QUEEN OF THE BLUES: DINAH WASHINGTON : Dinah Washington (born Ruth Lee Jones) was an American singer and pianist, who has been cited as "the most popular black female recording artist of the '50s". Primarily a jazz vocalist, she performed and recorded in a wide variety of styles including blues, R&B, and traditional pop music, and gave herself the title of "Queen of the Blues". : She was a 1986 inductee of the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame, and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 199

LADY SINGS THE BLUES ('72) brought Diana Ross an Oscar nomination for playing Billie Holiday in a film that recounts her career as a singer including the racial prejudice she faced. The soundtrack which rose to number 1 on the Billboard charts includes more than a dozen Holiday specials including: "Strange Fruit," "Them There Eyes," "What a Little Moonlight Can Do" and "Fine and Mellow." | Turner Classic Movies: TCM