Dinah Washington (; born Ruth Lee Jones; August 29, 1924 – December 14, 1963) was an American singer and pianist, one of the most popular Black female recording artists of the 1950s.[ She was a 1986 inductee of the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame, and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993.
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Early life
Ruth Lee Jones was born in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, to Alice and Ollie Jones,
Career
Clubs
After winning a talent contest at the age of 15, she began performing in clubs. By 1941–42, she was performing in such Chicago clubs as Dave's Café and the Downbeat Room of the Sherman Hotel (with Fats Waller). She was playing at the Three Deuces, a jazz club, when a friend took her to hear Billie Holiday at the Garrick Stage Bar. Club owner Joe Sherman was so impressed with her singing of "I Understand", backed by the Cats and the Fiddle, who were appearing in the Garrick's upstairs room, that he hired her. During her year at the Garrick—she sang upstairs while Holiday performed in the downstairs room—she acquired the name by which she became known. She credited Joe Sherman with suggesting the change from Ruth Jones, made before Lionel Hampton came to hear Dinah at the Garrick.
Early recordings
She made her recording debut for the Keynote Records label that December with "Evil Gal Blues", written by Leonard Feather and backed by Hampton and musicians from his band, including Joe Morris (trumpet) and Milt Buckner (piano).
Solo recordings and hits
She stayed with Hampton's band until 1946, after the Keynote label folded, and signed for Mercury Records as a solo singer. Her first record for Mercury, a version of Fats Waller's "Ain't Misbehavin'", was another hit, starting a long string of success. Between 1948 and 1955, she had 27 R&B top-10 hits, making her one of the most popular and successful singers of the period. Both "Am I Asking Too Much" (1948) and "Baby Get Lost" (1949) reached Number 1 on the R&B chart, and her version of "I Wanna Be Loved" (1950) crossed over to reach Number 22 on the US Pop Chart.
In 1950, Washington performed at the sixth Cavalcade of Jazz concert held at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles which was produced by Leon Hefflin, Sr. on June 25. Also featured on the same day were Lionel Hampton, PeeWee Crayton's Orchestra, Roy Milton and his Orchestra, Tiny Davis and Her Hell Divers, and other artists. There were 16,000 reported to be in attendance, and the concert ended early because of a fracas while Lionel Hampton played "Flying High".
In 1959, she had her first top ten pop hit, with a version of "What a Diff'rence a Day Makes",
Washington notably performed two numbers in the dirty blues genre. The songs were "Long John Blues" about her dentist, with lyrics like "He took out his trusty drill. Told me to open wide. He said he wouldn't hurt me, but he filled my whole inside."
Washington was well known for singing .[ ] In 1962, she hired a male backing trio called the Allegros, consisting of Jimmy Thomas on drums, Earl Edwards on sax, and Jimmy Sigler on organ. Edwards was replaced on sax by John Payne. A Variety writer praised their vocals as "effective choruses".
One source states that Washington "produced 45 R&B-charted hits between 1948 and 1961, including 16 Top 15 placements between 1948 and 1950".
Appraisals and notable performances
In the 1950s and early 1960s before her death, Washington occasionally performed on the Las Vegas Strip. Tony Bennett said of Washington during a recording session with Amy Winehouse:
According to Richard S. Ginell at AllMusic:
Washington's achievements included appearances at the Newport Jazz Festival (1955–1959), the Randalls Island Jazz Festival in New York City (1959), and the International Jazz Festival in Washington, D.C. (1962), frequent gigs at Birdland (1958, 1961–1962), and performances in 1963 with Count Basie and Duke Ellington.
Personal life and death
The number of times Washington was married is unclear. While she is often reported to have been married seven times,[ ] eight
Early in the morning of December 14, 1963, Washington's last husband, football player Dick "Night Train" Lane, went to sleep with Washington and awoke later to find her slumped over and not responsive. Dr. B.C. Ross pronounced her dead at the scene at age 39.[ She is buried in the Burr Oak Cemetery in Alsip, Illinois.
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Awards
- Grammy Award
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| 1959 | Best Rhythm & Blues Performance | "What a Diff'rence a Day Makes" | R&B |
- Grammy Hall of Fame
Recordings by Dinah Washington were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, which is a special Grammy award established in 1973 to honor recordings that are at least 25 years old, and that have "qualitative or historical significance."
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| 1959 | "Unforgettable" | pop (single) | Mercury | 2001 |
| 1954 | "Teach Me Tonight" | R&B (single) | Mercury | 1999 |
| 1959 | "What a Diff'rence a Day Makes" | traditional pop (single) | Mercury | 1998 |
- Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame listed her "TV Is the Thing (This Year)" as one of the songs that shaped rock and roll.
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| 1953 | "TV Is the Thing (This Year)" | R&B |
- Honors and Inductions
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is a 1964 album recorded by Aretha Franklin as a tribute.
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In 1993, the U.S. Post Office issued a Dinah Washington 29 cent commemorative postage stamp.
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In 2005, the Board of Commissioners renamed a park, near where Washington had lived in Chicago in the 1950s, Dinah Washington Park in her honor.
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In 2008, the city of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Washington's birthplace, renamed the section of 30th Avenue between 15th Street and Kaulton Park "Dinah Washington Avenue."
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On August 29, 2013, the city of Tuscaloosa also dedicated the former Allen Jemison Hardware building, on the northwest corner of Greensboro Avenue and 7th Street (620 Greensboro Avenue), as the newly renovated Dinah Washington Cultural Arts Center."
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| 2020 | National Rhythm and Blues Hall of Fame | Inducted | Early Influence |
| 1993 | Rock and Roll Hall of Fame | Inducted | Early Influences |
| 1984 | Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame | Inducted | |
Album discography
Further reading
External links
