What's New

Although she never gained the same kind of popularity as her colleagues Ella Fitzgerald or Sarah Vaughan, Helen Merrill (born in 1930) is considered among jazz connoisseurs to be one of the best singers in the genre's history and an icon in European circles.

What's New? (Originally titled, Helen Merrill) was her debut album on which she collaborated with legendary trumpeter Clifford Brown who tragically died in a car accident in 1956, a year after this recording was made. Featuring Brown's sextet, the arrangements are by Quincy Jones, who also conducted the orchestra.