Male Jazz singers - any recommendations?

Louis Armstrong is the unquestioned king of the jazz vocal genre. There really is no one else who comes close in skill, technique and phrasing. The fact that he could achieve all of that with a voice which was not classically beautiful is all the more a testament to his talent. In addition, he was immensely popular. In his time, he was more popular than the Beatles were in theirs.

Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra are generally considered to be pop singers, not jazz singers.

Among the great jazz crooners, Nat King Cole and Billy Eckstine stand at the top. Other than to us audiophiles, Johnny Hartman made a relatively small impression on the music scene, although his talent is up there with Billy Eckstine and the two of them sound quite similar.

Try Andy Bey .

JSBail isright on."Ballads Blues and Bey" with just Andy Bey singing and acompanying himself on paino.All ballads made more poingnant when you learn that he came out of closet and and has AIDS.Not that I have to qualify these observations on telling everyone what sensitive hetro I am I have been interested in Gays in Jazz music since reading the wonderful biography of Billy Strayhorn by David Hadjou (think that's the spelling) called (what else?) Lush Life.Strays wrote that world weary song when he was just 17.I am sorry no straight aged 17 could have written that.Had to be a black,gay president of the HS French Club that Strayhorn was.Facsinating book.Many Song writters and lyricists like Lorenz Hart were also gay.Think of the lyrics to "My Funny Valentine" etc.Good article about gays in jazz in a recent Jazz Times.

Thanks for all these great suggestions. Just went on another shopping spree at my local Towers and picked up a Mel Torme cd (lulu's back in town). Great album, I'm going to check out more suggestions. Thanks again.