Biography
Bev Kelly established herself during the 1950s with a commanding presence as a jazz singer and later staged several returns to performance while also following other professional paths. Classical piano lessons began for her at age five and continued through high school. At fourteen she took up classical voice study, and four years afterward she received a vocal scholarship to Cincinnati's Conservatory of Music.
From 1954 to 1957 she appeared with the ensemble billed as The Pat Moran Trio featuring Bev Kelly, in which all four members, pianist Moran among them, performed four-part vocal harmonies. The group issued two albums on Bethlehem and joined a large-scale multi-artist project devoted to the music of Porgy and Bess. Late in 1957 she cut her first album under her own name. Striking out alone, she completed two Riverside sessions, Love Locked Out and Bev Kelly in Person, and worked in San Francisco with pianist Flip Nunez and altoist Pony Poindexter.
In 1961, at age twenty-seven, she chose to withdraw from performing in order to raise her son. She made her home in the Los Angeles area, where she composed music and poetry, practiced professional photography, undertook session work, and acted as a vocal coach. Club dates resumed on a part-time schedule in 1966, including appearances with local figures such as trombonist Frank Rosolino and pianist Hampton Hawes. Three albums for Reader's Digest were recorded in London in 1972, and several years later she performed with Al Williams' quintet in Long Beach. Between 1978 and 1980 she held an investment interest in the Jazz Safari, a Long Beach club where she also performed on occasion.
A Doctorate in Psychology awarded in 1984 led her to practice as a psychotherapist. Since that time she has remained largely retired from music, though she returned briefly in 2002 to record Portrait of Nine Dreams, a collection of her autobiographical poems set to music.
From 1954 to 1957 she appeared with the ensemble billed as The Pat Moran Trio featuring Bev Kelly, in which all four members, pianist Moran among them, performed four-part vocal harmonies. The group issued two albums on Bethlehem and joined a large-scale multi-artist project devoted to the music of Porgy and Bess. Late in 1957 she cut her first album under her own name. Striking out alone, she completed two Riverside sessions, Love Locked Out and Bev Kelly in Person, and worked in San Francisco with pianist Flip Nunez and altoist Pony Poindexter.
In 1961, at age twenty-seven, she chose to withdraw from performing in order to raise her son. She made her home in the Los Angeles area, where she composed music and poetry, practiced professional photography, undertook session work, and acted as a vocal coach. Club dates resumed on a part-time schedule in 1966, including appearances with local figures such as trombonist Frank Rosolino and pianist Hampton Hawes. Three albums for Reader's Digest were recorded in London in 1972, and several years later she performed with Al Williams' quintet in Long Beach. Between 1978 and 1980 she held an investment interest in the Jazz Safari, a Long Beach club where she also performed on occasion.
A Doctorate in Psychology awarded in 1984 led her to practice as a psychotherapist. Since that time she has remained largely retired from music, though she returned briefly in 2002 to record Portrait of Nine Dreams, a collection of her autobiographical poems set to music.
Albums
Live
