Wednesday, May 06, 2015

And she could sing too

So much is made of Marilyn Monroe's face and body that her really excellent singing voice is rarely mentioned. But she could really sing. What could have become of that voice if she'd had classical training from an early age?

Thanks to Youtube, it is easy and quick to research the career of Marilyn Monroe. What would have once taken weeks to research in the library, or days if you had access to a film archive now takes minutes. You want to listen to Marilyn Monroe sing? Just go to Youtube, type "Marilyn Monroe" and "singing" et voila.

Here she is singing a rather peculiar song, "Specialization" with Frankie Vaughn from the movie "Let's Make Love." I found it interesting that they reference Elvis Presley, one of the few American entertainers from that period whose fame, and longevity of fame, matches Monroe's. As far as I have discovered, she never met him, but what a couple they would have made. Wow.




My favorite Monroe singing performance so far though is "I'm Through With Love" which I think stands up to any other version recorded, including Ella Fitzgerald's - who Monroe loved and was a big influence on Monroe's own vocal work.