Ernestine Anderson (and her twin sister Josephine) were born, in Houston, Texas. By the age of 3, Anderson showed a knack for singing along with her parent’s old blues 78 rpm records by the likes of Bessie “The Empress of the Blues” Smith. Anderson started singing at a local church, singing solos in its gospel choir.
Anderson tells of her early life in the book, The Jazz Scene (1998):
"My parents used to play blues records all the time," Ernestine Anderson told me. "John Lee Hooker, Muddy Waters, all the blues greats. In Houston, where I grew up, you turned on the radio and what you got was country and western and gospel. I don't even remember what my first experience with music was. I sort of grew into it. My father sang in a gospel quartet and I used to follow him around, and both my grandparents sang in the Baptist church choir. And they had big bands coming through Houston like Jimmie Lunceford, Billy Eckstine, Erskine Hawkins, and Count Basie." Ernestine's godmother entered her in a local talent contest when she was twelve years old. "I only knew two songs," she admitted, "'On the Sunny Side of the Street' and 'So Long'. The piano player asked me what key did I do these songs in and I just said 'C' for some reason and it was the wrong key. In order to save face I sang around the melody, improvised among the melody, and when I finished one of the musicians told me I was a jazz singer."
Her family moved to Seattle, Washington in 1944, when she was sixteen. Anderson graduated from Garfield High School. When she was eighteen, she left Seattle, to tour for a year with the Johnny Otis band. In 1952, she went on tour with Lionel Hampton's orchestra. After a year with the legendary band, she settled in New York, determined to make her way as a singer. Her appearance on Gigi Gryce's 1955 album Nica's Tempo (Savoy) led to a partnership with trumpeter Rolf Ericson for a three-month Scandinavian tour. Ernestine's first album in the United States was made after her debut album, recorded in Sweden and released here by Mercury Records under the title Hot Cargo (1958) the dean of America jazz critics, Ralph J. Gleason, began airing it on his hit-making radio show. In addition his nationally distributed San Francisco Chronicle jazz column, saying: “she is the best new jazz singer in a decade. She has good diction, time, an uncanny ability to phrase well, great warmth in her voice, a true tone and, on top of all that, she swings like mad.” , which created a huge sensation. In 1959 Anderson won the Down Beat "New Star" Award and recorded for Mercury to more acclaim, before dividing her time from the mid-60's between America and Europe.
"I don't think jazz ever died. It suffered a setback during the sixties. I had to move to London in order to work because a jazz person couldn't work in the United States when rock 'n' roll became the music. I didn't think it would last this long, and I don't think the rock 'n' roll people thought it would last this long, but Quincy it had."
Her re-emergence in the mid-1970s (at which time Ray Brown was her manager) came as a result of a sensational appearance at the 1976 Concord Jazz Festival, a string of albums for Concord Records followed. The next 17 years sealed Anderson’s reputation as a top-tier jazz and blues singer. She performed headlining shows far and wide and recorded almost 20 albums for Concord, two of which -- 1981’s Never Make Your Move Too Soon and 1983’s Big City -- earned GRAMMY Best Jazz Vocal Performance nominations. In the years that followed Anderson toured widely -- a triumphant series of dates in Japan led to the release of a four-disc live set in 1988 -- and that same year she made her debut at the prestigious Carnegie Hall. In addition, Anderson has performed at the Hollywood Bowl, at the Women In Jazz event at the Kennedy Center in 1999, at Monterey (1959, 1982, 1984, 1987, 1990, 2007), and at numerous other jazz festivals from New Orleans to Brazil, Berlin, Austria, and all around the globe.
After leaving Concord Records in 1993, Anderson signed on with her old Seattle jazz scene pal, Quincy Jones, and his happening new label, Qwest, which issued two albums -- 1993’s Now and Then, and 1996’s Blues, Dues & Love News -- that also both received GRAMMY nominations. By the late 1990s she was signed to the Koch International label which issued her Isn’t It Romantic album, in 2003 her High Note label CD, Love Makes the Changes was a breakout hit, and her 2004 JVC CD, Hello Like Before, brought further accolades.
Anderson was represented by Addeo Music International (AMI).
She died peacefully, surrounded by her family in Shoreline, Washington on March 10, 2016 at the age of 87.
Ernestine Anderson was featured in an article in Time magazine, August 4, 1958: "the voice belongs to Negro Singer Ernestine Anderson, at 29 perhaps the best-kept jazz secret in the land" after her first album release. She is inevitably compared to Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Billie Holiday. Ernestine invariably rejects the comparisons. "I wish," she says, "they would let me be just me."
Anderson was one of 75 women chosen for the book, I Dream a World: Portraits of Black Women Who Changed America (1999), by Pulitzer Prize winning photographer Brian Lanker. Within this book Ernestine Anderson joins such company as Rosa Parks, Coretta Scott King, Oprah Winfrey, Lena Horne, and Sarah Vaughan.
She won the Golden Umbrella award at the Bumbershoot Seattle arts festival in 2002. The award honors artists from the Northwestern United States "who have significantly contributed to the cultural landscape of our region."
