Why'd I choose this Cab Calloway track for my project? Well, even though I wasn't around during the 1930's and am not really familiar with the entertainment of those days, Cab Calloway played a big role in one of my favorite movies, The Blues Brothers. Playing the part of a stage manager forced to do an inpromptuea opening act, Calloway belted out a soulful performance of "Minnie the Moocher" in front of front of a live audience of almost 5000 extras. I thought if this guy could sing that well in 1980, then his voice must have really been something back in the 20s.
So I got on to Rhapsody (R) and plugged in his name. The track "Reefer Man" came up in the best of box. I thought for a moment that maybe reefer meant somthing else back in the day, but sure enough, Cypress Hill was not the first group to pen a track about a unusual plant salesman. (Dr. Greenthumb, 1996). I gave it a spin and was feeling the history!
The track's lyrics have an anti establishment feel about them. Hardly surprising considering the song was written during the middle of prohibition. Calloway played a number of shows at swanky speak easies in New York and Chicago. It is a tune you can really dance to. If I was the owner of a swing club in 1928 Harlem, you could bet I'd want that song performed whenever I people wanted to jump and jive a little more than usual.
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