# Scat. Not what you think. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 30, 2008, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-not-what-you-think/443280 "2008-03-30T16:24:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brown_eyed_girl/32/3574_2.png) [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brown_Eyed_Girl)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2008, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-not-what-you-think/443280/1 "2008-03-30T16:24:52Z")
I’m talkin’ 'bout jazz scat. Not an expert on it, nor can I do it, but I love, love, love it! I just needed to post this vid of a [1969 Ella Fitzgerald performance](http://youtube.com/watch?v=PbL9vr4Q2LU) that I’d never seen before. Wow. About halfway through the performance the band stops playing and she wows the audience. In my mind, the band (unseen) is behind her in silent worship: “We’re not worthy!” She’s really something. I want more. Share your favorite scat. Of the musical variety, please. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2008, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-not-what-you-think/443280/2 "2008-03-30T16:46:20Z")
Ella’s great and hard to top. It takes at least three people to do what she could do. Expecially if the three are [Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqmUgDUx7o0). Here’s Annie Ross with her signature number, [twisted.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StDLnFrbi78&feature=related) ---
**Author:** ![Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brown_eyed_girl/32/3574_2.png) [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brown_Eyed_Girl)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2008, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-not-what-you-think/443280/3 "2008-03-30T16:59:31Z")
Excellent choice. I’ve heard \*Twisted \*before, but I’d not seen Ross’s performance. Very funny. ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2008, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-not-what-you-think/443280/4 "2008-03-30T17:37:15Z")
I loves me some Ella! I never understood scat…always thought it was just meaningless gibberish. Then one day I really listened to the Lady do it, and I understood. She was several instruments at once. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2008, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-not-what-you-think/443280/5 "2008-03-30T18:14:05Z")
[QUOTE=RealityChuck] Ella’s great and hard to top. It takes at least three people to do what she could do. Expecially if the three are [Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqmUgDUx7o0). Here’s Annie Ross with her signature number, [twisted.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StDLnFrbi78&feature=related) [/QUOTE] Jon Hendricks is hard to beat: fastest tongue in music. Nina Simone has some good moments. ---
**Author:** ![E.Thorp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@E.Thorp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E.Thorp)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2008, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-not-what-you-think/443280/6 "2008-03-30T18:23:07Z")
Kurt Elling’s pretty good at scat, though vocalese is more his thing. ---
**Author:** ![Savannah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Savannah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Savannah)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2008, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-not-what-you-think/443280/7 "2008-03-30T18:24:01Z")
Scat. That’s what I used to call it. Before the web. Now I call “freestyle jazz vocal”. Thanks, Internet. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![descamisado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@descamisado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/descamisado)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2008, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-not-what-you-think/443280/8 "2008-03-30T18:24:13Z")
Anita Baker has touched on some scat moments in some of her songs that lead me to believe the lady was definitely holding back. No Ella F. but then who else is. ---
**Author:** ![Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brown_eyed_girl/32/3574_2.png) [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brown_Eyed_Girl)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2008, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-not-what-you-think/443280/9 "2008-03-30T18:40:05Z")
[QUOTE=E. Thorp] Kurt Elling’s pretty good at scat, though vocalese is more his thing. [/QUOTE] I’d be willing to bet that anyone who enjoys jazz scat, also enjoys vocalese as referenced by the link to Annie Ross. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2008, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-not-what-you-think/443280/10 "2008-03-30T19:14:58Z")
[QUOTE=Brown Eyed Girl] Excellent choice. I’ve heard \*Twisted \*before, but I’d not seen Ross’s performance. Very funny. [/QUOTE] One bit of trivia about the song: Ross wrote the lyrics, but she took the tune pretty much note by note from a saxophone solo by Wardell Grey (who is credited). The solo was never meant to be sung to, but she figured out how. ---
**Author:** ![Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brown_eyed_girl/32/3574_2.png) [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brown_Eyed_Girl)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2008, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-not-what-you-think/443280/11 "2008-03-30T19:25:54Z")
[QUOTE=RealityChuck] One bit of trivia about the song: Ross wrote the lyrics, but she took the tune pretty much note by note from a saxophone solo by Wardell Grey (who is credited). The solo was never meant to be sung to, but she figured out how. [/QUOTE] Thanks for the info. After seeing your link, I googled her and came up with [this 1990 Fresh Air interview on NPR](http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4817319). She’s got a lovely speaking voice as well. After clip of the song is played, she talks about the fact that she was not in therapy when she wrote that song. (Just me or is that question pretty lame?) ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2008, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-not-what-you-think/443280/12 "2008-03-30T20:26:22Z")
Cassandra Wilson, _Blue Skies_. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2008, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-not-what-you-think/443280/13 "2008-03-30T20:57:19Z")
There’s some scat at the end of Wilson doing [32-20 Blues.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1591gryAMyo) ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2008, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-not-what-you-think/443280/14 "2008-03-31T13:32:09Z")
[QUOTE=Brown Eyed Girl] I just needed to post this vid of a [1969 Ella Fitzgerald performance](http://youtube.com/watch?v=PbL9vr4Q2LU) that I’d never seen before. Wow. About halfway through the performance the band stops playing and she wows the audience. In my mind, the band (unseen) is behind her in silent worship: “We’re not worthy!” She’s really something. [/QUOTE] I dunno, I love Ella, but I guess I love her more when she’s slow and sentimental. See, I perceived the band (unseen) is behind her thinking, “shut the hell up you drunk bitch.” I even generally like scat but that performance annoyed me. Diff’rent strokes and all. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2008, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-not-what-you-think/443280/15 "2008-03-31T17:11:14Z")
[QUOTE=Cisco] “shut the hell up you drunk bitch.” [/QUOTE] Aw man, you are so going to the Bad Place. 🙂 It seemed unusual to me compared to what scat I’ve heard…Cassandra Wilson mostly, and unidentified stuff I hear late at night on the [radio.](http://www.jazzwithbobparlocha.com/)