Vanessa Rubin, born and raised in Cleveland, is among the finest of today's contemporary jazz singers. After working in Cleveland, she moved to New York City and released her first record for Novus in 1992. Influenced by Carmen McRae, Sarah Vaughan, and Betty Carter, she continues to record for Telarc and perform in various venues including her Sing Dameron! The Tadd Dameron Vocal Legacy at the Kennedy Center in 2005.
Vanessa Kay Rubin was born in Cleveland March 14, 1957. She studied journalism at Ohio State University and taught school before turning to jazz singing as a career. She performed in Cleveland with Dewey Jeffries, Cecil Rucker, and Willie Smith. She recorded with the Cleveland Jazz All-Stars. Moving to NYC in 1982, Rubin studied with Barry Harris and Frank Foster and performed with Stanley Cowell, Pharoah Sanders, Mercer Ellington, Lionel Hampton, Clark Terry, and others. She has sung at jazz festivals in Europe and Asia and in 1992 appeared at Tri-C JazzFest with the Dennis Reynolds Jazz Revival Orchestra. She has recently returned to the Cleveland area performing at the Cleveland Museum of Art with Eddie Baccus.
CDs
Soul Eyes. Novus: 63127, c1992.
Pastiche. Novus: 63512, c1993.
I'm Glad There Is You: A Tribute to Carmen McRae. Novus: 63170, 1994
Vanessa Rubin Sings. Novus: 63186, c1995.
New Horizons. RCA: 67445, c 1997.
Language of Love. Telarc: 83465, 1998, c1999.
Girl Talk. Telarc: 83480, c2001.
Cecil Bridgewater: I Love Your Smile. Bluemoon/Rhino: 79187, c1992.
Kenny Burrell and the Jazz Heritage All-Stars: Live at the Blue Note. Concord Jazz: 4731, 1996, c1996.
Books
Mosbrook, Joe. Cleveland Jazz History. 2nd ed. Northeast Ohio Jazz Society, 2003. pp. 202-206. [ML3508.C6 M67 2003]
Website
http://www.vanessarubin.com