William C. Handy (1873-1958)
Last updated: 13.03.25
According to the Internet source given below, William Christopher Handy was an American musician, band leader and songwriter born in Florence, Alabama. In 1893 he founded a vocal quartet which travelled to Chicago, St. Louis, Evansville, Indiana, and Henderson, Kentucky where joined Mahara's Colored Minstrels. He toured for a number of years but spent two years spent at A&M College in Huntsville, Alabama, teaching music. Amongst his bands were the "Knights of Pythias" which he lead in 1903 and "Handy's Orchestra of Memphis". Known as "The Father of the Blues" he is best remembered for his Mister Crump which was later titled The Memphis Blues" (1913) and his enormously successful St.Louis Blues (1914) the so called "National Anthem of the Blues".
| Title | Co-Author(s) | Sequencer |
|---|
| Title (Release Year) | Composer | Performers | Issue |
|---|
 |
Basement Blues, The (1924) | W.C. Handy | C. Smith | Columbia: 140052 |
|
St. Louis Blues (1920) | W.C. Handy | Marion Harris | Columbia: 79124 |
|
St. Louis Blues (1940) | W.C. Handy | King Sisters | Victor: BS-057650 |
| Performer | CD Title | Supplier |
|---|
| Brass Music CDs: | |||
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Canadian Brass | Basin Street | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)        |
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Canadian Brass | The Essential Canadian Brass | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Canadian Brass | Two Centuries of Hits | |
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Various Ensembles | The Greatest Brass Collection | |
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St. Louis Brass Quintet | Pops-Music of the Americas | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
| Jazz Music CDs: | |||
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Jack Teagarden | Jack Teagarden - Big T: A Hundred Years from Today | |
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Stumptown Jazz | On Track | |
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Sidney Bechet | Les Oignons | |
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Thomas Waller | Centennial Collection | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Thomas Waller | Complete Associated Transcription Session 1935-1939 | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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⇑Thomas Waller | The Definitive Fats Waller Vol. 1: His Piano, His Rhythm | |
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Thomas Waller | Fats Waller at the Organ, Vol. 3: 1926-1929 [Brown Cover] | |
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Thomas Waller | Fats Waller: 1926-27 | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Thomas Waller | A Handful of Keys | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Thomas Waller | Live at the Yacht Club | |
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Thomas Waller | Piano Masterworks Vol. 2 (1929-1943) | |
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Thomas Waller | Piano Solos-Turn on the Heat | |
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Thomas Waller | Yacht Club Swing & Other Radio | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Thomas Waller | Yacht Club Swing 1938 | |
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Chris Barber | The Absolutely Essential 3CD Collection | |
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Chris Barber | The Very Best of Chris Barber | |
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⇑Monty Sunshine | Remembering Monty Sunshine | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Monty Sunshine | Monty Sunshine in London | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Boswell Sisters | Shout Sister Shout | |
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Boswell Sisters | That's How Rhythm Was Born | |
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George Chisholm | Early Days 1935-1944 | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Ferdinand Morton | The Original Mr. Jelly Lord | |
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Bessie Smith | Bessie Smith 1924-1925 | |
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Paul Whiteman | Paul Whiteman | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
| Ragtime Music CDs: | |||
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Ted Lewis | Is Everybody Happy?: Ted Lewis and His Band | |
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Ted Lewis | Jazzworthy 1929-33 | |
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Various Artists | 100 Favorite Patriotic Songs | |
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⇑Various Artists | Black Secular Vocal Groups Vol. 1: The Twenties (1923-1929) | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Various Artists | Cakewalks, Rags & Blues - Military Style | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Various Artists | The Elite Syncopations: Classic Ragtime from Rare Piano Rolls | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Various Artists | Gold Collection | |
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Various Artists | Good Time Jazz Story | |
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Various Artists | Honky Tonk Piano | |
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Various Artists | Kings of Ragtime | |
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Various Artists | Lost Sounds: Blacks and the Birth of the Recording Industry 1891-1922 | |
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Various Artists | Pianola Jazz: Early Piano Jazz & Ragtime Played on Pianola Rolls | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Various Artists | Pioneer Recording Bands 1917-1920 | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Various Artists | Ragtime 1900-1930 | |
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⇑Various Artists | Ragtime to Jazz: Vol. 1 | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Various Artists | Ragtime to Jazz: Vol. 2: 1916-1922 | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Various Artists | Ragtime, Vol. 1: 1897-1919 | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Various Artists | Ring, Ring de Banjo: Banjo Showpieces | |
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Various Artists | The Riverside History of Classic Jazz | |
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Various Artists | S. Joplin; G. Gershwin; I. Berlin; P. Whiteman | |
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Various Artists | Scott Joplin, Elite Syncopations, Classic Ragtime From Rare Piano Rolls | |
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Various Artists | That Devilin' Tune | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Various Artists | Violin, Sing The Blues For Me: African-American Fiddlers 1926-1949 | |
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Scott Joplin | Entertainer | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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John Arpin | Kings of Ragtime | |
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⇑Noel Lester | Syncopated Sensations | |
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Claude Bolling | Original Blues | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Claude Bolling | Original Ragtime/Original Boogie Woogie/Original Piano Blues | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Eddie Condon | Eddie Condon 1947-1950 | |
