Charles L. Roberts (1887-1968)

Overview

According to the Internet sources given below,, Charles Luckyth Roberts was an American pianist, composer of popular music and writer of many Broadway shows. He was born in Philadelphia PA; and began his long career in show business as a singer/dancer just five-years old in vaudeville. Nicknamed Luckey (his 2nd name was later spelt Luckeyth), he was of diminutive stature but was said to have had the arms and hands of a much bigger person comparable with his life-long friend, Eubie Blake. He wrote his first Broadway show My People in 1911 and in 1913 he made his mark in the ragtime world with his big hit The Junk Man Rag. His other rags include Pork and Beans (1913) and Music Box Rag (1914). At this time he was considered by his contemporaries to be the best Harlem stride piano player in New York. He was a society orchestra leader, had a radio programme and managed the Harlem Rendezvous Club from 1942-1954.

Websites:
	Charles Luckyth Roberts	Biography and list of works by "Perfessor" Bill Edwards
	Luckey Roberts	Biography by wikipedia.org.

Cylinders

	Title (Release Year)	Composer	Performers	Issue


	The Music Box Rag (1915)	C.L. Roberts	Jaudas' Society Orchestra	Edison Blue Amberol: 2604

MIDIs

	Title	Co-Author(s)	Sequencer


	Junk Man Rag (1913), The		Perf. Bill Edwards
	Music Box Rag (1914), The		Colin D. McDonald
	Palm Beach (1914)		Perf. Bill Edwards
	Pork and Beans (1913)		Perf. Bill Edwards
	Spanish Fandango (?)		Unknown

Records

	Title (Release Year)	Composer	Performers	Issue


	Lonesome Longin' Blues (1922)	C.L. Roberts	Dolly Kay	Columbia: 80431

Samples

	Title (Release Year)	Performers	Instruments


Junk Man Rag (1913), The	Midi Ragtime Recorder Ens.	D/A/T/T/B/GB(B)
Palm Beach (1914)	Midi Ragtime Recorder Ens.	A/T/T/T/B/GB(B)
Pork and Beans (1913)	Midi Ragtime Recorder Ens.	A/T/T/T/B/GB(B)
Shy and Sly (1915)	Midi Ragtime Recorder Ens.	T/T/T/B/GB(B)

CDs

	Performer	CD Title	Supplier


Brass Music CDs:
Avatar Brass Quintet	Magnetic Rags: Ragtime for Brass
Jazz Music CDs:
Jack Teagarden	Jack Teagarden - Big T: A Hundred Years from Today
Black Swan Classic Jazz Band	Ragtime Revelry	CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
Ragtime Music CDs:
Charles L. Roberts	Luckey Roberts and Willie The Lion Smith: Harlem Piano Solos
Various Artists	Gold Collection
Various Artists	Good Time Jazz Story
Various Artists	Kings of Ragtime
Various Artists	Kings of the Ragtime Banjo
Various Artists	Piano Music In America 1900-1945
Various Artists	Ragtime 1900-1930
⇑Various Artists	Ragtime to Jazz: Vol. 1	CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
Various Artists	Ragtime to Jazz: Vol. 2: 1916-1922	CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
Various Artists	Ragtime, Vol. 1: 1897-1919	CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
Various Artists	Ragtime/Paganini: 24 Caprices	CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
Various Artists	Spirit of Ragtime
New Orleans Ragtime Orchestra	Creole Belles	CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
Claude Bolling	Le Ragtime
Elite Syncopators	American Sampler Rag	CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
Ophelia Ragtime Orchestra	Echoes from the Snowball Club
Pickles and Peaches Ragtime Orchestra	Picnics
Mimi Blais	Old Rags New Rags
⇑Mimi Blais	Taxi!
Paragon Ragtime Orchestra	The Whistler and His Dog
William Bolcom	Heliotrope Bouquet Piano Rags (1900-1970)
Alan Martin	Everything is Ragtime Now
Ton Van Bergeyk	Black & Tan Fantasy
Craig Ventresco	The Past Is Yet To Come
Brown Brothers	Rusty Rags	CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
Sue Keller	Kellerized
Jody Dall'Armi	On the Level, You're a Little Devil
Peter Muir	Spontaneous Ragtime
Jack Bradshaw	Takes Two [Ragtime Piano Duos]
⇑Frederick Hodges	Kitten on the Keys: Ragtime, Novelty & Stride Classics
Paul Hersh	The Great Ragtime Classics
Adam Swanson	Chestnut St. in the 90s	CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
Bill Edwards	The Art of the Rag
Bill Edwards	Rapid Fire Ragtime

