THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

315-Dinah Washington-What a Diff’rence a Day Makes,

1959-It has never charted in the UK.

Best Bit-At 0.16. The legendary Quincy Jones (1933-2024) (see also best songs 1022-889-812-703-511-357 and 191) said of Dinah Washington, ‘She had a voice that was like the pipes of life. She could take the melody in her hand, hold it like an egg, crack it open, fry it, put the egg back in the box and back in the refrigerator, and you would’ve still understood every single syllable of every single word she sang.’

Dinah Washington was born Ruth Lee Jones on August 29th, 1924, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States, she died on December 14th, 1963, at the age of 39. An autopsy later carried out, showed a lethal combination of secobarbital and amobarbital prescriptions, for her insomnia and diet, which contributed to her death. Dinah Washington is remembered as the most popular black female vocalist of the 1950’s, and helps to link the bridge between Bessie Smith, (see also best songs 345) Billie Holiday, (see also best songs 624) and Aretha Franklin (see also best songs 644 and 366.) She got her big breakthrough in 1942 when she was spotted by the Jazz artist manager Joe Glazer (1896-1969) performing at the ‘Garrick Bar’ in Chicago, it was on Glazer’s recommendation that she joined Lionel Hampton’s (1908-2002) band. It was either Joe Glazer, or Joe Sherman, who owned the Garrick Bar, who gave Jones her stage name, no one is quite sure.

As a child, Dinah Washington became deeply involved in ‘Gospel Music,’ and then at the age of 15 she won an amateur talent contest at ‘Chicago’s Regal Theatre,’ leading to her performing secular music in clubs by 1941. Primarily a Jazz vocalist, she performed and recorded in a wide variety of styles, including ‘Blues, ‘R&B,’ and ‘Traditional Pop’ music. She was a 1986 inductee of the ‘Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame,’ and was inducted into the ‘Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’ in 1993. The discography of Dinah Washington includes 30 Albums released between 1947-1963, with a further five official compilation Albums being issued since her death. She released 68 singles between 1944-1964, with 47 of them reaching the American ‘Billboard R&B chart,’ and five of those making the Number 1 position, 11 of those tracks also made the Billboard top 40 singles chart, with her 1960 duet with Brook Benton (1931-1988) on ‘Baby (You’ve Got What It Takes’) peaking the highest at Number 5, while ‘What a Diff’rence a Day Makes’ reached Number 8. In the UK her only top 40 charting single is ‘September in the Rain,’ which made Number 36 in 1961. During her short but full life, Dinah Washington was married at least six times, and had suffered insomnia, and weight problems, leading to her dependency on prescription drugs, which eventually caused a fatal heart attack.

‘What a Diff’rence a Day Makes’ was originally written in Spanish by Maria Grever in 1934. The song was called ‘Cuando vyelva a tu lado’ (‘When I Return to Your Side.’) The English lyrics were written by the American songwriter Stanley Adams, with the first English version recording being by Harry Roy & his Orchestra, in late 1934. The first commercially successful version, also released in 1934, was by the ‘Dorsey Brothers,’ with vocals by Bob Crosby. Maria Grever was born on September 14th, 1885, in León, Guanajuato Mexico, she died on December 15th, 1951, after a prolonged illness. Maria Grever became the first female Mexican composer to achieve international acclaim, having written in excess of 1000 songs. Stanley Adams was born on August 14th, 1907, in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States, he died on January 28th, 1994, from cancer, at the age of 86. Stanley Adams breakthrough success came as the co-writer of ‘Rollin’ Down the River,’ which was written in collaboration with Fats Waller, (1904-1943) (see also best songs 412) the song became a hit after being recorded by Guy Lombardo (1902-1977) in 1930. Stanley Adams was the president of the ‘American Society of Composers,’ ‘Authors and Publishers’ (ASCAP) between 1953 and 1956, and again from 1959 until 1980.

‘What a Diff’rence a Day Made’ was recorded by Dinah Washington in 1959, and was the only single released from her 10th studio Album ‘What a Diff’rence a Day Makes!’ also from 1959. The song won Dinah Washington the ‘Grammy Award’ for ‘Best R&B Performance’ at the 2nd Annual Grammy Awards, held in November 1959. ‘What a Diff’rence a Day Made’ and it’s parent Album were both produced by Clyde Otis, and arranged by Belford Hendricks (1909-1977.) Clyde Otis was born Clyde Lovern Otis on September 11th, 1924, in Prentiss, Mississippi, United States, he died on January 8th, 2008, at the age of 83. Clyde Otis is best remembered for his collaboration with the American singer Brook Benton, and for being one of the first African-American A&R executives at a major record label, (Mercury Records) Otis is credited as the writer or co-writer of around 800 songs, including the Dinah Washington, and Brooke Benton collaborations ‘Baby (You’ve Got What It Takes’) (1959-Billboard Number 5) and ‘A Rockin’ Good Way (To Mess Around and Fall in Love’) (1960-Billboard Number 7.)

What a Diff’rence a Day Makes’ has been covered on countless occasions by many of the worlds top artists, with the most successful in the UK being a ‘Disco’ version recorded by Esther Phillips (1935-1984) in 1975, reaching Number 6, her version also peaked at Number 20 on the American Billboard singles chart. The song has also been a hit for the Mexican/American singer Andy Russell, whose bilingual version of the song in 1944, reached Number 15 on Billboard in America.

‘There’s a rainbow before me, skies above can’t be stormy, since that moment of bliss, that thrilling kiss. It’s heaven when you find romance on your menu, what a difference a day made, and the difference is you.’