List of pre-1920 jazz standards
Encyclopedia
Jazz standard
Jazz standard
Jazz standards are musical compositions which are an important part of the musical repertoire of jazz musicians, in that they are widely known, performed, and recorded by jazz musicians, and widely known by listeners. There is no definitive list of jazz standards, and the list of songs deemed to be...
s are musical composition
Musical composition
Musical composition can refer to an original piece of music, the structure of a musical piece, or the process of creating a new piece of music. People who practice composition are called composers.- Musical compositions :...
s that are widely known, performed and recorded by jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
artists as part of the genre's musical repertoire. This list includes compositions written before 1920 that are considered standards by at least one major fake book
Fake book
A fake book is a collection of musical lead sheets intended to help a performer quickly learn new songs. Each song in a fake book contains the melody line, basic chords, and lyrics - the minimal information needed by a musician to make an impromptu arrangement of a song, or "fake it."The fake book...
publication or reference work. Some of the tunes listed were instant hits and quickly became well-known standards, while others were popularized later. The time of the most influential recordings of a song, where appropriate, is indicated on the list.
From its conception at the change of the twentieth century, jazz was music intended for dancing. This influenced the choice of material played by early jazz groups: King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band, New Orleans Rhythm Kings
New Orleans Rhythm Kings
The New Orleans Rhythm Kings were one of the most influential jazz bands of the early-to-mid 1920s. The band was a combination of New Orleans and Chicago musicians who helped shape Chicago Jazz and influenced many younger jazz musicians....
and others included a large number of Tin Pan Alley
Tin Pan Alley
Tin Pan Alley is the name given to the collection of New York City music publishers and songwriters who dominated the popular music of the United States in the late 19th century and early 20th century...
popular songs in their repertoire, and record companies often used their power to dictate which songs were to be recorded by their artists. Certain songs were pushed by recording executives and therefore quickly achieved standard status; this started with the first jazz recordings in 1917, when the Original Dixieland Jass Band
Original Dixieland Jass Band
The Original Dixieland Jass Band were a New Orleans, Dixieland jazz band that made the first jazz recordings in early 1917. Their "Livery Stable Blues" became the first jazz single ever issued. The group composed and made the first recordings of many jazz standards, the most famous being Tiger Rag...
recorded "Darktown Strutters' Ball
Darktown Strutters' Ball
"Darktown Strutters' Ball" is a popular song by Shelton Brooks, published in 1917. The song has been recorded many times and is considered a popular and jazz standard....
" and "Indiana
Back Home Again in Indiana
" Indiana" is a song composed by Ballard MacDonald and James F. Hanley, first published in January of 1917. While it is not the official state song of the U.S...
". Originally simply called "jazz", the music of early jazz bands is today often referred to as "Dixieland
Dixieland
Dixieland music, sometimes referred to as Hot jazz, Early Jazz or New Orleans jazz, is a style of jazz music which developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century, and was spread to Chicago and New York City by New Orleans bands in the 1910s.Well-known jazz standard songs from the...
" or "New Orleans jazz", to distinguish it from more recent subgenres.
The origins of jazz are in the musical traditions of early twentieth century New Orleans, including brass band
Brass band
A brass band is a musical ensemble generally consisting entirely of brass instruments, most often with a percussion section. Ensembles that include brass and woodwind instruments can in certain traditions also be termed brass bands , but are usually more correctly termed military bands, concert...
music, the blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
, ragtime
Ragtime
Ragtime is an original musical genre which enjoyed its peak popularity between 1897 and 1918. Its main characteristic trait is its syncopated, or "ragged," rhythm. It began as dance music in the red-light districts of American cities such as St. Louis and New Orleans years before being published...
and spirituals
Spiritual (music)
Spirituals are religious songs which were created by enslaved African people in America.-Terminology and origin:...
, and some of the most popular early standards come from these influences. Ragtime songs "Twelfth Street Rag
Twelfth Street Rag
"Twelfth Street Rag" was composed by Euday L. Bowman in 1914. It is one of the most famous and best-selling rags of the ragtime era. It has been recorded by many artists, ranging from Louis Armstrong to Lester Young. Bowman worked as a pianist in some of the bordellos of Kansas City...
" and "Tiger Rag
Tiger Rag
"Tiger Rag" is a jazz standard, originally recorded and copyrighted by the Original Dixieland Jass Band in 1917. It is one of the most recorded jazz compositions of all time.-Origins:...
" have became popular numbers for jazz artists, as have blues tunes "St. Louis Blues" and "St. James Infirmary
St. James Infirmary Blues
"St. James Infirmary Blues" is based on an 18th century traditional English folk song of anonymous origin, though sometimes credited to the songwriter Joe Primrose . Louis Armstrong made it famous in his influential 1928 recording.-Authorship and history:"St...
". Tin Pan Alley songwriters contributed several songs to the jazz standard repertoire, including "Indiana" and "After You've Gone
After You've Gone (song)
"After You've Gone" is a 1918 popular song composed by Turner Layton, with lyrics written by Henry Creamer. It was recorded by Marion Harris on July 22, 1918 and released on Victor 18509. It is the basis for many other jazz songs, as it can easily be improvised over...
". Others, such as "Some of These Days
Some of These Days
"Some of These Days" is a popular song published in 1910 associated with Sophie Tucker.-Background:Originally written and composed by Shelton Brooks for the “Last of the Red-Hot Mamas”, "Some of These Days" became a signature song for Sophie Tucker, who made the first of her several recordings of...
" and "Darktown Strutters' Ball", were introduced by vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
performers. The most often recorded standards of this period are W. C. Handy
W. C. Handy
William Christopher Handy was a blues composer and musician. He was widely known as the "Father of the Blues"....
's "St. Louis Blues", Turner Layton
Turner Layton
Turner Layton , born John Turner Layton, Jr., was an American songwriter, singer and pianist. Born in Washington, D.C., in 1894, he was the son of John Turner Layton, "a bass singer, music educator and hymn composer." After receiving a musical education from his father, he attended the Howard...
and Henry Creamer
Henry Creamer
Henry Creamer was an American popular song lyricist. He was born in Richmond, Virginia and died in New York. He co-wrote many popular songs in the years from 1900 to 1929, often collaborating with Turner Layton, with whom he also appeared in vaudeville.Creamer was a co-founder with James Reese...
's "After You've Gone" and James Hanley and Ballard MacDonald
Ballard MacDonald
Ballard MacDonald was a Tin Pan Alley lyricist.Born in Portland, Oregon, among his credits are:Beautiful Ohio, Rose of Washington Square, Second Hand Rose, Parade of the Wooden Soldiers, Back Home Again in Indiana, The Trail of the Lonesome Pine, Play That Barbershop Chord, Clap Hands, Here Comes...
's "Indiana".
Traditional (author unknown)
- "Careless LoveCareless Love"Careless Love" is a traditional song of obscure origins.Blues versions are popular; the lyrics change from version to version, but usually speak of the heartbreak brought on by "careless love." Frequently, the narrator threatens to kill his or her wayward lover.The song's melody also is used in...