Item	Title	Available	€	£	$	Other



DBE537	The Junk Man Rag (1913) D/A/T/T/B/GB(B), approx. 3¼ mins.	1-2 days
DBE538	Palm Beach (1914) - Fox Trot A/T/T/T/B/GB(B), approx. 4 mins.	1-2 days
DBE539	Pork and Beans (1913) - One Step, Two Step or Turkey Trot A/T/T/T/B/GB(B), approx. 3 mins.	1-2 days
DBE540	Shy and Sly (1915) - Fox Trot T/T/T/B/GB(B), approx. 3 mins.	1-2 days

Library

	Title	Instruments	Remarks


Junk Man Rag (1913), The	D/A/T/T/B/GB(B)
Palm Beach (1914)	A/T/T/T/B/GB(B)	Pub.
Pork and Beans (1913)	A/T/T/T/B/GB(B)	Pub.
Shy and Sly (1915)	T/T/T/B/GB(B)	Pub.

	Title	Attribution	Instruments	Source	Remarks


Junk Man Rag (1913), The	C.L. Roberts (music)	Piano	IMSLP
Junk Man Rag - Song (1914), The	C.L. Roberts (music) C. Smith (words) Ferd E. Mierisch Smith (words) Maurice Walton (perf.) Florence Walton (perf.)	Piano, Voice	IMSLP	Pub.
Railroad Blues - Song (1920)	C.L. Roberts (music) Howard Washington (words) H. Gillespie (words)	Piano, Voice	IMSLP
Rockaway (1917)	C.L. Roberts (music) Howard Johnson (coauth.) Alex Rogers (coauth.) S. Tucker (perf.)	Piano	IMSLP

Works

This list is arranged in chronological order and contains 34 works by Charles L. Roberts (1887-1968). It does not claim to be complete and represents only the number of items located. Keys: ER

(w&m)

1908-1920

Title	Year	Attribution	Remarks


Nothin'	1908
Junk Man Rag, The	1913	Midi Ragtime Recorder Ensemble (perf.) Florence Walton (perf.) Maurice Walton (perf.)
Pork and Beans	1913	Midi Ragtime Recorder Ensemble (perf.)	Pub.
Junk Man Rag - Song, The	1914	Chris Smith (words) Ferd E. Mierisch Smith (words) Florence Walton (perf.) Maurice Walton (perf.)	Pub.
Music Box Rag, The	1914	Jaudas' Society Orchestra (perf.)	Pub.
Palm Beach	1914	Midi Ragtime Recorder Ensemble (perf.)	Pub.
Bon Ton	1915
Helter Skelter	1915		Pub.
Shy and Sly	1915	Midi Ragtime Recorder Ensemble (perf.)	Pub.
Billy Boy	1917	Lester A. Walton (words)
Rockaway	1917	Howard Johnson (co-author) Alex Rogers (co-author) Sophie Tucker (perf.)
⇑ Any Old Dance Is a Wonderful Dance When You Dance	1920
Jewel of the Big Blue Nile	1920
Railroad Blues	1920	Haven Gillespie (words) Howard Washington (words) Roy Bargy (words)
Railroad Blues - Song	1920	Howard Washington (words) Haven Gillespie (words)	Pub.
Rock-A-Bye-Baby Blues	1920

1922-?

Title	Year	Attribution	Remarks


Lonesome Longin' Blues	1922	Alex Rogers (words) Dolly Kay (perf.)
Go-Go Bug	1923	Alex Rogers (words)
Leaping Leopards	1923	Alex Rogers (words)	Pub.
Mo'lasses	1923		Pub.
Mo'lasses - Song	1923	Alex Rogers (words)	Pub.
Magnolia	1926	Alex Rogers (words)
Spanish Suite	1939	Spanish Venus, Spanish Fandango, Porto Rico Maid
Whistlin' Pete	1939		Pub.
Moonlight Cocktail	1941	Kim Gannon (words)
Massachusetts (w&m)	1942
Exclusively With You	1949
⇑ Park Avenue Polka	1949		Pub.
Complainin'	?
Inner Space	?
Outer Space	?
Ripples of the Nile	?

Title	Year	Attribution	Remarks


Spanish Fandango	?
Spanish Venus	?

Videos

	Composer	Title	Performer


	C.L. Roberts	Moonlight Cocktail (0:00)	Ragtime Dorian Henry