Al Jolson

USA, 1911–1950

American singer and stage performer, self-billed as the World's Greatest Entertainer, dominant on the American stage in the 1910s and 1920s and the voice of The Jazz Singer (1927), the first feature-length talking picture. His career was carried out largely in blackface, within the minstrel tradition.

MusicRoots documents 0 artists who influenced Al Jolson and 4 artists Al Jolson influenced in turn. Every connection cites a published source.

Which artists did Al Jolson influence?

• Jerry Lee Lewis — Lewis sang Al Jolson songs picked up from his parents' records — the vaudeville showman's brashness in his own performing.
• Bing Crosby — The teenage Crosby was held 'spellbound' by Al Jolson's ad-libbing at a 1917 Spokane show — a delivery he called 'electric'.
• Jackie Wilson — Wilson named Al Jolson his first model of total showmanship — the all-out delivery he electrified for the R&B stage.
• Rod Stewart — Stewart's family were devoted Al Jolson fans; he collected the records and saw the films, taking from Jolson the showmanship and the way of working an audience that defined his stage persona.