Herb Jeffries
Herb Jeffries (born Umberto Alexander Valentino; September 24, 1913 – May 25, 2014) was an American actor of film and television and popular music and jazz singer-songwriter, known for his baritone voice. He starred in several low-budget "race" Western feature films aimed at black audiences, Harlem on the Prairie (1937), Two-Gun Man from Harlem (1938), Rhythm Rodeo (1938), The Bronze Buckaroo (1939) and Harlem Rides the Range (1939). He also acted in several other films and television shows. During his acting career he was usually billed as Herbert Jeffrey (sometimes "Herbert Jeffries" or "Herbert Jeffries, Sensational Singing Cowboy"). In the 1940s and 1950s Jeffries recorded for a number of labels, including RCA Victor, Exclusive, Coral, Decca, Bethlehem, Columbia, Mercury and Trend. His album Jamaica, recorded by RKO, is a concept album of self-composed calypso songs. |
Birth and Death Data: Born September 24, 1913 (Detroit), Died May 25, 2014 (West Hills)
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1940 - 1952
Roles Represented in DAHR: vocalist
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 1-25 of 38 records)
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Victor | BS-044887 | 10-in. | 3/6/1940 | You, you darlin' | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra ; Herb Jeffries | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | vocalist | |
Victor | BS-053427 | 10-in. | 9/5/1940 | There shall be no night | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra ; Herb Jeffries | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | vocalist | |
Victor | BS-053432 | 10-in. | 9/6/1940 | Blues for you, Johnny | Sidney Bechet ; Herb Jeffries ; New Orleans Feetwarmers | Jazz/dance quintet with male vocal solo (take 2: no vocal) | vocalist | |
Victor | BS-053581 | 10-in. | 10/28/1940 | I never felt this way before | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra ; Herb Jeffries | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | vocalist | |
Victor | BS-053781 | 10-in. | 12/28/1940 | Flamingo | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra ; Herb Jeffries | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | vocalist | |
Victor | BS-053782 | 10-in. | 12/28/1940 | The girl in my dreams tries to look like you | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra ; Herb Jeffries | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | vocalist | |
Victor | PBS-061339 | 10-in. | 7/2/1941 | The brown skin gal (In calico gown) | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | vocalist | |
Victor | PBS-061340 | 10-in. | 7/2/1941 | Jump for joy | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo; with female vocal solo | vocalist | |
Victor | PBS-061942 | 10-in. | 12/2/1941 | What good would it do? | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | vocalist | |
Victor | PBS-061943 | 10-in. | 12/2/1941 | I dont know what kind of blues I got | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra ; Herb Jeffries | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | vocalist | |
Victor | PBS-072437 | 10-in. | 6/26/1942 | My little brown book | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | vocalist | |
Decca | L 4027 | 10-in. | 12/11/1945 | All the world is new | Herb Jeffries | vocalist | ||
Decca | L 4028 | 10-in. | 12/11/1945 | I woke up with a teardrop in my eye | Herb Jeffries | vocalist | ||
Decca | L 6001 | 1/17/1951 | You know you belong to somebody else | Herb Jeffries | vocalist | |||
Decca | L 6002 | 1/17/1951 | Passion | Herb Jeffries | vocalist | |||
Decca | L 6003 | 1/17/1951 | A fool grows wise | Herb Jeffries | vocalist | |||
Decca | L 6024 | 1/30/1951 | You know you belong to somebody | Herb Jeffries | vocalist | |||
Decca | L 6025 | 1/30/1951 | Was it a dream | Herb Jeffries | vocalist | |||
Decca | L 6026 | 1/30/1951 | I didn't know I loved you | Herb Jeffries | vocalist | |||
Decca | L 6027 | 1/30/1951 | Love me | Herb Jeffries | vocalist | |||
Decca | L 6094 | 2/20/1951 | I'm yours to command | Herb Jeffries | vocalist | |||
Decca | L 6206 | 4/5/1951 | Time on my hands | Herb Jeffries | vocalist | |||
Decca | L 6207 | 5/4/1951 | All alone | Herb Jeffries | vocalist | |||
Decca | L 6208 | 4/5/1951 | I didn't know what time it was | Herb Jeffries | vocalist | |||
Decca | L 6209 | 4/5/1951 | All by myself | Herb Jeffries | vocalist |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Jeffries, Herb," accessed November 1, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/102193.
Jeffries, Herb. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 1, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/102193.
"Jeffries, Herb." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 1 November 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Wikipedia: Herb Jeffries
Discogs: Herb Jeffries
Grove: Herb Jeffries
IMDb: Herb Jeffries
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Jeffries, Herb - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n78018985
Wikidata: Herb Jeffries - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q126958
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/39575048
MusicBrainz: Herb Jeffries - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/f7715d63-b2d2-4bb4-8e75-7bfc5f89115d
Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license
Feedback
Send the Editors a message about this record.