In many ways, Dinah Washington is the paradigm of popular American music because she could sound both elegant, direct, and emotionally fearless simultaneously. In fact, the voice and style of the artist are so unique that, in spite of the transition between gospel, blues, jazz, and other genres of pop music, her style remained individual and unrepeatable. In general, the biography of the artist reflects her unusual versatility. Despite the relatively short period of time the artist spent being popular, there are many musicians nowadays who admire great performing techniques combined with a certain personality that cannot be lost even in famous covers by great artists.

Early life and work

Dinah Washington was born in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on August 29, 1924, and moved together with her family to Chicago before becoming a professional musician. This city became a very fruitful environment for developing her abilities because it was the place where one could hear church music, urban blues, as well as many performances of big bands in nightclubs. Being quite a little girl, the artist learned how to be convincing while performing church music, which laid the basis for her future style and skills of interpreting and performing.

As soon as Washington reached her teenage years, the young singer developed her unique style and voice. As opposed to most singers of those times, Washington was not afraid to show both her wit and emotions through lyrics. As a result, in the very early period of performing, Washington started combining the jazz manner with her own voice characteristics and creating a completely new style of performing songs, which attracted both followers of classical jazz and those who appreciated a more vivid and dynamic sound.

The main period of her performing activity began when Dinah Washington joined Lionel Hampton's Orchestra. Thanks to this experience, the artist had got a chance to become a well-known person not only in Chicago, but across all USA. With Lionel Hampton, Washington recorded many of the first records of her that were characterized by her unusual style and perfect manner of performance, which revealed her personal features and abilities.

A career full of versatility

Having got some experience working with such a famous orchestra as Lionel Hampton's Orchestra and having been noticed by the most famous record company at those times, the singer became a solo artist. It means that the artist had the opportunity to make records and release her own music, not belonging to some specific group or orchestra. As the most famous records by Dinah Washington show, she was considered to be a representative of the "Queens of the Blues", despite the fact that her repertoire also consisted of jazz and other types of pop music.

Some of the songs which became most popular by Washington and made the artist more recognizable in many respects are:

  • "Evil Gal Blues"
  • "What a Diff'rence a Day Makes" (1959)
  • "This Bitter Earth"
  • a great duet with Brook Benton, "Baby (You've Got What It Takes)"

"Evil Gal Blues" is the record that reveals Washington's special attitude towards her art, which was characterized by a certain power and, of course, by the way in which she performed blues with such great skill. "What a Diff'rence a Day Makes" became the record that brought Washington much popularity. In particular, it won the author a Grammy Award in the 1960s, showing listeners the ability to mix such elements as polish and depth, which are usually inherent in classical jazz.

Moreover, the recordings that belong to the jazz epoch can give some evidence of the fact that Washington was perfectly performing jazz as well. The live record Dinah Jams, that includes participation of very popular musicians, such as Clifford Brown and Max Roach, shows a great jazz performer. There is a certain skillfulness of playing which can also be observed in a jazz record, but there are also risks of performance which the artist takes with pleasure. She can play long notes of melody, as well as change lyrics to something else, making each performance original.

Besides being the most brilliant solo performer, the artist was quite effective in duets, especially with her most talented partner Brook Benton. "Baby (You've Got What It Takes)", which is a duet with Brook Benton, is another bright page of the artist's work, showing us an interesting aspect of this woman's talent.

Finally, it should be noted that many records created by this artist seem to be modern in their approach to lyrics and melody. Washington had such good pronunciation, a great, skillful voice, and also a wonderful phrasing of melody that it was very easy for listeners to notice the emotional coloring of her performance.

Conclusion

Unfortunately, Dinah Washington died in 1963. Nevertheless, her records are still very popular nowadays. Partly, the popularity of the artist lies in the versatility of her work that included jazz, blues, popular songs, and also gospel. Washington was a person who used the advantages of gospel and jazz and developed her unique style of singing.

In addition, the uniqueness of Dinah Washington's performance lies in the fact that the artist had managed to combine her excellent performing technique with her natural abilities and personality. Moreover, the fact that Washington knew very well how to create interesting performances in all types of music is also very characteristic of her work. All these qualities of the artist have been imitated in other great singers' works nowadays.

Thus, for readers interested in the artist, one can recommend as the best entry point precisely to records that reveal Washington's unique artistry: "Evil Gal Blues", "What a Diff'rence a Day Makes", "This Bitter Earth", and to her wonderful duet performances."