- Jazz pianist and vocalist born in 1964 in Nanaimo, British Colombia, Canada.
- At home, Krall’s father played piano and her mother sang in a choir. Diana started piano lessons when she was 4 years old, and by high school she was in a jazz group. She earned a scholarship to Berklee College of Music in Boston – she stayed for 2 years, and then left for Los Angeles to pursue a career in jazz music. She worked there for 3 years, and then moved to Toronto, followed by a move to New York. Finally, she was signed to a recording contract with a Canadian label that specialized in jazz and blues music.
- Krall’s debut album, Stepping Out, was released in 1993. It contained mostly covers of standard jazz standards from the 30s and 40s, plus 1 song written by Krall. It was an underground favorite of jazz fans. Her next album, Only Trust Your Heart, was released in 1995, continued with the old standards, and the album peaked at #8 on the Top Jazz Albums chart.
- With her third album, 1996’s All For You: A Dedication to the Nat King Cole Trio, she became established as a major artist in jazz music. The album was nominated for a Grammy award, and it spent 70 weeks on the jazz album chart. By now, her reputation earned her the talent of some of the best jazz musicians backing her on her records and tours. She became renowned not only for her modern take on vocals of the old standards, but also her talented piano playing.
- Krall’s next 3 albums all were certified platinum in sales. They all reached #1 on the jazz album chart, and 2001’s The Look of Love crossed over to peak at #9 on the Billboard 200 album chart, and reached #1 in Canada. When I Look in Your Eyes was nominated in 2000 for a Grammy for Album of the Year, the first time in 25 years that a jazz album had been nominated for the award. While it did not win, it did win the Grammy award for Best Jazz Album. Also in 2000, she toured with Tony Bennett, cementing her position as jazz royalty.
- Four more studio albums and a live album were released by Krall during the 00s. All topped the Jazz Album chart, and 3 of them were in the top 10 of the Billboard 200. The 2004 album The Girl In the Other Room includes 7 songs that were co-written with her husband, music legend Elvis Costello, whom she married in 2003. The live album, Live In Paris, won the Grammy award for Best Jazz Vocal Album in 2003. In 2009, Billboard named Krall “Jazz Artist of the Decade.”
- During the 10s decade, she released 4 albums, including a collaboration with Tony Bennett in 2018 titled Love Is Here To Stay. One of the songs on the album, Fascinating Rhythm, was first recorded by Bennett in 1949 – the new version with Krall was recorded almost 69 years later. All of the albums topped the Jazz Album chart. Over the years, Krall has contributed vocals and piano to recordings by many other artists, including The Chieftains, Willie Nelson, Ray Charles, Yo-Yo Ma, Celine Dion, Barbra Streisand and Paul McCartney.
- Here’s a live performance of Krall, along with hubby Elvis Costello and Willie Nelson, performing the Patsy Cline classic Crazy (written by Nelson in 1961). Enjoy!