Sheila Jeanette Dawson (born November 18, 1928, in Detroit, Michigan) is a jazz singer whose career spans six decades. Raised in poverty in Pennsylvania’s coal-mining country, Dawson began singing as a child and, by the time she was in her early teens, was working semi-professionally in Detroit clubs. Her first significant influence was
Charlie Parker; indeed, most of her influences have been instrumentalists rather than singers. Working chiefly with black musicians, she met with disapproval from the white community but persisted with her career. She was a member of a vocal trio, Sk…
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