Blanche Calloway
Blanche Dorothea Jones Calloway (February 9, 1902 – December 16, 1978) was an American jazz singer, composer, and bandleader. She was the older sister of Cab Calloway and was a successful singer before her brother. With a music career that spanned over fifty years, Calloway was the first woman to lead an all-male orchestra and performed alongside musicians such as Cozy Cole, Chick Webb, and her brother. Her performing style was described as flamboyant and a major influence on her brother's performance style. |
Birth and Death Data: Born Baltimore (city in Maryland, United States) , Died December 16, 1978 (Baltimore (city in Maryland, United States) )
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1925 - 1935
Roles Represented in DAHR: vocalist, leader, lyricist, songwriter
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 26-35 of 35 records)
| Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OKeh | 9459 | 10-in. | 11/9/1925 | Lonesome lovesick | Louis Armstrong ; Blanche Calloway ; Richard M. Jones | Female vocal solo, with cornet and piano | vocalist | |
| Brunswick | C4029 | 10-in. | 8/13/1929 | (What did I do to be so) Black and blue | Reuben Reeves ; River Boys | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | vocalist | |
| Brunswick | C4079 | 10-in. | 8/15/1929 | Moanin’ low | Reuben Reeves ; River Boys | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | vocalist | |
| Brunswick | C4318 | 10-in. | 9/8/1929 | Have you ever felt that way? | Reuben Reeves ; River Boys | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | vocalist | |
| Brunswick | C4403 | 10-in. | 9/12/1929 | Do I know what I’m doing (While I'm in love) | Reuben Reeves ; River Boys | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | vocalist | |
| Brunswick | C4404 | 10-in. | 9/12/1929 | Shoo shoo boogie boo | Reuben Reeves ; River Boys | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | vocalist | |
| ARC | 18239 | 10-in. | 11/6/1935 | You ain't livin' right | Blanche Calloway and her Joy Boys | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | vocalist, leader | |
| Plaza | 18240 | 10-in. | 11/6/1935 | Louisiana Liza | Blanche Calloway and her Joy Boys | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | vocalist, leader | |
| ARC | 18241 | 10-in. | 11/6/1935 | I gotta swing | Blanche Calloway and her Joy Boys | Jazz/dance band | leader | |
| ARC | 18242 | 10-in. | 11/6/1935 | Line-a-jive | Blanche Calloway and her Joy Boys | Jazz/dance band | leader |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Calloway, Blanche," accessed January 7, 2026, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/109163.
Calloway, Blanche. (2026). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved January 7, 2026, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/109163.
"Calloway, Blanche." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2026. Web. 7 January 2026.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Wikipedia: Blanche Calloway
Discogs: Blanche Calloway
Allmusic: Blanche Calloway
Grove: Blanche Calloway
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Calloway, Blanche - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no91021323
Wikidata: Blanche Calloway - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q268079
VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/39564511
MusicBrainz: Blanche Calloway - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/7fd175fa-3715-4219-9ec1-a944d8fede8b
Fast: https://id.worldcat.org/fast/291454 - https://id.worldcat.org/fast/291454
Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license
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