From:  "Dik de Heer" 
Date:  Thu May 20, 2004  2:22 am
Subject:  This Is My Story : Scatman Crothers
 
SCATMAN CROTHERS (By Tony Wilkinson, with grateful acknowledgement to Dieter
Moll)

Born Benjamin Sherman Crothers, 23 May 1910, Terre Haute, Indiana

Died 22 November 1986, Van Nuys, California

Film and television buffs will connect straightaway with the name Scatman
Crothers.

He had first appeared in motion picture in 1935 and had worked as a comedian and
singer since the thirties. He was the first coloured artist to obtain a regular
role in 1948 in a TV show ('Dixie Showboat'). However in addition, he loved
Rhythm & Blues, Swing and Jazz music and in fact was also an accomplished
singer. Indeed, whilst lying in bed dying of lung cancer, he asked for his 1931
four string guitar to be bought to him and then played for the nursing staff.
He had recorded for over four decades for numerous big and small record
companies but without making a major commercial impact.

Scatman was born as Benjamin Sherman Crothers on 23rd May 1910 in Terre Haute,
Vigo, Indiana. His father Benjamin came from Jonesboro, Arkansas, and operated
a second hand clothing store together with repairing shoes and cleaning houses
to make a living. Scatman has been quoted on his father that 'They called my
father a black Jew, because he was always hustling, always trying to make a
buck. He didn´t believe in being idle' Scatman always recalled his childhood as
being a good one, with lots of music in the family. Dad played guitar, brother
Lewis blew the coronet while his sisters and mum sang. However Sherman soon
became the entertainer of the family with his singing as well as performing
magic card tricks whilst dancing and yelling 'Abadabadobe'.

The Crothers were not a poor family, mainly because of their cumulative efforts
in earning a living and as a result they had a little house complete with a
garden, chickens and pigs on 922 Gilbert Avenue in a part of Terre Haute known
locally as 'Baghdad'. Scatman grew up in a strong cosmopolitan society where
different races and religions successfully co-existed along side each other.
Later on 15th July 1937 in Cleveland, Ohio, he married Helen Mae Sullivan
(1918-1997) who was a white lady of Hungarian extraction from Steubenville and
clearly racial harmony was evident, as the couple remained an item for 49 years
until Scatman sadly passed on. Sherman Crothers danced and entertained people
in the streets of Terre Haute gradually learning his trade as an entertainer.
He became interested in the local vaudeville scene as well minstrel, ragtime,
blues and jazz music. Sherman, who had become proficient on guitar and drums,
was hired by Cammie - a lady piano player who played in one of the many clubs in
the red light district.

Having worked as a dishwasher, a bell boy, in a bottle factory and metal plant
as well as learning to play a Hawaiian guitar, drums plus singing and dancing at
the 'Fort Heyden' night club, he decided at the age of 17 to leave his 40.000
population home town and venture out into the big wide world. Together with a
friend, the pair journeyed to first to Indianapolis and then onto Chicago.
However, there were no vacancies in the entertainment business at that time and
so he returned back to his hometown in 1930 where he recommenced working for
John Chalos as well as appearing in some local nightclubs.

However he eventually linked up with Montague´s Kentucky Serenaders as their
orchestra leader. This was a ten piece coloured band from Lexington, Kentucky.
In their old beat up bus, the Serenaders toured through Kentucky, Tennessee,
Alabama, Georgia, Texas und Louisiana playing to white audiences in theatres.
It was whilst in Texas on this tour that Scatman met Louis Armstrong for the
first time. Also, when the piano player for The Serenaders left, Sherman hired
a replacement young piano and guitar player by the name of Aaron 'T-Bone'
Walker. Scatman left this band in 1931 and, upon arriving back in Terre Haute,
he purchased his legendary Martin-Tenor Guitar from a thrift shop. From here,
he went to Dayton, Ohio where he got a daily 15 minute radio show on WFMK (later
WING). When asked about what name to use for the show, he had the idea 'Call me
Scat Man.

Thus Sherman formally became known as 'Scat Man, the man with a thousand tunes'.
He was the only coloured guy at the station and he carried on with what Louis
Armstrong had started in 1926 with his (Louis) version of 'Heebie Jeebies'. Scat
Man discarded the music charts and filled the song up with "shabadebedebedo" or
"dobedebedebam", utilising his voice for lyrics and instrumental parts. During
his spare time from the radio station he performed at the 'Classic', a coloured
musical theatre. Returning home once again, he had become well known and so it
was relatively easy to get a job at a local radio station as well as in a band.
The band consisted of white musicians and the then segregation laws did not
permit mixed outfits and this prevented him being declared as one of their
members. However, crazy as it may seem, it was okay to use Scatman as a MC and
entertainer on the side.

