Singer's voice and personality drew crowds

By Stephanie Hayes, Times staff writer
In print: Friday, May 2, 2008

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ST. PETERSBURG — Elsie McGarrah roared her raw soprano until the wee hours of the morning.

It was segregation-era St. Petersburg, but even white people paid 75 cents to sweat to the sounds of the Manzy Harris Orchestra at the Manhattan Casino.

With her funny personality, cherub face and glamorous dresses, Mrs. McGarrah caught the eye of many gentlemen. She even recorded an LP called A Preacher Making Eyes at Me.

"They all wanted to take Elsie back with them," said Alvin "Agg" Burns, who played trumpet in the orchestra. "But the thing about it was, her husband was right there."

She sounded like Dinah Washington. She joked and toyed with the crowd. She could adapt to any sound.

"We had to give the people what they wanted to hear," she once told the St. Petersburg Times. "I sang Gladys Knight, Aretha Franklin and Al Green. I even sang Elvis Presley's Blue Suede Shoes."

Cynthia Bell, too young to enter the casino, could hear her mother's voice boom through the doors into the car outside. "It was just amazing," she said. "I would say, 'Is that my mother?' "

Later, Mrs. McGarrah sang at concerts and weddings. Her body eventually slowed with cancer. She died Saturday at 74.

A couple of weeks ago, her granddaughter mentioned that Mrs. McGarrah looked ill. To prove otherwise, she shuffled her feet and kicked up her legs.

Stephanie Hayes can be reached at shayes@sptimes.com or (727) 893-8857.