Charlie Dixon
Charles Edward Dixon (December 31, 1898 in Jersey City, New Jersey – December 6, 1940 in New York City) was an American jazz banjoist. Between 1921 and 1923, Dixon was a member of Johnny Dunn's Original Jazz Hounds, one of several Dunn-led line-ups that recorded in New York around that time for the Columbia label. Dixon played in local ensembles in Boston and New York before becoming a member of Sam Wooding's orchestra in 1922. Wooding had been in Dunn's band at the same time. In 1923, he joined up with Fletcher Henderson, playing and writing arrangements for him until 1928 and continuing to write charts for Henderson after his departure. He played with Henderson in both small and big band formats, and recorded in Henderson's pseudonymous groups such as the Dixie Stompers. Among the musicians he played with while under Wooding and Henderson were Kaiser Marshall, Louis Armstrong, Ralph Escudero, Coleman Hawkins, Don Redman, and Elmer Chambers. He also played in small ensembles accompanying singers such as Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey, Trixie Smith, and Alberta Hunter in the 1920s. In the 1930s, he led a band which accompanied dancer Cora LaRedd, and also arranged and composed for Chick Webb, including Dixon's arrangements for the latter of "That Naughty Waltz" and "Harlem Congo". Unlike most of the banjoists of his era, he never switched to guitar, and his banjo work is often difficult to hear on record. |
Birth and Death Data: Born December 31, 1898 (New Jersey), Died December 6, 1940
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1924
Roles Represented in DAHR: banjo, guitar
= 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 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Plaza/ARC | 5483 | 10-in. | April 1924 | You don't know my mind | Charlie Dixon ; Viola McCoy | Female vocal solo, with guitar | instrumentalist, guitar |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Dixon, Charlie," accessed November 22, 2024, https://adpprod2.library.ucsb.edu/names/116271.
Dixon, Charlie. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 22, 2024, from https://adpprod2.library.ucsb.edu/names/116271.
"Dixon, Charlie." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 22 November 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Dixon, Charlie, approximately 1898-1940 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no98049960
Wikidata: Charlie Dixon - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q1066888
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/56795887
MusicBrainz: Charlie Dixon - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/d80bbed8-459d-48a0-9168-0c650447619f
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