by Thomas C. Wheeler Peggy Lee has the sturdy figure of a North Dakota farm girl, which she originally was. But when she sweeps onto the nightclub stage, her platinum blond hair shining and her hazel eyes glittering, a transformation takes place. As she bows and blows kisses, she seems[…]

When Peggy Lee recorded “Where or When” and “The Way You Look Tonight” with the Benny Goodman Sextet 25 years ago, her performance was noted for directness, simplicity and a perfection of phrasing. In the years between, Miss Lee has sung much and traveled far. Her perfection in phrasing has[…]

by Joseph Wershba Jazz historian Leonard Feather has already written the definitive critique of Peggy Lee: “If you don’t feel a thrill when Peggy sings, you are dead, Jack.” But this doesn’t completely explain how a nice, shy, flaxen-haired, Gretchen-faced Swedish-Norwegian girl from the plains of North Dakota became a[…]

by Alfred T. Hendricks Now it’s Peggy Lee’s turn to wail the blues. Friday night a sneak thief hit her dressing room at Basin Street East and made off with $21,000 worth of gowns. The caper had a familiar ring. Only the day before, a larcenous gent paid a similar[…]

by Lou Levy I don’t know of two more generous and understanding singers to work for than Ella Fitzgerald and Peggy Lee. Peggy presents more of a thoroughly planned act, usually doing the same show during an entire engagement. Ella’s concert or nightclub performance is carefully planned, but she makes[…]

by Sidney Fields Peggy Lee has earned enduring and increasing acceptance as a music maker with a unique style that combines silk, fire, and ice. These are the gifts of her durability. What is the key to them? She has sung and sorrowed and loved much, and knows she must[…]