". Traditional song of unknown origin, copyrighted by W. C. HandyW. C. HandyWilliam Christopher Handy was a blues composer and musician. He was widely known as the "Father of the Blues"....
in 1921. Handy published his version with modified lyrics titled "Loveless Love". Spencer WilliamsSpencer WilliamsSpencer Williams was an American jazz and popular music composer, pianist, and singer. He is best known for his hit songs "Basin Street Blues", "I Ain't Got Nobody", "Royal Garden Blues", "I've Found a New Baby", "Everybody Loves My Baby", "Tishomingo Blues", "Careless Love", and many...
is sometimes credited as the co-writer. Jazz pioneer Buddy BoldenBuddy BoldenCharles "Buddy" Bolden was an African American cornetist and is regarded by contemporaries as a key figure in the development of a New Orleans style of rag-time music which later came to be known as jazz.- Life :...
is known to have been playing the song in the early 1900s. Cornetist Chris KellyChris Kelly (jazz)Chris Kelly was an American jazz trumpeter born in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana on Deer Range Plantation, perhaps best-known for his early contributions on the New Orleans jazz scene. Throughout the 1920s he was a regular collaborator with clarinetist George Lewis...
's playing on the song in the 1920s is said to have "moved men to tears and women to tear off their clothes". - "Frankie and Johnny". Traditional ballad from the 19th century. It became well known in St. LouisSt. Louis, MissouriSt. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
in the 1880s, but the song may have been originally written as early as 1840. Structurally the song is an early version of the twelve-bar blues form. The lyrics may have been inspired by an actual murder case in St. Louis in 1899. Hughie CannonHughie CannonHughie Cannon was a composer and lyricist who was born in Detroit 1877 and died in 1912 in Toledo.-His Works and Bio:His best known composition was the popular song Won't You Come Home Bill Bailey. He wrote the song at the age of sixteen and this ragtime song was published in 1902...
was the first to publish the song in 1904, with the name "He Done Me Wrong", subtitled "Death of Bill Bailey". There are many variations of the title, including "Frankie and Johnny Were Lovers", "Frankie and Albert" and "Frankie". - "Just a Closer Walk with Thee". Traditional gospelGospel musicGospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
song commonly played in jazz funeralJazz funeralJazz funeral is a common name for a funeral tradition with music which developed in New Orleans, Louisiana.The term "jazz funeral" was long in use by observers from elsewhere, but was generally disdained as inappropriate by most New Orleans musicians and practitioners of the tradition...
s. The song originated in the 19th century as a folk song, and became popular during the 1930s and 1940s. The first known recording is from 1941 by the Selah Jubilee SingersSelah Jubilee SingersThe Selah Jubilee Singers was an American gospel vocal quartet, who appeared in public as a gospel group but who also had a successful recording career as a secular group in the 1930s & 1940s.-History:...
. The song influenced the style of Thomas A. DorseyThomas A. DorseyThomas Andrew Dorsey was known as "the father of black gospel music" and was at one time so closely associated with the field that songs written in the new style were sometimes known as "dorseys." Earlier in his life he was a leading blues pianist known as Georgia Tom.As formulated by Dorsey,...
, the "father of gospel music". - "St. James InfirmarySt. James Infirmary Blues"St. James Infirmary Blues" is based on an 18th century traditional English folk song of anonymous origin, though sometimes credited to the songwriter Joe Primrose . Louis Armstrong made it famous in his influential 1928 recording.-Authorship and history:"St...
". Traditional song originating from a 19th-century British folk song titled "The Unfortunate Rake". It was made famous by Louis ArmstrongLouis ArmstrongLouis Armstrong , nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana....
in his 1928 recording. Irving MillsIrving MillsIrving Mills was a jazz music publisher, also known by the name of "Joe Primrose."Mills was born to Jewish parents in the Lower East Side of Manhattan in New York City. He founded Mills Music with his brother Jack in 1919...
copyrighted the song in 1929 under the pseudonym "Joe Primrose". The song was also published by a rival company as "Gambler's Blues (St. James Infirmary Blues)", which resulted in Mills suing the firm for the use of the title "St. James Infirmary". Several early versions of the song became hits; Joe "King" Oliver's rendition rose to the top ten in 1930 and Cab CallowayCab CallowayCabell "Cab" Calloway III was an American jazz singer and bandleader. He was strongly associated with the Cotton Club in Harlem, New York City where he was a regular performer....
's recording in 1931. Jack TeagardenJack TeagardenWeldon Leo "Jack" Teagarden , known as "Big T" and "The Swingin' Gate", was an influential jazz trombonist, bandleader, composer, and vocalist, regarded as the "Father of Jazz Trombone".-Early life:...
is the musician most associated with the song; the first of Teagarden's many recordings of it is from 1930. - "When the Saints Go Marching InWhen the Saints Go Marching In"When the Saints Go Marching In", often referred to as "The Saints", is an American gospel hymn that has taken on certain aspects of folk music. The precise origins of the song are not known. Though it originated as a spiritual, today people are more likely to hear it played by a jazz band...
". Traditional gospel hymn possibly originating in 19th century New Orleans as a funeral march. The music was first published by James Milton BlackJames Milton BlackJames Milton Black was a composer of hymns, choir leader and Sunday school teacher.Black was born in South Hill, New York, but worked, lived and died in Williamsport, Pennsylvania...
and Katharine PurvisKatharine PurvisKatharine E. Nash Purvis is best known as the lyricist for When the Saints Are Marching In.Purvis was the daughter of a Methodist minister in Pennsylvania. After graduating from a seminary in 1860, she became a music teacher at the seminary of a Methodist Episcopal Church in Williamsport,...
in 1896 as "When the Saints Are Marching In". The song was popularized in 1938 by Louis ArmstrongLouis ArmstrongLouis Armstrong , nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana....
, who recorded the song over 40 times during his career. The song is often called "The Saints". It is requested notoriously often in performances of Dixieland bands, and sometimes requests for it even have a higher price than normal requests.
1900–1909
- 1901 – "High Society". Composition by Porter Steele. Originally written as a march and published as a rag, the song soon became one of the most popular tunes of the early New Orleans jazz repertoire. A counterpointCounterpointIn music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more voices that are independent in contour and rhythm and are harmonically interdependent . It has been most commonly identified in classical music, developing strongly during the Renaissance and in much of the common practice period,...
to the melody was arranged by Robert Recker for the piccolo in 1901 and made famous by clarinetist Alphonse PicouAlphonse PicouAlphonse Floristan Picou was an important very early jazz clarinetist who also wrote and arranged music....
. The complex countermelody was often used in auditions for brass band clarinet players. King Oliver's Jazz Band popularized the tune in 1923, and other influential recordings were made by Abe LymanAbe LymanAbe Lyman was a popular bandleader from the 1920s to the 1940s. He made recordings, appeared in films and provided the music for numerous radio shows, including Your Hit Parade....
and His Orchestra in 1932 and by Jelly Roll MortonJelly Roll MortonFerdinand Joseph LaMothe , known professionally as Jelly Roll Morton, was an American ragtime and early jazz pianist, bandleader and composer....
's New Orleans Jazzmen in 1939. - 1902 – "Bill BaileyWon't You Come Home Bill Bailey" Bill Bailey", originally titled "Bill Bailey, Won't You Please Come Home?" is a popular song published in 1902. It is commonly referred to as simply "Bill Bailey"....
