Her best-known recordings include "Dinah," "Stormy Weather," "Taking a Chance on Love," "Heat Wave," "Supper Time," "Am I Blue?" and "Cabin in the Sky," as well as her version of the spiritual "His Eye Is on the Sparrow." Waters was the second African American, after Hattie McDaniel, to be nominated for an Academy Award. She is also the first African American woman to be nominated for an Emmy Award, in 1962.
Ethel Waters was born in Chester, Pennsylvania, on October 31, 1896, as a result of the rape of her teenaged mother, Louise Anderson (believed to have been thirteen years old at the time, although some sources indicate she may have been slightly older), by John Waters, a pianist and family acquaintance from a mixed-race middle-class background. Waters played no role in raising Ethel. Ethel Waters was raised in poverty and never lived in the same place for more than 15 months. She said of her difficult childhood, "I never was a child. I never was cuddled, or liked, or understood by my family."
Waters grew tall, standing 5'9½" in her teens. According to women-in-jazz historian and archivist Rosetta Reitz, Waters' birth in the North and her peripatetic life exposed her to many cultures.
Waters married at the age of 13, but soon left her abusive husband and became a maid in a Philadelphia hotel working for $4.75 per week. On her 17th birthday, she attended a costume party at a nightclub on Juniper Street. She was persuaded to sing two songs, and impressed the audience so much that she was offered professional work at the Lincoln Theatre in Baltimore, MD. She later recalled that she earned the rich sum of ten dollars a week, but her managers cheated her out of the tips her admirers threw on the stage.
After her start in Baltimore, Waters toured on the black vaudeville circuit. As she described it later, "I used to work from nine until unconscious." Despite her early success, she fell on hard times and joined a carnival, traveling in freight cars along the carnival circuit and eventually reaching Chicago. Waters enjoyed her time with the carnival and recalled, "the roustabouts and the concessionaires were the kind of people I'd grown up with, rough, tough, full of larceny towards strangers, but sentimental and loyal to their friends and co-workers." She did not last long with them, though, and soon headed south to Atlanta, where she worked in the same club with Bessie Smith. Smith demanded that Waters not compete in singing blues opposite her. Waters conceded and sang ballads and popular songs. Around 1919, Waters moved to Harlem and there became a celebrity performer in the Harlem Renaissance during the 1920s.
Waters obtained her first Harlem job at Edmond's Cellar, a club that had a black patronage. She specialized in popular ballads and became an actress in a blackface comedy called Hello 1919. Jazz historian Rosetta Reitz points out that by the time Waters returned to Harlem in 1921, women blues singers were among the most powerful entertainers in the country. In 1921, Waters became the fifth black woman to make a record, on the tiny Cardinal Records label. She later joined Black Swan Records, where Fletcher Henderson was her accompanist. Waters later commented that Henderson tended to perform in a more classical style than she would prefer, often lacking "the damn-it-to-hell bass."
She recorded with Black Swan from 1921 through 1923. In early 1924, Paramount bought the Black Swan label, and she stayed with Paramount through that year. Waters first recorded for Columbia Records in 1925, achieving a hit with her voicing of "Dinah", which was voted a Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 1998. Soon after, she started working with Pearl Wright, and together they toured in the South. In 1924, Waters played at the Plantation Club on Broadway. She also toured with the Black Swan Dance Masters. With Earl Dancer, she joined what was called the "white time" Keith Vaudeville Circuit, a traditional white-audience based vaudeville circuit combined with screenings of silent movies. They received rave reviews in Chicago and earned the unheard of salary of US$1,250 in 1928. In 1929, Waters and Pearl Wright arranged the unreleased Harry Akst song "Am I Blue?," which then appeared in the movie On with the Show and became a hit and her signature tune.
Although she was considered a blues singer during the pre-1925 period, Waters belonged to the vaudeville style of Mamie Smith, Viola McCoy, and Lucille Hegamin. While with Columbia, she introduced many popular standards including "Dinah," "Heebie Jeebies," "Sweet Georgia Brown," "Someday, Sweetheart," "Am I Blue?" and "(What Did I Do To Be So) Black and Blue" on the popular series, while she continued to sing blues (like "West End Blues," "Organ Grinder Blues," etc.) on Columbia's 14000 race series. During the 1920s, Waters performed and was recorded with the ensembles of Will Marion Cook and Lovie Austin. As her career continued, she evolved toward being a blues and Broadway singer, performing with artists such as Duke Ellington. She remained with Columbia through 1931. She then signed with Brunswick in 1932 and remained until 1933 when she went back to Columbia. She signed with Decca in late 1934 for only two sessions, as well as a single session in early 1938. She recorded for the specialty label "Liberty Music Shops" in 1935 and again in 1940. Between 1938 and 1939, she recorded for Bluebird.
