Sarah Vaughan Autographs, Memorabilia & Collectibles

Sarah Vaughan was born on March 27, 1924, in Newark, New Jersey and she was an American jazz singer who became known for her work with major big bands, her solo recordings, and her extensive concert career.

Vaughan grew up in a musical household and studied piano from an early age. Her public singing debut occurred at Harlem’s Apollo Theater in 1942, where she won the venue’s amateur competition. This appearance led to her recruitment by Earl Hines’s big band as a vocalist and second pianist. After Billy Eckstine left Hines’s band to form his own ensemble, Vaughan followed in 1944, joining a group that included Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, and other early bebop musicians.

Her solo recording career began in the mid-1940s with titles such as “Lover Man” (1945) and “If You Could See Me Now” (1946). In the late 1940s and early 1950s she signed with Columbia Records, recording pop standards and jazz arrangements including “Black Coffee,” “Summertime,” and “Ain’t Misbehavin’.” Vaughan moved to Mercury Records in 1954, where she recorded both pop albums for the parent label and jazz albums for its subsidiary, EmArcy. During this period she released Sarah Vaughan (1954), Swingin’ Easy (1957), and Sassy (1956).

Her best-known recordings include “Misty,” “Broken-Hearted Melody,” and “Send in the Clowns.” Vaughan performed internationally throughout the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, appearing at major jazz festivals and concert halls. She continued to record steadily, releasing albums such as Sarah Vaughan with Michel Legrand (1972) and How Long Has This Been Going On? (1978). Vaughan received multiple honors, including a Grammy Award for Lifetime Achievement (1989) and induction into the Jazz Hall of Fame. She also recorded for television and radio and collaborated with numerous arrangers and instrumentalists.