". Ragtime song written by Hughie CannonHughie CannonHughie Cannon was a composer and lyricist who was born in Detroit 1877 and died in 1912 in Toledo.-His Works and Bio:His best known composition was the popular song Won't You Come Home Bill Bailey. He wrote the song at the age of sixteen and this ragtime song was published in 1902...
. It continued the story of an earlier coon songCoon songCoon songs were a genre of music popular in the United States and around the English-speaking world from 1880 to 1920, that presented a racist and stereotyped image of blacks.-Rise and fall from popularity:...
, "Ain't Dat a Shame" by Walter Wilson and John Queen. The song was introduced by Queen in vaudeville and first recorded by Arthur Collins in 1902. Its popularity inspired a host of "Bill Bailey" songs, including Cannon's own "He Done Me Wrong", which used a variation of the melody from "Frankie and Johnny". Originally titled "Bill Bailey, Won't You Please Come Home?", the song is also known as "Won't You Come Home Bill Bailey".
1910–1914
- 1910 – "Chinatown, My ChinatownChinatown, My Chinatown"Chinatown, My Chinatown" is a popular song written by William Jerome and Jean Schwartz in 1910.Jerome and Schwartz incorporated Chinese musical forms into Western music for the melody...
". Popular song with ChineseMusic of ChinaChinese Music has been made since the dawn of Chinese civilization with documents and artifacts providing evidence of a well-developed musical culture as early as the Zhou Dynasty...
influences, composed by Jean SchwartzJean SchwartzJean Schwartz was a songwriter.Schwartz was born in Budapest, Hungary. His family moved to New York City when he was 13 years old...
with lyrics by William JeromeWilliam JeromeWilliam Jerome was an American songwriter, born in Cornwall-on-Hudson, New York of Irish immigrant parents, Mary Donnellan and Patrick Flannery...
. The song was included in the 1910 musical revue Up and Down Broadway and became popular among vaudeville performers in the 1910s. Many Chinese AmericanChinese AmericanChinese Americans represent Americans of Chinese descent. Chinese Americans constitute one group of overseas Chinese and also a subgroup of East Asian Americans, which is further a subgroup of Asian Americans...
performers sang the song in both English and Cantonese. Hit recordings were made by the American QuartetAmerican Quartet (ensemble)The American Quartet was a quartet of singers that recorded for various companies from 1899 to 1925. The lineup varied over the years, but the most famous lineup recorded for the Victor Talking Machine Company from 1909 to 1913.*John Bieling - first tenor...
in 1915 and by Louis ArmstrongLouis ArmstrongLouis Armstrong , nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana....
in 1932. - 1910 – "Some of These DaysSome of These Days"Some of These Days" is a popular song published in 1910 associated with Sophie Tucker.-Background:Originally written and composed by Shelton Brooks for the “Last of the Red-Hot Mamas”, "Some of These Days" became a signature song for Sophie Tucker, who made the first of her several recordings of...
". Popular song by Shelton BrooksShelton BrooksShelton Brooks was a popular music and jazz composer who wrote some of the biggest hits of the first third of the 20th century.Brooks was born in Amherstburg, Ontario, Canada...
. It was popularized by vaudeville performer Sophie TuckerSophie TuckerSophie Tucker was a Russian/Ukrainian-born American singer and actress. Known for her stentorian delivery of comical and risqué songs, she was one of the most popular entertainers in America during the first half of the 20th century...
, who used it as her theme song. Tucker recorded the song six times, and sang it in the films Broadway Melody of 1938Broadway Melody of 1938Broadway Melody of 1938 is a 1937 musical film, produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and directed by Roy Del Ruth. The film is essentially a backstage musical revue, featuring high-budget sets and cinematography in the MGM musical tradition...
(1937) and Follow the BoysFollow the BoysFollow the Boys , also known as Three Cheers for the Boys, is a musical film made by Universal Pictures as an all-star cast morale booster to entertain the troops abroad and the civilians at home. The film was directed by A. Edward "Eddie" Sutherland and produced by Charles K. Feldman...
(1944). Brooks's distinctively modern composition was not derived from any of the popular song elements of the time, and the song is considered one of the earliest American pop standards. - 1911 – "Alexander's Ragtime BandAlexander's Ragtime Band"Alexander's Ragtime Band" is the name of a song by Irving Berlin. It was his first major hit, in 1911. There is some evidence, although inconclusive, that Berlin borrowed the melody from a draft of "A Real Slow Drag" submitted by Scott Joplin that had been submitted to a...
". Popular song by Irving BerlinIrving BerlinIrving Berlin was an American composer and lyricist of Jewish heritage, widely considered one of the greatest songwriters in American history.His first hit song, "Alexander's Ragtime Band", became world famous...
. Introduced by vaudeville performer Emma CarusEmma CarusEmma Carus was a contralto singer from New York who was in the cast of the original Ziegfeld Follies in 1907. Her given name was Emma Carus.She frequently sang invaudeville and sometimes in Broadway features...
in Chicago, it was Berlin's first international hit and the biggest Tin Pan Alley hit of the time. Although the music contained few ragtime elements, it started a ragtime craze and introduced the vernacularVernacularA vernacular is the native language or native dialect of a specific population, as opposed to a language of wider communication that is not native to the population, such as a national language or lingua franca.- Etymology :The term is not a recent one...
as a valid form of expression in song lyrics. The melody was allegedly copied from a Scott JoplinScott JoplinScott Joplin was an American composer and pianist. Joplin achieved fame for his ragtime compositions, and was later dubbed "The King of Ragtime". During his brief career, Joplin wrote 44 original ragtime pieces, one ragtime ballet, and two operas...
composition. - 1912 – "The Memphis BluesThe Memphis Blues"The Memphis Blues" is a song described by its composer, W.C. Handy, as a "Southern Rag." It was self-published by Handy in September, 1912 and has been recorded by many artists over the years.-"Mr. Crump":...
". Blues composition by W. C. HandyW. C. HandyWilliam Christopher Handy was a blues composer and musician. He was widely known as the "Father of the Blues"....
with lyrics by George A. Norton. It is one of the earliest printed blues compositions, and two of its three sections are in the twelve-bar blues form. The song possibly originated from a campaign tune for MemphisMemphis, TennesseeMemphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
politician Edward Crump titled "Mr. Crump". Handy claimed composer credit for "Mr. Crump", but some Memphis musicians claimed it was actually written by Handy's clarinetist, Paul Wyer. - 1913 – "Ballin' the JackBallin' the Jack"Ballin' the Jack" is a popular song written by Jim Burris with music by Chris Smith. It introduced a popular dance of the same name with "Folks in Georgia's 'bout to go insane." The song and dance were performed in For Me and My Gal, the 1942 movie starring Judy Garland and Gene Kelly.-Lyrics and...
". Popular song composed by Chris SmithChris Smith (composer)Chris Smith was an American composer and performer.Smith was born in Charleston, South Carolina; he started traveling with Medicine Shows when young and went into Vaudeville where he performed in an acts with Elmer Bowman and Jimmy Durante...
with lyrics by Jim Burris. It was introduced in the Harlem play The Darktown Follies and included in Jerome KernJerome KernJerome David Kern was an American composer of musical theatre and popular music. One of the most important American theatre composers of the early 20th century, he wrote more than 700 songs, used in over 100 stage works, including such classics as "Ol' Man River", "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man", "A...
