Anita O’Day Dies

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Singer Anita O’Day died on Nov. 23 in Los Angeles as she was recovering from pneumonia. She was 87.

Born in Chicago as Anita Colton, she adopted her stage name before rising to prominence with the big bands of the 1940s. She had a hit with the Gene Krupa Orchestra, “Let Me Off Uptown,” which featured her in a duet with Roy Eldridge. O’Day later worked with Woody Herman and sang the famous “And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine” with Stan Kenton.

After recording pop albums for Verve, O’Day made a high-profile performance at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival, which was captured in the film, Jazz On A Summer’s Day .



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November 2025
Gary Bartz
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