Evelyn Knight ©2002JCMarion
Evelyn Knight was born in Washington,
D.C., and got her start as a singer on local radio, and soon found herself in
the recording studio. It was during the mid forties that she had two big hits
on the Decca label. "Dance With A Dolly" on #18614 recorded with Camarata's
Orchestra was a hit parade seller for more than four months and got as high
as number six on the listing. In early 1946 "Chickery Chick" originally
recorded by the Gene Krupa Orchestra was put on wax with Knight's vocal backed
up by The Three Jesters and the Bob Haggart band on #18725 and was a top ten
hit. Knight then was absent from the hit lists for three years.
In late November of 1948 Knight covered
a tune originally recorded by Paula Watson for Supreme Records. The song "A
Little Bird Told Me" recorded with The Stardusters on Decca #24514 took
off like a shot over the year end holidays. It rose quickly to the top of the
pop charts and remained in the number one position in the country for seven
weeks. The song remained on the charts for five months through the spring of
1949. The strength of the record was apparent in the fact that the flip side
"Brush Those Tears From Your Eyes" which on its own got into the top
ten and remained on the charts for four months. This showing pushed the record
to over two million in sales and made it into one of the top pop music hits
of the post was forties. "A Little Bird" was the subject of a contentious
lawsuit brought by Supreme Records against Decca, claiming that they "stole"
the arrangement from the Paula Watson original. The court found however, that
the Decca release did not violate any copyright law by its version of the song.
An interesting fact about the song was that it was written by Harvey Brooks,
who was the first Black American to write a complete film score when he did
so for Mae West's film "I'm No Angel" in 1933.
Evelyn Knight's next charted record
was a song from the hit Bob Hope film "The Paleface" in 1948 called
"Buttons And Bows" which was a number one hit for Dinah Shore. Knight's
version on Decca #24489 with Mannie Klein's orchestra and The Stardusters did
well getting into the top fifteen and remaining on the charts for two months.
If most observers of the music scene thought that Knight would just fade away
after her big splash on the charts, they were dead wrong. In early 1949 a song
called "Powder Your Face With Sunshine" on Decca #24530, recorded
once again with The Stardusters sold in huge numbers going all the way to number
one in the country. "Sunshine" was a five month stay on the best seller
charts and gave Knight two number ones in six months. In mid 1949 a two sided
hit was released on #24636 - "It's Too Late Now" and "You're
So Understanding" both with the Four Hits & A Miss and Sonny Burke's
Orchestra. Both sides got into the top 25 and were moderate sellers.
In 1950 there were two chart hits for
Evelyn Knight. "Candy And Cake", a cover of the hit by Mindy Carson
on Decca #24943" which was a top 20 seller, and "All Dressed Up To
Smile" with the Ray Charles Singers on Decca #27103 was a top 25 seller.
"My Heart Cries For You" as a duet with country music star and Grand
Ole Opry host Red Foley on #27378 was a substantial seller in 1951 which was
Evelyn's last chart appearance.
Evelyn Knight was certainly more than a footnote to pop music history, with
an impressive list of top selling records during the late 40s. Her two number
ones in six months remains an impressive feat for someone who is not a well
remembered name. But - we remember her here : Evelyn Knight.