Wychował się w Baltimore, tam ukończył szkołę średnią i podjął studia prawnicze. Jego starszy brat Blanche C. był znanym wokalistą, który nagrał kilka liczących się przebojów w połowie lat 30. Po rezygnacji ze studiów Calloway założył zespół The Alabamians, znany tylko na lokalnych scenach. Współpraca z The Missourians przyniosła uznanie i pozwoliła na występy na estradach Nowego Jorku. W 1929 występował w rewii Hot Chocolates, a nagrania rozpoczął na przełomie 1930/31.
Ten sezon artystyczny był szczęśliwy, nagrał bowiem swój największy przebój Minnie the Moocher i podpisał kontrakt na stałe występy w słynnym nowojorskim Cotton Club. Orał w kilku filmach, m.in. w Stormy Weather.
Do wielkich przebojów Calloway'a zaliczyć można: Kicking the Gong Around, Reefer Man., Minnie the Moocher's Wedding Day, You Gotta Hi-De-Ho, The Hi-Di-Ho Miracie Man, Mister Paganini, Swing for Minnie. Wielkim przebojem był także Blues in the Night z 1942. W orkiestrze Calloway'a grali znani muzycy jazzowi, m.in. Walter "Foots" Thomas, Bennie Payne, Doc Cheatham, Cozy Cole, Milt Hinton, Dizzy Gillespie, Jonah Jones, Tyree Glenn, Panama Francis i Ike Quebeck.
Pod koniec ery big-bandów zredukował swój zespół i występował z combo Cab Jivers. George Gershwin jedną z postaci opery jazzowej Porgy and Bess wzorował na osobie Calloway'a i powierzył mu tę rolę w przedstawieniu z lat 50. wraz z zespołem czarnoskórych wykonawców The Everyman Opera. Do końca kariery wykonywał swój przebój Minnie the Moocher dla licznych sympatyków, nigdy nie znużonych jego brawurową interpretacją.
Single
Tytuł | Wykonawca | Data wydania | UK | US | Wytwórnia [US] |
Komentarz |
St. Louis Blues | Cab Calloway | 12.1930 | - | 16[2] | Brunswick 4936 | [written by W.C. Handy] |
Minnie the Moocher | Cab Calloway | 03.1931 | - | 1[1][17] | Brunswick 6074 | [written by Cab Calloway, Irving Mills, Clarence Gaskill][adaptacja tradycyjnej ludowej piosenki "Willy the weeper"] |
St. James Infirmary/Nobody's Sweetheart | Cab Calloway | 05.1931 | - | 3[8] side B:13[2] | Brunswick 6105 | [written by Traditional, Joe Primrose] |
Six or Seven Times | Cab Calloway | 08.1931 | - | 14[2] | Brunswick 6141 | [written by Fats Waller, Irving Mills] |
You Rascal, You | Cab Calloway | 10.1931 | - | 17[1] | Brunswick 6196 | [written by Lovin' Sam Theard] |
Kickin' the Gong Around/Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea | Cab Calloway | 11.1931 | - | 4[7] side B:15[3] | Brunswick 6209 | [written by Harold Arlen/Ted Koehler] |
Trickeration | Cab Calloway | 11.1931 | - | 8[4] | Brunswick 6214 | [written by Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler] |
Cabin in the Cotton | Cab Calloway | 03.1932 | - | 17[1] | Brunswick 6272 | [written by Cab Calloway, Mitchell Parish, Frank Perkins] |
A Strictly Cullud Affair | Cab Calloway | 05.1932 | - | 11[3] | Brunswick 6292 | [written by Al J. Neiburg, Maceo Pinkard] |
Minnie the Moocher's Wedding Day | Cab Calloway | 06.1932 | - | 8[8] | Brunswick 6321 | [written by Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler] |
Reefer Man | Cab Calloway | 07.1932 | - | 11[2] | Brunswick 6340 | [written by Andy Razaf, J. Russel Robinson] |
Hot Toddy | Cab Calloway | 10.1932 | - | 14[2] | Brunswick 6400 | [written by Benny Carter] |
I've Got the World on a String | Cab Calloway | 11.1932 | - | 18[1] | Brunswick 6424 | [written by Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler] |
Jitter Bug | Cab Calloway | 04.1934 | - | 20[1] | Victor 24 592 | [written by Cab Calloway, Irving Mills, Edwin Swayzee] |
I Gotta Right to Sing the Blues | Cab Calloway | 01.1933 | - | 17[3] | Brunswick 6460 | [written by Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler] |
Moon Glow | Cab Calloway | 08.1934 | - | 7[4] | Victor 24 690 | [written by Irving Mills, Eddie DeLange, Will Hudson] |
Chinese Rhythm | Cab Calloway | 10.1934 | - | 6[4] | Brunswick 6992 | [written by Cab Calloway, Irving Mills, Harry White] |
