OPEN POST: Manor Music Monday With The Spectacular Cab Calloway!

Greeting music sloots, and welcome to another edition of Manor Music Monday, today with a little hi-dee for your ho-dee. We could all use that, couldn't we? It's the dead of summer, the world is broiling and even Tan Mom - yes, her - has stepped back from extreme suntanning. So what's one to do? Visit the myriad of Manor nighteries, of course, because in addition to their usual giggles and debauchery, they're all gloriously air-conditioned. Tonight, be sure to swing by the after-hours "Two in the Pink!" music and pancake lounge - with real Canuck maple syrup! - because DJ Li'l Scratch will be spinning tunes from a true musical giant.

Yes, none other than Cab Calloway, one of those evergreen legends many people take for granted. In Cab's case, that's too bad, because there's no more joyous jazz legend than Cab, nor one so equally talented and groundbreaking in his live performances. Also, fun fact: he was listed as Ja'net Dubois' biological father when her death certificate was at last revealed.

Hi-dee-ho, hi-dee-whoa! And the cherry on top of this delightful news? Cab's first wife was named "Willona." Can you see the resemblance? I can, especially in the jawline.

For those of you who don't know who Cab was (or think Fleetwood Mac is a dollar menu item at McDonald's), let me happily introduce him as a trailblazing jazz and Big Band performer who scored multiple Billboard hits over five consecutive decades and became the very first black superstar - and the first to sell over a million records from a single song. 

Though really, I'm just scratching the surface of this singular artist. He was everywhere: movies, radio, TV, stage shows, touring concerts. Born in 1907 in Rochester, New York, before moving with his family to Baltimore, he spent his youth singing and going to local music venues, later joining his sister Blanche, a skilled performer in her own right, on tour with the musical revue "Plantation Days." After that, he briefly studied law, but a chance encounter and burgeoning friendship with Louis Armstrong in Chicago changed everything. At that point he knew; music would be his life.

It didn't take long for him to hit the big time. Taking over as band leader one evening for Duke Ellington's orchestra at Harlem's "Cotton Club," Calloway became a genuine overnight national sensation since the show was broadcast live on NBC radio broadcasts. Thereafter a band leader in his own right and touring the world, his fame skyrocketed and never really flagged. Everyone loved Cab. He later enjoyed appearances on screen, including a galvanizing performance in the 1943 classic, "Stormy Weather," and the stage, the later including a 1950s revival of "Porgy and Bess," in which he played Sportin' Life, a character George Gershwin originally based on Cab. As part of the stage show's promotion, he performed an unforgettable version of "It Ain't Necessarily So" on "The Ed Sullivan Show."

Unlike many of his peers, Calloway was against drug use - for himself, at least - avoiding even marijuana, despite its prevalence in 1930s and 1940s jazz circles. Maybe that's why, when he was 51 years old, his career was still soaring. He might have been getting up there, but when he sang and danced, the years melted away. Just watch: 

Practically everything can be traced back to this vanguard. And that includes his songwriting, his singing, his costuming, his performance style, all of which you'll find echoed in everyone from James Brown to Tina Turner to Mick Jagger to Michael Jackson to Prince to modern rap, pop and R&B stars. This compilation has all of his signature tunes, like "Minnie the Moocher" (of course), but even if you're familiar with Cab, you'll want to give it a listen. You can never have enough Cab, I think.
 

What are you listening to this week? DJ Li'l Scratch wants to know.
Till next time...purr, bitches, purr! 🐾

Art and Photo Credits: James A. Castillo, Getty Images