Mick Hartley

The thing about Dinah Washington was, not only could she sing anything, from Blues to Jazz to standards, she was also fabulous to watch as a performer (poor sound – turn volume up!):

A little slower here, but again, as well as a great vocal performance, she's mesmerising to watch. And here, singing – sadly poignant, given how both of them died much too young – Bessie Smith's "Send Me to th' Electric Chair".

And, unlike, say, Ella Fitzgerald, she wasn't ashamed to get down and dirty .

The Beeb did a documentary on her last year (BBC4) – parts 1, 2, 3.