Irene Daye born 17 January 1918

Born Irene Endyke in Lawrence, Massachusetts, singer Irene Daye landed her first professional singing job with orchestra leader Dan Murphy shortly before her high school graduation in 1935. She flew back to her hometown on graduation night to receive her diploma.

She remained with Murphy two-​and-a-half years before joining Mal Hallett. Five months after she began with Hallett, bandleader Gene Krupa heard her sing at an engagement in Philadelphia and asked her to try out for his group. When her night’s work with Hallett had ended, she made a 4 a.m. audition and landed the job. 

With Krupa, Daye found success. She had an attractive voice and a lightly swinging style, and improvised with subtlety while respecting the melody and words of the songs she interpreted. She quickly became one of the top vocalists in the country. Daye recorded 63 songs while with Krupa. She made each tune seem worthwhile, even the duds, and had success with "Jeepers Creepers,""Bolero at the Savoy,""The Lady's in Love with You,""Drummin' Man,""The Rumba Jumps,""Rhumboogie," and "Yes, My Darling Daughter." On January 17, 1941, during what would be her final record date with Krupa, she had her biggest hit, "Drum Boogie." Her voice is also heard singing "Drum Boogie" in the movie Ball of Fire, although she was ghosting for actress Barbara Stanwyck. 

She remained with Krupa from 1938 to 1941 when she quit at the age of 23 so that she could travel to the West Coast and marry left-​handed trumpeter Corky Cornelius. If she had stayed with Krupa's band, which was on the brink of making it big, she probably would have been featured on "Let Me Off Uptown" instead of her replacement, Anita O'Day. 

While Cornelius joined the Casa Loma Orchestra, Daye sang for Sam Donahue, who had also recently left Krupa to front his own band again. After her stint with Donahue, Daye happily settled into the life of a housewife, giving birth to a daughter in 1943. 

Sadly, Cornelius passed away from nephritis in August of that year, and Daye returned to singing. She auditioned for Charlie Spivak and was performing with the band by October. With Spivak, Daye found even greater success, making several hit records with the band, including “Baby Won’t You Please Come Home,” “It’s Been a Long, Long Time,” “Golden Earrings” and “I’ll Never Say Goodbye.” Daye also found romance. She and Spivak were married in 1950. 

In the late 1950s, Spivak and Daye moved to Miami, Florida, where he fronted a small outfit with Daye managing his business affairs. Illness forced him to retire briefly in 1963. After recovering, he led bands in Las Vegas and Miami before organizing another small outfit in 1967 that played regularly at the Ye Olde Fireplace restaurant in Greenville, South Carolina, with Daye as vocalist. Daye battled cancer during the last years of her life, finally losing her fight in 1971, age 53. 

(Edited from Bandchirps & All Music)

Here’s a clip of "The Call Of The Canyon" with Gene Krupa Orchestra featuring Babe Wagner on Trombone. The vocals are by Irene Daye & Howard Dulany. (1941)