Music & Musical Instruments

Billy Holiday and her Orchestra. side 1: Strange Fruit; side 2: Fine and Mellow (Commodore 526)
78 rpm

Billie Holiday (1915–1959,) an African American jazz singer nicknamed Lady Day, emerged on the jazz scene after a difficult and impoverished upbringing. Known for her light, rhythmic singing, Holiday performed with some of the most famous American jazz musicians throughout the 1930s and 1940s. She first performed “Strange Fruit,” a song written by a Jewish poet about the lynching of African Americans, at the Café Society club in 1939. Her performances of the song were filled with emotion, and the recording reached number 16 on the charts. Holiday went on to release a number of other hits, but “Strange Fruit” remained the best-selling record of her career.

Jelly Roll Morton. side 1:St. Louis; side 2: The Miserere (Circle JM-65/66), from the album, Jelly Roll Morton, Volume 9: Alabama Bound (Circle Limited Edition #306).
78 rpm.

This recording is part of a limited edition 45 twelve-inch record set, The Saga of Mr. Jelly Lord. The set is comprised of interviews and musical performances of musician Ferdinand "Jelly Roll" Morton (1890-1941) recorded by American ethnomusicologist Alan Lomax (1915-2002) at the Coolidge Auditorium, Library of Congress, from May 23, 1938 to December 14, 1938. In the interviews, Morton recounts his experiences, both in New Orleans and on the road, as a popular musician of the early twentieth century.

The Saga of Mr. Jelly Lord limited edition record set was issued by Circle Sound Inc., incrementally with two albums every three months, beginning in late 1947. The recordings were pressed on red vinylite. Album design and typography for this set was by Jimmy Ernst (born Hans-Ulrich Ernst, 1920-1984), a German-born American painter.

side 1: Juanita Hall with South Pacific Orchestra. Bali Ha'i: side 2: Mary Martin with South Pacific Orchestra. I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair (Columbia 4562-M), from the album, South Pacific (Columbia MM-850).
78 rpm.

This recording is of the Original Broadway cast for the 1949 musicalSouth Pacific, composed by Richard Rogers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and book by Hammerstein and Joshua Logan. South Pacific opened at the Majestic Theatre on April 7, 1949, running for 1,925 performances. It received ten Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Score, Best Libretto, including awards in all four acting categories for Mary Martin, Ezio Pinza, Juanita Hall, and Myron McCormick. In 1950, the musical won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

Pete Daily's Dixieland Band. side 1: Sensation; side 2: Original Dixieland One-Step (Capitol 15432), from the album, Pete Daily's Dixieland Band (Capitol CC-183).
78 rpm.

This album cover was painted by American artist William George (b. 1930). George is an American illustrator and painter who studied under Norman Rockwell. George’s work has been featured on album covers, paperback crime and western covers, and magazine covers.