From here, he went on to founding his own Scat Man and His Cats trio. Scatman
was unable to read music charts but instead he composed many songs by ear. After
this outfit broke up, he went out as a solo act until 1933 when he was hired by
Eddie Brown and his Tennesseans working as one of their entertainers and musical
director. Around late 1933 or early 1934, famous bandleader Jimmy Lunceford
booked the band for shows in New York where they performed at the legendary
"Cotton Club" in the spring of 1934. After this, and for the next few years, he
changed bands and locations on a regular basis, as he did not feel comfortable
with other groups and in reality wanted to do his own thing. In 1936 he founded
his own five-piece band including a then unknown musician by the name of Sam
´The Man´ Taylor. For a year they played in a Caucasian club 20 miles outside of
Terre Haute.

Up to now, Scatman had arranged bookings for his band but now he realised that
he need the services of agents such as Bert Gervis, who aided him with some
promotional campaigns. Crothers performed at many of the white clubs around the
area and even had a five-night radio broadcast from his show at Sam Wilcox´s
´Café de Society´ in 1943. In 1944 Bert Gervis talked him into going to
Hollywood with his new trio where he stayed for about six month, making many
contacts. He also became a member of the cast of 'Insults of 1944' at the
Playtime Theater, Los Angeles. Around this time he used Stan Getz, then an
eighteen-year old tenor saxophone player. After moving back and forth to Ohio a
few times, the Crothers eventually settled in a new home in Los Angeles in 1945.
Times were tough as many had been drafted into the armed forces thus forcing
some clubs to close due to lack of patrons. However one gig in December 1945
was at the San Quentin State Prison, long before Johnny Cash played there. Due
to the lack of bookings, Scatman was forced into breaking up his band on more
than one occasion. Subsequent to this, Crothers spent six months as a member of
the Slim Gaillard Trio, but this was not appealing as he was not allowed any
solo spots but had to be merely content with the drumming role.

In 1948, he met radio star Phil Harris (24.6.1904-11.8.1995) who hailed from
Linton, Indiana, and they stayed friends for many decades thereafter. Phil, who
recorded for RCA Victor, requested Scatman to duet with him on Chattanooga Shoe
Shine Boy that was then heavily promoted on the Phil Harris and Alice Faye Show
on NBC. (However Red Foley and Gene Autry had the big hit versions of the song,
and later it was rocked up by Freddy Cannon). Along with Vic Dickenson
(Trumpet), Riff Charles (Piano) and other musicians, he recorded some tracks for
Capitol in 1948/49.

In 1948, Crothers had worked as a vocalist with saxophone player William M.
'Wild Bill' Moore who had had his hit when, along with fellow sax player Paul
Williams, on 18th December 1947, We´re Gonna Rock, We´re Gonna Roll (Savoy #666)
made position #14 on Billboard's Rhythm & Blues charts. Now Jules Bihari´s
Modern Records commissioned their own version, titled Rock And Roll, with Moore
(tenor saxophone) and Milt Buckner (piano) whilst Scatman took the lead vocal.
The record was released on Modern #674 and Billboard gave the waxing a great
review. Incidentally, the song was one of the first records that Alan Freed
presented on his new radio show in Cleveland on 12th July 1951. Hello,
everybody, and welcome to the Moon Dog House! (.) And away we go with Wild Bill
Moore pickin´ up that tenor horn to blow it strong, on the Savoy label, and
´Rock and Roll´. (.) Boy, there´s a real rockin´ thing to get us off and
rollin´!. Freed had goofed by playing the Savoy release instead of the announced
Scatman Crothers version.

In 1949, he did the Paramount Pictures show 'Dixie Showboat' on KTLA-TV that was
a regular one-hour programme that included coloured artists in leading roles.
Together with R&B artist Jimmy Wilson, he recorded the duet It´s A Sin To Tell A
Lie that was released by the small Cava-Tone-Label (#252) under the name of
Jimmy Wilson & The Scatman. This was subsequently re-released in 1952 by Aladdin
Records (#3140) with Mistake In Life as the flip side. In spring 1951, Crothers
signed a recording contract with the Intro Records, a subsidiary of Aladdin. The
first two records, A Gruntin´ And A-Groanin´ b/w Free Samples (#6016) and King
Berman´s Stomp b/w Just Like Two Drops Of Water (#6017) were released in May
1951.

He met TV host Larry Finlay already in early 1950 and in the years to come was a
guest on several of his shows like 'My Own Place', 'Strictly Informal' (KNXT) or
'Music Is My Beat' (ABC-TV). His television activities also comprised shows such
as 'Beulah' (appearing in fifteen episodes playing the friend of the chauffeur)
or 'The Colgate Comedy Hour' (his appearances lasted for two and a half years)
with Donald O´Connor and guest spots on 'The Jack Benny Show', 'Nat King Cole
Trio' and the 'Steve Allen Show'. However back in 1949 he commenced doing
voice-overs for cartoon or puppet characters with 'Time for Beany'. This facet
of his career continued for a long time and he was, for example, one of the
voices used in 'Aristocats' (1970).

