Ella Fitzgerald 'We All Love Ella' album

A sensational assemblage of stars honors the incomparable songstress Ella Fitzgerald on the Phil Ramone-produced ‘We All Love Ella: Celebrating The First Lady Of Song’ (June 5, Verve Records). These stars’ love of Ella shines through on their musical performances, but they also cite Ella’s artistry and music as moving and influential to their own careers.

You can almost hear Natalie Cole smile as she sings Ella’s famous hit “A Tisket A Tasket.” This was the first jazz song Cole ever learned and she practiced it so she would sound exactly like Ella. “When I was seven, I was singing like a 30 or 40 year old woman,” she laughs.

k.d. lang was 20 when she bought her first Ella record and “studied it and studied it and studied it...from then I studied her as a musician.” lang’s sultry and subdued “Angel Eyes” is a beautiful tribute to Ella’s original.

Legendary producer Phil Ramone says, “There is something magical about doing the work of Ella Fitzgerald that gives you a tremendous painting to start with.”

Diana Krall calls Fitzgerald “the greatest improviser, jazz scat singer…a completely natural and amazing woman.” She offers a tender rendition of “Dream a Little Dream” with celebrated pianist Hank Jones for the record.

Dianne Reeves highlights Ella’s sunny side, saying, “The biggest influence she had on me was there was so much joy in her singing. She absolutely loved singing and you could feel it,” a mood that’s apparent on Reeves version of “Oh, Lady Be Good.”

Breakout singer Ledesi said Ella made “Blues in the Night” “seem so easy.” Although she discovered it was harder than she thought, she delivers a remarkable performance.

In Ella Fitzgerald’s lifetime, she won 13 GRAMMY® awards and sold over 40 million albums. Her catalog continues to be as popular as ever and her iconic stature is undiminished. Fitzgerald would have turned 90 on April 25, 2007.

We All Love Ella: A Celebration of the First Lady of Song' is produced by hitmaker Phil Ramone and filled with passionate performances of classics made famous by Ella and sung by world-renowned singers and break-out stars Michael Bublé, Natalie Cole, Etta James, Chaka Khan, Gladys Knight, Diana Krall, k.d. lang, Queen Latifah, Ledesi, Dianne Reeves, Linda Ronstadt and Lizz Wright.

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Ella Fitzgerald - We All Love Ella