TRANSCRIPT:
I’m Mark Rapp, and this is Rapp on Jazz.
Jimmy Rushing, born James Andrew Rushing, was affectionately known as "Mr. Five by Five." This pianist and vocalist with Count Basie's Orchestra was the subject of a 1942 popular song. The lyrics describe his rotund build: "He's five feet tall, and he's five feet wide."
His singing journey began while playing piano at a club, where the featured singer invited him to sing. He said, "I got out there and broke it up—I was a singer from then on."
Rushing has been described as a blues shouter. Count Basie once said he "never had an equal" as a blues vocalist. Late in his life, Rushing said, "I don't know what kind of blues singer you'd call me. I sing 'em.”
This has been Rapp On Jazz, a co-production of ColaJazz and SC Public Radio, made possible in part by The ETV Endowment of South Carolina.