by Moe Zilla

Created on: February 18, 2008

"Blossom Dearie" became famous as one of the voices on "Schoolhouse Rock" in the 1970s, singing one song in each of the first three editions - Multiplication Rock, Grammar Rock, and History rock. (Blossom sang "Figure Eight," "Unpack Your Adjectives" and contributed ot the song "Mother Necessity.") But she also had a career as a jazz singer, and even in her eighties, still performs as an entertainer in New York City.

She was born 150 miles from New York, to a Scottish father who felt the name "Blossom" was a perfectly good match for his family's surname. (Her name began "almost a lifelong series of misunderstandings and lame attempts at humor," her first record jacket explained, "to which Miss Dearie is by now fairly well resigned, if not numb.") She'd sung with Woody Herman's swing band and appeared on a popular French recording of "The Lullaby of Birdland" (for which she wrote the arrangement), ultimately launching a series of successful engages in Paris nightclubs. By the age of 31 she'd already launched her solo recording career with an album titled "Blossom Dearie" - recording another one the same year titled "Give Him the Ooh-La-La."

Blossom accompanied herself on the piano with a small jazz combo featuring only bass, guitar, and drums - but the 1960s would bring bigger sessions. Her airy voice and distinctive personality would eventually bring her fans in the TV industry, and she'd eventually make appearances on both the Today Show and the Tonight Show. Her sunny personality seemed a natural fit for television commercials, and soon she could be heard singing the praises of root beer, rice and cold medicine. Hires Root Beer even offered an album could "Blossom Dearie Sings Rootin' Songs" which could be purchased for fifty cents - and a bottlecap. Her popularity led to a full-orchestra album in 1964 titled "May I Come In."

Ironically, one of the musicians on that album was Jack Sheldon, a trumpeter who's distinctive voice would later be heard in his own "Schoolhouse Rock" songs, ("Conjunction Junction" and "I'm Just a Bill.") "I was madly in love with Blossom," Sheldon conceded later, lending an interesting back story to his sweet background trumpet on the album's title track. It speaks to the larger truth behind her recording career - that besides a precise jazz style and dedicated musicianship, Blossom Dearie was simply extremely likeable.

She recorded four albums in England, including two live records, before launching her own label, "Daffodil Records." Since 1974 she's released over 16 Daffodil albums, including a single in 2003 title "It's Alright to Be Afraid." Now 81 years old, she still continues performing in New York nightclubs, and she's even brought her breezy personality into the 21st century with her own MySpace page.

The ironic slogan beside her picture?

"I'm hip."

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