Eddie Chamblee born 24 February 1920

Edwin Leon “Eddie” Chamblee (February 24, 1920 – May 1, 1999), known as Eddie "Long Gone" Chamblee, was an American tenor and alto saxophonist, and occasional vocalist, who played jazz and R&B. 

Eddie Chamblee was born, in Atlanta, Georgia, to Robert Chamblee, a prominent life insurance executive, and his wife. Around 1928, the family relocated to Indianapolis, Indiana, where Robert Chamblee served as president of the Citizens Life Insurance Company. The family later moved to Chicago, Illinois, where Eddie spent much of his formative years in a supportive, upwardly mobile household that emphasized education and stability. 

Chamblee began his musical journey in Chicago after his family relocated there from Indianapolis around the early 1930s, where he took up the saxophone at the age of 12. This early start laid the foundation for his lifelong engagement with the instrument, initially balancing music with academic pursuits. During his time at Wendell Phillips High School, Chamblee honed his skills on both the tenor and alto saxophones through participation in school ensembles and amateur performances within the local community. 

                                    

These formative experiences in Chicago's vibrant music scene exposed him to jazz pioneers and helped develop his technical proficiency before he pursued higher education in law at Chicago State University. Although music was initially a secondary interest amid his studies, family encouragement and self-taught practice amid the city's jazz milieu solidified his passion for the saxophone. This period marked the beginning of Chamblee's transition from amateur enthusiast to aspiring professional, shaped by the rich cultural environment of 1930s Chicago. 

During World War II, Eddie Chamblee enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1941 and served until his discharge in 1946, performing in various army bands where he contributed jazz arrangements on tenor saxophone. Following his military service, Chamblee returned to Chicago and formed his own small combo in 1946.  In 1948, he gained significant recognition as the featured tenor saxophonist on pianist Sonny Thompson's instrumental "Long Gone, Parts 1 & 2," recorded for Miracle Records and on its follow-up, "Late Freight", credited to the Sonny Thompson Quintet featuring Eddie Chamblee. Both records reached no. 1 on the national Billboard R&B chart earning Chamblee the enduring nickname "Long Gone" from its title. 

Two follow-up records, "Blue Dreams" and "Back Street", also made the R&B chart in 1949. By the early 1950s, as big bands declined in popularity amid economic shifts and the rise of smaller combos, Chamblee adapted to more intimate jump blues outfits, maintaining his emphasis on energetic solos and rhythmic drive in live club performances across Chicago, blending swing jazz with emerging R&B elements, before he transitioned to larger ensembles later in the decade. From 1953 to 1955, he performed notable residencies in Indianapolis at George's Bar on Indiana Avenue, gaining local fame for acrobatic stage antics like playing while swinging from the rafters. 

Other key 78s included "Cradle Rock" (1951, Federal), "Walkin' Home" (1953, United), and "Come On In" (1954, United), often backed by pianists like Johnny Young and drummers such as Osie Johnson or Larry Jackson. By the late 1950s, his singles output shifted to 45s like "Goin' Long" (1957, Mercury) and "Strollin' Sax" (1958, Mercury), distributed through larger networks but with modest chart impact compared to the 1940s boom. 

In 1955 he joined Lionel Hampton's band for two years, touring in Europe, before returning to lead his own group in Chicago. He accompanied both Amos Milburn and Lowell Fulson on some of their recordings, and then worked as accompanist to Dinah Washington on many of her successful recordings in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The two performed vocal duets in a style similar to that later adopted by Washington with Brook Benton, and were briefly married; he was her fifth husband. Chamblee also recorded for the Mercury and EmArcy labels, and with his own group in the early 1960s for the Roulette and Prestige labels. 

In the 1970s, he rejoined Hampton for tours of Europe, where he also played with Milt Buckner, and he recorded for the French Black & Blue label. He also performed with the Count Basie Orchestra in 1982, and from the 1980s until his death with the Harlem Blues and Jazz Band, as well as in clubs in New York City. 

He died in New York in 1999, at the age of 79 from natural causes. 

(Edited from Grokipedia) 

Here’s a clip of Flying Home Live in Sesjun 1978, with Lionel Hampton - vibraphone, Wild Bill Davis - organ, Joe Nerman - trumpet, Eddie Chamblee - alto/tenor sax, Paul Moen - tenorsax, Billy Mackel - guitar, Barry Smith - bass, Frankie Dunlop - drums

Ken Parker born 23 February 1948

Kenneth L. Farquharson (23 February 1948 – 22 February 2025), known professionally as Ken Parker, was a Jamaican musician who first recorded in the 1960s. 

