Elsie Carlisle born 28 January 1896

Elsie Carlisle (January 28, 1896 – November 1977) was a popular English female singer. 

 

Originally from Manchester, Elsie became extremely popular during the 1920s and 30s, recording with many of the big dance bands of the time, as well as solo.  

She was singing and dancing at concerts in Manchester when she was six, and at twelve was a box office draw in her first revue. Four years later she was a top-liner in advertisements. Her first appearance on the air was in a variety programme in 1927. It was said that a BBC official heard her speak at a luncheon and asked her to sing before the microphone, and she was booked straight awayElsie Carlisle was beyond a doubt the most popular radio performer in England in the '30s. Proof is even available in the form of her nickname, "Radio Sweetheart Number One." She was a slightly small, unassuming performer who in some ways crystallized the idea of the blonde flapper, an image also utilized by American big band vocalists such as Annette Hanshaw and Ruth Etting.

 

 

 

Comparisons to other singers can be made only on the basis of appearance, however. In terms of singing, Carlisle had her own way with material such as romantic songs and light comedy. Her reputation was complex as well, as she also developed a part of her style devoted to material bordering on the obscene, and also felt hounded by innuendo and gossip concerning her personal life during some stages of her career. 

She was associated with the top bandleaders in the UK, and with some of the classiest song material as well. Carlisle was one of the vocalists with the Ambrose Orchestra, which for more than two decades was considered one of the finest dance bands in the nation. Bandleader Bert Ambrose regarded Carlisle as one of his best singers, and found her one of the most difficult to replace as well.

 

Decca chose the group as one of its first signings after setting up a British branch, and Carlisle was practically chained to the microphone stand for the prolific recording activity that ensued. She was also associated with bandleaders such as Paul Whiteman and Jack Harris. Harris was a partner of Ambrose, and their orchestras would switch off at the fashionable London club Ciro's during the late '30s. 

 

In the early '50s, Carlisle's association with bandleader Jack Hylton seemed to be about more than charts and arrangments; they reportedly had an affair, and for years there was speculation that Carlisle had fathered Hylton's child. Gossip mongers later reversed themselves on this hot topic.  

A singer who worked with a broad repertoire, Carlisle was nonetheless associated with certain songs such as the Cole Porter classic "What Is This Thing Called Love?", which she introduced to the public in the first London production of the the musical Wake Up and Dream. She also had a way with comic material, especially in tandem with fellow vocalist Sam Browne; the pair worked together in the Ambrose group, popularizing the ditty "Home James andDon’t Spare the Horses", which originated with a country and western publishing house, and also went on tour on their own. Carlisle recorded "My Handy Man", the Andy Razaf classic blues also chosen for its shock value by other singers such as Ethel Waters. This was not Carlisle's only risqué touch: "Pu-leeze! Mister Hemingway" was entirely banned by the BBC, which normally worshipped the ground Carlisle walked on. 

She recorded very little after the beginning of the Second World War, and retired from the entertainment industry after about 1946. Her business involvements included interests in ballroom dancing venues in south London, a company manufacturing bar accessories, a pub in central London and a Hotel/pub in Berkshire. She lived from 1939 until her death in November 1977 in her house in Mayfair in Central London.        (Info mainly All Music Guide)