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Nancy Wilson (jazz singer)

Nancy Sue Wilson (February 20, 1937 – December 13, 2018) was an American singer whose career spanned over five decades, from the mid-1950s until her retirement in the early 2010s. She was especially notable for her single "(You Don't Know) How Glad I Am" and her version of the standard "Guess Who I Saw Today". Wilson recorded more than 70 albums and won three Grammy Awards for her work. During her performing career, Wilson was labeled a singer of blues, jazz, R&B, pop, and soul; a "consummate actress"; and "the complete entertainer". The title she preferred, however, was "song stylist".[1] She received many nicknames including "Sweet Nancy", "The Baby", "Fancy Miss Nancy" and "The Girl With the Honey-Coated Voice".[2]

This article is about the jazz vocalist. For the rock singer and guitarist, see Nancy Wilson (rock musician).

Nancy Wilson

Nancy Sue Wilson

(1937-02-20)February 20, 1937

December 13, 2018(2018-12-13) (aged 81)

  • Singer
  • actress

1956–2011

(m. 1960; div. 1970)
Wiley Burton
(m. 1974; died 2008)

3

  • Vocals

Early life[edit]

Nancy Wilson was born on February 20, 1937, in Chillicothe, Ohio, to Olden Wilson, an iron foundry worker, and Lillian Ryan.


Wilson attended Burnside Heights Elementary School and developed her singing skills by participating in church choirs. She attended West High School in Columbus, Ohio where she won a talent contest and was rewarded with a role as a host for a local television show. She then went on to attend Ohio's Central State University where she pursued her B.A. degree in education.

Life and death[edit]

Wilson and her first husband, drummer Kenny Dennis, were married in 1960. They had a son Kenneth ("Kacy") Dennis Jr., but by 1970, they had divorced.[19]


On May 22, 1974, Wilson married Reverend Wiley Burton, a Presbyterian minister. They married within a month of their first meeting.[20] She gave birth to Samantha Burton in 1975, and the couple adopted Sheryl Burton in 1976.


As a result of her marriage, she abstained from performing in various venues, such as supper clubs. For the following two decades, she successfully juggled her personal life and her career. In November 1998, both of her parents died; she called this year the most difficult of her life.


In August 2006, Wilson was hospitalized with anemia and potassium deficiency, and was on I.V. sustenance while undergoing a complete battery of tests. She was unable to attend the UNCF Evening of Stars Tribute to Aretha Franklin and had to cancel the engagement. All of her other engagements were on hold pending doctors' reports.[21][22]


In March 2008, she was hospitalized for lung complications, recovered, and reported to be doing well.[21][22] Later that year, her husband, Wiley Burton, died after suffering from renal cancer.[23] On December 13, 2018, Wilson died after a long illness at her home in Pioneertown, California.[24][25] She was 81 years old.[26]

Career wins: 3

[27]

Career nominations: 7 (Note: In a 2007 interview, Wilson stated that she had been nominated more than 20 times. However, the Grammy Awards web site lists seven nominations for Wilson.)

[28]

Nancy Wilson at Carnegie Hall (2001)

[29]

Great Women Singers of the 20th Century – Nancy Wilson (2005)

[30]

at the Wayback Machine (archived February 8, 2012)

Nancy Wilson's website – Biography

Billboard Chart History for Nancy Wilson

at IMDb

Nancy Wilson

NEA Jazz Masters: Nancy Wilson – Biography and Interview

at Find a Grave

Nancy Wilson