Martha Tilton

Martha Tilton
Tilton in 1933
Background information
Birth name	Martha Ellen Tilton
Also known as	The Liltin' Miss Tilton
Born	(1915-11-14)November 14, 1915 Corpus Christi, Texas, U.S.
Died	December 8, 2006(2006-12-08) (aged 91) Brentwood, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Genres	Swing Jazz Traditional pop
Occupation(s)	Singer, actress
Years active	1930s–1990s
Labels	Capitol, Coral, Tops
Website	marthatilton.com

Martha Tilton (November 14, 1915 – December 8, 2006)^[1] was an American popular singer during America's swing era and traditional pop period. She is best known for her 1939 recording of "And the Angels Sing" with Benny Goodman.

Tilton was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, United States.^[2] Her family moved to Edna, Kansas, when she was three months old.^[3] They relocated to Los Angeles when she was seven years old. While attending Fairfax High School in Los Angeles, she was singing on a small radio station when she was heard by an agent who signed her and began booking her with larger stations.

She then dropped out of school in the eleventh grade to join Hal Grayson's band. After singing with the quartet Three Hits and a Miss, she joined the Myer Alexander Chorus on Benny Goodman's radio show, Camel Caravan.^[4] Goodman hired Tilton as a vocalist with his band in August 1937.^[4] She was with Goodman in January 1938, when the band performed at Carnegie Hall. She continued to appear as Goodman's star vocalist until the end of 1939.^[4] She had a No. 1 hit with Benny Goodman's recording of "And the Angels Sing" in 1939.^{[4][5][self-published source]}