Louis Prima
Louis Leo Prima (December 7, 1910 – August 24, 1978) was an American trumpeter, singer, entertainer, and bandleader. While rooted in New Orleans jazz, swing music, and jump blues, Prima touched on various genres throughout his career: he formed a seven-piece New Orleans-style jazz band in the late 1920s, fronted a swing combo in the 1930s and a big band group in the 1940s, helped to popularize jump blues in the late 1940s and early to mid 1950s, and performed frequently as a Vegas lounge act beginning in the 1950s. From the 1940s through the 1960s, his music further encompassed early R&B and rock 'n' roll, boogie-woogie, and Italian folk music, such as the tarantella. Prima made prominent use of Italian music and language in his songs, blending elements of his Italian and Sicilian identity with jazz and swing music. At a time when ethnic musicians were discouraged from openly stressing their ethnicity, Prima's conspicuous embrace of his Sicilian ethnicity opened the doors for other Italian-American and ethnic American musicians to display their ethnic roots. Prima is also known for providing the voice for the orangutan King Louie in the 1967 Disney film The Jungle Book. |
Birth and Death Data: Born December 7, 1910 (New Orleans), Died August 24, 1978 (New Orleans)
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1933 - 1950
Roles Represented in DAHR: vocalist, trumpet, leader, songwriter, composer, lyricist
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 1-25 of 65 records)
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Victor | BS-77034 | 10-in. | 9/28/1933 | Chinatown, my Chinatown | Hotcha Trio | Instrumental trio, with male vocal solo | instrumentalist, trumpet, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-77036 | 10-in. | 9/28/1933 | Dinah | Hotcha Trio ; Louis Prima | Instrumental trio, with male vocal solo | instrumentalist, trumpet, vocalist | |
Victor | BS-100883 | 10-in. | 8/4/1936 | Sing, sing, sing (With a swing) | Fletcher Henderson's Orchestra ; Georgia Boy Simpkins | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | composer, lyricist | |
Victor | BS-102347 | 10-in. | 7/7/1936 | Sing, sing, sing (With a swing) | Connie McLean Rhythm Orchestra ; Alex Miller | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | composer, lyricist | |
Victor | PCS-09571 | 12-in. | 7/6/1937 | Sing, sing, sing | Benny Goodman Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | composer | |
Victor | PCS-09572 | 12-in. | 7/6/1937 | Sing, sing, sing | Benny Goodman Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | composer | |
Victor | BS-018167 | 10-in. | 1/15/1938 | Yes, there ain't no moonlight (So what) | Freddy Martin Orchestra ; Martin-Aires Trio | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal trio | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-021418 | 10-in. | 3/10/1938 | Where have we met before | Dick Stabile Orchestra ; Paula Kelly | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-021648 | 10-in. | 3/29/1938 | Where have we met before? | Guy Lombardo ; Royal Canadians | Jazz/dance band, with vocal trio | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-047903 | 10-in. | 3/1/1940 | Sing a spell | Blue Barron ; Three Blue Notes | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal trio and vocal ensemble | composer, lyricist | |
Victor | BS-053134 | 10-in. | 6/13/1940 | Be happy | Glenn Miller Orchestra ; Marion Hutton | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-068348 | 10-in. | 11/24/1941 | Tica ti - tica ta | Marilyn Duke ; Vaughn Monroe's Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo and male vocal ensemble | composer | |
Victor | BS-068850 | 10-in. | 1/11/1942 | Tica ti - tica ta | Dick Todd | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | composer | |
Victor | BS-068867 | 10-in. | 1/12/1942 | Tica ti - tica ta | Jan Savitt ; Top Hatters | Jazz/dance band, with vocal | composer | |
Victor | BS-071869 | 10-in. | 2/19/1942 | Tica-ti tica-ta | Tito Guizar | Male vocal solo, with instrumental quintet | composer | |
Victor | E0VB-4551 | 10-in. | 10/19/1950 | Oh babe! | Homer and Jethro | Male vocal duet, with string band | songwriter | |
Victor | D4AB-0427 | 10-in. | 11/17/1944 | Robin Hood | Tony Pastor Orchestra | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | songwriter | |
Victor | D5VB-0181 | 10-in. | 4/2/1945 | Please no squeeza da banana | Tony Pastor Orchestra ; Charles Trotta | Male vocal solo, with recitation and jazz/dance band | songwriter | |
Victor | D7VB-1443 | 10-in. | 7/24/1947 | Civilization (bongo, bongo, bongo) | Louis Prima Orchestra ; Louis Prima | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | vocalist, leader | |
Victor | D7VB-1444 | 10-in. | 7/24/1947 | You can't tell the depth of the well | Louis Prima Orchestra ; Louis Prima | Male vocal solo, with vocal chorus and jazz/dance band | vocalist, leader | |
Victor | D7VB-1445 | 10-in. | 7/24/1947 | Say it with a slap | Louis Prima Orchestra ; Louis Prima | Male vocal solo, with vocal chorus and jazz/dance band | vocalist, leader | |
Victor | D7VB-1446 | 10-in. | 7/24/1947 | Forsaking all others | Louis Prima Orchestra ; Louis Prima | Female-male vocal duet, with vocal chorus and jazz/dance band | vocalist, leader | |
Victor | D7VB-1447 | 10-in. | 7/24/1947 | I'll never make the same mistake again | Louis Prima Orchestra ; Louis Prima | Male vocal solo, with vocal chorus and jazz/dance band | vocalist, leader | |
Victor | D7VB-1635 | 10-in. | 9/22/1947 | Valencia | Louis Prima Orchestra ; Louis Prima | Male vocal solo, with vocal group jazz/dance band | vocalist, leader | |
Victor | D7VB-1636 | 10-in. | 9/22/1947 | With a hey and a hi and a ho ho ho! | Louis Prima Orchestra ; Louis Prima | Male vocal solo, with vocal group jazz/dance band | vocalist, leader |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Prima, Louis," accessed November 1, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/108876.
Prima, Louis. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 1, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/108876.
"Prima, Louis." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 1 November 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Wikipedia: Louis Prima
Discogs: Louis Prima
Allmusic: Louis Prima
Apple Music: Louis Prima
IMDb: Louis Prima
Britannica: Louis Prima
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Prima, Louis, 1910-1978 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no89016730
Wikidata: Louis Prima - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q367447
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/17408624
MusicBrainz: Louis Prima - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/b5997eef-2516-491a-a10e-5cee842bbcdc
Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license
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