Lily Ann Carol

Lily Ann Carol (1923–1999) was an American big-band and popular singer, most famous for being the first vocalist with Louis Prima's orchestra, 1939–1946. She recorded as a solo artist for Signature Records, RCA Victor and Mercury Records in the late 1940s and 1950s and performed with her husband, saxophonist and singer Joe Barone, starting in 1966.

Early life and education Carol was born in the Weequahic section of Newark, New Jersey, and while a teenager, began singing in shows around the city, where she was seen by Louis Prima. Prima was in the process of abandoning his Dixieland style and forming his first orchestra, which he called "The Band That Plays Pretty For the People". Their popular recordings included "I'll Walk Alone", "Oh Marie", "A Fellow on a Furlough", and "Everybody Knew But Me". and were one of the only white bands to play five engagements at the Apollo Theater in Harlem. While with Prima, she developed the stone-faced singing style later emulated by Keely Smith. In a 1971 interview with the New York Times, she recalled, "If I broke up and laughed at what Louis was doing, there goes my song. So I kept a straight face just to get to sing my song." She finished sixth in Down Beat's annual poll of big band singers in 1944 and 1945. She recorded that year with Charlie Ventura for National Records and played the nightclub circuit. and Mercury Records (1956–1957). She later recorded for Cub Records (1958) and Spotlight Records (1966–1967). Her television appearances included the Arthur Murray Party, the Steve Allen Show and the Mike Douglas Show.

While performing at the Top Hat nightclub on Long Island, she met and married saxophonist and singer Joe Barone.

She died in 1999 and is entombed at Pinelawn Memorial Park in East Farmingdale, Long Island alongside her husband, who died on May 3, 2006. A CD compilation (Oh Marie!) of her best recordings with Prima was released in 2021 by Jasmine Records (JASMCD2725).