Keep That Hi-De-Hi in Your Soul | Cab Calloway | 02.1935 | - | 20[1] | Brunswick 7386 | [written by Cab Calloway, Irving Mills, Morris White][piosenka z filmu "The singing kid"] |
You're the Cure for What Ails Me | Cab Calloway | 04.1936 | - | 20[1] | Brunswick 7639 | [written by Harold Arlen, E.Y. "Yip" Harburg][piosenka z filmu "The singing kid"] |
Copper Colored Gal | Cab Calloway | 10.1936 | - | 13[2] | Brunswick 7748 | [written by J. Fred Coots, Joe Davis] |
Wake up and Live | Cab Calloway | 06.1937 | - | 17[1] | Variety 535 | [written by Mack Gordon, Harry Revel][piosenka tytułowa z filmu] |
Congo/Peckin' | Cab Calloway | 07.1937 | - | 17[1] side B:18[1] | Variety 593 | [written by Morris White][side B:written by Harry James, Ben Pollack] |
She's Tall, She's Tan, She's Terrific | Cab Calloway | 10.1937 | - | 17[2] | Variety 643 | [written by J. Fred Coots, Benny Davis] |
Moon at Sea | Cab Calloway | 10.1937 | - | 19[1] | Variety 651 | [written by Vincent Rose, Larry Stock, Harry Pease] |
Mama, I Wanna Make Rhythm | Cab Calloway | 10.1937 | - | 20[1] | Variety 644 | [written by Walter Kent, Jerome Jerome, Richard Byron] |
Every Day's a Holiday | Cab Calloway | 01.1938 | - | 18[2] | Vocalion 3896 | [written by Sam Coslow, Barry Trivers] |
Mister Paganini, Swing for Minnie | Cab Calloway | 10.1938 | - | 19[1] | Vocalion 4369 | [written by Cab Calloway] |
F.D.R. Jones/Angels With Dirty Faces | Cab Calloway | 12.1938 | - | 14[3] side B:3[4] | Vocalion 4498 | [written by Cab Calloway][piosenka z musicalu na Broadway'u "Sing out the news"][side B:written by Phil Spitalny, Fred Fisher] |
The Ghost of Smokey Joe | Cab Calloway | 06.1939 | - | 13[1] | Vocalion 4807 | [written by Rube Bloom, Ted Koehler] |
(Hep-Hep!) The Jumpin' Jive | Cab Calloway | 07.1939 | - | 2[12] | Vocalion 5005 | [gold][written by Cab Calloway, Frank Froeba, Jack Palmer] |
Fifteen Minute Intermission | Cab Calloway | 10.1940 | - | 23[1] | Okeh 5644 | [written by Buddy Cannon, Sunny Skylar] |
Bye Bye Blues | Cab Calloway | 04.1941 | - | 24[1] | Okeh 6084 | [written by David Bennett, Chauncey Gray, Bert Lown, Frederick Hamm] |
Greechee Joe | Cab Calloway | 10.1941 | - | 23[1] | Okeh 6147 | - |
I See a Million People (But All I Can See Is You) | Cab Calloway | 12.1941 | - | 23[1] | Okeh 6341 | [written by Una Mae Carlisle, Robert Sour] |
Blues in the Night (My Mama Done Tol' Me) | Cab Calloway | 01.1942 | - | 8[8] | Okeh 6422 | [written by Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer][piosenka tytułowa z filmu] |
Ogeechee River Lullaby | Cab Calloway | 03.1943 | - | 18[1] | Columbia 36 662 | [written by Cab Calloway, Jack Palmer, Leo Wood] |
St. Louis blues | Cab Calloway | 07.1943 | - | 18[1] | Brunswick 4936 | - |
The moment i laid eyes on you/Lordy | Cab Calloway | 11.1944 | - | 24[1] | Columbia 36 751 | [written by Harold Arlen/Ted Koehler] |
Let's take the long way home | Cab Calloway | 03.1945 | - | 20[1] | Columbia 36 786 | [written by Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer][piosenka z filmu "Here comes the waves"] |
The Honeydripper/If This Isn't Love | Cab Calloway | 02.1946 | - | - | Columbia 36 894 | [written by Liggins][3[2].R&B Chart] |
The Calloway Boogie/Two Blocks Down ... Turn To The Left (On The Right Hand Side Of The Street) | Cab Calloway | 09.1948 | - | - | Columbia 38 227 | [written by Calloway, Gibson][13[1].R&B Chart]] |
Little child/The voice | Lael & Cab Calloway | 02.1956 | - | 62[2] | ABC-Paramount 9671 | [written by Wayne Shanklin] |
History repeats itself/After Texas | Cab Calloway | 04.1966 | - | 89[3] | Boom 60,006 | [written by Buddy Starcher ][produced by Bob Thiele] |
Minnie The Moocher/Chicken Ain't Nothin' But A Bird | Cab Calloway | 10.1978 | - | - | RCA 11364 | [written by Cab Calloway, Irving Mills][produced by Roy Cicala, Jimmy Wisner][91[2].R&B Chart] |
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