Synopses & Reviews
"I learned courage from Buddha, Jesus, Lincoln, and Mr. Cary Grant." So said Miss Peggy Lee. Albert Einstein adored her; Duke Ellington dubbed her "the Queen." With her platinum cool and inimitable whisper, Peggy Lee sold twenty million records, made more money than Mickey Mantle, and presided over music's greatest generation alongside pals Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby. Drawing on exclusive interviews and never-before-seen information, Peter Richmond delivers a complex, compelling portrait of an artist that begins with a girl plagued by loss, her father's alcoholism, and her stepmother's abuse. One day she boards a train, following her muse and hoping her music will lead her someplace better. And it does: to the pantheon of great American singers.
Peter Richmond has been an award-winning reporter and feature-writer for
GQ magazine for two decades. He has covered everything from Rosemary Clooney to sports, and his work has also appeared in
The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, The New York Times Magazine, and
Rolling Stone. He has appeared many times on National Public Radio's
Morning Edition. He lives in Dutchess County, New York. "I learned courage from Buddha, Jesus, Lincoln, and Mr. Cary Grant," said Miss Peggy Lee. Albert Einstein adored her; Duke Ellington dubbed her "the Queen." With her platinum cool and inimitable whisper, Peggy Lee sold twenty million records, made more money than Mickey Mantle, and presided over music's greatest generation alongside pals Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby. Drawing on exclusive interviews and never-before-seen information, Peter Richmond delivers a complex, compelling portrait of an artist that begins with a girl plagued by loss, her father's alcoholism, and her stepmother's abuse. One day she boards a train, following her muse and hoping her music will lead her to the pantheon of great American singers. "Entertaining . . . [Richmond] is a fan who has immersed himself in Lee's music deeply enough to understand it to the core . . . He grasps every nuance of an artist who was all about nuance and minute calculation . . . The book comes alive in its descriptions of the grueling two years [Lee] spent on the road with [Benny] Goodman . . . A real person . . . emerges from this book."
Stephen Holden, The New York Times Book Review
"Comprehensive . . . Peter Richmond avidly traces the evolution of that signature sexy hush . . . Incisively pinpoints the emergence of her semi-spoken approach to lyrics . . . Well-rendered . . . [Richmond] takes us . . . to that disembodied voice, to those vibrations hanging in the air. In the end, that is all there is, and it is what matters most."Liz Brown, Newsday
"A very engaging book presented with as much style and aplomb as Lee delivered in her many classic songs. The legendary Ellington, with whom Lee wrote the delightful 'I'm Gonna Go Fishin', once said, 'If I'm the Duke, man, Peggy Lee is Queen.' With Fever, she finally gets an elegantly written biography fit for royalty."Boston Globe "Richmond's research is impeccable. So, too, is his ability to appreciate and dissect the many odd-fitting parts . . . that made up the crazy-quilt Lee pastiche . . . [This biography] is several degrees better than any other Lee tome that has surfaced to date."Christopher Loudon, Jazz Times "Affectionate, readable biography . . . Richmond writes smoothly and researches diligently . . . For those who only know Peggy Lee as the voice behind the Siamese cats in Disney's Lady and the Tramp, Richmond's biography is a gorgeous, eye-opening corrective. Fever is a perfect title for music lovers."Cleveland Plain Dealer "Who would think that the very cool Miss Peggy Lee started out in North Dakota as Norma Deloris Egstrom? Or that the shy and insecure little girl with an alcoholic father and an abusive stepmother would rise to the musical pantheon and earn ten times what Mickey Mantle did? Richmond, an award-winning writer for GQ magazine, reveals these and other facts in this well-researched but dryly written biography. Lee, musical and driven from a young age, hopped a train after finishing high school, hoping her singing talents would better her life. She found work fronting bands right away, but it was her stint with the Benny Goodman Band that sealed her fame and resulted in a career spanning more than 50 years; her life included four marriages and one daughter. Other than her own memoir, Miss Peggy Lee, published in 1989, and this biography, surprisingly little has been written about the iconic singer who has influenced k.d. lang, Norah Jones, and Diana Krall . . . Richmond's book is recommended for all music collections."Rosellen Brewer, Sno-Isle Library, Marysville, Washington, Library Journal "American popular culture is filled with people who claim to have reinvented themselves. North Dakota's Norma Egstrom puts most such claimants to shame. She invented Peggy Lee with Dickensian precision, not to mention a voice that could cool down a volcano. In this definitive biography, Peter Richmond honors her story with equal precision, and with a generosity and insight that had me cheering her onward, every step of the way."Gary Giddins, author of Natural Selection and Bing Crosby: A Pocketful of Dreams "Peter Richmond's lovely and big-hearted biography of Peggy Lee is not only chockfull of fascinating jazz stories, it is scintillatingly insightful about the fate and destiny of a small-town girl and the dreams that came true to claim her."Wil Haygood, author of In Black and White: The Life of Sammy Davis Jr. "At long last there's a full-length biography of one of American music's most crucial cultural icons. I learned a lot I didn't know about Peggy Lee in this well-researched volume, and I am certain that anybody who cares about this great singer, or about American music in general, will find it essential reading."Will Friedwald, author of Sinatra! The Song is You: A Singers Art "GQ contributing