Steve J. Lewis
Steve Lewis (March 19, 1896 - c. 1941?) was a jazz pianist and composer. Lewis was born in New Orleans. In 1910, he began his career as a member of the Silver Leaf Orchestra. He joined the Olympia Orchestra and toured with Bill and Mary Mack in 1917. When he returned to New Orleans, he spent the next ten years in bands with Armand J. Piron. During the 1920s, he taught piano to such students as Luis Russell. He worked as a bandleader and a freelance musician. His last days were spent in a mental institution in Louisiana. Lewis was an eccentric character. He drove a Ford Model T which he had custom painted in bright multicolored polka-dots. He played the piano without using either of his middle fingers; these he kept extended straight while playing (in the manner of the rude gesture known as Shooting the Bird). He was influenced by the piano stylings of Tony Jackson and Jelly Roll Morton, and became the premier pianist in Storyville after those two older musicians left town. |
Birth and Death Data: Born March 19, 1896 (New Orleans), Died 1941
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1923 - 1928
Roles Represented in DAHR: songwriter, piano, composer
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Victor | B-29347 | 10-in. | 2/7/1924 | Purple rose of Cairo | Armand J. Piron ; Piron's New Orleans Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | composer | |
Victor | B-29386 | 10-in. | 2/7/1924 | Day by day | Armand J. Piron ; Piron's New Orleans Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | composer | |
Victor | B-29536 | 10-in. | 2/21/1924 | Kiss me sweet | Armand J. Piron ; Piron's New Orleans Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | composer | |
Victor | B-32122 | 10-in. | 3/25/1925 | Do just as I say | Armand J. Piron ; Piron's New Orleans Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | composer | |
Columbia | 81435 | 10-in. | 12/21/1923 | Sud bustin' blues | Piron's New Orleans Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | songwriter | |
Columbia | W142024 | 10-in. | 4/14/1926 | Bad, bad mama | Willie Jackson ; Steve J. Lewis | Male vocal solo ("blues singer"), with piano | composer, instrumentalist, piano | |
Columbia | W142025 | 10-in. | 4/14/1926 | Willie Jackson's blues | Willie Jackson ; Steve J. Lewis | Male vocal solo ("blues singer"), with piano | songwriter, instrumentalist, piano | |
Columbia | W142026 | 10-in. | 4/14/1926 | She keeps it up all the time | Willie Jackson ; Steve J. Lewis | Male vocal solo ("blues singer"), with piano | songwriter, instrumentalist, piano | |
Columbia | W142027 | 10-in. | 4/14/1926 | Old New Orleans blues | Willie Jackson ; Steve J. Lewis | Male vocal solo ("blues singer"), with piano | songwriter, instrumentalist, piano | |
Columbia | W147664 | 10-in. | 12/17/1928 | Macon blues | Dorothy Everetts | Female vocal solo ("blues singer"), with piano | instrumentalist, piano | |
Columbia | W147665 | 10-in. | 12/17/1928 | Fat mouth blues | Dorothy Everetts | Female vocal solo ("blues singer"), with piano | instrumentalist, piano | |
OKeh | 8559 | 10-in. | Mar. 1924 | Southern woman blues | Lela Bolden ; Steve J. Lewis ; Armand J. Piron | Female vocal solo, with violin and piano | instrumentalist, piano, songwriter | |
OKeh | 8560 | 10-in. | Mar. 1924 | Seawall special blues | Lela Bolden ; Steve J. Lewis ; Armand J. Piron | Female vocal solo, with violin and piano | instrumentalist, piano, songwriter | |
OKeh | S-72133 | 10-in. | December 1923 | Kiss me sweet | Piron's New Orleans Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | composer | |
OKeh | S-72606 | 10-in. | June 1924 | Sud bustin' blues | Clarence Williams’ Harmonizers ; Sippie Wallace | Female vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | songwriter | |
OKeh | S-72816 | 10-in. | 9/12/1924 | Kiss me sweet | Butterbeans & Susie ; Joe Oliver ; Clarence Williams | Female-male vocal duet, with cornet and piano | songwriter | |
Brunswick | 12684-12686 | 10-in. | 3/11/1924 | Sud bustin’ blues | Club Alabam’ Orchestra ; Fletcher Henderson | Jazz/dance band | songwriter |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Lewis, Steve J.," accessed November 22, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/106201.
Lewis, Steve J.. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 22, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/106201.
"Lewis, Steve J.." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 22 November 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Lewis, Steve J. - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n90614350
Wikidata: Steve Lewis - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q2347112
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/9000714
MusicBrainz: Steve Lewis - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/ea2d0225-43ea-467a-b923-5e10d1b5f420
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