The Dinah Washington Centennial: A Complete Annotated Filmography, Part 1:
Part One: The 1954 “Showtime at the Apollo” films
Special Thanks to Mark Cantor for information and input in this series!
Of all the major singers at the very pinnacle of the jazz pantheon, perhaps the least represented on film and video is, surprisingly, one of the most popular - both in her own lifetime and since. Dinah Washington, whose centennial we celebrate this month, was no obscure artist in a garrett, but a hugely successful hitmaker, first as a band vocalist with Lionel Hampton, then as a solo star on the R&B circuit in the early postwar era, then as a true crossover sensation in the years leading up to her tragically early death at the age of 39.
Thus it’s curious that she was never captured on film in the same way that dozens of her colleagues were. Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, Anita O’Day, and Peggy Lee are all represented in at least three incredibly prolific platforms for filmed musical performances of the ‘40s and ‘50s: Soundies, Universal short subjects, and Snader Telescriptions. One has to wonder why. (Side note: Nat King Cole qualifies as the rare African American artist who was documented extensively on all three of those platforms.)
Indeed, there are so few films extant of the woman who self-identified as “The Queen” that we can go through them all rather easily here on Slouching Towards Birdland. In fact, it’s technically incorrect to describe this as a “filmography” since Washington only appeared once in something that could be considered a theatrical film, the 1958 release Jazz on a Summer’s Day. The rest are all television productions, and other than the series of shorts described in this first installment, all of them were completely live performances that were fortunately captured via kinescope.
The earliest films we have of Washington come from after she had been a solo act for roughly ten years. I know I am always telling you how grateful I am to the amazing Mark Cantor for his wisdom and his knowledge (two separate things, usually) and nearly all the info that follows comes from him, sometimes in his words, sometimes slightly rephrased by myself.
The 1954 “Showtime at the Apollo” Films - A Basic History
The 1954 “Apollo” films are the direct corporate descendent of the Snader Telescriptions, which are, in fact, the indirect spiritual descendent of the Soundies. Around 1950, it was the great jazz trombonist Jack Teagarden who gave entrepreneur Lew Snader the idea to produce “Soundies For TV.” I give a hopefully comprehensive history of the series in my biography of Nat King Cole, Straighten Up and Fly Right, but suffice it to say the Snader Telescription company lasted three years. (As Mark details, it never actually turned a profit, and was ultimately sort of a ponzi scheme - but they left us with a vivid visual record of dozens of great artists and songs.)
By the end of 1952, Snader Telescriptions had closed up shop, and Lew Snader sold his assets to another entrepreneur, one Ben Frye, who ran an independent outfit called Studio Films. In 1952-’53, Studio Films produced more Snader-like musical shorts, mostly of local white artists.
Then, in 1954, Frye got more ambitious, and planned to relaunch the Snader catalog as part of a syndicated TV series titled Showtime at the Apollo. He realized, however, that musical tastes had changed over the previous two or three years, especially in the African-American market. The 1950-’52 Snaders featured big bands and more or less traditional pop and jazz singers; now tastes were running more towards R&B singers, doo-wop groups, and what might be called proto-rock and soul artists.
Thus Frye decided to produce a new, shorter series of films, roughly in the telescription style: they were completely “live,” i.e., the audio and video were recorded simultaneously (unlike the Soundies); but unlike the Snaders, they were even more stringently live, with no added inserts.) The films we have of The Clovers, Amos Milburn, Washington, and others were all shot on a basic soundstage, with accompaniment provided by the famed R&B saxophonist and bandleader Paul “Hucklebuck” Williams (1915-2002). (Not to be confused with the contemporary singer-songwriter - and head of ASCAP - Paul Williams, born 1940. However, whenever I have occasion to talk to that Mr. Williams, I make a point to address him as “Hucklebuck.”)
We don’t know exactly when and where the Apollo television shorts were filmed: Manhattan, Brooklyn, and the Bronx have all been named - of course, there was likely more than one studio - probably in the late spring and early summer of 1954.
