Big Bill Broonzy
Big Bill Broonzy (born Lee Conley Bradley; June 26, 1893 or 1903 – August 14, 1958) was an American blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist. His career began in the 1920s, when he played country music to mostly African-American audiences. In the 1930s and 1940s, he navigated a change in style to a more urban blues sound popular with working-class black audiences. In the 1950s, a return to his traditional folk-blues roots made him one of the leading figures of the emerging American folk music revival and an international star. His long and varied career marks him as one of the key figures in the development of blues music in the 20th century. Broonzy copyrighted more than 300 songs, including adaptations of traditional folk songs and original blues songs. As a blues composer, he was unique in writing songs that reflected his rural-to-urban experiences. |
Birth and Death Data: Born June 26, 1893 (Scott County), Died August 14, 1958 (Chicago)
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1930 - 1953
Roles Represented in DAHR: guitar, vocalist, composer, lyricist, songwriter, speaker
Notes: Often billed as Big Bill; composer credits as Williard Broonzy.
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 51-75 of 251 records)
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Victor | BS-034812 | 10-in. | 5/17/1939 | Against my will | Jazz Gillum ; Jazz Boys | Male vocal solo, with instrumental quartet | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-034813 | 10-in. | 5/17/1939 | Talking to myself | Jazz Gillum ; Jazz Boys | Male vocal solo, with instrumental quartet | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-034814 | 10-in. | 5/17/1939 | Hard drivin' woman | Jazz Gillum ; Jazz Boys | Male vocal solo, with instrumental quartet | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-034815 | 10-in. | 5/17/1939 | Keyhole blues | Jazz Gillum ; Jazz Boys | Male vocal solo, with instrumental quartet | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-034816 | 10-in. | 5/17/1939 | Somebody been talking to you | Jazz Gillum ; Jazz Boys | Male vocal solo, with instrumental quartet | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-034817 | 10-in. | 5/17/1939 | One time blues | Jazz Gillum ; Jazz Boys | Male vocal solo, with instrumental quartet | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040525 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | Bad luck blues | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040526 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | My little baby | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040527 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | Doggin' my love around | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040528 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | Little low woman blues | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040529 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | Good for nothing blues | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040530 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | Sugar mama blues no. 2 | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040531 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | Good gravy | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica and guitar | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040532 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | T.B. blues | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040533 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | Something going on wrong | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040534 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | Good gal blues | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040535 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | Joe Louis and John Henry blues | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040536 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | Thinking my blues away | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040537 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | I'm not pleasing you | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040538 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | New "Jailhouse blues" | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040539 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | Lifetime blues | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040540 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | Miss Ida Lee | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040541 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | Tell me, baby | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-040542 | 10-in. | 7/21/1939 | Honey bee blues | Sonny Boy Williamson | Male vocal solo, with harmonica, guitar, and piano | instrumentalist, guitar | |
Victor | BS-044974 | 10-in. | 5/9/1940 | Romance in the dark | Lil Green | Female vocal solo, with instrumental trio | songwriter |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Broonzy, Big Bill," accessed November 21, 2024, https://adpprod2.library.ucsb.edu/names/108656.
Broonzy, Big Bill. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 21, 2024, from https://adpprod2.library.ucsb.edu/names/108656.
"Broonzy, Big Bill." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 21 November 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Wikipedia: Big Bill Broonzy
Discogs: Big Bill Broonzy
Allmusic: Big Bill Broonzy
Grove: Big Bill Broonzy
IMDb: Big Bill Broonzy
Britannica: Big Bill Broonzy
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Broonzy, Big Bill, 1893-1958 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no88003463
Wikidata: Big Bill Broonzy - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q449239
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/10032630
MusicBrainz: Big Bill Broonzy - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/05bc49f8-3108-44c8-82b9-ac3254896a69
Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license
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