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Al Jolson
Al Jolson (born Asa Yoelson; May 26, 1886 – October 23, 1950) was a Lithuanian-American singer, actor, and vaudevillian. He was one of the United States' most famous and highest-paid stars of the 1920s, and was self-billed as "The World's Greatest Entertainer." Jolson was known for his "shamelessly sentimental, melodramatic approach" towards performing, as well as for popularizing many of the songs he sang. Jolson has been referred to by modern critics as "the king of blackface performers." Although best remembered today as the star of the first talking picture, The Jazz Singer (1927), he starred in a series of successful musical films during the 1930s. After the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, he was the first star to entertain troops overseas during World War II. After a period of inactivity, his stardom returned with The Jolson Story (1946), in which Larry Parks played Jolson, with the singer dubbing for Parks. The formula was repeated in a sequel, Jolson Sings Again (1949). In 1950, he again became the first star to entertain GIs on active service in the Korean War, performing 42 shows in 16 days. He died weeks after returning to the U.S., partly owing to the physical exhaustion from the performance schedule. Defense Secretary George Marshall posthumously awarded him the Medal for Merit. According to music historian Larry Stempel, "No one had heard anything quite like it before on Broadway." Stephen Banfield wrote that Jolson's style was "arguably the single most important factor in defining the modern musical." With his dynamic style of singing jazz and blues, he became widely successful by extracting traditionally African-American music and popularizing it for white American audiences who would be unwilling to listen to it when performed by black artists. Despite his promotion and perpetuation of black stereotypes, his work was often well-regarded by black publications and has been credited for fighting against black discrimination on Broadway as early as 1911. In an essay written in 2000, music critic Ted Gioia remarked, "If blackface has its shameful poster boy, it is Al Jolson", showcasing Jolson's complex legacy in American society. |
Birth and Death Data: Born May 26, 1886 (Seredžius), Died October 23, 1950 (San Francisco)
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1911 - 1957
Roles Represented in DAHR: baritone vocal, composer, songwriter, lyricist, speaker, whistling
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 251-275 of 647 records)
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Columbia | [W]148510 | 10-in. | 5/10/1929 | Why can't you | Sammy Fain | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | composer | |
Columbia | W148511 | 10-in. | 5/11/1929 | Little pal | Walter Cummins | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | composer | |
Columbia | 148514 | 10-in. | 5/13/1929 | Seventh heaven | Jim Andrews ; Harmonians | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | composer | |
Columbia | 148515 | 10-in. | 5/13/1929 | Used to you | Jim Andrews ; Harmonians | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | composer | |
Columbia | W148525 | 10-in. | 5/14/1929 | Evangeline | Andy Sannella All Star Trio | Instrumental trio, with male vocal solo | composer | |
Columbia | 148549 | 10-in. | 5/20/1929 | Evangeline | Jim Andrews ; The Georgians [Paul Specht Orchestra] | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | composer | |
Columbia | W148570 | 10-in. | 5/30/1929 | Evangeline | Cliff Edwards | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | composer | |
Columbia | W148626 | 10-in. | 5/24/1929 | One sweet kiss | Maurice J. Gunsky | Male vocal solo, with instrumental trio | songwriter | |
Columbia | W148863 | 10-in. | 8/5/1929 | Little pal | Irving Kaufman | Male vocal solo, with instrumental quartet | composer | |
Columbia | W148864 | 10-in. | 8/5/1929 | Used to you | Irving Kaufman | Male vocal solo, with instrumental quartet | composer | |
Columbia | 148871 | 10-in. | 8/13/1929 | One sweet kiss | Tom Frawley ; Sam Lanin Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | songwriter | |
Columbia | [W]148910 | 10-in. | 8/20/1929 | Little pal | Franklyn Ferris ; Sidney James | Organ solo, with male vocal solo | composer | |
Columbia | W148960 | 10-in. | 8/30/1929 | A year from today | Al Katz Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | songwriter | |
Columbia | 148980 | 10-in. | 9/6/1929 | A year from to-day | Jim Andrews ; Paul Specht Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | songwriter | |
Columbia | 74230 | 12-in. | approximately January 1921 | Avalon | London Dance Orchestra | Orchestra | songwriter | |
Columbia | W96933 | 10-in. | December 1928 | Mi chiquitín : Canción | Consuelo de Guzmán | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | composer | |
Columbia | W97106 | 10-in. | May 1929 | Mi chiquitín : Canción | Orquesta Típica Criolla | Instrumental ensemble | composer | |
Columbia | W109834 | 10-in. | October 1928 | Figlio mio | Giuseppe Milano | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | composer | |
Columbia | W703008 | 10-in. | November 1929 | Chiquitín mío : Canción | Fortunio Bonanova | Male vocal solo, with chorus and orchestra | songwriter | |
OKeh | 136 | 10-in. | ca. May 1918 | 'N everything | George L. Thompson | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | songwriter | |
OKeh | 398 | 10-in. | ca. Oct. 1918 | Tell that to the Marines | Irving Kaufman | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | composer | |
OKeh | 665 | 10-in. | ca. May 1919 | I'll say she does | Arthur Fields | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | songwriter | |
OKeh | S-7101 | 10-in. | ca. Dec. 1919 | You ain't heard nothing yet | Jack Kaufman | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | songwriter | |
OKeh | S-7561 | 10-in. | Sept. 1920 | Avalon | Rega Dance Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | songwriter | |
OKeh | S-70135 | 10-in. | Aug. 1921 | Yoo-hoo | Rega Dance Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | composer |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Jolson, Al," accessed September 3, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/102089.
Jolson, Al. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved September 3, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/102089.
"Jolson, Al." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 3 September 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Wikipedia: Al Jolson
Discogs: Al Jolson
Allmusic: Al Jolson
Apple Music: Al Jolson
RISM: Al Jolson
IMDb: Al Jolson
Britannica: Al Jolson
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Jolson, Al, 1886-1950 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n50048868
Wikidata: Al Jolson - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q128532
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/97935898
MusicBrainz: Al Jolson - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/5611a8e8-1521-4919-a531-2689bbb57ce4
Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license
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