These Amazing Vegas Acts Are Worth Every Penny

Louis Prima

Louis Prima and his sidekick Neely Smith were the original blockbusters of lounge entertainment in Vegas. His act at the Sahara’s Casbar Lounge in the 1950’s was dubbed “The Wildest Show in Las Vegas,” with Prima playing his horn like a madman and Smith playing it cool. With sax player Sam Butera and the band The Witnesses, Prima played his way into a record contract with Capitol Records.

Prima and his band often went into the crowd while blowing their horns, bringing audience engagement to a new level. The song “Jump, Jive an’ Wail” and the famous “Just a Gigolo/I Ain’t Got Nobody” were showcased at the Casbar, the birthplace of Las Vegas lounge acts.