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Cab Calloway’s engagements at the Apollo Theater in Harlem (part 1)

  The Apollo Theater in Harlem is a milestone in the showbusiness’ landscape. Not only for jazz but also for soul, pop, rock, rap, comedy, dance and amateur performances. This venue who has revealed to the world artists like Ella Fitzgerald, James Brown thank to its famous Wednesday Amateurs’ Night, has welcomed thousands of performers, vaudeville acts, Black or white. And among them, Cab Calloway. Thanks to the considerable surviving archives, the many photos, press ads and testimonies (by other performers, reviewers, members of the audience), The Hi De Ho Blog proudly presents the very first history and survey of the 26 week-engagements (plus the many benefits evenings, and other events) when “Hi De Ho” resonated in the 125th Street’s temple of music. Part 1: The Thirties, when the Cotton Club star comes to real Harlem   Read the full story →

The Cab Calloway TV Show in 1959 from the Rancho Don Carlos in Winnipeg, Canada

This show is one of a kind testimony of the way Cab Calloway sang and toured in the late fifties, when times were harder than during the Swing era. And, on a personal matter, this is a TV show I’ve been privileged to watch at Cab Calloway’s house in Westchester along with Cab’s daughter, Cecelia. I thought I’d never see it again, but here it is, after a dedicated fan posted it on YouTube. Read the full story →

Memory tour of Manhattan Theaters with Christopher Brooks Calloway

On October 9, 2013, I had the pleasure to interview Cab Calloway’s grandson, Christopher Brooks Calloway. Guitarist and bandleader of the Cab Calloway Orchestra, Christopher has been entertaining audiences with his performance and personality for more than 30 years. His grandfather sang with him on several occasions, but as a mentor, Cab remains a permanent influence on Christopher. During my last trip to New York, for a few hours we chatted and walked around Times Square stepping from one theater to another, seeking the places where Cab Calloway played. We shared histories and anecdotes and Christopher opened his heart about his grandfather’s legacy. Read the full story →

May 1958: Cab Calloway at the Olympia in Paris

When Cab Calloway began his series of galas May 22, 1958 at the Olympia in Paris, it has been a few years since he had performed in France. The first time was in 1934 during his European tour of the Cotton Club, then a few weeks at the Paris Empire Theatre in Porgy and Bess in 1953. There is some documentation on this series of concerts in Paris during the "events" in Algeria whose repercussions in France caused riots in the capital. This is also an opportunity to see how the audience spent an evening attending a show in the new Olympia reopened in 1954 by Bruno Coquatrix. Read the full story →

Zanzibar Cafe, New York: home of Cab Calloway

  Cab Calloway spent some quality time at Zanzibar... entire months! Café Zanzibar, "Home of the Stars", was a Broadway theater that opened in 1943 with the aim of succeeding the prestigious Cotton Club which had recently closed.  But Zanzibar brought one notable difference: the black audience was accepted there. This policy greatly contributed to its success both with orchestras and the public. The Hi De Ho Blog tells you everything he knows about the Café Zanzibar. Read the full story →

“The Big Rhythm Show”, London, 1952-53

  Fin 1952, l'ami Cab séjourne à Londres depuis l'arrivée de la troupe de Porgy & Bess en octobre. L'opéra fonctionne à merveille et Henry Dawson, producteur vorace, veut profiter du succès de Cab Calloway pour monter une série de galas en Grande-Bretagne, s'appuyant sur le roi du Hi de Ho et sur d'autres vedettes du jazz américain. Parmi elles, Mary Lou Williams dont les souvenirs permettent de raconter plus en détail cette épisode vite oublié par Cab... Read the full story →

Cab Calloway’s concerts in France

  Les visites de Cab en France ne sont pas légion ! Mais certaines ont marqué les esprits. Naturellement, on pensera en particulier aux séances d’avril 1934 à Pleyel, pour lesquelles les témoignages divergent. Il faudra attendre près de 20 ans avant que Cab ne remette les pieds dans l’hexagone. C’est ensuite beaucoup plus régulièrement à partir de 1977 que Cab reviendra dans les différents festivals de la Côte d’Azur, sans oublier de passer par Paris. Read the full story →

Reviews of The 1934 European tour (part 1: France)

  1re partie : Avant l’arrivée de Cab en France, par les journalistes francophones… Premier passage de Cab Calloway en Europe, la tournée du Cotton Club du printemps 1934 a été vécue comme un événement sur le vieux continent. Il faut dire que les amateurs de jazz n’avaient pas grand-chose « d’exotique » à se mettre entre les oreilles et sous les yeux à cette époque. Et c’est toujours fascinant de constater que les journalistes encensent ou descendent en flèche certains artistes pour des raisons très souvent peu objectives : « C’est du vrai jazz ! » « Ce n’est pas du vrai jazz ! » Autant de querelles de chapelles inutiles et bien éloignées de la réalité des sensations procurées sur scène (car finalement, il n’y a que cela qui compte). The Hi de Ho Blog a réuni plusieurs articles autour de la venue de Cab Calloway en Europe et va vous livrer quelques-uns des points de vue très constatés sur le bonhomme. Qu’il s’agisse de la Belgique, de la France ou encore de l’Angleterre, Cab Calloway a fait couler beaucoup d’encre (et de fiel aussi). Read the full story →

“Shell Chateau”, the radio show with Al JOLSON (1936, Jan 25)

  Alors que Cab Calloway et son orchestre sont à Hollywood pour tourner dans le film "The Singing Kid" avec Al JOLSON, ce dernier profite de leur présence pour les inviter dans son émission radio du moment : "The Shell Chateau". Grâce à The Hi de Ho Blog, vous allez pouvoir écouter l'intégralité de cette émission qui comporte quatre numéros avec Cab Calloway et son orchestre !   Read the full story →

Quizzicale: Cab Calloway’s radio show

  One of the greatest experiences Cab Calloway had on the ether waves was certainly the "Quizzicale Show." For more than a year, the show was broadcast across the country and gained a huge success with the black community. The only problem was precisely that it was a show with black musicians. After nearly a year, the show was dropped for lack of a sponsor. And yet, it really had it all together for success!   Read the full story →