Bob Cole
Robert Allen Cole Jr. (July 1, 1868 – August 2, 1911) was an American composer, actor, and playwright who produced and directed stage shows. In collaboration with Billy Johnson, he wrote and produced A Trip to Coontown (1898), the first musical entirely created and owned by black showmen. The popular song La Hoola Boola (1898) was a result of their collaboration. Cole later partnered with brothers J. Rosamond Johnson, a pianist and singer, and James Weldon Johnson, a pianist, guitarist and lawyer, creating more than 200 songs. Their vaudeville act featured classical piano pieces and their musicals featured sophisticated lyrics without the usual stereotypes such as "hot-mamas" and watermelons. Success enabled Cole and Rosamond to tour America and Europe with their act. The trio's most popular songs were "Louisiana Lize" and "Under the Bamboo Tree" (1901?). Their more successful musicals were The Shoo-Fly Regiment (1906) and The Red Moon (1908, written without Weldon). Cole was the pre‑eminent leader in the world of black musical theater both as a composer and as a performer. His skills in acting, writing, and directing were brought to the public eye through his early works: first, he produced the black musical “A Trip to Coontown”, where he joined alliance with Billy Johnson, followed by the production of popular songs such as “ Under the Bamboo Tree,” where he worked with J. Rosamond Johnson. Cole committed suicide by drowning himself in a creek in the Catskills in 1911 after a nervous breakdown and period of clinical depression that worsened in 1910. |
Birth and Death Data: Born July 1, 1868 (Athens), Died August 2, 1911
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1897 - 1941
Roles Represented in DAHR: lyricist, composer, songwriter
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 1-25 of 95 records)
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Berliner | 1748 | 7-in. | 7/14/1897 | Czar of the Tenderloin | Will F. Denny | Male vocal solo | lyricist, composer | |
Berliner | 1912 | 7-in. | 11/1/1898 | There is a warm spot in my heart for you baby | Jere Mahoney | Male vocal solo | songwriter | |
Berliner | 013 | 7-in. | Before June 1899 | What is dat coon's game | Len Spencer | Male vocal solo | songwriter | |
Berliner | 0121 | 7-in. | 4/29/1899 | No coons allowed | Len Spencer | Male vocal solo | composer | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix C-]585 | 12-in. | 5/16/1902 | Why don't the band play? | S. H. Dudley | Male vocal solo | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix B-]585 | 10-in. | 5/16/1902 | Why don't the band play? | S. H. Dudley | Male vocal solo | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix A-]585 | 7-in. | 1/5/1901 | Why don't the band play? | S. H. Dudley | Male vocal solo | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix B-]991 | 10-in. | 10/11/1901 | In my castle on the River Nile | Bert Williams | Male vocal solo, with piano | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix A-]991 | 7-in. | 10/11/1901 | In my castle on the River Nile | Bert Williams | Male vocal solo, with piano | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix B-]1099 | 10-in. | 11/20/1901 | Come out, Dinah, on the green | Harry Macdonough | Male vocal solo | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix A-]1099 | 7-in. | 11/20/1901 | Come out, Dinah, on the green | Harry Macdonough | Male vocal solo | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix B-]1296 | 10-in. | 3/5/1902 | Tell me dusky maiden | Arthur Collins ; Joseph Natus | Male vocal duet | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix A-]1296 | 7-in. | 3/5/1902 | Tell me, dusky maiden | Arthur Collins ; Joseph Natus | Male vocal duet | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix B-]1327 | 10-in. | 3/14/1902 | Oh! Didn't he ramble! | Dan W. Quinn | Male vocal solo | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix A-]1327 | 7-in. | 3/14/1902 | Oh! Didn't he ramble! | Dan W. Quinn | Male vocal solo | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix B-]1353 | 10-in. | 4/8/1902 | The maiden with the dreamy eyes | Harry Macdonough | Male vocal solo | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix A-]1353 | 7-in. | 4/8/1902 | The maiden with the dreamy eyes | Harry Macdonough | Male vocal solo | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix C-]1388 | 12-in. | 5/16/1902 | Nobody's looking but the owl and moon | S. H. Dudley | Male vocal solo | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix B-]1388 | 10-in. | 5/16/1902 | Nobody's looking but the owl and moon | S. H. Dudley | Male vocal solo | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix A-]1388 | 7-in. | 5/16/1902 | Nobody's looking but the owl and moon | S. H. Dudley | Male vocal solo | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix B-]1457 | 10-in. | 7/1/1902 | I must have been a dreamin' | Silas Leachman | Male vocal solo | lyricist, composer | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix A-]1457 | 7-in. | 7/1/1902 | I must have been a-dreamin' | Silas Leachman | Male vocal solo | lyricist, composer | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix B-]1633 | 10-in. | 9/18/1902 | Under the bamboo tree | Arthur Collins | Male vocal solo | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix A-]1633 | 7-in. | 9/18/1902 | Under the bamboo tree | Arthur Collins | Male vocal solo | lyricist | |
Victor | [Pre-matrix B-]1722 | 10-in. | 10/31/1902 | I must have been a-dreamin' | Collins and Harlan | Male vocal duet | composer, lyricist |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Cole, Bob," accessed November 5, 2024, https://adpprod2.library.ucsb.edu/names/109224.
Cole, Bob. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 5, 2024, from https://adpprod2.library.ucsb.edu/names/109224.
"Cole, Bob." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 5 November 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Cole, Bob, 1868-1911 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no91030728
Wikidata: Bob Cole - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q4932103
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/56176445
MusicBrainz: Bob Cole - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/542e17e0-1f48-480f-ab54-0337417b3555
Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license
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