Highly respected and sultry jazz and blues singer, Ms.
Highly respected and sultry jazz and blues singer, Ms. Dakota Staton, (pronounced STAY-Ton) died on Tuesday, April 10, 2007 at the Isabella Geriatric Center in New York City at the age of 76. Sharynn Harper, a spokeswoman for Ms. Staton’s family, confirmed the death, citing no specific cause. She said Ms. Staton, who suffered a triple aneurysm several years ago, had been in declining health in recent years. Ms Staton, often called one of America’s great vocal stylists, was known from the 1950s on for her bright, trumpetlike sound and tough, sassy style. In 1957, Ms. Staton released her her first full-length album, “The Late, Late Show,” released by Capitol Records. The album was huge success, and the title track became her most famous musical piece. Ms. Staton developed an illustrious career and recorded more than two dozen albums as well as worked with many distinguished musicians like pianist George Shearing and the arrangers Nelson Riddle and Sid Feller.