Whilst he had made his first movie appearance back in 1935 in the nine minute
movie short 'Symphony in Black' with Duke Ellington and Billie Holiday, his
film career commenced properly in 1951 with his inclusion in the fifty four
minute Minstrel-Show 'Yes Sir, Mr. Bones'. The same company also made the
thirty-five minute long 'The Return of Gilbert and Sullivan' on a two-day shoot
in England. Scatman was the only American actor in the movie and the film won an
award at the Cannes Festival in France. After appearances in a further three
more shorts between 1952 and 1955, his movie career started to take off properly
with the role of Enoch Jones in 'Meet Me at the Fair'. Another film role was in
the 1953 'Walking My Baby Back Home'). Scatman recorded his version of the title
song for Decca in 1953. Other movie starring roles included the films 'Johnny
Dark' (1954) in which he sang, 'Between Heaven and Hell' (1956), 'The Gift of
Love' (1958), and 'Tarzan and the Trappers (1958) with Gordon Scott as Tarzan as
well as the being the voice of Wildman of Wildsville in the series 'Matty´s
Funday Funnies' (1959).

Whilst he had done well with his television and film appearances, Scatman still
felt in need of the steady income derived from his live shows and therefore
continued to perform in the clubs around the Los Angeles area. He also laid down
tracks for John Dolphin´s Recorded In Hollywood label sometimes using the name
of his grandparents. The first was I Didn´t Treat Your Daughter Mean (RIH #142)
and was an answer song to Ruth Brown's Mama, He Treats Your Daughter Mean
(Atlantic #986). This was followed by Elaine b/w Man Have I Got Troubles (RIH
#152), I Love Your Mama Better b/w I´d Rather Stay In The House (RIH 171) and
Waiting For My Baby b/w Easy Money (RIH #401, circa spring 1953). Man Have I
Got Troubles was in competition with the Wynonie Harris recording of the song on
King #4468. Scatman then label hopped to the New York based Decca Records for
two releases. Come 1955, Scatman was recording for Century Records, a company
owned by Allen R. Blum in Burbank, California. The label issued two records
that were followed in 1956 with Waitin´ For My Baby c/w Sweet Lips on MGM (#K
12199, circa February 1956) whilst in 1957 he recorded Wandering and It´s You
for Modern (#20560).

Come 1956, rock 'n' roll was eclipsing all in its path. Two Los Angeles based
businessmen, Ira Moss and Carl Doshay, had founded the Tops label with the aim
of issuing quickly produced cover versions of hit parade tunes and selling them
cheaply through outlets such as garages, supermarkets and elsewhere. Their
mottos were '4 full length Top Hits for 49 Cents' and 'Build a Pops' Collection
with Tops Records. The artists who made such recordings were either then unknown
like Dave Burgess, who later found fame as a member of The Champs, or
established stars who were no longer a hit parade item such as Lena Horne or the
Ink Spots. Whilst Scatman Crothers was not an unknown in 1956, he was not a
big star either and so he fulfilled the criterion of Tops Records. Moreover he
was willing to make such recordings, some of which were issued under his own
name whilst others were made available under a variety of names.

Scatman recorded mainly Rhythm & Blues songs that were released on 78s', EPs'
and various artists albums. He also made a full album in his own right for the
label that was titled 'Rock and Roll with Scat Man' (Tops L 1511). On this he
was backed by well known swing and jazz musicians Babe Russin on tenor sax,
guitarist Al Hendrickson, Larry Breen on bass percussionist Milt Holland, Jack
Sperling on drums and pianist Paul Smith who also acted as arranger. The twelve
songs on the album were recorded on May 21st and 28th 1956 at Radio Recorders in
Hollywood. Amongst the titles were Ghost Riders In The Sky - a million seller
for Vaughn Monroe in 1949, Exactly Like You, 1930 a hit for Ruth Etting, and
September Song - which was sung by actor Charles Coburn in the 1944 movie
'Knickerbocker Holiday' but which made the charts in 1947 when performed by
Sarah Vaughan. Also included was his own composition The Gal Looks Good along
with Baby Won´t You Please Come Home - a 1946 hit for Slim Gaillard, St. James
Infirmary that came from 1926 via Louis Armstrong and was later made famous by
Bobby Blue Bland and My Blue Heaven - 1936 a hit for Jimmie Lunceford and in
1949 was the title song for a Betty Grable and Dan Dailey movie. Two more recent
songs, I´m Gonna Sit Right Down And Write Myself A Letter, which Billy Williams
placed on the charts in 1957, and Please Don´t Talk About Me When I´m Gone were
also included. Interestingly enough, Bill Haley and His Comets also cut both of
the last mentioned.

