Hannah's 1000 words on sammy

Sammy Davis Jr. on Stage


Shawn Levy describes Sammy Davis Jr’s performance as ‘a dazzling black ball of fire.’ (Levy, 1998, p7) This describes how I also feel about Sammy’s distinct style. On stage Davis is an electric performer who lights up the stage. In order to create this effect Sammy’s performance is made up of several key building blocks.
One of the elements which make up Sammy’s performance style is the impression that he is very grateful for the other people who make up his success. On several of his live recordings, including one of ‘Hey There’, he takes a moment to say thank-you to his audience for their applause. At the St Louis concert he makes a point of saying that they should thank their orchestra and joins in the applause for them. The humbleness of Sammy’s attitude to me is one of the qualities which make him such a strong performer on stage.
Another factor which is integral to Sammy’s performance is his ability to laugh at himself. Sammy doesn’t appear to take himself too seriously on stage. He was quite often the butt of Frank and Deans jokes. For example at the St Louis performance, when he is about to sing Birth of the Blues someone says ‘Why don’t you sing a medley of race riots?’ and later they ask him ‘how does it feel to sit at the back of the bus?’ These could be taken quite offensively, however Sammy laughs. Levy describes Sammy’s laugh as ‘desperate mirth, literally slapping his knees, not a sound coming out of his mouth.’ (Levy, 1998, p126) However it was Sammy’s witty comebacks which made his performance as the most appealing to watch. For example, many of the jokes made on stage were about Sammy’s race and his Jewish faith. On one such occasion he retorts with ‘will you hurry up? I’ve got a barmitsva to go to.’ This joke shows how he does not take himself too seriously. I feel that this is a creditable ability in an entertainer as it enhances his frivolous and light-hearted persona which he then carried into his overall appearance during his pieces.
Another of Sammy’s mode of performance is his dancing. Whilst singing, Sammy would also quite often dance. When he was predominantly singing, his moves were quite often small and accompanying. A good example of this is on the DVD ‘The Rat Pack: The Greatest Hits’ where he explains to his audience the difference dances he is doing during his song (for example the mash potato). However Sammy’s dancing was not just restricted to simple moves. Some of the earliest footage of Sammy dancing as a youngster (Rufus Jones for President http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=GCq9ytNjd1I) already shows his amazing dancing talent. His work within the Will Mastin trio was particularly stunt style tap dancing which shows the extent of Sammy’s ability. When you compare these different styles you can see how versatile Sammy’s dancing was.
Sammy’s singing style was very different to that of Frank and Dean. Recordings by Sammy range from up-tempo numbers to slow ballads and he is remembered for both styles. Levy supports this idea that Sammy was a many styled performer; ‘Ballads, saloon songs, swing numbers, novelty tunes, he wrung them all, completely.’ (Levy 1998, p138) Unlike Frank’s style of lyrical phrasing, Sammy tended to stick to the more traditional style of musical notation guiding his singing. However his actual singing voice is much more within the Broadway musical style; this idea is supported by his move to performing on Broadway in 1956 with the show Mr Wonderful.
Despite Sammy’s own singing being an important part of his act he also relied heavily on his ability to sing in the style of other artists too. Sammy’s impressions were an integral part of his act as he could both sing and speak in the style of certain performers. Part of what makes this particular aspect of Sammy’s act so appealing to watch is the creative way in which he adapts his body, facial expressions and adopts the mannerisms of the people he is impersonating. Sammy’s impersonation of Lois Armstrong for instance always involved him wiping his face with a handkerchief and baring his teeth as this is what Armstrong would do onstage; also his ability to make fun of Dean Martin as a drunkard was a popular crowd pleaser. When compared to Frank and Dean’s ability in that area Sammy appears to be the stronger performer due to his quick switch between characters and the range of people he does. This, I feel, is one of the most important features in Sammy’s performance.
One of the most appealing characteristics of Sammy on stage is that he is an all round entertainer. People knew him for his dancing, his singing, his impressions, his acting and his involvement with his audience. This made him stand out from the other members of the rat pack as he can merge his different talents into one situation. An example of this is he could dance whilst singing and involve his audience in this by explaining the style of dance that he is doing. This ability to merge several elements of his performance together gave him a frenzied and excitable appearance on stage. This is part of the reason why I compare him to a firecracker. Once you have all of Sammy Davis Jr’s elements of performance together you have an entertainer that you cannot help but watch; be it for his jokes, his dancing, his singing or his impressions.