Sylvia Syms

• Genre: Vocal Jazz

About

Sylvia Syms' career got a huge boost when Frank Sinatra labeled her the “world's greatest saloon singer.” Syms certainly knew how to swing, and always managed to put a song over on a personal level in the same way Billie Holiday and Sinatra could. She consistently made self-deprecating references to her physical appearance, yet always sang with extraordinary truth and conviction. Syms released many albums, but never caught on with the general public; however, like a more jazz-oriented Mabel Mercer, she ruled the New York cabaret circuit.

- Nick Dedina