Did You See Jackie Robinson Hit That Ball?

April 15 is baseball's Jackie Robinson day, the 66th anniversary of his first game for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947, the first time a black man played major league baseball. African-Americans were understandably proud of Robinson's accomplishments, and two years later, the popular R&B band leader Buddy Johnson wrote and recorded "Did You See Jackie Robinson Hit That Ball?" It reached #13 on the R&B charts in August 1949. The vocal is by Buddy and the band, and the tenor sax solo is probably by Purvis Henson.

There was a cover version by Count Basie and his Orchestra with vocal by Taps Miller. It is slower than Johnson's version and the instrumental break is markedly inferior. Fortunately, Johnson's original outsold Basie's cover by a country mile.

The lyrics also reference other black ballplayers Satchel Paige, Larry Doby, Don Newcombe and Roy Campanella. Doby of the Cleveland Indians was the second black ballplayer. Tenor sax man Freddie Mitchell paid tribute to him with an instrumental, "Doby's Boogie," also in 1949. In 1954, the Treniers recorded "Say Hey," a song about Willie Mays. The title refers to the typical way he greeted friends.

Update (1/23):  "Did You See Jackie Robinson Hit That Ball?" is on the soundtrack of the new Robinson biopic 42, but you have to sit through the final credits in order to hear it. It's the Count Basie version.