Grace Knight

U.K.-born vocalist Grace Knight, who had fronted the acclaimed Australian group the Eurogliders, later embarked on a solo path that established her among the country’s foremost jazz performers. During her early teenage years she performed in folk clubs and first encountered musician Bernie Lynch aboard a cruise ship; the pair went on to launch the Eurogliders in 1980, achieving widespread international recognition before the band disbanded in 1989. Knight subsequently contributed backing vocals to the Tania Bowra Band and then collaborated with jazz musician Vince Jones on the soundtrack for the ABC-TV miniseries Come in Spinner. That collection of 1940s jazz standards signaled a decisive shift in her musical direction, and the singles “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” “The Man I Love,” and “Sophisticated Lady” drove the album to number five on the national charts in May 1990.

Her debut solo release, Stormy Weather (September 1991), climbed to number 14 on the national chart the following October, while the cover “Fever” appeared as a single. The follow-up album Gracious presented additional jazz standards and reinterpretations, among them “On a Clear Day,” “Moondance,” “Cry Me a River,” and “Papa Was a Rolling Stone.” In February 1996 Knight issued the double album Live, captured across three nights at Sydney’s jazz venue the Basement. Her fourth solo album, Zeitgeist, arrived in 2000 and included several original compositions written by Knight.