Mark: The band on both soundtrack and stage was led by Paul "Hucklebuck" Williams. The personnel includes Paul “Hucklebuck” Williams and his Orchestra (Paul Williams, baritone sax and leader; Jimmy Brown, trumpet; Eddie Silver, tenor sax ; Freddie Johnson, piano; Steve Cooper, string bass; Belton Evans, drums. Some sources have suggested that the tenorman is Noble "Thin Man" Watt, but I am fairly certain that it is Eddie Silver. While the band remains consistent throughout the series, there are one or two artists for which a trombone is added to the band.
Mark adds: Subsequent to the release of the television series, 20-minute versions of the programs were released theatrically. And then, in 1961 or 62, four 1-hour features were also produced from this material, again for theatrical release.
These four shorts with Dinah Washington were almost certainly produced in a single session, even though the singer wears different gowns in different films. They are probably the most valuable of the 1954 “Apollo” shorts, although, like so much else in this realm, they have never been properly restored and made available on streaming platforms or home video. They are all currently viewable in widely varying (but generally not very good) resolution on the YouTubes.
The Four Dinah Washington “Apollo” Films
“Only A Moment Ago”
(Billy Rose, Milton Ager)
A pair of veteran songwriters, Milton Ager and Billy Rose (who wore many hats as producer, columnist, and raconteur), wrote this song rather late in their careers in 1950. It was immediately recorded by Washington, Billy Eckstine, Tommy Dorsey, and others. I never would have picked it as one of Washington’s best numbers, but she certainly sings it with her trademark searing intensity. The original 1950 Mercury recording, apparently a Mitch Miller production, uses a string orchestra arranged and conducted by Miller deputy Jimmy Carroll, but the 1954 track uses just Williams’s six-piece band; I can’t imagine there are any Dinah fans out there who don’t think the later version is an improvement. (Below, find the 1950 single, followed by the 1954 film)
“I Don't Hurt Anymore”
(Don Robertson & Jack Rollins)
In the tradition of Washington’s hit 1951 single of Hank Williams’s “Cold, Cold Heart,” this was her rendition of a country & western song as re-arranged for the “race” market. “I Don’t Hurt Anymore” was the work of two veteran Nashville composers. Don Robertson, better known as the pianist generally credited with devising the “slip note” style of playing widely popularized by Floyd Cramer, later told Jordan Taylor and myself that playing with Nat King Cole in 1964 was the fulfillment of the dream of a lifetime. (That was on an album coincidentally titled I Don't Want To Be Hurt Anymore, a completely different song.) Lyricist Jack Rollins - not to be confused with the world-famous agent - wrote many country songs, but is best known for his holiday hits for children, “Frosty The Snowman” and “Here Comes Peter Cottontail.”
Washington’s 1954 recording very vigorously translates C&W into R&B, with a chanting choir and a booming baritone sax; the bari is still present on the Apollo version, which, to my ears at least, is even stronger and bluesier.
Here’s the biggest hit version, by the great Canadian country artist Hank Snow:
“Lean Baby” (aka “My Lean Baby”)
(Billy May & Roy Alfred)
I interviewed Billy May many times, but whenever I asked him about any of the songs he got credit for writing, such as “Ooh Kickaroonie” and “Lean Baby,” he rarely had anything to say about them. I suspect that May must have come up with the concept for this one himself and brought it to veteran lyricist Roy Alfred; if it had been Alfred’s idea, he would have surely brought it to his more regular collaborator, Marvin Fisher. (Together, Alfred and Fisher wrote dozens of songs for Nat Cole.)
I’m currently doing a radio show (see below) very shortly on “body shaming” and “body positive” songs, about tall people, short people, skinny people, other people; you get the idea. As great as her performance of the song is, “Lean Baby” is an ironic song for Washington in that she struggled with her weight for much of her life. However, whether in spite of or because of that, Washington was also the Queen of Body Shaming and Body Celebration songs: “Fat Daddy,” “Fine Fat Daddy” (two different songs), “Long John Blues,” and “Short John.”