Anderson was chosen by the Pacific Northwest Chapter of the Recording Academy (an organization best known for the Grammy Awards) to receive its 2004 IMPACT Award. The IMPACT Award honors Northwest music professionals whose creative talents and accomplishments have crossed all musical boundaries and who have been recognized as an asset to the music community.
In 2012, the Low Income Housing Institute named a housing project the "Ernestine Anderson Place" in her honor, noting Anderson's long residence in Seattle's Central District where the units are located.
Ernestine Anderson Grammy History
Year Category Genre Title Label Result
1996 Best Jazz Vocal Performance Jazz Blues, Dues & Love News Qwest Nominated
1993 Best Jazz Vocal Performance Jazz Now and Then Concord Nominated
1983 Best Jazz Vocal Performance - Female Jazz Big City Concord Nominated
1981 Best Jazz Vocal Performance - Female Jazz Never Make Your Move Too Soon Concord Nominated
Sunny
Ernestine Anderson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sunny, you smiled at me and really eased the pain.
The dark days are gone, and the bright days are here,
My Sunny one shines so sincere.
Sunny one so true, I love you.
Sunny, thank you for the sunshine bouquet.
Sunny, thank you for the love you brought my way.
Now I feel ten feet tall.
Sunny one so true, I love you.
Sunny, thank you for the truth you let me see.
Sunny, thank you for the facts from A to Z.
My life was torn like a wind-blown sand,
And the rock was formed when you held my hand.
Sunny one so true, I love you.
Sunny, thank you for the smile upon your face.
Sunny, thank you for the gleam that shows its grace.
You're my spark of nature's fire,
You're my sweet complete desire.
Sunny one so true, I love you.
Sunny, yesterday my life was filled with rain
The opening verse of Ernestine Anderson's song "Sunny" begins with a comparison of the weather to life's trials and tribulations. The rain represents the hardships and difficulties that have been part of the singer's existence. The word "yesterday" indicates that these troubles are now in the past, and the focus is on the present. The use of the word "filled" emphasizes the extent to which the singer's life was consumed by these challenges. However, as soon as "Sunny" enters the picture, a ray of hope shines through. The verb "eased" suggests that the mood suddenly improves, and the clouds of despair start to disperse. The act of smiling is often associated with happiness and positivity, and by doing so, Sunny is able to transform the singer's mood and outlook.
The second verse of the song highlights the impact that Sunny has had on the singer's life. The singer expresses gratitude for the "sunshine bouquet" that Sunny has gifted her, which is symbolic of the warmth and light that has entered into her existence. This shining light is represented as love, and the singer thanks Sunny for the love that she has shown her. The inclusion of the phrase "your all and all" further emphasizes the power and intensity of this love. The singer's confidence and self-belief are renewed, represented by the phrase "feel ten feet tall." It is clear that Sunny has played a significant role in bringing about this transformation.
Line by Line Meaning
Sunny, yesterday my life was filled with rain.
Before I met you, my life was full of struggles, pain, and sadness.
Sunny, you smiled at me and really eased the pain.
Your smile has a magical power that can take away all my worries and troubles.
The dark days are gone, and the bright days are here,
The darkness that used to envelope my life has now lifted and I can feel the light and hope of my future.
My Sunny one shines so sincere.
You are the sun that shines with honesty, truth, and love, and I find solace and comfort being in your presence.
Sunny one so true, I love you.
You are the embodiment of truth and love, and I love you deeply and unconditionally.
Sunny, thank you for the sunshine bouquet.
Thank you for bringing me joy, happiness, and positivity in my life, just like a beautiful bouquet of flowers on a sunny day.
Sunny, thank you for the love you brought my way.
Thank you for filling my life with love, compassion, and kindness and showing me what true and unconditional love is.
You gave to me your all and all.
You have given me your everything with all your heart and soul, and I am forever grateful for it.
Now I feel ten feet tall.
You have made me feel confident, strong, and empowered, and I feel like I can conquer anything in the world.
Sunny one so true, I love you.
You are the source of truth and love in my life, and I love you deeply and wholeheartedly.
Sunny, thank you for the truth you let me see.
Thank you for opening my eyes to the truth and helping me see my life and the world from a different and more positive perspective.
Sunny, thank you for the facts from A to Z.
Thank you for giving me the knowledge, wisdom, and understanding of life and its intricacies, from the beginning to the end.
My life was torn like a wind-blown sand,
My life was chaotic, unpredictable, and directionless, just like sand blown away by the wind.
And the rock was formed when you held my hand.
You gave me stability, strength, and solidity just like a rock, which gave me the confidence to face life with courage and conviction.
Sunny, thank you for the smile upon your face.
Thank you for sharing your smile, warmth, and positivity with me, and making my life brighter and more beautiful.
Sunny, thank you for the gleam that shows its grace.
Thank you for the radiance, brightness, and grace that you bring into my life, just like the shimmering light of the sun.
You're my spark of nature's fire,
You are the ignition that has set my life on fire, and I am burning with love, happiness, and contentment, thanks to you.
You're my sweet complete desire.
You are the embodiment of all my dreams, desires, and aspirations, and I cannot imagine living my life without you.
Writer(s): Bobby Hebb
Contributed by Blake D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.