Washington was born Ruth Jones in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. As she was growing up in Chicago, she played piano and directed her church choir. Later, she studied in Walter Dyett's renowned music program at DuSable High School. For a while, she split her time between performing in clubs as Dinah Washington while singing and playing piano in Salle Martin's gospel choir as Ruth Jones.
Washington began performing in 1942 and soon joined Lionel Hampton's band. In 1943, she began recording for Keynote Records and released "Evil Gal Blues", her first hit. By 1955, she had released numerous hit songs on the R&B charts, including "Baby, Get Lost", "Trouble in Mind", "You Don't Know What Love Is" (arranged by Quincy Jones), and a cover of "Cold, Cold Heart" by Hank Williams. In 1958 she made a well-received appearance at the Newport Jazz Festival.
With "What a Diff'rence a Day Makes" 1959, Washington won a Grammy Award for Best Rhythm and Blues Performance; the song was her biggest hit, reaching #8 on the Billboard Hot 100. The commercially driven album of the same name, with its heavily reliance on strings and wordless choruses, was slammed by jazz and blues critics as being far too commercial, not keeping with her blues roots. Despite this, the album was a huge success and Washington continued to favor more commercial, pop-oriented songs rather than traditional blues and jazz songs. She also dealt in torch songs; her rendition of The Platters' "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" was well-regarded.
She was married seven times, and divorced six times while having several lovers, including Quincy Jones, her young arranger. She was known to be imperious and demanding in real life, but audiences loved her. In London she once declared, "...there is only one heaven, one earth and one queen...Queen Elizabeth is an impostor", but the crowd loved it.
Dinah Washington died from an accidental overdose of diet pills and alcohol at the age of 39 in 1963.
All or Nothing
Dinah Washington Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Yes, should I worry about you baby, or forget you were ever on my mind?
I can get another man just as easy, and one that will treat me just as kind.
Should I go out and look for you baby, when I know that you're for ever gone?
Should I look for you baby, when I know you're for ever gone?
I'd be more contented if I knew you were all alone.
Yes, if you cared about me daddy, you'd come home early every night,
But you don't come home in the mornin's till you're sure it's broad daylight!
Yes, if you wanna get together baby, yes that's still okay with me,
If you wanna get together baby, that's still okay with me,
I'm always open for propositions, that I know you can plainly see!
The lyrics of Dinah Washington's All Or Nothing discuss the inner conflict of a woman who is torn between her love for her unfaithful partner and her self-respect. The song begins with the singer questioning whether or not she should continue to worry about her partner who has been unfaithful to her, or if she should forget he ever existed. She then goes on to question whether or not she should search for him, or instead be content with the idea of him being alone.
The chorus is where the singer expresses the frustration she feels towards her partner's infidelity. She suggests that if he truly cared about her, he would come home early every night instead of waiting until daylight to return. The last verse of the song seems to suggest that despite her frustration and anger towards her partner, she is still open to giving him another chance.
The song's lyrics are a relatable depiction of the emotional turmoil that many people go through when they are in a toxic or unfulfilling relationship. The song was released in 1961 as part of a single with the song "Me and My Gin" and was written by Joe Seneca. Dinah Washington's powerful vocals and the raw emotion in the lyrics made it a popular song in the R&B and Soul music genres.
Line by Line Meaning
Should I worry about you baby, or forget you were ever on my mind?
Should I continue to think about you and be concerned, or should I move on and forget you entirely?
I can get another man just as easy, and one that will treat me just as kind.
I can easily find another man who will treat me just as well as you did.
Should I go out and look for you baby, when I know that you're for ever gone?
Should I try to find you even though I know you're gone for good?
I'd be more contented if I knew you were all alone.
I would feel better if I knew you were on your own and not with someone else.
Yes, if you cared about me daddy, you'd come home early every night,
If you truly cared about me, you would come home early every night instead of staying out until morning.
But you don't come home in the mornin's till you're sure it's broad daylight!
You don't come home until it's morning and you're sure it's safe and there will be no repercussions.
If you wanna get together baby, that's still okay with me,
If you want to see me again, I am open to the idea.
I'm always open for propositions, that I know you can plainly see!
I am willing to consider any offers you might have, and I think you know that already.
Contributed by Ryan N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Finkanslig
Thank you for this enjoyable post.
Recorded in Los Angeles 12 DEC 1945 for APOLLO Records. (Two days earlier, this unit cut four super fine sides.)
Dinah Washington with Lucky Thompson’s All Stars:
Karl George tp/ Jewell Grant as/ Gene Porter cl, as, bari/ Lucky Thompson ts/ Wilbert Baranco p/ Milt Jackson vib/ Charlie Mingus b/ Lee Young d/ Dinah Washington voc
(Eli) Lucky Thompson's solo @ 1:14. All Or Nothing, b/w Beggin' Mama Blues, appear only on a PARODY Records release. :I: