Grammy Award for Best Performance by a Vocal Group for their song "We Got Us." One of their best known duos was the 1979 Israeli song "Hallelujah," winner of the Eurovision song contest. They recorded it under the pseudonym Parker and Penny.

Since the 1970s, the couple has focused strictly on the American pop repertoire, recording several albums themed around individual American pop composers. As the 21st Century arrived, the normally indefatigable couple announced their plans to cut back on their touring, launching a "One More For The Road" tour in 2002.

In 2006, Gormé became a blogger, posting occasional messages on her official Web site.

[edit] Parenthood

Gormé and Lawrence had two sons, David, who is a composer, and Michael, who died unexpectedly of ventricular fibrillation resulting from an undiagnosed heart condition in 1986, at the age of 23.[5] Michael was a seeded tennis player at Cal State Northridge the time of his death, and apparently healthy despite a previous diagnosis of slight arrhythmia, which he was expected to grow out of. Gormé and Lawrence were in Atlanta at the time of his death, having performed at the Fox Theater the night before. Upon learning of the tragedy, Frank Sinatra sent his private plane to pick up the couple so that they could fly to New York to meet their other son, David, who was attending school at the time. Following the death of Michael, the couple took a year off before touring again.

[edit] Discography - albums

  • 1951 Tex Beneke & The Glenn Miller Orchestra (Radio transmission recordings: features Eydie Gormé on vocals)
  • 1956 Delight
  • 1957 Eydie Gormé
  • 1957 Eydie Swings the Blues
  • 1958 Eydie Gormé Vamps the Roaring 20's
  • 1958 Eydie in Love
  • 1958 Gormé Sings Showstoppers
  • 1958 Love is a Season
  • 1959 Eydie Gormé On Stage
  • 1959 Eydie in Dixieland
  • 1960 We Got Us (with Steve Lawrence)
  • 1960 Sing The Golden Hits (with Steve Lawrence)
  • 1961 Come Sing with Me
  • 1961 I Feel So Spanish
  • 1962 Two On The Aisle (with Steve Lawrence)
  • 1962 It's Us Again (with Steve Lawrence)
  • 1963 Blame It on the Bossa Nova
  • 1963 Let the Good Times Roll'
  • 1963 Steve & Eydie At The Movies (with Steve Lawrence)
  • 1964 Gormé Country Style
  • 1964 That Holiday Feeling (with Steve Lawrence)
  • 1964 Amor (with Trio Los Panchos)
  • 1965 Eydie Gormé sings Great Songs from The Sound of Music And Other Broadway Hits
  • 1965 More Amor (with Trio Los Panchos)
  • 1966 Don't Go to Strangers
  • 1966 Navidad Means Christmas (with Trio Los Panchos)
  • 1967 Bonfá & Brazil (with Luis Bonfá and Steve Lawrence)
  • 1967 Softly, As I Leave You
  • 1968 The Look of Love
  • 1968 Eydie
  • 1969 Otra Vez
  • 1970 Tonight I'll Say a Prayer
  • 1970 Canta en Español (with Trio Los Panchos)
  • 1970 Cuatro Vidas (with Trio Los Panchos)
  • 1971 It Was a Good Time
  • 1976 La Gormé
  • 1977 Muy Amigos/Close Friends (with Danny Rivera)
  • 1981 Since I Fell for You
  • 1982 Tomame O Dejame
  • 1988 De Corazon A Corazon
  • 1992 Eso Es El Amor
  • 1996 Silver Screen

[edit] Music samples

[edit] References

  1. ^ TV.com bio accessed 22 Feb 2008
  2. ^ Eydie Gorme Biography (1932?-)
  3. ^ ON STAGE AND OFF WITH: Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme; After 35 Years, Their Act Is Here to Stay - New York Times
  4. ^ The New York Times > New York Region > Long Island: Those Thrilling Days of Yesteryear
  5. ^ http://cnnstudentnews.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0310/17/lkl.00.html] 2003 Interview with Larry King

[edit] External links and references