Jazz Great Ernestine Anderson Dies at 87

SEATTLE (AP) — Ernestine Anderson, the celebrated jazz vocalist who earned four Grammy nominations during a six-decade career, has died. She was 87.

The King County Medical Examiner's Office said Sunday it received a report that Anderson died of natural causes Thursday at a nursing home in Shoreline.

The Seattle Times reports that the jazz and blues singer performed all over the world, from Carnegie Hall to festivals in South America and Europe. She toured widely and sang with bands led by Johnny Otis and Lionel Hampton. Her friend and producer Quincy Jones once described her voice as the sound of "honey at dusk."

The Houston-born Anderson began singing in church when she was 3 years old. Her family moved to Seattle in 1944 where attended Garfield High School.

She recorded her first single in 1948, "K.C. Lover/Good Lovin' Babe." Her debut album "Hot Cargo" was released in 1958 to rave reviews.