Cab Calloway: "Reefer Man"

They really don't make them like they used to.

Cab Calloway is one of the most famous bandleaders of the last century. His swansong to the MTV generation was his appearance in 1980's Blues Brothers, in which he sang his signature "Minnie the Moocher." He performed the song throughout his 60-plus-year career and it was admitted to the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999, five years after Calloway's death.

This clip is from his early days as a performer. International House (1933) was Calloway's second feature film, released when he was just 26 years old. The movie was made before Hollywood started enforcing its Motion Picture Production Code, which directed the censorship of controversial topics (like drugs and sex) from 1934 to 1968, when it was dropped for today's ostensibly more objective MPAA film rating system.

If the film had been made a year later, this scene may not have made the cut. Luckily for jazz enthusiasts and stoners everywhere, YouTube keeps the hair flipping and the joints rolling. Enjoy, and happy 420.

"Reefer Man," performed by Cab Calloway and His Orchestra.
From International House (Paramount, 1933).