Victoria Spivey

Victoria Regina Spivey (October 15, 1906 – October 3, 1976), sometimes known as Queen Victoria, was an American blues singer and songwriter. During a recording career that spanned 40 years, from 1926 to the mid-1960s, she worked with Louis Armstrong, King Oliver, Clarence Williams, Luis Russell, Lonnie Johnson, and Bob Dylan. She also performed in vaudeville and clubs, sometimes with her sister Addie "Sweet Peas" (or "Sweet Pease") Spivey (August 22, 1910 – 1943), also known as the Za Zu Girl. Among her compositions are "Black Snake Blues" (1926), "Dope Head Blues" (1927), and "Organ Grinder Blues" (1928).

Birth and Death Data: Born October 15, 1906 (Houston), Died October 3, 1976 (New York City)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1916 - 1936

Roles Represented in DAHR: vocalist, composer, lyricist, songwriter, piano, director

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 1-25 of 82 records)

Company	Matrix No.	Size	First Recording Date	Title	Primary Performer	Description	Role
Victor	BVE-48103	10-in.	10/30/1928	No papa no	Duke Ellington Orchestra	Jazz/dance band (take 1); with female vocal solo (take 2)	composer
Victor	BVE-55853	10-in.	9/24/1929	Funny feathers blues	Henry Allen ; New York Orchestra ; Victoria Spivey	Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo	composer, vocalist
Victor	BVE-55854	10-in.	9/24/1929	How do they do it that way	Henry Allen ; New York Orchestra	Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo	vocalist, composer
Victor	BVE-56732	10-in.	10/1/1929	Blood hound blues	Victoria Spivey	Female vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble	composer, vocalist
Victor	BVE-56733	10-in.	10/1/1929	Dirty T. B. blues	Victoria Spivey	Female vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble	composer, vocalist
Victor	BVE-56734	10-in.	10/1/1929	Moaning the blues	Victoria Spivey	Female vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble	composer, vocalist
Victor	BVE-56735	10-in.	10/1/1929	Telephoning the blues	Victoria Spivey	Female vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble	composer, vocalist
Victor	BVE-57555	10-in.	11/25/1929	Heartbreakin' blues	Sweet Peas Spivey	Female vocal solo, with instrumental quartet	lyricist, composer
Victor	BVE-57556	10-in.	11/25/1929	Leavin' you baby	Sweet Peas Spivey	Female vocal solo, with instrumental quartet	lyricist, composer
Victor	BVE-57557	10-in.	11/25/1929	Longin' for home	Sweet Peas Spivey	Female vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble	lyricist, composer
Victor	BVE-59142	10-in.	2/4/1930	New York blues	Victoria Spivey	Female vocal solo, with guitar and piano	composer, vocalist
Victor	BVE-59143	10-in.	2/4/1930	Lonesome with the blues	Victoria Spivey	Female vocal solo, with guitar and piano	composer, vocalist
Victor	BVE-59144	10-in.	2/4/1930	Showered with blues	Victoria Spivey	Female vocal solo, with guitar and piano	composer, vocalist
Victor	BVE-59145	10-in.	2/4/1930	Haunted by the blues	Victoria Spivey	Female vocal solo, with guitar and piano	composer, vocalist
Victor	BVE-62291	10-in.	6/26/1930	Gotta have what it takes	Harold Grey [i.e., Porter Grainger] ; Victoria Spivey	Female-male vocal duet, with guitar and piano	lyricist, composer, vocalist
Victor	BVE-62292	10-in.	6/26/1930	Gotta have what it takes	Harold Grey [i.e., Porter Grainger] ; Victoria Spivey	Female-male vocal duet, with guitar and piano	lyricist, composer, vocalist
Victor	BVE-62293	10-in.	6/26/1930	Baulin' water blues	Harold Grey [i.e., Porter Grainger] ; Victoria Spivey	Female-male vocal duet, with guitar and piano	songwriter, vocalist
Victor	BVE-62294	10-in.	6/26/1930	Baulin' water blues	Harold Grey [i.e., Porter Grainger] ; Victoria Spivey	Female-male vocal duet, with guitar and piano	songwriter, vocalist
Columbia	W142608	10-in.	9/14/1926	Black snake blues	Martha Copeland	Female vocal solo ("blues singer"), with piano	songwriter
Columbia	W145561	10-in.	1/21/1928	T. B. blues	Willie Jackson	Male vocal solo ("blues singer"), with guitar and piano	lyricist, composer
OKeh	9651	10-in.	5/11/1926	Black snake blues	Victoria Spivey	Female vocal solo, with piano	songwriter, vocalist
OKeh	9652	10-in.	5/11/1926	Dirty woman's blues	Victoria Spivey	Female vocal solo, with piano	songwriter, vocalist
OKeh	9678	10-in.	5/13/1926	Long gone blues	De Lloyd Barnes ; Pierce Gist ; Victoria Spivey	Female vocal solo, with cornet and piano	composer, vocalist
OKeh	9679	10-in.	5/13/1926	No more jelly bean blues	De Lloyd Barnes ; Pierce Gist ; Victoria Spivey	Female vocal solo, with cornet and piano	composer, vocalist
OKeh	9680	Not documented	5/13/1926	[Unknown title(s)]	Victoria Spivey	Female vocal solo, with cornet and piano	vocalist

(Results 1-25 of 82 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Spivey, Victoria," accessed December 10, 2023, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/105213.

Spivey, Victoria. (2023). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved December 10, 2023, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/105213.

"Spivey, Victoria." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2023. Web. 10 December 2023.

Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license

Feedback

Send the Editors a message about this record.

Victoria Spivey

Recordings (Results 1-25 of 82 records)

Citation

DAHR Persistent Identifier

External Sources

Linked Open Data Sources

Feedback