Cab Calloway leads his orchestra in a performance of his signature song in this soundie from 1942.
It's one of more than two thousand "soundies" produced between 1939 and 1947, meant to be played on a device called a Panoram. For seven years they could be found in bars, night clubs, and other places where people would gather. Think of them as music videos, available for viewing at a dime a song.
Calloway not only fronted his own band for decades, he was an enormously popular crossover artist. If you've seem THE BLUES BROTHERS, you've seen him perform this song, with its landmark early scatting.
It's one of more than two thousand "soundies" produced between 1939 and 1947, meant to be played on a device called a Panoram. For seven years they could be found in bars, night clubs, and other places where people would gather. Think of them as music videos, available for viewing at a dime a song.
Calloway not only fronted his own band for decades, he was an enormously popular crossover artist. If you've seem THE BLUES BROTHERS, you've seen him perform this song, with its landmark early scatting.