Scatman then was called to record a varied selection of material such as his
versions of the Huddie ´Leadbelly´ Ledbetter/Lonnie Donnegan classic Rock Island
Line under the name ´Scat Benny´), Nervous Norvus's (aka Jimmy Drake)
Transfusion, Gene Vincent´s Be Bop A Lula, Big Mama Thornton´s/Elvis Presley´s
Hound Dog and Sanford Clark´s The Fool. Then there were his covers of Louis
Armstrong´s/Fats Domino´s Blueberry Hill on Promenade under the name of ´The
Sugar Beat´), I´m Walkin' and I´m In Love Again as well as Jimmy &
Walter´s/Ivory Joe Hunter´s Since I Met You Baby.

In March 1957 movie actor and country star Gene Autry along with publishers
Johnny Thompson and Joe Johnson started a new label on Sunset Boulevard in
Hollywood called Challenge Records together with the publishing company JAT
Music (named after their initials). The Scatman Crothers recordings of Rock,
Roma, Rock It! And Take Your Time were leased from Tops and issued as Challenge
#59028 on 3rd November 1958. Whilst the cool night-club sound from Tops failed
to achieve commercial success, Challenge released a second record by Scatman in
the spring of 1960, namely Good Times Will Come b/w Planet Fazoo (#59065).

As the fifties drew to a close and into the early sixties, Scatman appeared in
several movies such as 'Alias Jesse James' (with Bob Hope) or 'The Sins of
Rachel Cade' (made in Zaire), but come 1964, he got another big shot by being
included in the cast of 'The Patsy' during which he became friendly with the
star, Jerry Lewis who then hired Crothers again for roles in 'The Family Jewels'
(1965) and 'Three on a Couch' (1966).

When Hanna-Babera produced the television show 'The New Alice In Wonderland', it
was with Sammy Davis Jnr. Performing the Cheshire Cat's voice in the ABC
production on 30th March 1966. However, Davis was not available to do the title
song and so Hanna-Babera Records hired Scatman to sing What´s A Nice Kid Like
You Doing In A Place Like This? for the album 'Alice In Wonderland'
(Hanna-Barbera #2051). From here, Scatman went on to work in such movies as
'Bloody Mama' (1970) with Shelley Winters) and 'Chandler' (1971) with Warren
Oates and Leslie Caron. He finally hired Don Schwartz, a professional agent, to
give his film career a kick-start. Don succeeded in 1971/72 to obtain Crothers
some roles in prominent movies such as the character Big Ben in the Diana-Ross
starring film 'Lady Sings The Blues' based on the life of jazz legend Billie
Holiday. To coincide with the film, he issued a self produced album in 1973 on
Motown Records titled 'Big Ben Sings' .

Scatman signed up to appear as Lewis in the Columbia film 'The King of Marvin
Gardens' and this brought him into contact with Jack Nicholson. The pair also
acted in the 1978 Stanley Kubrick film 'The Shining'. For the last mentioned,
Crothers won the award as Best Supporting Actor from the Academy of Science
Fiction and Horror Movies.

From 1972 onwards, Scatman appeared in numerous television series such as
'Kojak', 'Petrocelli', 'Starsky and Hutch', 'The Love Boat', 'Charlie´s Angels',
'Vegas', 'The Incredible Hulk', 'Magnum and 'Hotel'. In 1974, he gained one of
the leading roles in the popular TV series 'Chico and the Man'. This success
lead to more parts, including many in Hollywood blockbusters, which enabled him
to work constantly up until 1986. On 8th April 1981, the Hollywood Chamber of
Commerce presented him with a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame' His is
located in front of the Egyptian Theatre.

On 23rd October 1985, he had been advised the devastating news by the doctor
that his cancerous tumour could not be healed and that he may only have six
months to live. This did not stop him on 2nd November1985 linking up by
telephone from his hospital bed in Los Angeles to the ceremony that the NAACP
(1) was holding at his hometown Terre Haute. He had not seen his hometown since
1969.

It also did not prevent him playing parts in the television series
'Morningstar/Eveningstar' as well as in 'Twilight Zone: The Movie'. However in
June 1986, he decided that the work was getting too much for him. The hospital
was unable to help any further and so he played on his Martin-guitar hoping for
the best. The movie studios sent him many flowers and get-well presents that
cheered him up. Eventually, it became clear that the illness was terminal and
so his wife Helen took him home to spend his final days peacefully. Scatman died
on 22nd November 1986 and he was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Hollywood
Hills with approximately 300 friends, fans and family attending the ceremony.

Suggested Listening:

Hydra Records are shortly to issue a compilation of Scatman Crothers recordings,
stay tuned.