's 1914 musical The Girl from UtahThe Girl from UtahThe Girl from Utah is an Edwardian musical comedy in two acts with music by Paul Rubens, and Sidney Jones, a book by James T. Tanner, and lyrics by Adrian Ross, Percy Greenbank and Rubens. The story concerns an American girl who runs away to London to avoid becoming a wealthy Mormon's newest wife...
. The song introduced a dance of the same name, which can be seen in the 1942 film For Me and My GalFor Me and My Gal (film)For Me and My Gal is a 1942 American musical film directed by Busby Berkeley and starring Judy Garland, Gene Kelly – in his screen debut – and George Murphy, and featuring Martha Eggerth and Ben Blue. The film was written by Richard Sherman, Fred F...
with Judy GarlandJudy GarlandJudy Garland was an American actress and singer. Through a career that spanned 45 of her 47 years and for her renowned contralto voice, she attained international stardom as an actress in musical and dramatic roles, as a recording artist and on the concert stage...
and Gene KellyGene KellyEugene Curran "Gene" Kelly was an American dancer, actor, singer, film director and producer, and choreographer...
. The dance was later blended with the Lindy HopLindy HopThe Lindy Hop is an American social dance, from the swing dance family. It evolved in Harlem, New York City in the 1920s and '30s and originally evolved with the jazz music of that time. Lindy was a fusion of many dances that preceded it or were popular during its development but is mainly based...
. - 1914 – "St. Louis Blues". Blues composition by W. C. HandyW. C. HandyWilliam Christopher Handy was a blues composer and musician. He was widely known as the "Father of the Blues"....
. It is the most widely performed blues song and the most popular jazz standard written before the 1920s. It was the most recorded jazz standard for over 20 years. The song was initially only moderately successful, but later became a big hit when vaudeville and revue performers started singing it in their shows. The Original Dixieland Jazz Band recorded the first jazz version in 1921; other notable jazz recordings include Louis ArmstrongLouis ArmstrongLouis Armstrong , nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana....
with blues singer Bessie SmithBessie SmithBessie Smith was an American blues singer.Sometimes referred to as The Empress of the Blues, Smith was the most popular female blues singer of the 1920s and 1930s...
in 1925 and virtuoso pianist Art TatumArt TatumArthur "Art" Tatum, Jr. was an American jazz pianist and virtuoso who played with phenomenal facility despite being nearly blind.Tatum is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time...
in 1933. The composition combines the traditional twelve-bar blues form with sections in tango rhythm, and its success earned Handy the title "Father of the Blues". Called the "jazzman's HamletHamletThe Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
", it has inspired the Foxtrot dance step and the name of the St. Louis hockey team. - 1914 – "That's a PlentyThat's a Plenty (song)"That's a Plenty" is a 1914 ragtime piano piece composed by Lew Pollack. Lyrics by Ray Gilbert were added later to turn the ragtime piece into a vocal song . Freddy Martin and His Orchestra recorded a version of "That's A Plenty" in 1950. Sheet music from the 1950 version featuring Freddy Martin on...
". Song composed by Lew PollackLew PollackLew Pollack was a song composer active during the 1920s and the 1930s.Pollack was born in New York. Among his best known songs are "Charmaine" and "Diane" with Ernö Rapée, "Miss Annabelle Lee", "Two Cigarettes in the Dark", "At the Codfish Ball" , and Go In and Out The Window, now a...
with lyrics by Ray GilbertRay GilbertRay Gilbert was a lyricist.Gilbert is best remembered for the lyrics to the Oscar winning song "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" from the film Song of the South, which he wrote with Allie Wrubel in 1947.He married, in 1962, actress Janis Paige.Daughter, actress and singer Joanne Gilbert, July...
. It started out as a rag, and is now included in Dixieland jazz repertoire. The first recording was in 1917 by Prince's Band, and the New Orleans Rhythm KingsNew Orleans Rhythm KingsThe New Orleans Rhythm Kings were one of the most influential jazz bands of the early-to-mid 1920s. The band was a combination of New Orleans and Chicago musicians who helped shape Chicago Jazz and influenced many younger jazz musicians....
recorded their rendition in 1923. Television comedian Jackie GleasonJackie GleasonJackie Gleason was an American comedian, actor and musician. He was known for his brash visual and verbal comedy style, especially by his character Ralph Kramden on The Honeymooners, a situation-comedy television series. His most noted film roles were as Minnesota Fats in the drama film The...
used it in his shows in the 1950s. - 1914 – "Twelfth Street RagTwelfth Street Rag"Twelfth Street Rag" was composed by Euday L. Bowman in 1914. It is one of the most famous and best-selling rags of the ragtime era. It has been recorded by many artists, ranging from Louis Armstrong to Lester Young. Bowman worked as a pianist in some of the bordellos of Kansas City...
". Ragtime composition by Euday L. BowmanEuday L. BowmanEuday Louis Bowman was an American pianist and composer of ragtime and blues who represented the style of Texas Ragtime...
. There are three versions of the lyrics, written by Jack S. Sumner in 1916, Spencer WilliamsSpencer WilliamsSpencer Williams was an American jazz and popular music composer, pianist, and singer. He is best known for his hit songs "Basin Street Blues", "I Ain't Got Nobody", "Royal Garden Blues", "I've Found a New Baby", "Everybody Loves My Baby", "Tishomingo Blues", "Careless Love", and many...
in 1929 and Andy Razaf in 1942. The earliest jazz recording is from 1927 by Louis ArmstrongLouis ArmstrongLouis Armstrong , nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana....
and His Hot Seven. Lester YoungLester YoungLester Willis Young , nicknamed "Prez", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and clarinetist. He also played trumpet, violin, and drums....
played an influential solo on Count Basie OrchestraCount Basie OrchestraThe Count Basie Orchestra is a 16 to 18 piece big band, one of the most prominent jazz performing groups of the swing era, founded by Count Basie. The band survived the late '40s decline in big band popularity and went on to produce notable collaborations with singers such as Frank Sinatra and Ella...
's 1939 recording. Pee Wee HuntPee Wee HuntPee Wee Hunt , born Walter Gerhardt Hunt, was a jazz trombonist, vocalist and band leader....
's 1948 recording sold over three million copies, making the tune the best-selling rag in history.
1915–1917
- 1915 – "I Ain't Got NobodyI Ain't Got Nobody"I Ain't Got Nobody" was a c. 1915 song, written by Spencer Williams. Publisher Roger Graham received co-composer credits. It became a perennial standard, recorded many times over following generations, in styles ranging from pop to jazz to country music....
". Song composed by Spencer WilliamsSpencer WilliamsSpencer Williams was an American jazz and popular music composer, pianist, and singer. He is best known for his hit songs "Basin Street Blues", "I Ain't Got Nobody", "Royal Garden Blues", "I've Found a New Baby", "Everybody Loves My Baby", "Tishomingo Blues", "Careless Love", and many...
with lyrics by Roger Graham. Charles Warfield, composer of "Baby Won't You Please Come HomeBaby Won't You Please Come Home"Baby Won't You Please Come Home" is a blues song written by Charles Warfield and Clarence Williams in 1919. The song's authorship is disputed; Warfield claims that he was the sole composer of the song....
