Screamin' Jay Hawkins
Jalacy J. "Screamin' Jay" Hawkins (July 18, 1929 – February 12, 2000) was an American singer-songwriter, musician, actor, film producer, and boxer. Famed chiefly for his powerful, shouting vocal delivery and wildly theatrical performances of songs such as "I Put a Spell on You", he sometimes used macabre props onstage, making him an early pioneer of Theatrical Rock and shock rock. He received a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male for his performance in the 1989 indie film Mystery Train. |
Birth and Death Data: Born Cleveland (city in and county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States), Died February 12, 2000 (Neuilly-sur-Seine (commune in Hauts-de-Seine, France) )
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1956 - 1966
Roles Represented in DAHR: vocalist, songwriter
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings
| Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia | JZSP43416 | 10-in. | 1957 | There's someting wrong with you | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | vocalist | |
| Columbia | JZSP43417 | 10-in. | 1957 | Alligator wine | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | vocalist | |
| Columbia | CO56601 | 10-in. | 9/12/1956 | Little demon | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | vocalist | |
| Columbia | CO56602 | 10-in. | 9/12/1956 | You ain't foolin' me | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | vocalist | |
| Columbia | CO56603 | 10-in. | 9/12/1956 | I put a spell on you | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | vocalist | |
| Columbia | CO56604 | 10-in. | 9/12/1956 | Please forgive me | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | vocalist | |
| Columbia | CO57391 | 10-in. | 2/13/1957 | You made me love you | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | vocalist | |
| Columbia | CO57392 | 10-in. | 2/13/1957 | Yellow coat | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | vocalist | |
| Columbia | CO57393 | 10-in. | 2/13/1957 | Hong Kong | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | vocalist | |
| Columbia | CO57394 | 10-in. | 2/13/1957 | Darling please forgive me | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | vocalist | |
| Columbia | CO57919 | 10-in. | 5/6/1957 | Frenzy | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | vocalist | |
| Columbia | CO57920 | 10-in. | 5/6/1957 | Person to person | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | vocalist | |
| Mercury | 11103 | 10-in. | 1/10/1955 | This is all | Screamin' Jay Hawkins ; Leroy Kirkland Orchestra | vocalist, songwriter | ||
| Mercury | 11105 | 10-in. | 1/10/1955 | (She put the) Wamee (on me) | Screamin' Jay Hawkins ; Leroy Kirkland Orchestra | vocalist, songwriter | ||
| Decca | 117676 | 7/8/1966 | I'm not made of clay-1 ; I'm not made of clay | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 117677 | 7/8/1966 | All night-1 ; All night | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 117678 | 7/8/1966 | Mountain jive-1 ; Mountain jive | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 117679 | 7/8/1966 | I'll be there-1 ; I'll be there | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 118364 | 12/29/1966 | I put a spell on you | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 118365 | 12/29/1966 | Two can play this game | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 118366 | 12/29/1966 | Shattered | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | vocalist | |||
| Decca | 118367 | 12/29/1966 | You're an exception to the rule | Screamin' Jay Hawkins | vocalist |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Hawkins, Screamin' Jay," accessed January 22, 2026, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/320475.
Hawkins, Screamin' Jay. (2026). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved January 22, 2026, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/320475.
"Hawkins, Screamin' Jay." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2026. Web. 22 January 2026.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Wikipedia: Screamin’ Jay Hawkins
Discogs: Screamin' Jay Hawkins
Allmusic: Screamin' Jay Hawkins
Grove: Screamin' Jay Hawkins
IMDb: Screamin' Jay Hawkins
Britannica: Screamin' Jay Hawkins
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Hawkins, Screamin' Jay - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n92065915
Wikidata: Screamin’ Jay Hawkins - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q455754
VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/46946622
MusicBrainz: Screamin’ Jay Hawkins - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/185af318-55c7-405f-8b00-0fa308e56da9
Fast: https://id.worldcat.org/fast/1783773 - https://id.worldcat.org/fast/1783773
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