Lena Corinne "Lee" Morse (née Taylor; November
30, 1897 – December 16, 1954) was an American jazz and blues singer-songwriter,
composer, guitarist, and actress. Morse's greatest popularity was in the 1920s
and early 1930s as a torch singer, although her career began around 1917 and
continued until her death in 1954.
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She began her
recording career with a contract with the Pathe-Perfect label in 1924. During
this era of acoustic recording, the power of her voice was essential to the
success of her recordings. That her vocals come through with such clarity and
strength on the acoustic Pathe-Perfect recordings of 1924-26 is further
testament to her unique Talent. During these early years of her recording
career, Lee was given the opportunity to record many of her own compositions.
Some notable sides include Telling Eyes, Those Daisy Days, an Old-Fashioned
Romance, Blue Waltz, The Shadows on the Wall, Deep Wide Ocean Blues, A Little
Love and Daddy's Girl.
Lee Morse & Her Blue Grass Boys included trumpeter
Manny Klein, Eddie Lang on guitar, and two brothers who played clarinet and
trombone named Jimmy and Tommy Dorsey. In 1927, along with other prominent
artists of her era, she moved to the Columbia label. From 1927 to 1932, she was
one of the label's most popular
female performers, second only to Ruth Etting.
she recorded over 200 songs; her depression-era song "I've Got Five
Dollars" is among her most widely known tunes.
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In the mid-1920s, Lee met pianist Rob Downey. He became
her accompanist on stage and companion in life. Although they lived as a
couple, some have questioned over the years whether they were ever actually
married. Married or not, they shared their personal and professional lives for
a number of years before Downey left her for a dancer. This tragic end to their
relationship left Lee devastated and ever more dependent upon alcohol, which by
the 1930s had become a constant companion.
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Ray helped Lee revitalize her career by getting her a
Rochester-based radio show and securing local club dates. She attempted a
comeback with the song "Don't Even Change a Picture on the Wall,"
written in the 1940s for the WWII soldiers and finally recorded in 1951.
Although the song enjoyed local success, it failed to launch her to the heights
she had once enjoyed.
Lee passed away suddenly due to alcohol-related
complications on December 16, 1954,whilst visiting a neighbour in Rochester. She
was only 57, with some of the happiest years of her life only having only just
begun. She is interred at the Riverside Cemetery.
After her death, Ray Farese turned her photos and
scrapbook over to Rochester-based journalist Howard Hosmer, who apparently
produced a Morse career retrospective for a local station. Hosmer, one of Lee’s
biggest fans, died before her mementos could be returned to Ray Farese.
(Edited mainly from AllMusic & IMDb)