", has disputed the song's authorship, asserting that he had composed it. Warfield copyrighted the song as "I Ain't Got Nobody and Nobody Cares for Me" with David Young and Marie Lucas in 1914. It was introduced by Bert WilliamsBert WilliamsEgbert Austin "Bert" Williams was one of the preeminent entertainers of the Vaudeville era and one of the most popular comedians for all audiences of his time. He was by far the best-selling black recording artist before 1920...
in vaudeville, where it was also a popular number for Sophie TuckerSophie TuckerSophie Tucker was a Russian/Ukrainian-born American singer and actress. Known for her stentorian delivery of comical and risqué songs, she was one of the most popular entertainers in America during the first half of the 20th century...
. The first of many hit records was by Marion HarrisMarion HarrisMarion Harris was an American popular singer, most successful in the 1920s. She was the first widely known white singer to sing jazz and blues songs....
in 1917; Harris recorded the song several times afterwards. The 1939 film Paris Honeymoon with Bing CrosbyBing CrosbyHarry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
revived the song's success, and Louis PrimaLouis PrimaLouis Prima was a Sicilian American singer, actor, songwriter, and trumpeter. Prima rode the musical trends of his time, starting with his seven-piece New Orleans style jazz band in the 1920s, then successively leading a swing combo in the 1930s, a big band in the 1940s, a Vegas lounge act in the...
recorded an influential arrangement of it in 1944, paired with "Just a GigoloJust a Gigolo (song)"Just a Gigolo" is a popular song, adapted by Irving Caesar in 1929 from the Austrian song "Schöner Gigolo, armer Gigolo", written in 1928 by Leonello Casucci and Julius Brammer .-History:...
". - 1915 – "Weary BluesWeary BluesThe Weary Blues is a 1915 tune by Artie Matthews.Despite the name, the form is a multi-strain ragtime rather than a conventional blues....
". Ragtime number by Artie MatthewsArtie MatthewsArtie Matthews was a songwriter, pianist, and ragtime composer.Artie Matthews was born in Braidwood, Illinois; his family moved to Springfield, Illinois in his youth. He learned to play piano, mostly popular songs and light classics, until he heard ragtime played by a pianist named Banty Morgan...
; the published lyrics by George CatesGeorge CatesGeorge Cates was an American music arranger, conductor, songwriter and record executive known for his work with Lawrence Welk and his orchestra....
and Mort Greene are almost never performed. It was written for a competition publisher John StarkJohn Stillwell StarkJohn Stillwell Stark was a United States publisher of ragtime music. He is best known for publishing and promoting the music of Scott Joplin....
organized to compete with the success of W. C. HandyW. C. HandyWilliam Christopher Handy was a blues composer and musician. He was widely known as the "Father of the Blues"....
's "St. Louis Blues", and quickly became a hit. The first recording was by the Louisiana FiveLouisiana FiveThe Louisiana Five was an early dixieland jazz band that was active from 1918-1920. It was among the earliest jazz groups to record extensively.-History:The Louisiana Five was led by Anton Lada, who played the drums....
in 1919, and the New Orleans Rhythm KingsNew Orleans Rhythm KingsThe New Orleans Rhythm Kings were one of the most influential jazz bands of the early-to-mid 1920s. The band was a combination of New Orleans and Chicago musicians who helped shape Chicago Jazz and influenced many younger jazz musicians....
recorded their version in 1923. It was the first jazz number to be played in the White HouseWhite HouseThe White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
. Originally titled "The Pastime Rag #8", the song is also known as "Shake It and Break It". - 1916 – "Beale Street BluesBeale Street Blues"Beale Street Blues" is a 1916 song by American composer and lyricist W.C. Handy. The title refers to Beale Street in Memphis, Tennessee, the main entertainment district for the city's African American population in the early part of the twentieth century, and a place closely associated with the...
". Blues song by W. C. HandyW. C. HandyWilliam Christopher Handy was a blues composer and musician. He was widely known as the "Father of the Blues"....
. Written about the lively black neighborhood in Memphis, TennesseeMemphis, TennesseeMemphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
, the Beale StreetBeale StreetBeale Street is a street in Downtown Memphis, Tennessee, which runs from the Mississippi River to East Street, a distance of approximately . It is a significant location in the city's history, as well as in the history of the blues. Today, the blues clubs and restaurants that line Beale Street are...
, it was first recorded by Prince's Band in 1917. Earl FullerEarl FullerEarl Fuller was an American society dance band leader, drummer and pianist.His group "Earl Fuller's Rector Novelty Orchestra" was a regular feature at Rector's restaurant in New York City. Their records were released on Victor Records, Columbia Records, Emerson Records and Edison Records and sold...
's 1917 hit recording started Handy's commercial success as a composer, earning him more money in royalties than he had ever seen in one place. Gilda GrayGilda GrayGilda Gray was a Polish born American actress and dancer who became famous in the US for popularizing a dance called the "shimmy" which became fashionable in 1920s films and theater productions....
's performance in the Broadway musical Gaieties of 1919 caused a sensation in Broadway circles previously unexposed to blues music. The song later became a signature tune of trombonist Jack TeagardenJack TeagardenWeldon Leo "Jack" Teagarden , known as "Big T" and "The Swingin' Gate", was an influential jazz trombonist, bandleader, composer, and vocalist, regarded as the "Father of Jazz Trombone".-Early life:...
. - 1916 – "Li'l Liza JaneLi'l Liza JaneLi'l Liza Jane, also known as Little Liza Jane and Liza Jane, is a song dating back at least to the 1910s. It has become a perennial standard both as a song and an instrumental in traditional jazz, folk music, and bluegrass, and versions have repeatedly appeared in other genres including rock and...
". Song composed by Countess Ada de Lachau. It was recorded by Earl FullerEarl FullerEarl Fuller was an American society dance band leader, drummer and pianist.His group "Earl Fuller's Rector Novelty Orchestra" was a regular feature at Rector's restaurant in New York City. Their records were released on Victor Records, Columbia Records, Emerson Records and Edison Records and sold...
's Famous Jazz Band in 1917. It was based on earlier minstrel songsMinstrel showThe minstrel show, or minstrelsy, was an American entertainment consisting of comic skits, variety acts, dancing, and music, performed by white people in blackface or, especially after the Civil War, black people in blackface....
, and contains similarities with Stephen FosterStephen FosterStephen Collins Foster , known as the "father of American music", was the pre-eminent songwriter in the United States of the 19th century...
's 1850 song "Camptown RacesCamptown RacesGwine to Run All Night, or De Camptown Races is a minstrel song by Stephen Foster . It was probably composed in Cincinnati in 1849, according to Richard Jackson, and published by F. D. Benteen of Baltimore, Maryland, in February 1850...
". Alison Krauss & Union StationAlison KraussAlison Maria Krauss is an American bluegrass-country singer, songwriter and fiddler. She entered the music industry at an early age, winning local contests by the age of ten and recording for the first time at fourteen. She signed with Rounder Records in 1985 and released her first solo album in...
's 1997 recording won a Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental PerformanceGrammy Award for Best Country Instrumental PerformanceThe Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental Performance was awarded from 1970 to 2011. Between 1986 and 1989 the award was presented as the Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental Performance ....
