Huey Long (singer) Huey Long (singer) Huey Long (April 25, 1904 – June 10, 2009) was an American jazz and swing singer-songwriter and musician and was a member of the close harmony vocal traditional pop group The Ink Spots. Born in Sealy, Texas, Long began his musical career in 1925 playing banjo for Frank Davis' Louisiana Jazz Band, based in Houston. He switched from the banjo to the guitar after moving to Chicago, where he appeared at the 1933 World's Fair with Texas Guinan's Cuban Orchestra. He performed with artists such as Lil Armstrong and Fletcher Henderson, and his career also encompassed sideman,
Vocal jazz Chris Connor, June Christy, Eartha Kitt, Nina Simone, and Carmen McRae all advanced vocal jazz during this period. Vocal jazz, since 1970, has been led by notable artists including Mark Murphy, Maxine Sullivan, Sarah Vaughan, Al Jarreau, Carmen McRae, Shirley Horn, Flora Purim, George Benson, Carol Sloane, Urszula Dudziak, Bobby McFerrin, among others. Other popular contemporary jazz vocalist include Diana Krall, Dianne Reeves, Cassandra Wilson, Kurt Elling, Harry Connick, Jr., young Amy Winehouse, Norah Jones, Madeleine Peyroux, Jamie Cullum and Sylvia Brooks. Vocal jazz has been mainly a mainstream, as opposed to "avant-garde," phenomenon. However, some performers, such as Jeanne