Jazz vocalist Tina May was born on March 30, 1961, in Gloucester, England. She began developing her jazz sensibilities at University College in Cardiff and was soon performing with small bands in clubs around town. Moving to Paris, France to continue her studies, she became heavily involved with the cities jazz and theater scenes. She collaborated with many musicians and actors during her time in Paris, but eventually moved to London to pursue a musical career. Constantly performing and attending acting workshops, she sent a demo CD to 33 Arts Center in Luton in hopes of landing a live gig. Instead, she was offered a recording contract. She was sent into Abbey Road Studios in 1991 to record her debut album, Never Let Me Go, which was released the following year. The album featured musical assistance from David Newton (piano), Dave Green (double bass), Clark Tracey (drums), and Don Weller (tenor saxophone). The album was greeted with critical acclaim and Tina May took to the road and played clubs, festivals, and radio broadcasts. An extremely prolific artist, she followed her debut with albums such as Fun (1993), Time Will Tell (1995), One Fine Day (1999), I’ll Take Romance (2003), I Never Told You (2009), No More Hanky Panky (2011), My Kinda Love (2014), and 52nd Street: Tina May Sings the Songs of Duncan Lamont (2021).