. The song is also known as "Little Liza Jane" or "Liza Jane". - 1917 – "Darktown Strutters' BallDarktown Strutters' Ball"Darktown Strutters' Ball" is a popular song by Shelton Brooks, published in 1917. The song has been recorded many times and is considered a popular and jazz standard....
". Popular song by Shelton BrooksShelton BrooksShelton Brooks was a popular music and jazz composer who wrote some of the biggest hits of the first third of the 20th century.Brooks was born in Amherstburg, Ontario, Canada...
. It was introduced by the vaudeville trio of Benny FieldsBenny FieldsBenny Fields was a popular singer of the early 20th century, best known as one-half of the Blossom Seeley-Benny Fields vaudeville team...
, Benny DavisBenny DavisBenny Davis was a vaudeville performer and writer of popular songs. He composed the classic 1926 standard "Baby Face" with Harry Akst.-Life and career:...
and Jack Salisbury. The Original Dixieland Jass BandOriginal Dixieland Jass BandThe Original Dixieland Jass Band were a New Orleans, Dixieland jazz band that made the first jazz recordings in early 1917. Their "Livery Stable Blues" became the first jazz single ever issued. The group composed and made the first recordings of many jazz standards, the most famous being Tiger Rag...
's instrumental recording from 1917 (coupled with "IndianaBack Home Again in Indiana" Indiana" is a song composed by Ballard MacDonald and James F. Hanley, first published in January of 1917. While it is not the official state song of the U.S...
" from the same session) is one of the earliest recorded jazz performances. It became an instant hit, selling over a million copies. Sheet music sales for the song exceeded three million. The song is also known as "At the Darktown Strutters' Ball" or "Strutters' Ball". - 1917 – "IndianaBack Home Again in Indiana" Indiana" is a song composed by Ballard MacDonald and James F. Hanley, first published in January of 1917. While it is not the official state song of the U.S...
". Popular song composed by James F. Hanley with lyrics by Ballard MacDonaldBallard MacDonaldBallard MacDonald was a Tin Pan Alley lyricist.Born in Portland, Oregon, among his credits are:Beautiful Ohio, Rose of Washington Square, Second Hand Rose, Parade of the Wooden Soldiers, Back Home Again in Indiana, The Trail of the Lonesome Pine, Play That Barbershop Chord, Clap Hands, Here Comes...
. It was heavily influenced by the state song of IndianaIndianaIndiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, "On the Banks of the Wabash, Far AwayOn the Banks of the Wabash, Far Away"On the Banks of the Wabash, Far Away" was among the best-selling songs of the 19th century in terms of sheet music sold. Written and composed by American songwriter Paul Dresser, it was published by the Tin Pan Alley firm of Howley, Haviland & Co. in October 1897. The lyrics of the ballad...
", published by Paul DresserPaul DresserJohann Paul Dresser, Jr. was a popular American songwriter of the late 19th century and early 20th century. As a child and adolescent he was frequently in trouble and spent several months in jail before joining a band of traveling minstrels...
in 1913. The Original Dixieland Jass BandOriginal Dixieland Jass BandThe Original Dixieland Jass Band were a New Orleans, Dixieland jazz band that made the first jazz recordings in early 1917. Their "Livery Stable Blues" became the first jazz single ever issued. The group composed and made the first recordings of many jazz standards, the most famous being Tiger Rag...
's 1917 recording (with "Darktown Strutters' BallDarktown Strutters' Ball"Darktown Strutters' Ball" is a popular song by Shelton Brooks, published in 1917. The song has been recorded many times and is considered a popular and jazz standard....
") is one of the earliest recorded jazz performances. The song has been used as part of the Indianapolis 500Indianapolis 500The Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, also known as the Indianapolis 500, the 500 Miles at Indianapolis, the Indy 500 or The 500, is an American automobile race, held annually, typically on the last weekend in May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana...
pre-race ceremonies since 1946, with the alternative title "Back Home Again in Indiana". The tradition is most closely associated with Jim NaborsJim NaborsJames Thurston "Jim" Nabors is an American actor and singer. Born and raised in Sylacauga, Alabama, Nabors moved to Southern California because of his asthma. While working at a Santa Monica nightclub, The Horn, he was discovered by Andy Griffith and later joined The Andy Griffith Show, playing...
, who has performed the song almost every year since 1973. The song is one of the most popular pre-1920s standards, and its chord progressionChord progressionA chord progression is a series of musical chords, or chord changes that "aims for a definite goal" of establishing a tonality founded on a key, root or tonic chord. In other words, the succession of root relationships...
has been used in numerous jazz compositions, including Miles DavisMiles DavisMiles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
's 1947 tune "Donna LeeDonna Lee"Donna Lee" is a bebop jazz standard composed by Miles Davis. It was written in A flat and is based on the chord changes of the traditional jazz standard " Indiana". One unusual feature of the tune is that it begins with a half-bar rest...
". - 1917 – "Rose RoomRose Room"Rose Room", also known as "In Sunny Roseland", is a 1917 jazz standard by Art Hickman and Harry Williams. The name of the song's lyricist is unknown, and it is usually performed as an instrumental...
". Jazz song composed by Art HickmanArt HickmanArthur G. Hickman was a drummer, pianist, and band leader whose orchestra is sometimes seen as an ancestor to Big band music. It fits into what are termed "sweet bands", something like that of Paul Whiteman. His orchestra is also credited, perhaps dubiously, with being among the first jazz bands....
with lyrics by Harry Williams. Also known as "In Sunny Roseland", the tune is usually played as an instrumental because of its flowery lyrics. It was popularized by Duke EllingtonDuke EllingtonEdward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
in 1932; Ellington later used the tune's chord progressionChord progressionA chord progression is a series of musical chords, or chord changes that "aims for a definite goal" of establishing a tonality founded on a key, root or tonic chord. In other words, the succession of root relationships...
for his 1939 composition "In a Mellow ToneIn a Mellow Tone"In a Mellow Tone", also known as "In a Mellotone", is a 1939 jazz standard composed by Duke Ellington, with lyrics written by Milt Gabler. The song was based on the 1917 standard "Rose Room" by Art Hickman and Harry Williams...
". Charlie ChristianCharlie ChristianCharles Henry "Charlie" Christian was an American swing and jazz guitarist.Christian was an important early performer on the electric guitar, and is cited as a key figure in the development of bebop and cool jazz. He gained national exposure as a member of the Benny Goodman Sextet and Orchestra...
used the song as his "audition" piece for the Benny GoodmanBenny GoodmanBenjamin David “Benny” Goodman was an American jazz and swing musician, clarinetist and bandleader; widely known as the "King of Swing".In the mid-1930s, Benny Goodman led one of the most popular musical groups in America...
Sextet in 1939, appearing uninvited at a gig and playing a 45-minute rendition of the song with the band. - 1917 – "Tiger RagTiger Rag"Tiger Rag" is a jazz standard, originally recorded and copyrighted by the Original Dixieland Jass Band in 1917. It is one of the most recorded jazz compositions of all time.-Origins:...
