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Len Spencer

Leonard Garfield Spencer (February 12, 1867 – December 15, 1914) was an early American recording artist. He began recording for the Columbia Phonograph Company, in 1889 or 1890. Between 1892 and 1897 he recorded extensively for the New Jersey Phonograph Company and its successor the United States Phonograph Company. He specialized in vaudeville sketches and comic songs, but also sang sentimental ballads popular at the time. He returned to Columbia in 1898 for an exclusive contract then began recording for Berliner Gramophone (disc) records in 1899 and continued with Victor and Columbia as discs became the dominant format in the early 1900s.

He began performing with banjoist Vess L. Ossman in 1901 and with Ada Jones in 1905. He is best remembered today for his vaudeville-style comic sketches, such as "The Arkansaw Traveler" (1902), combining clever turns of phrase, ironic elocutionary delivery, sound effects and music to create colorful dialogues featuring itinerant Southerners, auctioneers, circus barkers, and Irish, Jewish or Black Americans. Many of his roles were performed in either blackface or brownface. Spencer's output was eclectic. He imitated animal sounds in "A Barnyard Serenade" (1906) and released another record titled "The Transformation Scene from 'Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde'," but also popularized songs still known today such as "Ta-Ra-Ra-Boom De-ay" and "A Hot Time in the Old Town." Music historian Bob Stanley deems it "probable" that Spencer's comedic "Arkansaw Traveler" routine was the first record to sell one million copies, though official documentation is lacking.

As the popularity of Len's style of humor waned in the latter part of the decade, he opened a booking agency called "Len Spencer's Lyceum" in New York. He died of a cerebral hemorrhage while working at the Lyceum on December 15, 1914.

Birth and Death Data: Born February 12, 1867 (Washington, D.C.), Died December 15, 1914 (New York City)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1896 - 1925

Roles Represented in DAHR: speaker, author, baritone vocal, performer, composer, adapter

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

Recordings (Results 701-725 of 812 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Zonophone [Zo cat C 5682] 9-in. Before Dec. 1903 Hot times on the levee Len Spencer Male vocal solo, with piano speaker  
Zonophone [Zo cat P 5709] 7-in. Before Dec. 1903 On emancipation day Len Spencer Male vocal solo, with piano speaker  
Zonophone [Zo cat C 5709] 9-in. Before Dec. 1903 On emancipation day Len Spencer Male vocal solo, with piano speaker  
Zonophone [Zo cat P 5715] 7-in. Before Dec. 1903 The banjo evangelist Parke Hunter ; Len Spencer Monologue, with banjo speaker  
Zonophone [Zo cat C 5715] 9-in. Before Dec. 1903 The banjo evangelist Parke Hunter ; Len Spencer Monologue, with banjo speaker  
Zonophone [Zo cat P 5739] 7-in. Before 1904 Carolina Jim Len Spencer Monologue speaker  
Zonophone [Ox cat 5739] 7-in. ca. 1904-1905 Carolina Jim Len Spencer Monologue speaker  
Zonophone [Zo cat C 5739] 9-in. Before 1904 Carolina Jim Len Spencer Monologue speaker  
Zonophone [Zo cat P 5740] 7-in. Before 1904 Independence bell Len Spencer Monologue, with chime speaker  
Zonophone [Zo cat C 5740] 9-in. Before 1904 Independence bell Len Spencer Monologue, with chime speaker  
Zonophone [Zo cat P 5741] 7-in. Before 1904 Leap for life Len Spencer Monologue speaker  
Zonophone [Zo cat C 5741] 9-in. Before 1904 Leap for life Len Spencer Monologue speaker  
Zonophone [Zo cat P 5742] 7-in. Before 1904 Ole laughin' Len Spencer Monologue speaker  
Zonophone [Ox cat 5742] 7-in. ca. 1904-1905 Ole laughin' Len Spencer Monologue speaker  
Zonophone [Zo cat C 5742] 9-in. Before 1904 Ole laughin' Len Spencer Monologue speaker  
Zonophone [Ox cat 5743] 7-in. ca. 1904-1905 The newsboy's Christmas Len Spencer Monologue speaker  
Zonophone [Zo cat P 5758] 7-in. ca. 1904-1905 A yaller dog's love for a nigger Len Spencer Monologue speaker  
Zonophone [Zo cat C 5758] 9-in. ca. 1904-1905 A yaller dog's love for a nigger Len Spencer Monologue speaker  
Zonophone [Zo cat P 5775] 7-in. Before Feb. 1904 Having fun with the orchestra Len Spencer Monologue, with orchestra speaker  
Zonophone [Ox cat 5775] 7-in. ca. 1904-1905 Having fun with the orchestra Len Spencer Monologue, with orchestra speaker  
Zonophone [Ox cat 5780] 7-in. ca. 1904-1905 Ebony emperors of melody Len Spencer Male vocal solo and male vocal quartet, with orchestra vocalist, baritone vocal  
Zonophone [Zo cat P 5781] 7-in. Before Feb. 1904 Prize waltz contest Len Spencer Descriptive scene, with orchestra speaker  
Zonophone [Ox cat 5781] 7-in. ca. 1904-1905 Prize waltz contest Len Spencer Descriptive scene, with orchestra speaker  
Zonophone [Ox cat 5804] 7-in. ca. 1904-1905 Auction sale of musical instruments Parke Hunter ; Len Spencer Descriptive scene, with banjo speaker  
Zonophone [Ox cat 5830] 7-in. ca. 1904-1905 Levee scene Len Spencer Descriptive scene, with orchestra speaker  
(Results 701-725 of 812 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Spencer, Len," accessed April 25, 2024, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/106197.

Spencer, Len. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved April 25, 2024, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/106197.

"Spencer, Len." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 25 April 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/106197

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