Reading Time: 5 minutes You may not know Spencer Williams by name, but I bet you know “Everybody Loves My Baby, but My Baby Don’t Love Nobody but Me,” or maybe “Basin Street Blues.” Perhaps you can even sing a few lines of “I Ain’t Got Nobody.” Spencer Williams composed from 200-500 songs, many of which were imbued with a deep sense of nostalgia for the New Orleans he knew in the 1910s (Edwards, n.d.; Chilla, 2022). He was known for being an original, and though some might warmly critique his ideas as ‘shortwinded’ and his harmonies as ‘modest,’ they would still agree “he could write a tune that got to the subject” (“Quite a Moment,” 1965).
Tag: Sheet music
Swing Along!
Reading Time: < 1 minute Talented. Undeterred. History Shapers. These are but some of the attributes found in the musicians of the “Swing Along!“ exhibit. In spite of prejudice and lack of opportunities, these men changed the history of music. Each story is unique as the individual …Continue Reading
Digitization in Celebration of African American History Month
Reading Time: < 1 minute Black Migrations is the theme of 2019’s Black History Month as chosen by the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH). The theme focuses on the movement of African American people in the U.S. from the south to the north, …Continue Reading
Digital Scholarship Services Celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month
Reading Time: 2 minutes In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month and this year’s theme: Hispanics: One Endless Voice to Enhance our Traditions, Digital Scholarship Services has digitized a small selection of musical and theatrical materials from our Special Collections Sheet Music and Centro Asturiano Collections. First, in …Continue Reading