"Singin' the Blues" is a 1920

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 ...

composition by

J. Russel Robinson Joseph Russel Robinson (July 8, 1892 – September 30, 1963) was an American ragtime, dixieland, and blues pianist and composer who was a member of the Original Dixieland Jass Band. Career Robinson was born in Indianapolis, Indiana. In his teen ...

, Con Conrad,

Sam M. Lewis Sam M. Lewis (October 25, 1885 – November 22, 1959) was an American singer and lyricist. Career Lewis was born Samuel M. Levine in New York City, United States. He began his music career by singing in cafés throughout New York City, and be ...

, and Joe Young. It was recorded by the Original Dixieland Jass Band in 1920 as an instrumental and released as a Victor 78 as part of a medley with " Margie". The song was released with lyrics by vocalist Aileen Stanley in 1920 on Victor. In 1927,

Frank Trumbauer Orie Frank Trumbauer (May 30, 1901 – June 11, 1956) was an American jazz saxophonist of the 1920s and 1930s. His main instrument was the C-melody saxophone, a now-uncommon instrument between an alto and tenor saxophone in size and pitch. He al ...

Bix Beiderbecke Leon Bismark "Bix" Beiderbecke (March 10, 1903 – August 6, 1931) was an American jazz cornetist, pianist and composer. Beiderbecke was one of the most influential jazz soloists of the 1920s, a cornet player noted for an inventive lyrical app ...

, and

Eddie Lang Eddie Lang (born Salvatore Massaro, October 25, 1902 – March 26, 1933) was an American musician who is credited as the father of jazz guitar. During the 1920s, he gave the guitar a prominence it previously lacked as a solo instrument, as p ...

recorded and released the song as an Okeh 78. The Trumbauer recording is considered a jazz and pop standard, greatly contributing to Frank Trumbauer and Bix Beiderbecke's reputation and influence (it remained in print at least until the Second World War). It is not related to the 1956 pop song "

Singing the Blues "Singing the Blues" is a popular song written by Melvin Endsley and published in 1956. The song was first recorded and released by Marty Robbins in 1956. It is not related to the 1920 jazz song "Singin' the Blues" recorded by Frank Trumbauer ...

" first recorded and released by Marty Robbins in 1956.

Background

The ODJB released the song as part of a medley: "Margie" (Introducing "Singin' the Blues") in 1920 on Victor as B-24581-5 Victor 18717A backed with ''

Palesteena "Palesteena", or, "Lena from Palesteena", was a 1920 song, with lyrics by Con Conrad, and music by J. Russell Robinson. Background It was originally recorded and performed by the Original Dixieland Jass Band, a band of New Orleans jazz musicians, ...

''. The subtitle of the song is "'Till My Daddy Comes Home". The personnel on the recording were Nick LaRocca, trumpet, Larry Shields, clarinet, Benny Krueger, alto sax, Eddie Edwards, trombone, J. Russel Robinson, piano, and Tony Sbarbaro, drums. The recording was made on December 1, 1920. Robinson and Conrad composed the music. Lewis and Young wrote the lyrics. The song was published by

Waterson, Berlin & Snyder Waterson, Berlin & Snyder, Inc. was, during the 1920s, one of the largest music publishers of popular sheet music in the country. The firm was based in New York City. What began as the Ted Snyder Company in 1908 evolved into Waterson, Berlin & Sn ...

, Inc., in New York.

Other Recordings

The Aileen Stanley version was released as Victor 18703, Matrix # 24657–6, in 1920. Connie Boswell recorded the song on

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

in 1932.

Marion Harris Marion Harris (born Mary Ellen Harrison; April 4, 1896 – April 23, 1944) was an American popular singer who was most successful in the late 1910s and the 1920s. She was the first widely known white singer to sing jazz and blues songs.Ward, Elija ...

recorded the song for Columbia in 1934.

Eddie Condon Albert Edwin Condon (November 16, 1905 – August 4, 1973) was an American jazz banjoist, guitarist, and bandleader. A leading figure in Chicago jazz, he also played piano and sang. Early years Condon was born in Goodland, Indiana, the son of J ...

and His Band released the song in 1943 on Commodore.

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 ...

and His orchestra released the song in 1931. The song was recorded by

Lionel Hampton Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908 – August 31, 2002) was an American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, and bandleader. Hampton worked with jazz musicians from Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, and Buddy Rich, to Charlie Parker, Charles M ...

and His orchestra in 1939 by RCA Victor. Bennie Krueger and his Orchestra recorded the song in 1921.

The Original Memphis Five The Original Memphis Five was an early jazz quintet founded in 1917 by trumpeter Phil Napoleon and pianist Frank Signorelli. Jimmy Lytell was a member from 1922 to 1925. The group made many recordings between 1921 and 1931, sometimes under diffe ...

released their version of "Singin' the Blues" in 1957 with leader James Lytell on clarinet, Billy Butterfield on trumpet, Milford ''Miff'' Mole on trombone, and Frank Signorelli on piano, Eugene Traxler on bass, and Anthony Sbarbaro on drums (though Billy Butterfield had recorded a version of it with his own band in 1950, which was released by London Records).

Trumbauer/Beiderbecke Recording

, and

recorded "Singin' the Blues" on February 4, 1927, in New York and released it as Okeh 40772 backed with "Clarinet Marmalade" as by Frankie Trumbauer's Orchestra with Bix and Lang. The personnel on the session were: Frankie Trumbauer, C-melody saxophone; Bix Beiderbecke, cornet; Bill Rank, trombone; Jimmy Dorsey, clarinet; Doc Ryker, alto sax; Paul Madeira Mertz, piano; Eddie Lang, guitar; and, Chauncey Morehouse, drums. This recording became a jazz milestone and a jazz standard which was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1977.

Sources

*Stewart, Jack. " The Original Dixieland Jazz Band's Place in the Development of Jazz." New Orleans International Music Colloquium, 2005. *Lange, Horst H. Wie der Jazz begann: 1916–1923, von der "Original Dixieland Jazz Band" bis zu King Olivers "Creole Jazz Band". Berlin: Colloquium Verlag, 1991. *Brunn, H.O. ''The Story of the Original Dixieland Jazz Band.'' Baton Rouge:

Louisiana State University Press The Louisiana State University Press (LSU Press) is a university press at Louisiana State University. Founded in 1935, it publishes works of scholarship as well as general interest books. LSU Press is a member of the Association of American Univer ...

, 1960. Reprinted by

Da Capo Press Da Capo Press is an American publishing company with headquarters in Boston, Massachusetts. It is now an imprint of Hachette Books. History Founded in 1964 as a publisher of music books, as a division of Plenum Publishers, it had additional of ...

, 1977.

External links

"Singin' the Blues" by the ODJB, Jazz Anthology website.Raeburn, Bruce Boyd. "Jazz and the Italian Connection", ''The Jazz Archivist'', Vol. VI, No. 1 (May, 1991), pp. 1-6.
{{Authority control Songs about blues 1920 compositions Original Dixieland Jass Band songs Jazz compositions Instrumentals 1920s jazz standards United States National Recording Registry recordings Songs with music by J. Russel Robinson Songs with music by Con Conrad Songs with lyrics by Sam M. Lewis Songs with lyrics by Joe Young (lyricist)