August 4, 1940 - March 30, 2004
Sinatra requested her as his opening act; Elvis had a special table set up for himself at her Vegas gigs; Willie Nelson was a family friend; and Morrissey claimed her as his favorite singer. How can Timi Yuro be anything but fabulous?
Much has been made of her amazing voice -- one that was often mistaken for an African American's, or a man's, or both; the fact that Timi was actually an Italian-American girl from Chicago made her unique sound all the more remarkable. Unfortunately, it also meant that, once the initial hoopla over her unusual voice was done, there seemed to be a lot of confusion over how exactly to "market" Ms. Yuro. She was clearly too worldly to be a teen idol; too torchy to be a gritty blues bawler; and yet far too soulful to be a straight pop balladeer. Producers often relied on huge, symphonic arrangements to showcase Yuro's rafter-ringing voice; it's interesting to think of how she may have fared in more stripped-down settings. Nevertheless, even when the material or arrangements were lacking, Yuro never gave less than 110 percent, and all of her recordings have merit. Our personal favorite? Yuro's heartbreaking renditions of the also-underrated Bobby Scott's tender compositions, "Johnny" and "Just a Ribbon," both of which will be included on our rotating playlist at a later date.
R.I.P., Timi. You will always be the definitive Little Lady With the Big Voice.
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