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Jack Hilton | Tiger Rag - Jack Hilton and His Orchestra | |
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Tommy Yetta | Tommy Yetta: New Orleans Jazz: Autographed (signed): Vinyl LP | |
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Charles Thompson | The Neglected Professor | |
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Wally Rose | Rags Blues Joys | |
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James Price Johnson | James P. Johnson & Coleman Hawkins | |
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James Price Johnson | James P. Johnson 1944 | |
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James Price Johnson | James P. Johnson 1944 Vol. 2 | |
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⇑James Price Johnson | James P. Johnson 1944-45 | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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James Price Johnson | James P. Johnson 1945-47 | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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James Price Johnson | The Original James P. Johnson 1942-1945 | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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James Price Johnson | Parlor Piano Solos from Rare Piano Rolls | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Marcus Roberts | As Serenity Approaches | |
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Paul Lingle | They Tore My Playhouse Down | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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James Reese Europe | Featuring Noble Sissle | |
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James Reese Europe | James Reese Europe's 369th US Infantry Hell FightersBand | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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James Reese Europe | Too Much Mustard | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Trebor Jay Tichenor | The Tichenor Family Trio | |
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Spare Parts | Now Tango | |
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⇑Paragon Ragtime Orchestra | Black Manhattan Vol. 2 | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Paragon Ragtime Orchestra | Minding the Score: The Music of Harry L. Alford | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Paragon Ragtime Orchestra | More Candy | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Paragon Ragtime Orchestra | On The Boardwalk | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Paragon Ragtime Orchestra | The Whistler and His Dog | |
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Gary Davis | Blues & Ragtime | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Handy's Memphis Blues Band | W.C. Handy's Memphis Blues Band | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Eubie Blake | Memories of You | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Richard Zimmerman | Ragtime Favorites - Richard Zimmerman | |
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St. Louis Ragtimers | The St. Louis Ragtimers: Volume 4 | |
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Wilbur C. Sweatman | Recorded in New York 1916-1935 | |
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⇑Brent Watkins | The Heroes of Parlor Town - Volume 2 | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Terry Waldo | Hot House Rag | |
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Sue Keller | Live in Kalamazoo | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Sue Keller | Rag Time Sue | |
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Sue Keller | Those Irresistible Blues | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Sue Keller | Wild Women Don't Have The Blues | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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George Lewis | George Lewis' Ragtime Band of New Orleans: The Oxford Series Vol. 04 | |
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George Lewis | George Lewis' Ragtime Band of New Orleans: The Oxford Series Vol. 05 | |
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Janita Baker | Blues & Ragtime | |
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Scott Kirby | Some Assembly Required | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Butch Thompson | Chicago Breakdown 88's | |
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⇑Butch Thompson | Lincoln Avenue Express | |
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Butch Thompson | Minnesota Wonder 88's | |
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Johnny Maddox | Dixieland Blues | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Johnny Maddox | Where the Southern Crosses the Yellow Dog | CD(s) & MP3 Album(s) |
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Bill Edwards | It's Ragging Cats and Dogs | |
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Bill Edwards | Perfessor Bill Sings Volume 2 | |
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Bill Edwards | A Ragtime Sampler | |
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Bill Edwards | The Two Sides of Perfessor Bill |
| Title | Attribution | Instruments | Source | Remarks |
|---|
 |
Aunt Hagar's Blues (1922) | W.C. Handy (music) W. C Handy (words) |
Piano, Voice | Indiana |  |
|
Aunt Hagar's Children Blues (1921) | W.C. Handy (music) J.T. Brymn (words) |
Piano, Voice | IMSLP Indiana Sheet Music Singer |
|
|
Basement Blues (1924), The | W.C. Handy (music) | Piano, Voice | Sheet Music Singer | |
|
Beale Street Blues (1916) | W.C. Handy (w&m) Teddy Tappan (perf.) |
Piano, Voice | IMSLP Indiana |
|
|
Beale Street Blues (1917) | W.C. Handy (w&m) | Piano, Voice | Sheet Music Singer | Pub. |
|
Hesitating Blues (1915), The | W.C. Handy (music) Imperial Quartette (perf.) Imperial Quartette (perf.) |
Piano | IMSLP Sheet Music Singer |
Pub. |
|
Hooking Cow Blues (1917), The | W.C. Handy (music) | Piano | Indiana | Pub. |
|
⇑In the Land Where Cotton is King (1916) | W.C. Handy (music) Harry Pace (words) |
Piano, Voice | IMSLP | Pub. |
|
Joe Turner Blues (1915) | W.C. Handy (music) | Piano, Voice | Sheet Music Singer | Pub. |
|
Jogo Blues (1913), The | W.C. Handy (music) |
Piano | IMSLP Sheet Music Singer |
Pub. |
|
Long Gone (1920) | W.C. Handy (music) C. Smith (words) |
Piano, Voice | Sheet Music Singer | Pub. |
|
Memphis Blues (1912) | W.C. Handy (music) | Piano, Voice | IMSLP | |
|
Memphis Blues - Song (1913) | W.C. Handy (music) George A. Norton (words) Ed. V. Cupero (perf.) Ed. V. Cupero (perf.) |
Piano, Voice | Indiana Sheet Music Singer |
Pub. |
|
Ole Miss Rag (1916) | W.C. Handy (music) | Piano | IMSLP | Pub. |
|
Shoeboot's Serenade (1915) | W.C. Handy (w&m) | Piano, Voice | Sheet Music Singer | Pub. |
|
⇑St. Louis Blues (1914) | W.C. Handy (w&m) R. Vallée (perf.) Marion Harris (perf.) G. Austin (perf.) A. Lyman (perf.) |
Piano, Voice | IMSLP Indiana Indiana Indiana Indiana |
Pub. |
|
Yellow Dog Blues (1919), The | W.C. Handy (w&m) Joseph C. Smith (perf.) Harry Rederman (perf.) |
Piano, Voice | IMSLP Sheet Music Singer |
Pub. |
This list is arranged in chronological order and contains 37 works by William C. Handy (1873-1958).
