Corliss Dale - Crazy Rhythm (2008)

Corliss Dale grew up listening to some of the greatest jazz singers of our time thanks to her mother who loved great musicians and great vocalists. As a result Corliss became familiar with the very best of the best… Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Anita O’Day, and Rosemary Clooney to name only a few, not to mention the men such as Tony Bennett, Nat King Cole and of course the legendary Frank Sinatra. Their styles became engrained in her heart and soul and so no matter what musical path she has followed and continues to follow in her career, she always comes back to the great standards and the amazing musical styles of these great artists.
Corliss is a native Minnesotan born and raised in Minneapolis. She began singing very early in her life, at age 8 to be exact, singing solos in church, and at school concerts and talent shows. She is also a trained dancer in ballet,tap and jazz, which became very important as she started her professional career at the tender age of 16. Corliss was hired at a very prestigious dinner theatre in Minneapolis named “The Edgewater Inn” as one of the “Edgewater Eight” where she spent 2 years entertaining audiences and expanding her musical repertoire and experiences from singing Cole Porter & Gershwin to belting her heart out in Broadway review shows like Cabaret & Guys & Dolls where her dance training really came into play. You could have seen her tap dancing in a 1930’s review to “Lullabye of Broadway”, jitterbugging in a 1940’s show to “In The Mood”, or even dancing the tango to Pajama Game’s, “Hernando’s Hideaway”. Corliss left the show at only age18 and created her own theatrical show group, which was self-staged and self-choreographed. For 5 years she traveled the country with her band performing to sell out crowds and receiving standing ovations coast to coast.
Once while performing in a club in Minneapolis, she was approached by the owner of a local well known recording studio who asked her if she would like to be called for studio work whether it was singing on a commercial, or back up singing for various artists. After her first session it was apparent that this would be another avenue for her already busy singing career. She soon became the first call studio singer and recorded many local and national jingles such as Northwest Airlines, Dairy Queen, Hormel and Land O’ Lakes to name a few. Her success in the studios led her to Los Angeles where she has made her home. Continuing her dance and vocal training, she added songwriting and acting to her credits. She was a featured vocalist in a Movie of the Week produced by Dick Clark, and landed a costarring role in a PBS Movie Special for the Wonderworks series.
After taking some years off to raise a family, Corliss jumped back into her singing career and began performing in local Los Angeles jazz clubs returning to her love of jazz and the great American Songbook. She has been a featured artist at the “Jazz at the Hilton Concert Series” in Salt Lake City, and opened for the late great Jimmy Smith at the International Snowbird Jazz & Blues Festival. An evening performing at LA jazz club Monteleone’s, brought her together with jazz pianist and composer, Lou Forestieri. This was the beginning of a great partnership both musically and romantically. Corliss and Lou were married in Southern Italy in the year 2002 and now write, record and perform throughout the Los Angeles area. Their first album,” Fascinating Rythms”, was released in 2004 on the British record label, Mainstem Productions. Corliss and Lou can often be heard across the BBC airwaves, and just finished performing at 4 different venues for the 2008 London Jazz Festival where they debuted the release of their second album, “Crazy Rhythm”, also on the Mainstem label.