Singer Mary Cleere Haran Dies at 58

I was saddened this morning by the news of the untimely death of singer Mary Cleere Haran.

Haran passed away last weekend due to injuries sustained when she was hit by a car while bicycling. She was 58.

Haran sang from the "Great American Songbook" in New York clubs and on several albums.

My favorite Haran album was a gift from my father, THIS HEART OF MINE: CLASSIC MOVIE SONGS OF THE FORTIES. The tracks include "My Shining Hour," "Sure Thing," "You Were Never Lovelier," "Moonlight Becomes You," "The Boy Next Door," and several more. It's a wonderful album which is must listening for those who love the music of the era.

I also especially liked THIS FUNNY WORLD: MARY CLEERE HARAN SINGS LYRICS BY HART.

More obituaries were published by the New York Times and Playbill.

Stephen Holden of the New York Times called Haran "a singer of remarkable purity whose simple unaffected pop-jazz style echoed big band singers of the 1940s, most notably Ella Fitzgerald," while Don Heckman, writing for the Los Angeles Times, called her "one of the sophisticated musical genre's most uniquely appealing stars."

A sad loss, but her music will live on and be enjoyed for decades to come.