Black Swan Records was an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

and blues

record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...

founded in 1921 in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

, New York. It was the first widely distributed label to be owned, operated, and marketed to

African Americans African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

. (Broome Special Phonograph Records was the first to be owned and operated by African Americans). Black Swan was established to give African Americans a label that would give them more creative liberties. Black Swan was revived in the 1990s for CD reissues of historic jazz and blues recordings.

History

Black Swan's parent company, Pace Phonograph Corporation, was founded in March 1921 by

Harry Pace Harry Herbert Pace (January 6, 1884 – July 19, 1943) was an American music publisher and insurance executive. He was the founder of Black Swan Records, the first record label owned by an African American with wide distribution capabilities. ...

and was based in Harlem. The new production company was formed after Pace's music publishing partnership with

W. C. Handy William Christopher Handy (November 16, 1873 – March 28, 1958) was an American composer and musician who referred to himself as the Father of the Blues. Handy was one of the most influential songwriters in the United States. One of many musici ...

, Pace & Handy, had dissolved. Black Swan, which sought to specialize in classical recordings, served as an investment opportunity for the Talented Tenth. As recognized by Thomas Brothers, "luminaries like Jack Nail and

James Weldon Johnson James Weldon Johnson (June 17, 1871June 26, 1938) was an American writer and civil rights activist. He was married to civil rights activist Grace Nail Johnson. Johnson was a leader of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored Peop ...

served on the Black Swan board of directors", and ''

The Crisis ''The Crisis'' is the official magazine of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). It was founded in 1910 by W. E. B. Du Bois (editor), Oswald Garrison Villard, J. Max Barber, Charles Edward Russell, Kelly Mi ...

'', the journal then edited by

W.E.B. Du Bois William Edward Burghardt Du Bois ( ; February 23, 1868 – August 27, 1963) was an American-Ghanaian sociologist, socialist, historian, and Pan-Africanist civil rights activist. Born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, Du Bois grew up i ...

, and published by the NAACP, invested its profits in the company.

Bert Williams Bert Williams (November 12, 1874 – March 4, 1922) was a Bahamian-born American entertainer, one of the pre-eminent entertainers of the Vaudeville era and one of the most popular comedians for all audiences of his time. He is credited as being ...

was an early investor in Pace Phonograph. Williams also promised to record for the company once his exclusive contract with

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

ended, but he died before that could occur. Pace Phonograph Corporation was renamed Black Swan Phonograph Company in the fall of 1922. Both the record label and production company were named after 19th century opera star

Elizabeth Greenfield Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield (1809 – March 31, 1876), dubbed "The Black Swan" (a play on Jenny Lind's sobriquet, "The Swedish Nightingale), was an American singer considered the best-known black concert artist of her time. She was lauded by ...

, who was known as the Black Swan. Former employees of Pace & Handy staffed the new company:

Fletcher Henderson James Fletcher Hamilton Henderson (December 18, 1897 – December 29, 1952) was an American pianist, bandleader, arranger and composer, important in the development of big band jazz and swing music. He was one of the most prolific black musi ...

, who functioned as the recording manager, provided piano accompaniment for singers and led a small band for recording sessions.

William Grant Still William Grant Still Jr. (May 11, 1895 – December 3, 1978) was an American composer of nearly two hundred works, including five symphonies, four ballets, nine operas, over thirty choral works, plus art songs, chamber music and works fo ...

was named arranger and later musical director. Ads for Black Swan often ran in ''The Crisis''. Black Swan proved moderately successful. It recorded African American musicians, but as the label grew in popularity, Pace believed competing white-owned labels such as Columbia Records sought to "obstruct the progress and curtail the popularity of Black Swan Records". Although advertising for Black Swan Records claimed all its musicians and employees were African American, it sometimes used white musicians to back some of its singers. The production company declared

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...

in December 1923, and in March 1924

Paramount Records Paramount Records was an American record label known for its recordings of jazz and blues in the 1920s and early 1930s, including such artists as Ma Rainey, Tommy Johnson and Blind Lemon Jefferson. Early years Paramount Records was formed in 19 ...

bought the Black Swan label. ''

The Chicago Defender ''The Chicago Defender'' is a Chicago-based online African-American newspaper. It was founded in 1905 by Robert S. Abbott and was once considered the "most important" newspaper of its kind. Abbott's newspaper reported and campaigned against Jim ...

'' reported the event by detailing important accomplishments of Black Swan in a short career span, including: pointed out—to the major, all white-owned, record companies—the significant market demand for black artists; prompted several major companies to begin publishing music by these performers. In addition, the Defender credited Pace with showing the majors how to target black audiences and to advertise in black newspapers. Paramount discontinued the Black Swan label a short time later. The Black Swan label was revived in the 1990s for a series of CD reissues of historic jazz and blues recordings originally issued on Black Swan and Paramount. These CDs were issued by George H. Buck Jr's Jazzology and GHB labels under the control of the

George H. Buck Jr. Jazz Foundation The George H. Buck Jr. Jazz Foundation was created by George Buck in the 1980s to maintain the catalog of his jazz record labels. The catalog includes dixieland jazz, swing, blues, rhythm and blues, gospel, and cabaret music. History Jazzology ...

