Margie Baker, a jazz singer, pursued her musical career in part-time over many years. She also worked full-time in San Francisco’s school district while raising a family. Born in Center, Texas, she was around 1937. She moved to San Francisco with her mother during World War II. Her mother was a riveter in shipbuilding. She graduated high school at 15 and received a scholarship to the University of California at Berkeley. After two years, she transferred to San Francisco State University to earn her bachelor’s in education. While teaching elementary school, she took night classes to earn her master’s degree and later, her Ph.D. She worked for decades in the San Francisco school system, eventually becoming Director of Compensatory Education. This was responsible for disbursing federal funds to students at risk. She remained there until her retirement. Baker had a different career. She was a chaperone for Mary Stallings (her younger sister-in law), a jazz singer in the 1950s. There she met and made friends with musicians such as Dizzy Gillespie, James Moody, and others. She was a huge jazz and blues lover, and began singing professionally in 1973. She was primarily employed by Hilton Hotels, performing at Henri’s Room in San Francisco Hilton twice a week during school year, and five nights a weeks during summer. She also traveled to Hilton hotels around the country. She was able spend more time performing after she retired from her day job. Her debut CD, Live at Rassalas, was released in 2003 from a concert she gave at San Francisco’s Jazz Preservation District. At 68 she was able to release her first national album, Live at Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society. It was issued by CAP Records in 2005. Allmusic