editor Richmond gives the great singer-composer her due. Perhaps because Peggy Lee (1920-2002) sang with deceptive ease, her artistry has received less critical attention than that of such peers as Louis Armstrong, Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald. Her biographer here rights that wrong. Richmond finds Lee's life and talent taking root in pain; she grew up in North Dakota during the Depression under stress from an alcoholic father and a physically and verbally abusive stepmother. To escape, Lee turned to singing. In strong scenes that evoke America's golden age of popular song, the author traces her career. Lee sang first on radio, then with big bands; her style eventually emerged under the tutelage of a dour Benny Goodman. Work with the King of Swing also led to marriage with guitarist Dave Barbour. The two composed the hits 'Ma-ana' and 'It's a Good Day,' songs with a carefree attitude that belied the turbulence of their relationship. Eventually, Barbour's alcoholism and moody, jealous behavior helped end the union. As three successive marriages also collapsed, Lee made work the center of her life. Richmond assesses her careerdecades of recordings, club and television appearances, some film acting-in meticulous, detailed critiques. He cites as Lee's hallmarks impeccable taste, flawless timing and intense personal involvement with her music. He also describes the mercurial temper of a diva. As hospital attendants wheeled Lee towards the operating room for heart surgery, she berated a devoted musical director for usurping her authority by handing out checks to her band. He forgave her. After all, no one sang 'Fever,' 'Is That All There Is?' and 'The Folks who Live on the Hill' as stunningly as she. A vivid montage of American pop at its peak."Kirkus Reviews "'Miss Peggy Lee,' as show marquees always billed her, is for Richmond a vocal genius on the level of Armstrong, Sinatra or Crosby, but one whose reputation has become overshadowed by time. The GQ reporter aims to restore Lee's luster by retelling the story of Norma Egstrom's (19202002) journey from listening to jazz on the radio in North Dakota to taking the stage alongside Benny Goodman's band as Peggy Lee, then moving on to even more astounding success in her solo career. Richmond is reverential toward Lee's interpretations of the 'Great American Songbook' . . . and equally respectful toward her turbulent personal life. Although he acknowledges widespread testimony of her drinking, he defers to Lee's refusal to describe herself as an alcoholic. He is similarly circumspect in addressing her intimate relationships with stars like Sinatra and Quincy Jones. Although some readers will want more backstage details, Richmond would rather focus on the music, and it's in describing Lee's performances that his portrait most vibrantly comes to life: 'When she sang 'Good mornin', sungood mornin', sun!' her voice was so . . . happy, it was as if she was swinging open the . . . door and announcing the arrival of the postwar sunshine.'"Publishers Weekly
Review
"Peter Richmond gives the great singer-composer her due. . . . A vivid montage of American pop at its peak."--
Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"Here is a fan who has immersed himself in Lee's music deeply enough to understand it to the core. . . . He grasps every nuance of an artist who was all about nuance and minute calculation."--The New York Times Book Review
"Richmond tells a fascinating tale of the singer's rise to stardom."--Baltimore Sun
"This is the rare bio of a golden-age entertainer that doesn't skimp on scandal but is quadruply concerned with conveying musical brilliance."--Entertainment Weekly "Richmond writes smoothly and researches diligently. . . . A gorgeous, eye-opening corrective."--The Plain Dealer (Cleveland) "Loaded with worthwhile detail . . . Richmond writes perceptively about Lee's various albums, never afraid to comment frankly on what worked and what did not."--The Washington Post
Synopsis
"I learned courage from Buddha, Jesus, Lincoln, and Mr. Cary Grant." So said Miss Peggy Lee. Albert Einstein adored her; Duke Ellington dubbed her "the Queen." With her platinum cool and inimitable whisper, Peggy Lee sold twenty million records, made more money than Mickey Mantle, and presided over music's greatest generation alongside pals Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby. Drawing on exclusive interviews and never-before-seen information, Peter Richmond delivers a complex, compelling portrait of an artist that begins with a girl plagued by loss, her father's alcoholism, and her stepmother's abuse. One day she boards a train, following her muse and hoping her music will lead her someplace better. And it does: to the pantheon of great American singers.
Synopsis
I learned courage from Buddha, Jesus, Lincoln, and Mr. Cary Grant. So said Miss Peggy Lee. Albert Einstein adored her; Duke Ellington dubbed her the Queen. With her platinum cool and inimitable whisper, Peggy Lee sold twenty million records, made more money than Mickey Mantle, and presided over music's greatest generation alongside pals Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby.
Drawing on exclusive interviews and never-before-seen information, Peter Richmond delivers a complex, compelling portrait of an artist that begins with a girl plagued by loss, her father's alcoholism, and her stepmother's abuse. One day she boards a train, following her muse and hoping her music will lead her someplace better. And it does: to the pantheon of great American singers.
About the Author
Peter Richmond has been an award-winning reporter and feature-writer for GQ magazine for two decades. He has covered everything from Rosemary Clooney to sports, and his work has also appeared in The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, The New York Times Magazine, and Rolling Stone. He has appeared many times on National Public Radio's Morning Edition. He lives in Dutchess County, New York.