, which gained rights to the Paramount back-catalogue but not the Paramount name. Rights to the name "Black Swan Records" were also transferred to GHB.

Artists

* Bessie Allison, original member of the ''

Shuffle Along ''Shuffle Along'' is a musical composed by Eubie Blake, with lyrics by Noble Sissle, and a book written by the comedy duo Flournoy Miller and Aubrey Lyles. One of the most notable all-Black hit Broadway shows, it was a landmark in African-Americ ...

'' cast * C. Carroll Clark,

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

who was the first artist recorded by the label * Four Harmony Kings, vocal

quartet In music, a quartet or quartette (, , , , ) is an ensemble of four singers or instrumental performers; or a musical composition for four voices and instruments. Classical String quartet In classical music, one of the most common combinations o ...

Henry Creamer Henry Sterling Creamer (June 21, 1879 – October 14, 1930) was an African American popular song lyricist and theater producer. He was born in Richmond, Virginia and died in New York. He co-wrote many popular songs in the years from 1900 to 1929, ...

and J. Turner Layton,

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

duo *

Katie Crippen Catherine "Katie" Crippen (November 17, 1895 – November 25, 1929), also billed as Little Katie Crippen or Ella White, was an American entertainer and singer. Career Crippen was born in Philadelphia to an African-American family. She performed ...

, vaudeville singer *

Kemper Harreld William Kemper Harreld (January 31, 1885, Muncie, Indiana – 1971) was an American concert violinist. He was also a pianist and organist. A graduate of Chicago Musical College, Harreld performed until 1911 when he became head of the music dep ...

, violinist *

Lucille Hegamin Lucille Nelson Hegamin (November 29, 1894 – March 1, 1970) was an American singer and entertainer and an early African-American blues recording artist. Life and career Lucille Nelson was born in Macon, Georgia, the daughter of John and Minni ...

, jazz and blues singer * Revella Hughes,

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

featured on one of the label's first releases *

Alberta Hunter Alberta Hunter (April 1, 1895 – October 17, 1984) was an American jazz and blues singer and songwriter from the early 1920s to the late 1950s. After twenty years of working as a nurse, Hunter resumed her singing career in 1977. Early life Hu ...

, blues singer * Nettie Moore was a singer who recorded "Deep River" (1922) /"Song of India" (1922) and "Christmas Chimes" with Ethel Waters on Black Swan. *''

Hattie King Reavis Hattie King Reavis, also known as H. King Reavis or Hattie Beatrice Reavis, (November 18, 1890 – March 12, 1970) was a singer, song writer, and theater performer from the United States. She performed with fellow African Americans in New York Ci ...

'', soprano singer *

Trixie Smith Trixie is a shortened form of the given names Beatrix or Beatrice or Patricia or adopted as a nickname or used as a given name. Trixie may refer to: People * Trixie Friganza (1870–1955), American vaudeville performer and stage and silent fi ...

, blues singer, second only to Ethel Waters in Black Swan sales. * Florence Cole Talbert, first classical artist to record with Black Swan, soprano, music educator * "Mamie Jones", pseudonym for singer

Aileen Stanley Aileen Stanley, born Maude Elsie Aileen Muggeridge (March 21, 1893 – March 24, 1982), was one of the most popular American singers of the early 1920s. Early life Born in Chicago, Illinois, Stanley was the youngest of four children of English ...

who was one of many white artists to record for Black Swan. These artists were "passing for colored" since the label was advertised as featuring only black artists. *

Eva Taylor Eva Taylor (January 22, 1895 — October 31, 1977) was an American blues singer and stage actress. Life and career Born Irene Joy Gibbons in St. Louis, Missouri, as one of twelve children. On stage from the age of three, Taylor toured New ...

, blues singer *

Ethel Waters Ethel Waters (October 31, 1896 – September 1, 1977) was an American singer and actress. Waters frequently performed jazz, swing, and pop music on the Broadway stage and in concerts. She began her career in the 1920s singing blues. Her not ...

, jazz, gospel, blues singer. She had the label's first commercially successful records, and remained their best seller. * Essie Whitman, vaudeville singer

Bibliography

Notes

References

* * * * ; ; . *

* ; ; . * * * ; (Vol. 2); .

* ; ; .

* ; ; . * * * ; . * * {{Authority control American record labels Blues record labels Jazz record labels Record labels established in 1921 Record labels disestablished in 1924 Re-established companies Black-owned companies of the United States

History

Artists

See also

Bibliography

Notes

References