Swami (
Leroy Daniels], an employee at the Brass Rail, a nightclub frequented by blacks, loses several hundred dollars of the club's receipts in a holdup. Afraid to tell "Second Rate Kate," the club's owner, Swami convinces Weary (
Ernest Mayhand), another employee, to help him return the money before Kate discovers that it is missing. They plan to steal the money from Lonesome (
Otis Greene), a young Texan newly arrived in the city, whom they mistake for a millionaire. Lonesome, an aspiring jazz pianist, is actually a man of very limited means. Unfamiliar with city life and a novice drinker, he gets drunk at the Brass Rail and falls for Melody (
Georgia Carr), a singer who dislikes all musicians. The next night, Lonesome returns to the club and finds Melody talking to a drunk who is holding a canvas bag with the club's name on it. Swami spots the money bag, discovers that the drunk acquired it from a man in the alley, and persuades him to return it to the club. When the club closes for the night, a party is held in Kate's upstairs apartment. Lonesome, who has passed out after running up a sizable bill, awakens in the deserted nightclub and begins to play the piano. Kate hears Lonesome's haunting blues and offers him a job, and Melody decides that she likes him too. Featuring the songs: "Handle With Care," "Too Little and Too Late," "Sad Dreams and Bitter Teardrops." An all African-American musical comedy written, produced and directed by
John K. McCarthy, with photography by
William G. Troiano.