In 1933, Waters made a satirical all-black film entitled Rufus Jones for President, which featured then-child performer Sammy Davis Jr. as Rufus Jones. She went on to star at the Cotton Club, where, according to her autobiography, she "sang 'Stormy Weather' from the depths of the private hell in which I was being crushed and suffocated." She had a featured role in the wildly successful Irving Berlin Broadway musical revue As Thousands Cheer in 1933, where she was the first black woman in an otherwise white show. She had three gigs at this point; in addition to the show, she starred in a national radio program and continued to work in nightclubs. She was the highest paid performer on Broadway at that time. MGM hired Lena Horne as the ingenue in the all-Black musical Cabin in the Sky, and Waters starred as Petunia in 1942, reprising her stage role of 1940. The film, directed by Vincente Minnelli, was a success.
She began to work with Fletcher Henderson again in the late 1940s. She was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award in 1949 for the film Pinky, under the direction of Elia Kazan, after original director, John Ford, quit, due to his disagreements with Waters. According to producer Daryl Zanuck, Ford "hated that old...woman (Waters)." Ford, Karzan stated, "Didn't know how to reach Ethel Waters." Kazan later referred to Water's "Truly odd combination of old-time religiosity and free-flowing hatred.". In 1950, she won the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for her performance opposite Julie Harris in the play The Member of the Wedding. Waters and Harris repeated their roles in the 1952 film version of Member of the Wedding'' In 1950, Waters starred in the television series Beulah, but quit after complaining that the scripts' portrayal of blacks was "degrading." She later guest starred in 1957 and 1959 on NBC's The Ford Show, Starring Tennessee Ernie Ford. In the 1957 episode, she sang "Cabin in the Sky."
Despite these successes, her brilliant career was fading. She lost tens of thousands in jewelry and cash in a robbery, and had difficulties with the IRS. Her health suffered, and she worked only sporadically in following years. In 1950-51 she wrote the autobiography His Eye is on the Sparrow with Charles Samuels, in which she wrote candidly about her life. She explains why her age has often been misstated: her mother had had to sign a paper claiming Waters was four years older than she was, and that she was born in 1896. His Eye is on the Sparrow was adapted for a stage production in which she was portrayed by Ernestine Jackson. In her second autobiography, To Me, It's Wonderful, Waters states that she was born in 1900. Rosetta Reitz called Waters "a natural ... Her songs are enriching, nourishing. You will want to play them over and over again, idling in their warmth and swing. Though many of them are more than 50 years old, the music and the feeling are still there."
Waters is the great-aunt of singer-songwriter Crystal Waters. Waters often toured with Billy Graham on his crusades. She died on September 1, 1977, aged 80, from uterine cancer, kidney failure, and other ailments in Chatsworth, California.
Recordings of Ethel Waters were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, which is a special Grammy award established in 1973 to honor recordings that are at least twenty-five years old, and that have "qualitative or historical significance."
HeatWave
ethel waters Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
She came from the island of Martini
The can-can she dances will make you fry
The can-can is really the reason why
We′re having a heat wave, a tropical heat wave
The temprature's rising, it isn′t surprising
She certainly can, can-can
She started the heat wave by letting her seat wave
And in such a way that the customers say
That she certainly can, can-can
See her anatomy, made the mercury
Jump to ninety three, yes, sir
Were having a heat wave, a tropical heat wave
The way that she moves that thermometer proves
That she certainly can, can-can
It's so hot the weather man will tell you
A record's been made
It′s so hot a coat of tan will cover
Your face in a shade
It′s so hot the coldest maiden feel just
As warm as a bride
It's so hot, a chicken laid an egg
On the streets and it′s fried
We're having a heat wave, a tropical heat wave
The temprature′s rising, it isn't surprising
She certainly can, can-can
She started the heat wave by letting her seat wave
And in such a way that the customers say
That she certainly can, can-can
See her anatomy, made that mercury
Jump to ninety three, yes sir, yeah, man
We′re having a heat wave, a tropical heat wave
The way that she moves that thermometer proves
That she certainly can, can-can
The song "Heat Wave" by Ethel Waters is an upbeat and sensual tune about the arrival of a tropical heat wave in town, triggered by the appearance of a performer who dances the can-can in a way that makes the temperature rise. The song is full of imagery of heat, such as a thermometer rising to 93 degrees, and people sweating and getting tanned. The reference to the island of Martini adds to the exotic vibe of the song, suggesting a place far away where the heat is always present and the people know how to move.
