Tina May

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Tina May
Tina May performing at the Blue Lamp, Aberdeen, 2004
Tina May performing at the Blue Lamp, Aberdeen, 2004
Background information
Birth nameDaphne Christina May[1][2][3][4]
Born(1961-03-30)30 March 1961
Gloucester, Gloucestershire, England
Died26 March 2022(2022-03-26) (aged 60)
London, England[5]
GenresJazz
Occupation(s)Singer, actress
Years active1980–2022
Labels33 Jazz, Linn, Hep

Daphne Christina May (30 March 1961 – 26 March 2022), known professionally as Tina May, was an English jazz vocalist.

Early life and career

The younger of two daughters born to Harry May and Daphne E. Walton,

Frampton-on-Severn when she was young and attended Stroud High School and later Cheltenham Ladies' College. She played clarinet from an early age, before studying classical singing at Cheltenham.[8] She began singing jazz while attending Cardiff University.[9] May recorded numerous albums for 33 Jazz Records. She also worked with Tony Coe, Nikki Iles, Stan Sulzmann, Ray Bryant, Enrico Pieranunzi, Patrick Villanueva [fr][10] and with Ray Guntrip, on three albums, including her final studio outing, Mood In Blue, which was released in 2023.[11]
(see discography below).

May also lectured and taught extensively; her employers included

Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, and the University of West London. In addition, she regularly attached workshops and masterclasses to her own tours.[6]

Personal life

In 1989, May married Clark Tracey, with whom she recorded several albums in the 1990s.[12] They later divorced and, at the time of her death, May's partner of roughly two and a half years was saxophonist Simon Spillett.[13][14]

Discography

As leader

  • Never Let Me Go (33 Records, 1992)
  • Fun (33 Records, 1993)
  • It Ain't Necessarily So (33 Records, 1994)
  • Time Will Tell (33 Records, 1995)
  • Jazz Piquant with Tony Coe (33 Records, 1998)
  • Change of Sky with Nikki Iles (33 Records, 1998)
  • One Fine Day (33 Records, 1999)
  • Live in Paris (33 Records, 2000)
  • The Ella Fitzgerald Songbook Revisted with Lee Gibson, Barbara Jay (Spotlite, 2000)
  • I'll Take Romance (Linn, 2003)
  • Early May (33 Records, 2004)
  • More Than You Know with Tony Coe, Nikki Iles (33 Records, 2004)
  • A Wing and a Prayer (33 Records, 2006)
  • Sings the Ray Bryant Songbook (33 Records, 2006)
  • Out of the Blue with Ray Guntrip (rayguntripmusic, 2008)
  • I Never Told You (33 Records, 2009)
  • Tina May Sings Piaf (33 Records, 2011)
  • Where You Belong with Ray Guntrip (rayguntripmusic, 2011)
  • No More Hanky Panky (33 Records, 2011)
  • Troubadours with Dylan Fowler (33 Records, 2013)
  • Divas (Hep, 2013)
  • My Kinda Love (Hep, 2014)
  • Home Is Where the Heart Is with Enrico Pieranunzi (33 Records, 2015)
  • Musica Paradiso: Songs and Stories from the Silver Screen with Guillermo Rozenthuler (2016)
  • Telling Jokes with Steve Plews (ASC, 2016)
  • Cafe Paranoia: Tina May Sings Mark Murphy with Andy Lutter (33 Records, 2017)
  • 52nd Street: Tina May Sings the Songs of Duncan Lamont (33 Records, 2021)
  • Mood In Blue by Ray Guntrip & Tina May (DigiMix Records Ltd - DGMX 594, 2023) (Vocals recorded August, 2021 and co-produced by Gary Barnacle)

As guest

  • Transatlantic Airs with Michael Hashim (33 Jazz, 1994)
  • Ellington's Sacred Music with Stan Tracey Jazz Orchestra & the Durham Cathedral Choir (33 Jazz, 2000)
  • Cornucopia 2 with Humphrey Lyttelton (Caligraph, 2007)
  • I'm Sorry, I Haven't a Clue: Humph Celebration Concert (AudioGO, 2011)

References

  1. ^ Yanow, Scott (April 18, 2022). "Remembering Tina May". Jazz on the Tube. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
  2. ^ "England and Wales Birth Registration Index, 1837-2008," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QV7Y-FP3B : 1 October 2014), Daphne C May, 1961; from "England & Wales Births, 1837-2006," database, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : 2012); citing Birth Registration, Gloucester City, Gloucestershire, England, citing General Register Office, Southport, England.
  3. ^ "England and Wales Marriage Registration Index, 1837-2005," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVXL-7NG5 : 8 October 2014), Daphne C May and null, Jun 1989; from "England & Wales Marriages, 1837-2005," database, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : 2012); citing 1989, quarter 2, vol. 22, p. 1822, Gloucester, Gloucestershire, England, General Register Office, Southport, England.
  4. ^ Cardiff University (2011). "Grants , Gifts and Donations: Individuals". Annual Report. p. 20. Retrieved April 3, 2022.
  5. ^ Tracey, Ben (27 March 2022). "RIP, Tina May, 1961 – 2022". London Jazz News.
  6. ^ a b "Tina May Obituary. The Guardian. April 10, 2022. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  7. ^ "England and Wales Marriage Registration Index, 1837-2005," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVDX-2B3N : 8 October 2014), Harry May and null, 1953; from "England & Wales Marriages, 1837-2005," database, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : 2012); citing 1953, quarter 2, vol. 2B, p. 32, Barnsley, Yorkshire, England, General Register Office, Southport, England.
  8. ^ Briggs, Derek (1 March 2010). "No sell-by date jazz". The Gloucestershire Echo. p. 10. "The star was born in Gloucester, grew up in Frampton-on-Severn and went to Stroud High School. [...] From the age of 13 onwards I had a great time singing and acting with the Perryway Players. I played clarinet in the Gloucestershire Youth Orchestra and when I was 16, had classical singing lessons with Ursula Hughes in Cheltenham." Retrieved 27 March 2022.
  9. ^ Lacey, Hester (13 August 1995). "How We Met: Rory Bremner and Tina May". The Independent. p. 66. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
  10. ISBN 9781843532569
    . Retrieved 13 April 2021.
  11. ^ https://www.discogs.com/release/27060021-Ray-Guntrip-And-Tina-May-Mood-In-Blue
  12. Allmusic
  13. ^ Vacher, Peter (March 29, 2022). "Tina May: 30/3/1961 – 26/3/2022". Jazzwise. Retrieved March 29, 2022.
  14. ^ Jazz in South Wales: Announcements. Facebook. March 27, 2022. "Last night I said goodbye to the wonderful woman who was my partner for the last two and a half years." Retrieved March 29, 2022.

Further reading

Articles

Books

  • Jazz: The Rough Guide (1995) by Ian Carr, Digby Fairweather, Brian Priestly and Chris Parker
  • The Penguin Jazz Guide. The History of 1001 Best Albums by Brian Morton and Richard Cook
  • The Jazz Singers. The Ultimate Guide by Scott Yanow. Backbeat Books (Hal Leonard)
  • Jazz Writings by Nathan Davis

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tina_May&oldid=1218700181"