Okay, I like Ruth Etting as much as the next red-blooded American male. But I'll leave it up to you to decide who's the more luscious dish, Ruth or the incomparable Annette Hanshaw. (Puh-leez, it just ain't no contest, Craig...). I have no idear if she played the ukulele, but she sure did love one! (And some reports I've read suggest that she was kin to Bobby "Uke" Henshaw.)
If you've never heard of Miss Hanshaw, you're in for a treat. She recorded a whole bevy of Tin Pan Alley standards, many of which she signed off with her signature tagline, "That's All." The Red Hot Jazz Archive has a wonderful collection that you can listen to online.
To learn even more about the romantic and mysterious life of Anne Hanshaw (after topping the charts for several years, she retired from performing at the age of 36), visit this site, which is entirely devoted to her memory, and this one, which has a video of her one and only movie appearance. Her Wikipedia entry is also worth checking out.
But to be completely honest, there is another singer from this era that really captures my heart. But that, dear reader, is a story for another night...
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