The lyrics of "Heat Wave" are not only a celebration of sensuality and dance, but also a comment on the power of nature and the impact it can have on people's moods and behaviors. The heat wave is presented as a force of nature that no one can resist, causing everyone to feel hot and bothered, and bringing out their wildest side. The singer urges the audience to join in the celebration of the heat wave and the can-can, and to embrace the joy and energy of the moment.
Overall, "Heat Wave" is a fun and playful song that captures the spirit of a bygone era, when music and dance were essential parts of entertainment and social life. The lyrics are full of wit and humor, and the melody is infectious, making it a timeless classic that still resonates with audiences today.
Line by Line Meaning
A heat wave ride into town last week
Last week, a heat wave arrived in the town.
She came from the island of Martini
The person responsible for this heat wave arrived from the island called Martini.
The can-can she dances will make you fry
The dance, can-can, she performs is so fiery that it elevates the level of heat produced to make one's surroundings even hotter.
The can-can is really the reason why
It is because of the dance, can-can, that the heat is being generated.
We′re having a heat wave, a tropical heat wave
The heat wave we are undergoing is not just hot but it's equivalent to a tropical heat wave.
The temprature's rising, it isn′t surprising
The temperature is rising, and it's a natural consequence of experiencing a heat wave.
She certainly can, can-can
She can perform the dance, can-can, very well.
She started the heat wave by letting her seat wave
She initiated the heat wave by dancing provocatively and vigorously.
And in such a way that the customers say
Her dancing was so remarkable that people watching her perform acknowledged it.
That she certainly can, can-can
They were impressed by her ability to perform the dance, can-can.
See her anatomy, made the mercury
Her body's movements caused the temperature to soar high.
Jump to ninety three, yes, sir
It rose up to ninety-three degrees Fahrenheit because of her dance.
The way that she moves that thermometer proves
Her movements are so impactful that they can be seen on the thermometer's scale.
It's so hot the weather man will tell you
It's extremely hot, so much so that even the weatherman would confirm it.
A record's been made
This level of heat is unprecedented.
It′s so hot a coat of tan will cover
It's so hot that being outside for a few minutes will cause a tan on one's skin.
Your face in a shade
The shade on one's face will also be eliminated because of the heat.
It′s so hot the coldest maiden feel just
Even the coldest person, a maiden in this case, will feel the heat as much as a bride would.
As warm as a bride
The heat is so intense that it can make anyone's body feel like they're getting married, which often happens in an emotionally charged event.
It's so hot, a chicken laid an egg
The heat is so extreme that it cooked an egg on the streets, causing a chicken to lay and cook it there as well.
On the streets and it′s fried
The egg that was cooked due to the heat was lying on the streets and now it's fried.
Writer(s): Irving Berlin
Contributed by Violet V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@jahlaune
My grandmother loved this woman she was from that time. When she got old and her memory got a bit muddled. I bought some Ethel Waters CDs and DVD movies and it jolted her memory. It was a balm and to this day I have a fondness for music from this period.
@josephalexandergemmell9979
i never cease to be amazed by ethel waters. she introduced so many great songs! while one of these photos is not ethel, the rest remind us of how pretty she was. thanks for posting!
@akoripahs
The clarinet soloist at the beginning is Benny Goodman!
@azz710
The first time I heard this recording, back in the late '50s, I was certain that it was Goodman, but no way to check it. No one else ever sounded the same!
@JB-ox7ib
It’s an amazing intro..
@shannonvanderhoof4810
Thank Q God
4 my Momma 💋‼
And ..
Yes, Benny Goodman 🎶🕊
@cyberdogdesign
Wow ... this was done before tapes and mastering and mixing – it was recorded direct to a record cutting machine in one take, and we all know how hard it is to get everybody doing everything absolutely perfect at once. I think she does incredibly well.
@The_Machman
Tape recording was invented in 1928 by Fritz Pfluemer and his machine was called Magnetophon. Reel to reel followed in 1932.
@Dopelives
My guy has never heard of live music before
@jeannieves6275
This song comes to mind
During Summer 🌻💐🌞