Jimmy Rushing

Jimmy Rushing
Rushing in 1946
Rushing in 1946
Background information
Birth nameJames Andrew Rushing
Born(1901-08-26)August 26, 1901
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S.
DiedJune 8, 1972(1972-06-08) (aged 70)
New York City, U.S.
Genres
Occupations
  • Singer
  • pianist
  • musician
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • piano
Years active1924–1972[1]

James Andrew Rushing (August 26, 1901[2] – June 8, 1972)[3] was an American singer and pianist from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., best known as the featured vocalist of Count Basie's Orchestra from 1935 to 1948.[4]

Rushing was known as "Mr. Five by Five" and was the subject of an eponymous 1942 popular song that was a hit for Harry James and others; the lyrics describe Rushing's rotund build: "he's five feet tall and he's five feet wide".[4] He joined Walter Page's Blue Devils in 1927 and then joined Bennie Moten's band in 1929.[4] He stayed with the successor Count Basie band when Moten died in 1935.[4]

Rushing said that his first time singing in front of an audience was in 1924. He was playing piano at a club when the featured singer, Carlyn Williams, invited him to do a vocal. "I got out there and broke it up. I was a singer from then on," he said.[5]

Rushing was a powerful singer who had a range from baritone to tenor. He has sometimes been classified as a blues shouter. He could project his voice so that it soared over the horn and reed sections in a big-band setting. Basie claimed that Rushing "never had an equal" as a blues vocalist, though Rushing "really thought of himself as a ballad singer."[6][7] George Frazier, the author of Harvard Blues, called Rushing's voice "a magnificent gargle". Dave Brubeck defined Rushing's status among blues singers as "the daddy of them all."[5] Late in his life, Rushing said of his singing style, "I don't know what kind of blues singer you'd call me. I just sing 'em."[5] Among his best-known recordings are "Going to Chicago", with Basie, and "Harvard Blues", with a saxophone solo by Don Byas.

  1. ^ Applegate, Mark (January 25, 2014). "Mr. Five By Five Was A Five Star Artist". KUNC. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  2. ^ "U.S. Social Security Act: Application for Account Number". June 4, 1938. Archived from the original on May 21, 2010. Retrieved May 31, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference NYT was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b c d Russell, Tony (1997). The Blues: From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray. Dubai: Carlton Books. p. 164. ISBN 1-85868-255-X.
  5. ^ a b c Rushing, Jimmy (1968). Livin' the Blues. Bluesway. Archived from the original on December 31, 2013. Retrieved December 31, 2013.
  6. ^ Barlow, William (1989). "Looking Up at Down": The Emergence of Blues Culture, pp. 245–246. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. ISBN 0-87722-583-4.
  7. ^ Basie, Count (1985). Good Morning Blues. New York: Random House. p. 182. ISBN 0-394-54864-7.