It's rare when a musician older than 60 makes a recording debut as a leader, particularly with a résumé that lists names like Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, and Dizzy Gillespie. But Francine Griffin's story isn't entirely unfamiliar. Her career got going in her hometown of Cincinnati during the '50s, where she would play with the giants when they came through town. But when the time came for her to make the move to New York to start her career in earnest, marriage and motherhood called and she stopped performing. Usually, the story ends there. But 15 years ago, Griffin, now a Chicago resident, began performing again. Her CD, The Song Bird, features a number of Chicago luminaries, including tenor saxophonist Ed Peterson and alto saxophonist Mike Smith.
--- JAZZIZ Magazine Copyright © 2000, Milor Entertainment, Inc.
Song Bird,Francine Griffin,Delmark,Jazz,Jazz Music,Pop
Jazz Music:
- Sonny Stitt & the Top Brass
- Space Island [Extra tracks]
- Speak Softly Love
- Strange Attractors
- Swiss Nights, Vol. 2 [Live]
- The Best of the Concord Years
- The Edge of the Pond
- The Gold Collection [Import]
- The Wallace Roney Quintet
- The Well-Tampered Accordion
Jazz Music
World Classics: France [Box set]
What Hier Is Bier [CD-single] [Import]
Very Best of [Original recording remastered] [Import]
Trésor Naturel / Musique des Iles
Virgil Thomson: Symphony No 1-3
The Other Bridge (Oakland 1999)