Today marks what would have been the 97th birthday of Johh F. Kennedy had he not been assassinated. But he was assassinated, and an entire nation went into mourning. During this sad time, there was one person everyone watched — one person who, in addition to setting the standard for how to grieve with …
I always hear a little starting gun go off in my head on Memorial Day. Well, first I hear a voice saying, “Ladies, take your marks” … and then I hear the “bang!” Just what does that “bang!” announce the start of? For some, it may be a race to the beach; for …
Continue reading “High heels/Low heels/No heels: How Do The Ladies Do It?”
A friend invited me to see Cher last Saturday night at The Meadowlands. I didn’t really want to go. I was supposed to be out of town and had long been looking forward to the weekend getaway. I also thought, Isn’t Cher like 100 years old already? Do I really have to watch her …
Dad in his Air Force uniform I’m from a military family: my grandfather fought in WW1 as an infantry man, one uncle was a naval officer in WW2, another was in Korea in the air force, and my father, who also served in the Air Force, made a career as a professor of military history. One of …
Continue reading “Three cheers for the red, white and blue!”
Earlier this week we celebrated the birthday of Burt Bacharach: songwriter extraordinaire, ivory tickler and bona fide charmer who’s still swingin’ at 86! His first-ever job was accompanist for sizzling femme fatale Marlene Dietrich – who, in her autobiography, fessed up to falling head over heels for him during the four years they performed together. …
Is it finally Tuesday again? Yes, siree! The wait is over. So make sure you’re home with a tall glass of whatever it is you like to drink at 9pm (no judgements– Milk of Magnesia or a Bourbon are all good in my book!) and tune in to The Rose Note! It’s super easy. …
The one and only Satchmo! 50 years ago TODAY, the great jazz trumpeter and singer, Louis Armstrong, hit #1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart with “Hello Dolly,” making him the oldest artist to hit that spot at the age of 62. It was 1964. His first big solo hit was “St. Louis Blues,” a …
Continue reading “Staying Power: What Makes a Music Career Last?”
It’s true!! I’m hosting my very own radio program thanks to radio legend, Jonathan Schwartz, and the super good folks at WNYC! I’ll be “on air” every Tuesday night at 9pm, waxing rhapsodic (but briefly) between tracks and tapping my toes to a super swingin’ set list. You know who I’ll be “turning”: Ella, Frank, Peggy, …
Audrey Hepburn: celebrated beauty, celebrated humanitarian, celebrated fashion icon— the list could go on and on. One of the few things Audrey Hepburn was not celebrated for was her singing. Though she was clearly not a great vocalist, producers didn’t seem to mind. Look! There she is– singing away in Funny Face, My Fair …
Continue reading “Audrey Hepburn: Actress, Dancer … Singer?”
Oh, Ann-Margret! Why do you delight me so? I’m going to tell you all a little secret: I got the tickle of a lifetime when The Jazz Times music critic wrote “Rose goes stiletto to stiletto with Ann-Margret.” Of course as a fellow redhead, I’ve always gravitated towards Ann Margaret’s distinctive style. But it is as a …
Continue reading “Ann-Margret: Eight Good Reasons Why Everyone Should Love Her”
Spring has finally sprung! At last we’ve made it to Spring!! For some, this means Kleenex and Claritin, but for singers, it seems to be a great opportunity for them to “jazz” up their costumes. So, how do bold ladies celebrate the season? Below are some of my favorite shots of singers incorporating …
Continue reading “Flower Fashion: How Singers Celebrate Spring”
When I arrived at Yale as a freshman, I had certainly heard of Barbra Streisand. Who hadn’t? We had the sheet music to “Evergreen,” “People” and “The Way We Were” when I was growing up, and her name was mentioned by TV and radio personalities and by my mother’s friends or older Aunties, or by decidedly …
If you’ve been following the official Isabel Rose Facebook page, you likely weighed in on my Trouble in Paradise album cover design poll on Monday, put together by my fabulous designer Christina D’Angelo. Over 700 fans responded, and the results are in! Just to jog your memory, here were the choices. Album …
Continue reading “The Making of the ‘Trouble in Paradise’ Album Cover”
Oleg Cassini, mid-’60s, with a model wearing his uniform for the Lufthansa stewardesses The anniversary of the great designer Oleg Cassini’s birthday on April 11 has left me wondering: Who exactly was Oleg Cassini? His name sounds mysterious, Italian and suave. In my mind, he is vaguely associated with wedding dresses and Jackie O. … but I also …
When I was little, my sisters and I won a cruise ship talent show singing “That’s Entertainment” dressed in identical mustard-colored, terry cloth shorts with matching zip- front short-sleeve tops. little sis, Abbi, on the left, big sis, Amy, middle, and me on the right I often look back on that costume choice and …
Continue reading “Costume Strategy: To Match or Not To Match, That is the Question”
The title for my upcoming album has been chosen! Trouble In Paradise has won, beating out Start of Something Big and plain old Isabel Rose by a narrow margin. Now comes the fun part: designing the album cover art. Trouble In Paradise could go a lot of different ways: it could refer to …
Now that my photo shoot is behind me, I can focus on the creation of my dream rehearsal studio. I already have the raw space: 500 square feet behind a friend’s shop that was once used for storage, but is now standing empty. Of course I could just throw some baffles on the walls to …
Hudson Studios I arrived at Hudson Studios on 26th & 11th at 9am to discover my stylist, Lisa von Weise Shaw, in a tizzy. The clothes from Albright, our rental house, weren’t there even though she had confirmation they had arrived the day before. I decided to stay out of her way, and went over to …
Continue reading “Photo Shoot Day: What Really Happens On Set!”
What’s more important on a photo shoot than the right clothes? My trusty stylist, Lisa von Weise Shaw, and I began our hunt at Albright Fashion Library, the go-to rental house for most NY photo shoots. Our goal was to round up some ’60s flavored outfits with great necklines. After a thorough search, we narrowed …
Continue reading “Retro Outfits: Behind the Scenes with Isabel Rose”
I have a photo shoot coming up next week for my album cover. Some of you might not know what goes into preparation for such an affair, so I thought I’d share my process with you. Step 1: Panic Step 2: WEIGH IN Take off all your clothes (they add 2 lbs.) and …