Ruby Brooks (1861 – February 10, 1906) was an American banjoist, composer, and pioneer recording artist, sometimes called "King of Banjoists." He was influential on later banjo players such as

Fred Van Eps Fred Van Eps (December 30, 1878 – November 22, 1960) was an American banjoist and banjo maker. The "Van Eps Recording Banjo" was a well-known model until 1930. He was the father of jazz guitarist George Van Eps. Biography Van Eps was born in ...

.Classicbanjo.com
" Classic Banjo Obituaries – Fred Van Eps "
Retrieved July 12, 2010

Biography

Reuben R. Brooks was born in

Stamford, CT Stamford () is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut, outside of Manhattan. It is Connecticut's second-most populous city, behind Bridgeport. With a population of 135,470, Stamford passed Hartford and New Haven in population as of the 202 ...

in 1861. He taught himself to play the banjo, receiving no formal instruction. He became famous in 1887 when he performed and won at that year's banjo "Championship of the World" held in Chickering Hall,

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

.''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''
"Brooks the Banjoist Dead"
February 12, 1906, page 7. There he met and formed a partnership with the runner-up, Harry M. Denton.

Brooks and Denton

They formed the "Brooks & Denton Publishing Co." and citing "of Brooks and Denton" even on his solo recordings.Nauck, Kurt. Catalogue: Vintage Record Auction Number 47.Sage, Glenn

Retrieved July 12, 2010.

Performances

He gave concerts (often at Chickering Hall) and played in society programs regularly beginning in the late 1880s,''

''
"PLAYERS OFF THE STAGE.; ENTERTAINING THE GUESTS OF THE LEGION OF HONOR"
February 13, 1888, page 8.''

''
"On the Roof Gardens"
July 2, 1893, page 21. performing in many varieties ranging from the latest

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 compositio ...

tunes to attempts at serious classical music.Schreyer, Lowell H (2007). '' The Banjo Entertainers: Roots to Ragtime, A Banjo History ''. Minnesota Heritage Publishing, Mankato, MN. . He repeated as champion at Chickering Hall in 1888 and 1889. He made three separate European tours,''Chicago Daily Tribune'', July 31, 1890, page 5. performing for various royalty including the Prince of Wales (the future

King Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910. The second chil ...

), who was also a banjo player of some skill.''Aurora (Illinois) Daily Express''
"From Cabin to Parlor – The Banjo of the Plantation Now a Society Favorite"
January 24, 1891, page 4. By the late 1890s he had mostly ceased to perform in public, finding it more lucrative to give private lessons to wealthy students and to make recordings for the developing phonograph industry. Mr. Brooks recorded regularly for Edison from the late 1890s until his deathHoffman, Frank W. (2005). '' Encyclopedia of recorded sound, Volume 1 ''. Routledge, New York. . in New York City in 1906 of throat cancer. Brooks and Denton

Reception

He is considered by Kaufman and Winans to be inferior to that player, as well as his contemporaries

Vess Ossman Sylvester Louis "Vess" Ossman (August 21, 1868 – December 7, 1923) was a leading five-string banjoist and popular recording artist of the early 20th century. Biography Sylvester Louis Ossman was born in Hudson, New York, and made his firs ...

and Olly Oakley.Winans, Robert B.; Kaufman, Elias J
“Minstrel and Classic Banjo: American and English Connections”
' American Music' Vol. 12, No. 1. (Spring, 1994), page 19.

Partial list of compositions

* "The Belle of Columbia" * "Honor Bright" * "University March" * "White Star Line"

Partial discography

;Columbia Records: * 254 – The Mosquito Parade (1901) * 255 – Tell Me Pretty Maiden from "

Florodora ''Florodora'' is an Edwardian musical comedy. After its long run in London, it became one of the first successful Broadway musicals of the 20th century. The book was written by Jimmy Davis under the pseudonym Owen Hall, the music was by Lesli ...

" (1901) Brooks, Tim
" Florodora Recordings (1901-1902): Discography "
'ARSC (

Association for Recorded Sound Collections The Association for Recorded Sound Collections (ARSC) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation and study of sound recordings. Established in 1966, members include record collectors, discographers, and audio engineers, togethe ...

) Journal' XXXI (2000) page 66. * 289 – Valse Bleue (1901) * 293 – Senegambian (1901) ;Edison Records: * 2605 – Darkies Dream * 2606 – Darkey TickleNauck, Kurt. Catalogue: Vintage Record Auction Number 41. * 2608 – Darkies Patrol * 2617 – In Old Madrid (re-made 1902) * 2632 – The Stars and Stripes Forever March (re-made 1902) ;

Zonophone Records Zonophone (early on also rendered as Zon-O-Phone) was a record label founded in 1899 in Camden, New Jersey, by Frank Seaman. The Zonophone name was not that of the company but was applied to records and machines sold by Seaman's Universal Talki ...

: * 1826 (7") – Tell Me Pretty Maiden from "Florodora" (1902) * P813 (9") – Tell Me Pretty Maiden from "Florodora" (1902)

References

External links

Ruby Brooks recordings
at the

Discography of American Historical Recordings The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The DAHR provides some of these original recordings, free of charge, via audio streaming, along with ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Brooks, Ruby 1861 births 1906 deaths Edison Records artists Columbia Records artists Zonophone Records artists American banjoists Musicians from Stamford, Connecticut Deaths from cancer in New York (state) Deaths from esophageal cancer Pioneer recording artists