". Ragtime composition first recorded by the Original Dixieland Jass BandOriginal Dixieland Jass BandThe Original Dixieland Jass Band were a New Orleans, Dixieland jazz band that made the first jazz recordings in early 1917. Their "Livery Stable Blues" became the first jazz single ever issued. The group composed and made the first recordings of many jazz standards, the most famous being Tiger Rag...
in 1917. The music was credited to band members Eddie Edwards, Nick La Rocca, Henry RagasHenry RagasHenry Ragas was a jazz pianist who played with the Original Dixieland Jass Band on their earliest recording sessions. As such, he is the very first jazz pianist to be recorded , although his contributions are barely audible due to the primitive recording equipment available...
, Tony SbarbaroTony SbarbaroAntonio Sparbaro, better known as Tony Sbarbaro or Tony Spargo was an American jazz drummer associated with New Orleans jazz. He was the drummer of the Original Dixieland Jazz Band for over 50 years....
and Larry ShieldsLarry ShieldsLawrence James "Larry" Shields was an early American dixieland jazz clarinetist.Shields was born into an Irish-American family in Uptown New Orleans, on the same block where jazz pioneer Buddy Bolden lived...
, and lyrics to Harry Da Costa; however, several New Orleans musicians claimed that the tune had already existed for years before the ODJB's recording. Jelly Roll MortonJelly Roll MortonFerdinand Joseph LaMothe , known professionally as Jelly Roll Morton, was an American ragtime and early jazz pianist, bandleader and composer....
claimed in an interview that he had composed it. The music was possibly based on an old French quadrilleQuadrilleQuadrille is a historic dance performed by four couples in a square formation, a precursor to traditional square dancing. It is also a style of music...
. Louis ArmstrongLouis ArmstrongLouis Armstrong , nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana....
recorded the tune in 1930, and based his 1927 composition "Hotter Than That" on its chord progressionChord progressionA chord progression is a series of musical chords, or chord changes that "aims for a definite goal" of establishing a tonality founded on a key, root or tonic chord. In other words, the succession of root relationships...
. Art TatumArt TatumArthur "Art" Tatum, Jr. was an American jazz pianist and virtuoso who played with phenomenal facility despite being nearly blind.Tatum is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time...
made an influential piano recording of the tune in 1932. Immediately popular after its initial release, the tune fell out of fashion during the swing eraSwing EraThe Swing era was the period of time when big band swing music was the most popular music in the United States. Though the music had been around since the late 1920s and early 1930s, being played by black bands led by such artists as Duke Ellington, Jimmie Lunceford, Benny Moten, Ella Fitzgerald,...
, and is rarely performed by jazz musicians today.
1918–1919
- 1918 – "After You've GoneAfter You've Gone (song)"After You've Gone" is a 1918 popular song composed by Turner Layton, with lyrics written by Henry Creamer. It was recorded by Marion Harris on July 22, 1918 and released on Victor 18509. It is the basis for many other jazz songs, as it can easily be improvised over...
". Popular song composed by Turner LaytonTurner LaytonTurner Layton , born John Turner Layton, Jr., was an American songwriter, singer and pianist. Born in Washington, D.C., in 1894, he was the son of John Turner Layton, "a bass singer, music educator and hymn composer." After receiving a musical education from his father, he attended the Howard...
with lyrics by Henry CreamerHenry CreamerHenry Creamer was an American popular song lyricist. He was born in Richmond, Virginia and died in New York. He co-wrote many popular songs in the years from 1900 to 1929, often collaborating with Turner Layton, with whom he also appeared in vaudeville.Creamer was a co-founder with James Reese...
. Originally included in the musical So Long, Letty, it was introduced in vaudeville by Al JolsonAl JolsonAl Jolson was an American singer, comedian and actor. In his heyday, he was dubbed "The World's Greatest Entertainer"....
. Marion HarrisMarion HarrisMarion Harris was an American popular singer, most successful in the 1920s. She was the first widely known white singer to sing jazz and blues songs....
's recording reached number one in 1919. The song was popularized by the 1927 recordings of Bessie SmithBessie SmithBessie Smith was an American blues singer.Sometimes referred to as The Empress of the Blues, Smith was the most popular female blues singer of the 1920s and 1930s...
and Sophie TuckerSophie TuckerSophie Tucker was a Russian/Ukrainian-born American singer and actress. Known for her stentorian delivery of comical and risqué songs, she was one of the most popular entertainers in America during the first half of the 20th century...
, and Roy EldridgeRoy EldridgeRoy David Eldridge , nicknamed "Little Jazz" was an American jazz trumpet player. His sophisticated use of harmony, including the use of tritone substitutions, his virtuosic solos and his strong influence on Dizzy Gillespie mark him as one of the most exciting musicians of the swing era and a...
recorded a famous solo with the Gene KrupaGene KrupaGene Krupa was an American jazz and big band drummer and composer, known for his highly energetic and flamboyant style.-Biography:...
Orchestra in 1941. The song is the third most recorded pre-1920s standard, after St. Louis Blues and IndianaBack Home Again in Indiana" Indiana" is a song composed by Ballard MacDonald and James F. Hanley, first published in January of 1917. While it is not the official state song of the U.S...
. - 1918 – "Ja-DaJa-Da"Ja-Da " was a hit song written in 1918 by Bob Carleton . The title is sometimes rendered as "Jada." Ja-Da has flourished through the decades as a jazz standard....
". Popular song by Bob Carleton. It was written for singer Cliff EdwardsCliff EdwardsCliff Edwards , also known as "Ukelele Ike", was an American singer and voice actor who enjoyed considerable popularity in the 1920s and early 1930s, specializing in jazzy renditions of pop standards and novelty tunes. He had a number-one hit with "Singin' in the Rain" in 1929...
, who became a big name in vaudeville due to the song's popularity. Arthur FieldsArthur FieldsArthur Fields was a United States singer and songwriter.He was born Abraham Finkelstein in Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, but grew up mainly in Utica, New York. He became a professional singer as a youngster...
made a hit recording in of it in 1918. The song was written as a parody of popular Asian-influenced songs of the early twentieth century. Thelonious MonkThelonious MonkThelonious Sphere Monk was an American jazz pianist and composer considered "one of the giants of American music". Monk had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the standard jazz repertoire, including "Epistrophy", "'Round Midnight", "Blue Monk", "Straight, No Chaser"...
's unreleased 1952 composition "Sixteen" was based on the song's chord progressionChord progressionA chord progression is a series of musical chords, or chord changes that "aims for a definite goal" of establishing a tonality founded on a key, root or tonic chord. In other words, the succession of root relationships...
, also similar to Sonny RollinsSonny RollinsTheodore Walter "Sonny" Rollins is a Grammy-winning American jazz tenor saxophonist. Rollins is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. A number of his compositions, including "St...
's 1954 tune "DoxyDoxy (song)"Doxy" is an early composition by jazz saxophonist Sonny Rollins. It first appeared on the 1954 Miles Davis album Bags' Groove, performed by Davis on trumpet, Rollins on tenor saxophone, Horace Silver on piano, Percy Heath on bass, and Kenny Clarke on drums. When Rollins eventually established his...
". The song is also known as "Ja Da, Ja Da, Jing Jing Jing!". - 1919 – "Baby Won't You Please Come HomeBaby Won't You Please Come Home"Baby Won't You Please Come Home" is a blues song written by Charles Warfield and Clarence Williams in 1919. The song's authorship is disputed; Warfield claims that he was the sole composer of the song....
