Marlena Shaw is an American jazz, R&B, and soul singer born on September 22, 1942, in New York. Shaw grew up in the Bronx borough and began her musical career playing piano in Harlem's jazz clubs. She later studied music at the New York Conservatory of Music. In 1964, she joined Cannonball Adderley's jazz group and released her first solo album, "Out of Different Bags," in 1967. Shaw then signed with the Blue Note Records label and recorded several albums with them, including "The Spice of Life" (1969), "Just the Way You Are" (1972), and "Marlena" (1973). In 1975, she left Blue Note and signed with the Columbia Records label. Her first album for Columbia, "Sweet Beginnings," was released in 1976. Shaw continued to record and perform concerts throughout her career. She released her latest solo album, "The Blue Note Years," in 2016. She was also a member of the female vocal group The New York Voices and appeared in the film "The Five Heartbeats" (1991). Shaw was honored by the National Endowment for the Arts in 1998 and was named an Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters of France in 2006. She currently resides in New York.

Marlena Shaw Stefano Noferini - Woman Of The Ghetto (Original Mix) Extract :