Catherine Russell, a jazz and blues singer, is a New York City native. Luis Russell, a well-known leader of big-bands, was her father. He was born in Panama and lived in New Orleans as well as New York City. He was a pioneering vintage jazzman, a pianist, composer/arranger and, most importantly, the music director of Louis Armstrong’s mid-’40s. Carline Ray, a jazz vocalist and veteran bassist, is her mother. She graduated from the Julliard School of Music and Manhattan Schools of Music and is well-known for her performances with Wynton Marsalis and Mary Lou Williams. Bessie Smith, Ruth Brown and Etta James are all influences for Catherine Russell. They also love old-time blues and jazz singers such as Bessie Smith and Ruth Brown. She was not a natural leader and a late bloomer. She has performed at many festivals as well as on national television and radio shows. She has performed as a backing singer for Paul Simon, Steely Dan and Cyndi Lauper. You may have heard her voice in commercials for Bud Light and Oil Of Olay as well as J.C. Penney and Dairy Queen. Russell was a great old-school singer who sang jazz with musicians such as Earl May, Larry Ham, Eddie Locke and Jimmy Wormworth. With the 2006 CD Cat, which featured guitarist Frank Portolese, banjo or mandolin player Stuart J. Rosenberg and guitarist Larry Campbell, Russell made her debut on her own. Sentimental Streak, featuring special guests Howard Johnson, and producer Larry Campbell, was recorded in Woodstock, N.Y., at allmusic