Born in Savannah-La-Mar, Westmoreland, Parker was christened at the local church where his father served as a preacher. From an early age, he demonstrated his vocal prowess, drawing inspiration from gospel and R&B sounds played on local radio stations. 

In the mid-1960s, Parker formed the Blues Blenders, with whom he recorded “Honeymoon By The Sea,” a record released by Mr. Anderson, who owned an electrical store in downtown Kingston. Around this time, the legendary producer Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry, who was serving as an audition supervisor at Studio One, recognized Parker’s talent. The group arranged to audition for Coxsone Dodd, but due to a misunderstanding, Parker was the only member to turn up, so he auditioned as a soloist, impressing Dodd sufficiently to launch his solo career. While at Studio One, Parker quickly gained popularity with hits such as “Choking Kind,” “Run Come” and “My Whole World is Falling Down.” 

                                  

In the late 1960s, Ken Parker transitioned from his earlier recordings at Studio One to Duke Reid's influential Treasure Isle label, marking a pivotal shift in his career toward rocksteady and early reggae sounds. This move, beginning around 1967, allowed Parker to collaborate with Reid's renowned house band, the Supersonics, and tap into the label's reputation for polished productions that dominated Jamaica's music scene. His debut single for Treasure Isle, "True, True, True," released in 1968, showcased Parker's smooth, emotive vocals over a classic rocksteady rhythm, quickly becoming one of his standout tracks and a staple in Reid's catalog. 

Parker's mid-career phase with Treasure Isle from 1968 onward produced several commercially successful singles that propelled him to prominence in Jamaica's reggae landscape. Tracks like "Jimmy Brown" (1972), "I Can't Hide" (1970), "Help Me Make It Through the Night," and a cover of "Kiss an Angel Good Morning" exemplified the label's signature horn-driven arrangements and heartfelt lyrics, achieving strong airplay on local radio stations such as RJR and gaining traction in the island's charts during the early 1970s.These recordings, produced by Reid at his Bond Street studio, highlighted Parker's ability to blend soulful influences with Jamaican rhythms, contributing to Treasure Isle's output of over 200 hits that defined the era. 

His debut album, Keep Your Eyes on Jesus (1972), highlighted his gospel roots alongside reggae elements. Disillusioned with Jamaica's music industry, Parker relocated briefly to New York City before moving to England in 1973, where he occasionally performed but largely stepped back from recording. In the late 70s-early 80s, Ken Parker recorded some contemplative, spiritual roots reggae disco mixes for Roy Cousins record labels backed by the Roots Radics on tunes like “What Kind of World,” a compassionate meditation on poverty and the vanity of materialistic prisms on life. 

The peak of Parker's Treasure Isle tenure culminated in the 1974 album Here Comes Ken Parker, a showcase compiling his recent singles such as "Kiss an Angel Good Mornin'," "Jimmy Brown," and "I Can't Hide." This release solidified his status as a leading vocalist in the reggae scene, with tracks earning widespread radio rotation and establishing his reputation beyond Jamaica through international compilations and exports via Trojan Records. Parker's work during this period, often sharing studio time with contemporaries like The Techniques on Reid's varied sessions, emphasized melodic covers and originals that captured the transitional energy from rocksteady to full reggae, fostering his mid-career commercial breakthrough.

In the early 1980s, he established his own record label and production company to prioritize gospel music, reflecting a spiritual turn influenced by his hiatus and relocations. Key outputs from this period include the 1984 album A Touch Of Inspiration on Pisces Records, which showcased inspirational reggae tracks, and Sacred Songs: I Shall Not Be Moved on Flames Records that same year, emphasizing hymns and faith-based lyrics. In 1985, he released Jesus On The Main Line via Pisces Records, further solidifying his gospel reggae niche amid the era's digital production shifts that challenged traditional Jamaican artists.

Parker's output remained sporadic through the 1990s and 2000s, hampered by the global reggae scene's evolution toward dancehall and hip-hop fusions, which limited opportunities for his style. He issued select singles and compilations under his independent banner, but major activity revived in the 2010s with the 2014 retrospective album A Glint Of Gold, a collection of reissued and remastered tracks produced by Duke Reid and Parker himself, highlighting his enduring rocksteady legacy. In 2016, he collaborated with British reggae artist Earl 16 on the album Fusion, released by Tamoki-Wambesi-Dove, blending Parker's vocals with modern dub production for an international audience. These later efforts underscored his adaptability despite decades of personal and professional challenges.

