Ben Selvin
Benjamin Bernard Selvin (March 5, 1898 – July 15, 1980) was an American musician, bandleader, and record producer. He was known as the Dean of Recorded Music. Selvin was born in New York City, United States, the son of Jewish Russian immigrants. He started his professional life at age 15 as a fiddle player in New York City night clubs. Six years later, as leader of his own dance band, the Novelty Orchestra, he released what was later alleged to be the biggest-selling popular song in the first quarter-century of recorded music. "Dardanella" allegedly sold more than six million copies and an additional million pieces of sheet music—although in a joint interview with Gustave Haenschen, founding director of popular-music releases at Brunswick Records, Selvin described the alleged record-sales total as “nonsensical” and said the actual sales of “Dardanella” and other purported “million-sellers” in the 1920s was 150,000 discs. He was awarded a gold disc by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) that was presented to Selvin on his retirement on March 14, 1963. According to The Guinness Book of World Records, Selvin recorded more musical sides (on 78-rpm discs) than any other person. One reason for this prolific output is that he recorded for dozens of different record labels during this productive time in the industry, using a different name for each label. His output has been estimated at 13,000 to 20,000 song titles. |
Birth and Death Data: Born March 5, 1898 (New York City), Died July 15, 1980 (Manhasset)
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1919 - 1942
Roles Represented in DAHR: leader, violin, vocalist, songwriter, composer, lyricist, arranger
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 226-250 of 1016 records)
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Columbia | 145959 | 10-in. | 4/4/1928 | I'm afraid of you | The Harmonians [Selvin's Orchestra] | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | 145960 | 10-in. | 4/4/1928 | Laugh! Clown! Laugh! | The Harmonians [Selvin's Orchestra] | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | 145986 | 10-in. | 4/9/1928 | Mammy is gone | Irving Kaufman | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance ensemble | instrumentalist, violin | |
Columbia | 145987 | 10-in. | 4/9/1928 | Sweetheart, I'm sorry (That I made you cry) | Irving Kaufman | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance ensemble | instrumentalist, violin | |
Columbia | 145988 | 10-in. | 4/9/1928 | Sentimental baby | Irving Kaufman | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance ensemble | instrumentalist, violin | |
Columbia | 146277 | 10-in. | 4/26/1928 | My angel | The Harmonians [Selvin's Orchestra] | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | 146278 | 10-in. | 4/26/1928 | I'm riding to glory (With a glorious girl) | The Harmonians [Selvin's Orchestra] | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | 146279 | 10-in. | 4/26/1928 | Whisper sweet and whisper low | The Harmonians [Selvin's Orchestra] | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | W146282 | 10-in. | 4/30/1928 | I'm afraid of you | Ben Selvin and his Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | W146283 | 10-in. | 4/30/1928 | What's the reason? | The Knickerbockers ; The Three Melodians | Jazz/dance band, with vocal trio | leader | |
Columbia | 146313 | 10-in. | 5/21/1928 | Just a little bit o' driftwood | The Harmonians [Selvin's Orchestra] | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | 146314 | 10-in. | 5/21/1928 | One alone | The Harmonians [Selvin's Orchestra] | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | 146315 | 10-in. | 5/21/1928 | The desert song | Bar Harbor Society Orchestra [Selvin's Orchestra] | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | 146330 | 10-in. | 5/23/1928 | Sorry for me | The Harmonians [Selvin's Orchestra] | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | 146331 | 10-in. | 5/23/1928 | Hiding in the corner of your smile | Newport Society Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | 146332 | 10-in. | 5/23/1928 | Sweet Ella May | Dick Burnett ; The Harmonians [Selvin's Orchestra] | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | W146340 | 10-in. | 5/24/1928 | Happy days and lonely nights | Ruth Etting | Female vocal solo, with violin, steel guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, violin | |
Columbia | W146341 | 10-in. | 5/24/1928 | Lonely little bluebird | Ruth Etting | Female vocal solo, with violin, steel guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, violin | |
Columbia | W146374 | 10-in. | 5/31/1928 | Chilly pom pom pee | Ben Selvin and his Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal trio | leader | |
Columbia | W146375 | 10-in. | 5/31/1928 | Just a night for meditation | Ben Selvin and his Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | W146380 | 10-in. | 6/1/1928 | I can't give you anything but love | The Knickerbockers | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | W146381 | 10-in. | 6/1/1928 | I must have that man! | The Knickerbockers | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | W146401 | 10-in. | 6/6/1928 | I must be dreaming | The Harmonians [Selvin's Orchestra] | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | W146402 | 10-in. | 6/6/1928 | You took advantage of me | The Harmonians [Selvin's Orchestra] | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader | |
Columbia | W146403 | 10-in. | 6/6/1928 | Do I hear you saying "I love you"? | Selvin’s Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Selvin, Ben," accessed November 21, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/111064.
Selvin, Ben. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 21, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/111064.
"Selvin, Ben." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 21 November 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Selvin, Ben, 1898-1980 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no98080176
Wikidata: Ben Selvin - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q304517
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/54338200
MusicBrainz: Ben Selvin - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/84733717-7fa8-43da-a6aa-259fa1f36eb0
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