It does not claim to be complete and represents only the number of items located. Keys: ER
(w&m)
(w&m)
| Title | Year | Attribution | Remarks |
|---|
| Oh! Did'nt He Ramble (w&m) | 1902 | George H. Primrose (perf.) | |
| Memphis Blues | 1912 | Waiman (perf.)
or Mr Crump |
|
| Jogo Blues, The | 1913 | Paragon Ragtime Orchestra (perf.) |  |
| Memphis Blues - Song | 1913 | George A. Norton (words) Ed. V. Cupero (perf.) |
Pub. |
| St. Louis Blues (w&m) | 1914 | Gene Austin (perf.) Boswell Sisters (perf.) Marion Harris (perf.) Dick Haymes (perf.) Harry James (perf.) King Sisters (perf.) Abe Lyman (perf.) Maureen O'Hara (perf.) Rudy Vallée (perf.) |
|
| Yellow Dog Rag, The (w&m) | 1914 | later retitled Blues in 1919 | Pub. |
| Hesitating Blues, The | 1915 | Imperial Quartette (perf.) | Pub. |
| Joe Turner Blues | 1915 | Pub. |
|
| Shoeboot's Serenade (w&m) | 1915 | Pub. |
|
| In the Land Where Cotton is King | 1916 | Harry Pace (words) | Pub. |
| Ole Miss Blues | 1916 | ||
| ⇑ Ole Miss Rag | 1916 | Pub. |
|
| Beale Street Blues (w&m) | 1917 | Gilda Gray (perf.) Boyd Senter (perf.) Teddy Tappan (perf.) |
Pub. |
| Hooking Cow Blues, The | 1917 | Pub. |
|
| Kaiser's Got the Blues, The | 1918 | Domer C. Browne (words) | |
| Though We're Miles and Miles Apart | 1919 | Chas. N. Hillman (co-author) J. Russel Robinson (words) Adapated From the No Name Waltz |
Pub. |
| Title | Year | Attribution | Remarks |
|---|
| Yellow Dog Blues, The (w&m) | 1919 | Harry Rederman (perf.) Joseph C. Smith (perf.) same lyrics as Yellow Dog Rag |
|
| Aunt Hagar's Children (w&m) | 1920 | or Aunt Hagar's Blues | Pub. |
| Long Gone | 1920 | Chris Smith (words) | Pub. |
| Aunt Hagar's Children Blues | 1921 | James Timothy Brymn (words)
or Aunt Hagar's Blues |
|
| Careless Love | 1921 | Martha E. Koenig (words) Spencer Williams (words) |
|
| Aunt Hagar's Blues | 1922 | W. C Handy (words) | |
| John Henry Blues | 1922 | ||
| Sundown Blues | 1923 | ||
| Basement Blues, The | 1924 | Clara Smith (perf.) | |
| Steal Away to Jesus | 1925 | |
|
| New Saint Louis Blues, The | 1926 | Ted Lewis (perf.) | |
| ⇑ I've Heard of a City Called Heaven (w&m) | 1927 | Pub. | |
| W.C. Handly's Negro Spirituals | 1936 | W.C. Handy (words) | Pub. |
| Atlanta Blues | ? | Dave Elman (words) | |
| Colburn Blues | ? | ||
| Friendless Blues | ? | Mercedes Gilbert (words) |
| Composer | Title | Performer |
|---|
|
W.C. Handy | The Hooking Cow Blues (0:00) | Ragtime Dorian Henry |
|
W.C. Handy | Ted Lewis "The New Saint Louis Blues" (1926) (2:57) | T. Lewis |
|
W.C. Handy | W.C. Handy's 'Jogo Blues' (1913) (3:52) | Paragon Ragtime Orchestra |