Annette Gregory & Friends

Annette Gregory is a jazz singer who is blessed with incredible vocal tones that are rich, smooth and full of soul. She brings her love of jazz, experience, and bags of personality to every performance. All that, plus a great voice with so much warmth and depth and feeling.

Annette grew up in Manchester in a Jamaican family where ska and country music were regularly played. Annette was definitely born to sing! At the age of four, she was put in charge of the record player and would sing along to Jim Reeves' The Old Rugged Cross.

After singing for many years in different bands, it was a chance encounter which led to Annette joining a community jazz band as their principal vocalist which set Annette on the road to becoming a jazz singer. Annette found her true voice after the revelation of hearing the immortal Ella Fitzgerald. Annette was not just inspired by Ella's voice but by the sounds and rhythm of jazz. Her greatest love is for swing and the songs made famous by the likes of Ella, Billie Holiday, Mel Torme, Frank Sinatra and Nina Simone. Her new production - Annette Gregory Sings Ella Fitzgerald - is a new show where Annette celebrates the music of Ella, reflecting on Ella's career from the 1930's, moving through the decades to the 1960's and the various song book albums that gave Ella Fitzgerald the right to be called the 'The first lady of song'.