Parker relocated to Florida, where he pursued his music career while also serving as a pastor. His performance at the International Ska and Reggae Festival in London in April 2014 was a testament to his enduring legacy and influence.  

Ken Parker died on February 22, 2025, in Florida at the age of 76, just one day before his 77th birthday, succumbing to injuries from a car accident on February 16. The accident occurred near his home in Margate, Florida, when Parker suffered a seizure while driving home from church with his wife, Rose, causing the vehicle to crash into a lamppost; he was placed on life support and remained in a coma until his passing.

Ken Parker’s rich vocals and heartfelt performances left an indelible mark on Jamaican music, bridging the worlds of reggae and gospel. He is remembered as a pioneer who brought soulfulness and spirituality to his craft. His contributions to music will continue to inspire generations to come. 

(Edited from  Grokipedia, Caribbean National Weekly & Reggae Point)

Orville Couch born 21 February 1935

Orville Couch (February 21, 1935 – May 26, 2002) was a talented American country music singer-songwriter who left a lasting impact on the genre. His music was characterized by his traditional country style, and he was known for his distinctive voice and guitar skills. Despite his early death, Couch's music continues to be celebrated by fans and historians of country music. 

Orville Couch was born in Ferris, Texas.. Among the radio shows on which obscure honky-tonk singer-songwriter Couch appeared were Saturday Night Shindig on WFAA, and The Big ‘D’ Jamboree on KRLD. The latter was an early 50s show, produced by Ed McLemore, where on the lines between country and rock ‘n’ roll were blurred. Other singers who were on the show in those years, included Johnny Cash, Tony Douglas, Lefty Frizzell, Carl Perkins, and Gene Vincent. 

                                    

In his later years, Couch would recall for interviewers how his appearance on this show, meant that his path crossed that of newcomer Elvis Presley. “Who the hell is Orville Couch? He owes me a buck.” The colourful language slipped uncustomarily off Elvis Presley’s palate as he stormed in the back door of the Big D. Jamboree. “I’m Orville Couch,” The country singer admitted, turning in his seat. Elvis straddled a chair in front of the man. “Two girls outside the door made me join your fan club,” he declared in outrage. 

Orville sputtered with laughter. Mood broken, the two men chatted until the emcee cued them. The two singers shared much in common. Both crossed the thin line between hillbilly and rock, but unlike Elvis, Orville preferred to stay to the Country side of the road. Elvis never did get that dollar back, but at least he could whip out the Official Orville Couch Fan Club Lifetime Membership if the circumstances ever called for it. * 

Over his career Orville has recorded on many labels including  Starday (1957), Dixie (1958), Mercury (1960), Custom  (1962), Vee Jay (1962-65), Action (1964), Le Cam (1965), Monument (1966), Tower (1968-69), Stonegate (1970) and Renegade (1976) as well as a few others along the way. He recorded one studio album for Vee Jay Records in 1963, in addition to appearing on radio shows. The album produced two singles on the Billboard country music charts: "Hello Trouble" at No. 5 and "Did I Miss You?" at No. 25. Another popular song was “Help Me Get My Cotton Gin’. 

I am unable to find any biographical information regarding Orville after his 1963 album except that much later on he formed a group called Cross Country. In 2001 Orville with Kathy La Folette and Barbara Thomas recorded a gospel album “In His Care” and in December that year Orville was diagnosed with a rare form of acute lymphoblastic leukemia which he succumbed to on May 26, 2002. 

(Very scarce information edited from Rocky-52, Facebook & *Elvis In Texas: The Undiscovered King 1954-1958 by Stanley Obert & Lori Torrance)

Bobby Jaspar born 20 February 1926

Bobby Jaspar (20 February 1926 – 28 February 1963) was a Belgian cool jazz and hard bop saxophonist, flautist and composer. 

Born in Liège, Belgium, Jaspar learned to play piano and clarinet at a young age. Later, he took up the alto and tenor saxophones, and at the age of 19 played the tenor saxophone in a Dixieland group with Toots Thielemans. In 1954 he started playing flute and after studying chemistry at university he turned to music as a profession. 

He worked with his own group the Bob Shots (recording 1947-1951) and with Henri Renaud (recording in 1951 and 1953) and Sasha Distel. He also performed with visiting Americans, including Jimmy Raney (1952), Chet Baker(1955), and Blossom Dearie (1956) whom he married., but divorced in 1957. 

