Panama Francis

David Albert "Panama" Francis (December 21, 1918 – November 13, 2001) was an American swing jazz drummer who played on numerous hit recordings in the 1950s.

Early life Francis was born in Miami, Florida, on December 21, 1918. His father was Haitian, and "his mother came from an English property-owning background in the Bahamas". and Jackie Wilson ("Reet Petite").

Discography As leader Latin American Dixieland (MGM, 1954) Exploding Drums (Epic, 1959) The Beat Behind the Million Sellers (ABC-Paramount, 1960) Gettin' in the Groove (Black and Blue, 1979) Panama Francis and the Savoy Sultans (Classic Jazz, 1980)

As sideman

With Eddie Barefield Eddie Barefield (RCA, 1974) The Indestructible E. B. (Famous Door, 1977) With Tony Bennett To My Wonderful One (Columbia, 1960) With Ray Bryant Groove House (Sue, 1963) Hot Turkey (Black and Blue, 1979) With Milt Buckner Green Onions (Black and Blue, 1975) Midnight Slows Vol 6 (Black and Blue, 1977) With Solomon Burke If You Need Me (Atlantic, 1963) King Solomon (Atlantic, 1968) With Cab Calloway Hi De Ho Man (Columbia, 1974) Jumpin' Jive (CBS, 1984) With Ray Charles Sweet & Sour Tears (ABC, 1964) With Arnett Cobb Jumpin' at the Woodside (Black and Blue, 1974) The Wild Man from Texas (Black and Blue, 1977) Keep On Pushin' (Bee Hive, 1984) With Ray Conniff 'S Awful Nice (Columbia, 1958) Ray Conniff's Concert in Stereo (CBS, 1970) Live in Japan (CBS, 1975) With Sam Cooke My Kind of Blues (RCA Victor, 1961) Twistin' the Night Away (RCA Victor, 1962) With Dion DiMucci Runaround Sue (Laurie Records, 1961) With Earl Hines Hines '74 (Black & Blue, 1974) Earl Hines at Sundown (Black & Blue, 1974) The Dirty Old Men (Black and Blue, 1978) With John Lee Hooker It Serve You Right to Suffer (Impulse! Records, 1966) With Brownie McGhee and Sonny Terry A Long Way from Home (Bluesway, 1969) I Couldn't Believe My Eyes (Bluesway, 1973) With Wilson Pickett In the Midnight Hour (Atlantic Records, 1965) With Big Joe Turner Singing the Blues (BluesWay, 1967) Joe's Back in Town (Black and Blue, 1974) Effervescent (Classic Jazz, 1979)

With others Red Allen, Jazz at the Metropole Cafe (Bethlehem, 1955) Casey Anderson, The Bag I'm In (Atco, 1962) Cat Anderson, Cat on a Hot Tin Horn (Mercury, 1958) Doc Bagby, A Place in the Sun (Current, 1967) Mickey Baker, The Blues and Me (Black and Blue, 1974) Emmett Berry, Buddy Tate, Beauty and the Blues (Columbia, 1960) Big Maybelle, Gabbin' Blues and Other Big Hits (Epic, 1968) Eubie Blake, The Marches I Played on the Old Ragtime Piano (20th Fox, 1960) Nappy Brown, Don't Be Angry! (Savoy, 1984) James Brown, Please Please Please (King, 1958) James Brown, Try Me! (King, 1959) James Brown, Out of Sight (Smash, 1964) James Brown, Showtime (Smash, 1964) Oscar Brown, Sin & Soul (Columbia, 1960) Gene Conners, Coming Home (Belter, 1978) Dorothy Donegan, The Many Faces of Dorothy Donegan (Mahogany, 1975) Roy Eldridge, At the Arcadia Ballroom Broadway New York City 1939 (Musidisc, 1975) Roy Gaines, Superman (Black and Blue, 1975) Dizzy Gillespie, The Melody Lingers On (Limelight, 1966) Lloyd Glenn, Old Time Shuffle (Black and Blue, 1976) Tiny Grimes, Some Groovy Fours (Black and Blue, 1974) Lionel Hampton, At Newport '78 (Timeless, 1980) Woody Herman, Hey! Heard the Herd? (Verve, 1963) Eddie Heywood, Eddie Heywood at the Piano (Mercury, 1960) Claude Hopkins, Music of the Early Jazz Dances (20th Fox, 1958) Dick Hyman, Traditional Jazz Piano (Project 3, 1973) Johnny Letman, The Many Angles of John Letman (Bethlehem, 1960) Little Willie John, Fever (Regency, 1956) Odetta, Sometimes I Feel Like Cryin' (RCA Victor, 1962) Andrew Odom, Farther on Down the Road (Bluesway, 1973) Red Prysock, Swing Softly Red (Mercury, 1961) Louisiana Red, Lowdown Back Porch Blues (Lowdown Back Porch, 1963) Charlie Shavers, Horn o' Plenty (Bethlehem, 1954) Carrie Smith, Do Your Duty (Black and Blue, 1976) David T. Walker, Going Up! (Revue, 1969) Dick Wellstood, Fats Waller Revisited (Classic Jazz, 1975) Jimmy Witherspoon, Sing the Blues with Panama Francis and the Savoy Sultans (Muse, 1983)

Singles Year Title Artist Date U.S. chart R&B chart UK chart Producer Notes 1955 "Only You (And You Alone)" The Platters April 26 5 1 18 Buck Ram plays piano 1955 "The Great Pretender" The Platters 1 1 5 Buck Ram 1956 "I Put a Spell On You" Screaming Jay Hawkins September 12 1956 "My Prayer" The Platters 1 22 4 Buck Ram 1958 "Splish Splash" Bobby Darin May 19 3 1 28 1958 "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" The Platters 1 3 1 Buck Ram 1960 "Lullabye" The Chevrons July 20 1959 "What a Diff'rence a Day Made" Dinah Washington February 19 8 4 with the Belford Hendricks Orchestra 1959 "I Cried a Tear" LaVern Baker 6 2 Ahmet Ertegun, Jerry Wexler 1961 "Runaround Sue" Dion 4 11 11 Gene Schwartz, Dion backing vocals by the Del Satins 1962 "Big Girls Don't Cry" The Four Seasons October 1 1 13 Bob Crewe 1962 "Prisoner of Love" James Brown December 17 18 6 James Brown, Hal Neely 1963 "Walk Like a Man" The Four Seasons January 1962 1 3 12 Bob Crewe