Favorite Duos Singing 'Baby It's Cold Outside'

Music lovers who like the song "Baby It's Cold Outside" probably like hearing it sung by a particular duo.  My first choice would be Ray Charles and Betty Carter.  I posted a piece here last year about their performance of the song.  That post included a video. (To experience it, click on the 2015 link under Blog Archive in the sidebar of this blog.  Then scroll down to my post that's dated Wednesday, February 25, 2015.)

The song itself has been around a long time.  Written by Frank Loesser and introduced in the 1949 film Neptune's Daughter, starring Esther Williams and Ricardo Montalban, "Baby It's Cold outside" has been performed by pop and jazz singers on live TV shows since the medium's earliest days.  The song has also been recorded by many artists.  I'll bet most people reading this post have seen or heard it performed by a number of duos.   

In addition to Ray Charles and Betty Carter, I like hearing  Lou Rawls and Dianne Reeves sing "Baby It's Cold Outside."  I'm sharing their recording of it above.  Enjoy! 

Celebrating Zora Neale Hurston's Birthday

This month we'll celebrate the life and works of American folklorist, anthropologist, and author Zora Neale Hurston (Jan. 7, 1891 - Jan. 28, 1960).  Hurston is well known for her novel Their eyes Were Watching God and many other works.

A major celebration of Zora Neale Hurston's life will happen at the Zora! Festival, later this month in Eatonville, Florida, Hurston's hometown.  The exact dates of this year's festival are Friday, January 29 - Sunday, January 31.

At the 2001 Zora! Festival, I experienced a nice time signing first edition copies of my novel, Forbidden Circles; which is set during the Harlem Renaissance era.  As many people know, Zora Neale Hurston first traveled to New York during that same historical time period. 

By the way, a brief Zora Neale Hurston quote introduces one of the short stories in my new book, Indigo Tales, which will be published this year.

Unforgettable Natalie Cole

Hearing about the death of a famous person who died at the end of the year or during the first few days of a new year makes me more surprised than if I'd heard about it happening at another time, for instance in mid-year.   When it happens at year's end or in the first week of the New Year, I think of how the person almost made it into the new year, or that they made it into the New year but just barely.

By now the world knows of the death of singer Natalie Cole (winner of nine Grammy Awards and daughter of singer Nat King Cole).  Natalie Cole passed away a couple of days ago (Thursday, December 31st) at the age of 65.  I was shocked to hear of her death but glad about her many contributions to American music.  She left a wonderful legacy.

Among the songs Natalie Cole performed on countless TV shows and on stages around the world are widely known favorites such as "Inseparable," "I Miss You Like Crazy," "Unforgettable," and "This Will Be."  Her singing voice was distinctive and immediately recognizable.  Fortunately she left her voice and songs to us in recordings and videos to enjoy whenever we wish.  It's my hope that readers of this post will enjoy the Natalie Cole video above.