Irene Kral (January 18, 1932 – August 15, 1978) was an American jazz singer who was born in Chicago, Illinois and died, due to breast cancer, in Encino, California.
Kral's older brother, Roy Kral, was a successful musician when she started singing professionally as a teenager. She sang with bands on tours led by Woody Herman and Chubby Jackson, former Herman bass player. She joined Maynard Ferguson's band in the late 1950s and sang with groups led by Stan Kenton and Shelly Manne. She then started a solo career until her death at 46 years of age. She was a ballad singer who stated that Carmen McRae was one of her inspirations. She became more famous posthumously when Clint Eastwood used her recordings in his 1995 movie The Bridges of Madison County.
Read more about Irene Kral: Discography