Editing Dinah Washington (section)

===Appraisals and notable performances===
In the 1950s and early 1960s before her death, Washington occasionally performed on the Las Vegas Strip. [[Tony Bennett]] said of Washington during a recording session with [[Amy Winehouse]]: 
{{blockquote|She was a good friend of mine, you know. She was great. She used to just come in with two suitcases in Vegas without being booked...And she'd stay as long as she wanted. And all the kids in all the shows on the Strip would come that night. They'd hear that she's in town and it would be packed just for her performance.}}

According to Richard S. Ginell at AllMusic:<ref name=allmusic />
{{blockquote|[Washington] was at once one of the most beloved and controversial singers of the mid-20th century – beloved to her fans, devotees, and fellow singers; controversial to critics who still accuse her of selling out her art to commerce and bad taste. Her principal sin, apparently, was to cultivate a distinctive vocal style that was at home in all kinds of music, be it R&B, blues, jazz, middle of the road pop – and she probably would have made a fine gospel or country singer had she the time. Hers was a gritty, salty, high-pitched voice, marked by absolute clarity of diction and clipped, bluesy phrasing.}}

Washington's achievements included appearances at the [[Newport Jazz Festival]] (1955–1959), the Randalls Island Jazz Festival in New York City (1959), and the International Jazz Festival in Washington, D.C. (1962), frequent gigs at [[Birdland (jazz club)|Birdland]] (1958, 1961–1962), and performances in 1963 with [[Count Basie]] and [[Duke Ellington]].