Fats Waller
Thomas Wright "Fats" Waller (May 21, 1904 – December 15, 1943) was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer, and singer. His innovations in the Harlem stride style laid much of the basis for modern jazz piano. His best-known compositions, "Ain't Misbehavin'" and "Honeysuckle Rose", were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1984 and 1999. Waller copyrighted over 400 songs, many of them co-written with his closest collaborator, Andy Razaf. Razaf described his partner as "the soul of melody... a man who made the piano sing... both big in body and in mind... known for his generosity... a bubbling bundle of joy". It is likely that he composed many more popular songs than he has been credited with: when in financial difficulties he had a habit of selling songs to other writers and performers who claimed them as their own. Waller started playing the piano at the age of six and became a professional organist at 15. By the age of 18, he was a recording artist. He was a prolific songwriter, and one of the most popular performers of his era, touring internationally and achieving critical and commercial success in the United States and Europe. He died from pneumonia, aged 39. |
Birth and Death Data: Born May 21, 1904 (New York City), Died December 15, 1943 (Kansas City)
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1922 - 1951
Roles Represented in DAHR: piano, leader, vocalist, composer, songwriter, pipe organ, director, celeste, arranger, organ, electric organ, lyricist, speaker
Notes: Sometimes listed as Thomas Waller or Thomas Wright Waller.
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 351-375 of 692 records)
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Victor | BS-030365 | 10-in. | 12/7/1938 | I'll dance at your wedding | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-030366 | 10-in. | 12/7/1938 | Imagine my surprise | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-030367 | 10-in. | 12/7/1938 | I won't believe it (Till I hear it from you) | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-030368 | 10-in. | 12/7/1938 | The spider and the fly | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist, songwriter | |
Victor | BS-030369 | 10-in. | 12/7/1938 | Patty cake, patty cake (Baker man) | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | vocalist, leader, songwriter, instrumentalist, piano | |
Victor | BS-031530 | 10-in. | 1/19/1939 | A good man is hard to find | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-031531 | 10-in. | 1/19/1939 | You out-smarted yourself | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-031532 | 10-in. | 1/19/1939 | Last night a miracle happened | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-031533 | 10-in. | 1/19/1939 | Good for nothin' but love | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | vocalist, leader, instrumentalist, piano | |
Victor | BS-031534 | 10-in. | 1/19/1939 | Hold tight (Want some sea food mama) | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-031535 | 10-in. | 1/19/1939 | Kiss me with your eyes | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-032942 | 10-in. | 3/9/1939 | You asked for it—you got it | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-032943 | 10-in. | 3/9/1939 | Some rainy day | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-032944 | 10-in. | 3/9/1939 | 'Tain't what you do (It's the way that cha do it) | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-032945 | 10-in. | 3/9/1939 | Got no time | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-032946 | 10-in. | 3/9/1939 | Step up and shake my hand | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-032947 | 10-in. | 3/9/1939 | Undecided | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-032948 | 10-in. | 3/9/1939 | Remember who you're promised to | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-Test-033993 | 16-in. | 3/6/1939 | Sweet Sue | Gene Austin ; Fats Waller | Male vocal solo and electric organ, with guitar and string bass | instrumentalist, electric organ | |
Victor | BS-Test-033994 | 16-in. | 3/6/1939 | I can't give you anything but love | Gene Austin ; Fats Waller | Male vocal solo and electric organ, with guitar and string bass | instrumentalist, electric organ | |
Victor | BS-035031 | 10-in. | 3/15/1939 | Patty cake, patty cake (Baker man) | Bunny Berigan Orchestra ; Kathleen Lane | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-038207 | 10-in. | 6/28/1939 | Honey hush | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist, composer | |
Victor | BS-038208 | 10-in. | 6/28/1939 | I used to love you (But it's all over now) | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | vocalist, leader, instrumentalist, piano | |
Victor | BS-038209 | 10-in. | 6/28/1939 | Wait and see | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist, composer | |
Victor | BS-038210 | 10-in. | 6/28/1939 | You meet the nicest people in your dreams | Fats Waller and his Rhythm | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Waller, Fats," accessed November 9, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/101963.
Waller, Fats. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 9, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/101963.
"Waller, Fats." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 9 November 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Wikipedia: Fats Waller
Discogs: Fats Waller
Allmusic: Fats Waller
Apple Music: Fats Waller
Grove: Fats Waller
IMSLP: Fats Waller
IMDb: Fats Waller
Britannica: Fats Waller
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Waller, Fats, 1904-1943 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n50024199
Wikidata: Fats Waller - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q310476
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/54334148
MusicBrainz: Fats Waller - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/569fc5bf-bcb6-4bc5-9a00-bd0d258e34f1
Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license
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