". Blues song written by Charles Warfield and co-credited to publisher Clarence Williams. Williams published the sheet music in 1923, and the same year Bessie SmithBessie SmithBessie Smith was an American blues singer.Sometimes referred to as The Empress of the Blues, Smith was the most popular female blues singer of the 1920s and 1930s...
recorded the first hit version. The song is often played as a ballad, although the sheet music indicates "medium bounce tempo". Williams himself recorded the song in 1928 with his Blue Five. Jo StaffordJo StaffordJo Elizabeth Stafford was an American singer of traditional pop music and jazz standards and occasional actress whose career ran from the late 1930s to the early 1960s...
and Nat King ColeNat King ColeNathaniel Adams Coles , known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American musician who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist. Although an accomplished pianist, he owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz genres...
sang it in the 1945 film That's the Spirit. - 1919 – "Royal Garden BluesRoyal Garden Blues"Royal Garden Blues" is a blues song composed by Clarence and Spencer Williams in 1919. Popularized in jazz by the Original Dixieland Jazz Band, it has since been recorded by numerous artists and has become a jazz standard...
". Blues song written by Spencer WilliamsSpencer WilliamsSpencer Williams was an American jazz and popular music composer, pianist, and singer. He is best known for his hit songs "Basin Street Blues", "I Ain't Got Nobody", "Royal Garden Blues", "I've Found a New Baby", "Everybody Loves My Baby", "Tishomingo Blues", "Careless Love", and many...
and co-credited to publisher Clarence Williams. It is considered one of the first riffRIFFThe Resource Interchange File Format is a generic file container format for storing data in tagged chunks. It is primarily used to store multimedia such as sound and video, though it may also be used to store any arbitrary data....
-based popular songs. The song was introduced by the George Morrison Jazz Orchestra in 1920 and popularized by the 1921 recordings of the Original Dixieland Jazz Band and Mamie SmithMamie Smith-External links:* African American Registry* with photos* with .ram files of her early recordings* NPR special on the selection on "Crazy Blues" to the 2005...
. Smith's recording with her Jazz Hounds has been called the earliest genuine jazz recording by a black ensemble. Bix BeiderbeckeBix BeiderbeckeLeon Bismark "Bix" Beiderbecke was an American jazz cornetist, jazz pianist, and composer.With Louis Armstrong, Beiderbecke was one of the most influential jazz soloists of the 1920s...
recorded an influential version in 1927. Darius MilhaudDarius MilhaudDarius Milhaud was a French composer and teacher. He was a member of Les Six—also known as The Group of Six—and one of the most prolific composers of the 20th century. His compositions are influenced by jazz and make use of polytonality...
used the song in his ballet La création du mondeLa Création du MondeThe composition La création du monde, Op. 81a, is a 20-minute-long ballet with music composed by Darius Milhaud, in 1922-1923,which outlines the Creation of the World, based on African folk mythology.- History :...
. - 1919 – "Someday SweetheartSomeday Sweetheart"Someday Sweetheart" is a jazz standard written by Los Angeles-based musicians John and Reb Spikes in 1919. It was the biggest hit the brothers wrote, and was performed by many recording artists of the period. The first one to record the tune was blues singer Alberta Hunter...
". Jazz song credited to John SpikesJohn SpikesJohn Curry Spikes was an American jazz musician and entrepreneur.Along with his brother Reb Spikes, John ran a traveling show band in early 1900s. At one point, Jelly Roll Morton was a member of the band...
. Publisher Spikes's brother and associate Reb SpikesReb SpikesBenjamin Franklin "Reb" Spikes Benjamin Franklin "Reb" Spikes Benjamin Franklin "Reb" Spikes (October 31, 1888 – February 24, 1982 was an American jazz saxophonist and entrepreneur. His composition with his brother John, "Someday Sweetheart", has become an often-recorded jazz standard.-Biography:...
was added to the credits when the song was copyrighted in 1924. Jelly Roll MortonJelly Roll MortonFerdinand Joseph LaMothe , known professionally as Jelly Roll Morton, was an American ragtime and early jazz pianist, bandleader and composer....
, who recorded the song in 1923 and again in 1926, has claimed that the song was actually his idea. Alberta HunterAlberta HunterAlberta Hunter was an American blues singer, songwriter, and nurse. Her career had started back in the early 1920s, and from there on, she became a successful jazz and blues recording artist, being critically acclaimed to the ranks of Ethel Waters and Bessie Smith...
was the first to record the song in 1921, and Gene AustinGene AustinGene Austin was an American singer and songwriter, one of the first "crooners". His 1920s compositions "When My Sugar Walks Down the Street" and "The Lonesome Road" became pop and jazz standards.-Career:...
had a best-selling record with the song in 1927. - 1919 – "The World Is Waiting for the SunriseThe World Is Waiting for the Sunrise"The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise" is a popular ballad with lyrics by Gene Lockhart and music by the concert pianist Ernest Seitz, who had conceived the refrain when he was 12. Embarrassed about writing popular music, Seitz used the pseudonym "Raymond Roberts" when the song was first published...
". Popular ballad composed by Ernest SeitzErnest SeitzErnest Joseph Seitz was a Canadian composer, songwriter, pianist, and music educator. He published some of his work under the pseudonym "Raymond Roberts" because he did not wish to be associated with popular music. His most famous work is The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise, which he co-wrote...
with lyrics by Gene LockhartGene LockhartEugene "Gene" Lockhart was a Canadian character actor, singer, and playwright. He also wrote the lyrics to a number of popular songs.-Early life:...
. It was the first hit of Isham JonesIsham JonesIsham Jones was a United States bandleader, saxophonist, bassist and songwriter.-Career:Jones was born in Coalton, Ohio, to a musical and mining family, and grew up in Saginaw, Michigan, where he started his first band...
and His Orchestra in 1922. Other popular versions were the Benson Orchestra's 1922 recording with an arrangement by Roy BargyRoy BargyRoy Fredrick Bargy was an American composer and pianist.Born in Newaygo, Michigan, he grew up in Toledo, Ohio, where he was exposed to the music of pianists Johnny Walters and Luckey Roberts. In 1919 he began working with Charley Straight at the Imperial Piano Roll Company in Chicago, performing,...
and Frank Banta's 1928 piano solo. The Firehouse Five Plus TwoFirehouse Five Plus TwoThe Firehouse Five Plus Two was a Dixieland jazz band, popular in the 1950s, consisting of members of the Walt Disney Studios animation department;-Members:Danny Alguire — cornetHarper Goff — banjo...
revived it in their 1950 recording, and Les PaulLes PaulLester William Polsfuss —known as Les Paul—was an American jazz and country guitarist, songwriter and inventor. He was a pioneer in the development of the solid-body electric guitar which made the sound of rock and roll possible. He is credited with many recording innovations...
and Mary FordMary FordMary Ford , born Iris Colleen Summers, was an American vocalist and guitarist, comprising half of the husband-and-wife musical team Les Paul and Mary Ford. Between 1950 and 1954, the couple had 16 top-ten hits...
made it a million-selling pop hit in 1951.