Eugenie Baird might not be a name that quickly comes to mind when listing the great female vocalists of the Big Band Era, but her fingerprints are all over the 1940's.
Baird joined Jan Savitt's band in the early 1940's and eventually moved on to become a featured vocalist with Tony Pastor's Orchestra in 1942. In 1943, she was a singing for The Casa Loma Orchestra. This was a big deal! The Casa Loma Orchestra had been around forever, and she was the first female to be named as a featured voice in the famed orchestra.
In a 1944 review, jazz writer George T. Simon, who wrote for "Metronome" magazine, described Baird as "the prettiest girl I've ever seen in front of a band, and, in addition, the possessor of one of the prettiest voices I've ever heard in back of a microphone." As always, Simon was right on the money.
Early on, before joining on with the bands I listed above and while still in high school, Eugenie Baird had her own program on KDKA in Pittsburgh, PA. This prepared her for the years she later spent on air. Baird was Bing Crosby's singing partner on the popular "Kraft Music Hall" on NBC for awhile. She also sang on Paul Whiteman's "Forever Tops" weekly program, "The Jack Smith Show", and she hosted her own radio program "Eugenie Baird Sings" on ABC in 1946. She was all over the dial in the mid 1940's.
By the time the 1950's rolled along, Baird's star had unfortunately burned out. She remained active making radio jingles but at that point, she had pretty much disappeared from the public eye.
Listen to: "My Shining Hour" by Glen Gray and The Casa Loma Orchestra
featuring Eugenie Baird on vocals.
You can hear the beautiful voice of Eugenie Baird right here on Swing City Radio.
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