Incidentally, Washington was not known to be anything that could be described as diplomatic, and she was prone to making disparaging remarks about other singers that were quoted in print. She had a particularly nasty comment about Chris Connor. I won’t repeat it here, but once when I was speaking with Chris and her partner Laurie, Washington’s name came up, Laurie made it a point to tell me, “You know, she died trying to lose weight.”
“Lean Baby” is perhaps better known as one of Sinatra’s first singles for Capitol Records, and I have a great story about that song, courtesy of the late Sid Mark, which I will share with everyone in a future column here.
In this case, the original record - which features Paul Quinichette, the “Vice Pres,” on tenor sax and early jazz organist Jackie Davis, is tremendous. But there’s also a vocal group, which we don’t really need. Anyhow, the “Apollo” version is, once again, even better.
PS: for those who want to hear it:
Fat Daddies & Skinny Mamas - The Body Positive Show
“Such a Night”
(Lincoln Chase)
Lincoln Chase (who also wrote “Jim Dandy” and “The Name Game” among other pop hits) composed this R&B classic for Clyde McPhatter and the original edition of the Drifters at the end of 1953, and it soon became one of the all-time great great doo-wop / male quartet records. As Andrew Hickey notes in his excellent podcast, A History of Rock n’ Roll in 500 Songs, the Drifters’ record was considered too suggestive to be played on the radio, which possibly made it more of a hit than it would have ordinarily been. We don’t know if Washington’s record was similarly banned from airplay, but she picked up on it fairly quickly and, later on, so did Elvis Presley. Washington actually left us with three versions of “Such a Night”: the original 1954 single, the 1954 “Apollo” film (which I believe is the same performance heard on the album Queen Of The Juke Box "Live" 1948-1955), and a 1961 remake in stereo conducted by Quincy Jones. Washington’s single features a male quartet behind her, obviously trying to replicate the Drifters, and again I prefer the more spare Apollo performance, particularly with Freddie Johnson playing the iconic piano part. (I’m also including the Presley version - easily one of my top ten Elvis records.)
First recording and first release by Clyde McPhatter and The Drifters (November 12, 1953 / January 1954)
Dinah’s Mercury single, 1954:
The “Apollo” video of “Such a Night” (two versions):
The Dinah Washington Centennial:
A Complete Annotated Filmography
Part One:
The Showtime at the Apollo Films (1954)
Part Two:
Bandstand Revue (1955)
”That’s All I Want From You”
Crescendo (1957)
”Birth of the Blues”
Part Three:
Jazz on a Summer’s Day (filmed 1957, released 1958)
”All of Me”
Part Four:
Here’s Duffy (CBC 1959)
”Lover Come Back to Me”
”Send Me to the ‘Lectric Chair”
The Singin’, Swingin’ Years (1960)
”Makin’ Whoopee”
”What a Diff’rence a Day Makes”
Very special thanks to the fabulous Ms. Elizabeth Zimmer, for expert proofreading of this page, and scanning for typos, mistakes, and other assorted boo-boos!
Sing! Sing! Sing! : My tagline is, “Celebrating the great jazz - and jazz-adjacent - singers, as well as the composers, lyricists, arrangers, soloists, and sidemen, who help to make them great.”
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June 29 - Americana - For the Fourth of July - Songs of Civil Rights & The African American Experience
July 6 - The Four Freshmen & Other Great Jazz Vocal Groups of the 1950s
July 13 - Bastille Day: Guest Co-Host ERIC COMSTOCK shares his favorite French songs! Formidable!
July 20 - The Margaret Whiting Centennial: “Happy Birthday Maggie!”
July 27 - “Calypso Blues” OR “It’s The New Calypso Bebop!”
August 3 - The Tony Bennett Birthday Special: Tony Sings the Cole Porter Songbook
August 10 - “A Little Moonlight & A Little Tenderness: The Harry Woods Songbook”
August 17 - “Fat Daddies & Skinny Mamas: The Body Shaming Show”
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I’ve SO been waiting for your series, she was among the greatest of an era with many great performers. I also like watching the band, when they get into it and are smiling and grooving to the beat, you know you’re watching something hot. I have a theory, whenever a band gets a chance to sing, they always play hotter than normal…