                                   

Shortly after his arrival in New York in 1956, he became a member of J.J. Johnson’s quintet, which also included Elvin Jones. Jaspar left Johnson in 1957 and played briefly with Miles Davis. The following year he joined Donald Byrd’s quintet and from 1959 he worked as a freelance, mainly in New York, with Bill Evans, Raney, Chris Connor, the International Jazz Quartet, and others. 

Bobby with Blossom Dearie

In 1961/1962, Jaspar returned to Europe for a year for a series of concerts and a number of recordings, and formed a successful quintet with Belgian guitarist René Thomas. In some sessions, this was expanded to a powerful sextet with American trumpeter Chet Baker. One of those sessions, recorded in 1962, was released on record as Chet Is Back! 

Jaspar was considered one of the most talented European jazz musicians. His playing was influenced by Don Byas, Lester Young and Sony Rollins, but, as his recordings demonstrate, he developed his own expressive style, which led to his being highly respected by American musicians and critics alike. 

Bobby Jaspar died from a heart attack in New York City, on 28 February 1963 at age 37. He was one of the many great talents in the music who left us far too early and before his full potential could be competed.

(Edited from The New Grove Dictionary Of Jazz & Wikipedia) 

 

Bobby Rogers born 19 February 1940

Robert Edward Rogers (February 19, 1940 – March 3, 2013) was an American musician and tenor singer, best known as a founding member of Motown vocal group the Miracles from 1956 until his death. 

Robert Edward Rogers was born in Detroit, Michigan. Coincidentally, he was born on the same day and in the same hospital as Miracles lead singer Smokey Robinson. His mother, Lois, was a seamstress, and his father, Robert, worked in an auto factory. At the age of fifteen, Rogers joined Robinson’s group, The Five Chimes. The group changed its name to the Matadors. In 1959, he, along with Robinson, Claudette Rogers, Ronald White and Pete Moore, joined Berry Gordy’s new Motown label, with the new name, The Miracles. Known for their silky harmonies, snazzy threads and coolly coordinated dance steps onstage, they recorded for Berry Gordy Jr.’s Tamla label and became a stanchion of the Motown sound and Mr. Gordy’s recording empire. 

The 1960 single "Shop Around", with Smokey Robinson on lead, was Motown's first number one hit on the R&B singles chart, and the first big hit for the Miracles. The song was also Motown's first million selling hit single. The Miracles scored many more hits over the years including the #1 classics "Tears Of A Clown", and "Love Machine". In addition to his work in the Miracles, Rogers was a part-time Motown songwriter; his most notable composition, authored with bandmate Smokey Robinson, was The Temptations' first hit single, "The Way You Do the Things You Do". 

                                   

Rogers, who was known as the Miracles’ best dancer, shared writing credit with Mr. Robinson on several well-known songs, including “Going to a Go-Go,” “The Way You Do the Things You Do,” recorded by the Temptations, and “First I Look at the Purse,” a hit for the Contours in the 1960s and the J. Geils Band in 1970. 

His was the voice that dueted with Robinson on "You Really Got a Hold on Me," and it's the bubbly Rogers speaking voice that kicks off Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On," with the words "Hey, man, what's your name," "Everything is everything" and "It's just a groovy party man, I can dig it." .Bobby was also reputed to be the group's best dancer, and was responsible for many of the Miracles' onstage routines, until the arrival of famed Motown choreographer Cholly Atkins. After a name change to capitalize on Mr. Robinson’s stardom, they became Smokey Robinson and the Miracles in 1965. 

In 1972 Smokey Robinson left the Miracles with Billy Griffin as his official replacement. By 1976, the Miracles' relationship with Motown imploded during contract renewals after their contract with the label had expired. The group signed with Columbia in 1977 but with little success.  In 1980, Ronnie White and Bobby Rogers decided to carry on with the Miracles as a touring unit which carried on for three years as "The New Miracles". 

In late 2006, Bobby re-united with original Miracles members Smokey Robinson and Pete Moore for the group's first-ever extended interview on the Motown DVD release, Smokey Robinson & the Miracles: The Definitive Performances. In more recent years, Rogers was the main engine for the Miracles, trademarking the name and nurturing the legacy as he continued to perform throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe with members Dave Finley, Tee Turner, and Mark Scott in the final incarnation of The Miracles, which made him, as of 2009, the longest-serving original Miracles member. On March 20, 2009, Bobby was in Hollywood to be honored along with the other surviving original members of the Miracles as they received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. 

