“When I sing, I want people to feel something,” Marlena Shaw said. “I don’t care if it’s jazz or pop.”

Celebrated soul and jazz vocalist Marlena Shaw, known for her hits ‘California Soul’ and ‘Woman of the Ghetto’ but it was her unforgettable recording of “Go Away Little Boy,” that caught my ear and captured my heart.  I was hooked on Marlena Shaw after one listen.

Her incredible spoken section: “I figure if I’ve got to get up and go to work every day, then every able-bodied in the household is supposed to get up and go … If for some reason you feel that you can no longer be the man you were at the beginning of our relationship, then I’ve got this one thing to lay on you, my sweet. Go away, little boy …” 

“Go Away Little Boy” became one of her most popular songs in live performance, the prefatory rap acquiring extra twists, turns, and layers of sardonic saltiness.

Sadly, I never could see her perform it live, but the live recording is so good that it doesn’t matter. 

She embodied the type of entertainer I adore. With her commanding presence, humor, and incredible vocals, I assume she, like Luther Vandross, knew who to put on a show. 

Marlena Shaw began her music career in the 1960s by singing in jazz clubs and continued to perform live into the 2000s. According to Variety, she released 17 albums with eight different record labels.

According to the 5th Dimension Forever website, the vivacious singer’s lyrics often communicated the strength of the Black American community and Black women at a time when there was a great racial divide in the country and its politics. 
 

According to CBS News, the musician who influenced music in the jazz, soul, disco, and R&B genres “spanned generations and was often featured and sampled in popular media, TV commercials, and other songs.