Kitty Kallen

Who is Kitty Kallen?

Kitty Kallen is an American popular singer whose career spanned from the 1930s to the 1960s – to include the Swing era of the Big Band years, the post-WWII pop scene and the early years of rock 'n roll.

Kallen is widely known for her 1954 solo recording Little Things Mean a Lot — a song that stayed at the U.S. number one spot for nine consecutive weeks, charted in the U.S. for almost seven months, hit #1 on the UK singles chart, and sold more than two million copies. AllMusic called the recording a "monster hit," and music historian Jonny Whiteside said the song "ably characterizes Kallen’s impressive, and graceful, transition from classic big band swing to modern post-war pop."

Voted most popular female singer in 1954 in both Billboard and Variety polls, Kallen lost her voice at the Palladium in 1955 at the top of her career and left singing for four years, suffering paralyzed vocal cords. After testing her voice under a pseudonym in small town venues, she ultimately returned and went on to achieve 13 top ten career hits — more than Paula Abdul, Janis Joplin, Bette Midler, or Peggy Lee.