In 1987, Smokey Robinson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist. This proved a source of many protests from angry Miracles fans. After a 26-year wait, Bobby was automatically and retroactively inducted with the rest of the original Miracles, Marv Tarplin, Pete Moore, Claudette Robinson, and Ronnie White into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame alongside Miracles lead singer Smokey Robinson on April 14, 2012. 

In 1981, Rogers married Joan Hughes on his forty-first birthday. The wedding ceremony was officiated by the Reverend Cecil Franklin, the brother of Aretha Franklin at Detroit's historic New Bethel Baptist Church. Bobby and Joan had two children before their marriage, daughters Gina and Kimberly. In his final years, Rogers divided his residence between his primary dwelling in Southfield, Michigan, a northern suburb of Detroit, and a Beverly Hills, California pied-à-terre. 

Following a PBS appearance, Rogers was forced into retirement due to health issues. He died in his home on March 3, 2013, at the age of 73, due to complications of diabetes and dementia, two weeks after his 73rd birthday. Two years after his death Bobby was  inducted with the rest of the original Miracles into the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2015. 

(Edited from Wikipedia & The New York Times)

 

Esmeralda born 18 February 1927

Alma Graciela Haro Cabello (18 February 1927 – 25 August 1992), known professionally as Esmeralda, was a Mexican singer and actress. She was nicknamed La Versátil ("The Versatile") because she sang and recorded songs of various music genres, including cuplé, bolero, and tango. 

She was born María Graciela Herrejón Cabello in Morelia, Michoacán, to Ignacio Herrejón Ortiz and Amanda Cabello Morante. She later changed her name from Herrejón to Haro, her stepfather's surname. In 1942, María Graciela participated in a contest organized by radio station XEW to choose a new vocalist for the songs of Agustín Lara, but she lost to Lupita Alday. In 1944, she recorded her first single for Peerless Records with the songs "Qué buscan en la mujer" and "Puerto nuevo", and two years later she made her debut at radio station XEW. 

Esmeralda with Agustin

In 1948, Esmeralda introduced Agustín Lara's famous schottische "Madrid" on Mexican radio, and in that same year she recorded it for the Peerless label. Lara later commissioned the singer Ana María González to introduce the schottische in Spain. In the late 1940s, Esmeralda appeared in Mexican cinema. She sang in the film Coqueta (1949) and played the role of an attractive singer named Risaralda who sings the bolero "Flor de azalea" in Dos pesos dejada (1949), starring Joaquín Pardavé and Sara García. She also participated in the film Curvas peligrosas (1950). She married Juan Sánchez Azcona and had four children. 

                                  

                                    Here's "Core Ingrato" (Catari)

In the 1950s, Esmeralda signed a recording contract with Musart Records. For this label she made several recordings, including soundtrack albums of the Sara Montiel films El último cuplé (1957) and La violetera (1958); the album Música de papá y mamá (1958), with songs from revues; and the album Canciones de siempre (1959), with medleys of boleros by Mexican songwriters. She made several tours of Mexico, the United States, Cuba and Central America.and was considered one of the best interpreters of Agustín Lara. 

In the 1960s, she signed a contract to record albums with the Mexican label Rex, where she rerecorded songs she had recorded on the Peerless and Musart labels. Mexico's Consejo Nacional de Turismo appointed her ambassador of Mexican music and sent her abroad to represent the culture of Mexico in European countries such as Spain, France, Italy, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Russia. She also visited many Latin American countries in her tours. She divorced her husband in the early 80’s. 

She died in a Mexico City hospital on 25 August 1992 from complications of diabetes at the age of 65 years old.

(Edited from Wikipedia & New York Times)

 

Patricia Routledge born 17 February 1929

Dame Katherine Patricia Routledge (17 February 1929 – 3 October 2025) was an English actress and singer. She was best known for her role as Hyacinth Bucket in the BBC One comedy series Keeping Up Appearances (1990–1995), for which she was twice nominated for the BAFTA TV Award for Best Light Entertainment Performance. Her exceptional acting and singing talents, formidable intellect, and brilliant wit, took her from humble beginnings in Tranmere to TVs in living rooms across the land, via the West End and Broadway. 

Routledge, born in Higher Tranmere, Birkenhead, Merseyside, was the second child of Isaac Edgar Routledge, a gentleman’s outfitter and haberdasher, and his wife, Catherine (nee Perry). She was educated at Birkenhead high school and Liverpool University. She took a degree in English in 1951, intending to become a teacher. But music was also a passion. The full, rich contralto voice she developed had started at Saturday morning lessons with a Miss Sleigh at the upright Steinway piano she possessed for the rest of her life. 

Coronation Street

She played Hippolyta in A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Liverpool Playhouse in 1952, signed up at the Bristol Old Vic theatre school in 1953 and went into rep in Guildford, Worthing and Windsor. Her London debut, at the Westminster theatre in 1954, was in a musical comedy rewrite of Sheridan’s The Duenna. That same year she made her first television appearance and she even popped up in five episodes of Coronation Street in 1961, as the cafe owner Sylvia Snape. 

          Here's "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye" from above album

                                    

Over the next 10 years she established her London profile in various revues and musicals, notably in the title role of an off-Broadway operetta spoof, Little Mary Sunshine, at the Comedy theatre in 1962, and in a 1963 musical version of John Vanbrugh’s The Relapse, Virtue in Danger, at the Mermaid (and the Strand). Lord Foppington in that musical was played by John Moffatt, and she paired with him again in the Mermaid’s delightful Noël Coward mélange Cowardy Custard (1972), co-devised and directed by Alan Strachan. 

She enjoyed another brilliant partnership with Alastair Sim in two Arthur Wing Pinero classics, The Magistrate (Chichester and the Cambridge theatre, 1969) and Dandy Dick (Chichester and the Garrick, 1973). Here again, opposite the visibly crushed and simpering Sim, she was a strong woman, to put it mildly. Before her TV ascendancy, she was a notable Dickensian in the mid-1970s as Mrs Micawber in David Copperfield, with David Yelland, Martin Jarvis and Arthur Lowe, and as the buxom dress designer Madame Mantalini in Nicholas Nickleby led by Nigel Havers. 

Patricia as "Kitty"

In the 80s she was a monologist not only for Bennett but also Victoria Wood in the series Victoria Wood: As Seen on TV (1985-86), opening an address as a self-righteous spinster from Cheadle with, “Hello, I’m Kitty. I’ve given gallons of blood and I can’t stomach whelks.” And in the theatre she was an unforgettable member of the director Michael Blakemore’s crack ensemble in Michael Frayn’s Noises Off (1982), as Dotty Otley, the TV star and principal investor in the disastrous play-within-a-play. 

She then joined the Royal Shakespeare Company for just one Stratford-upon-Avon and London season (1984-85) as an embittered “hag in a Lancastrian flag”, Queen Margaret, in Antony Sher’s Richard III, a role in which, “a living ghost of battles long ago and lost … she stretched her remarkable range,” said Michael Ratcliffe in the Observer. Routledge won an Olivier award to sit alongside the Tony as the Old Lady (with one buttock) in Jonathan Miller’s revival of Leonard Bernstein’s Candide for the Old Vic and Scottish Opera in 1988. In this muted, stylish production, she showed her class in her solo turn and tango, I Am Easily Assimilated. 

Patricia as Nettie Fowler

As Nettie Fowler, she graced Nicholas Hytner’s landmark National Theatre revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel in 1992, leading the exuberant charge in June is Bustin’ Out All Over, stealing comically recuperative breathers, and giving glorious voice to You’ll Never Walk Alone while stripping the anthem of its well-worn banality.

Just before Carousel, she teamed with Bennett in a staging of three Talking Heads at the Comedy, and reanimated two of his early television plays in Office Suite at Chichester in 2007. She performed several other solo shows in her later years and made her last major stage appearance in 2014, aged 85, as a slightly subdued Lady Markby in Wilde’s An Ideal Husband – where else but in Chichester. 

She was appointed OBE in 1993, advanced to CBE in 2004, and was made a dame in 2017. Routledge settled in Chichester in 2000 and was a regular churchgoer at Chichester Cathedral. In 2020, she helped raise £10,000 towards the restoration of the cathedral's roof. She returned to her hometown on 17 January 2025 to receive Wirral’s highest honour – the Honorary Freedom of the Borough. Routledge died peacefully in her sleep on 3 October 2025, at the age of 96 at her home in Chichester. Her funeral was held at Chichester Cathedral on 5 November 2025, followed by cremation at Chichester Crematorium. 

(Edited from Michael Coveney obit @ The Guardian & Wikipedia)