Big Jay McNeely
Cecil James "Big Jay" McNeely (April 29, 1927 – September 16, 2018) was an American R&B saxophonist. |
Birth and Death Data: Born (Los Angeles (seat of Los Angeles County, and largest city in California, United States)), Died September 16, 2018 (Riverside County (county in California, United States) )
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1949 - 1951
Roles Represented in DAHR: tenor saxophone, leader, songwriter, composer, vocalist
= 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Excelsior | OR-536-AA | 10-in. | 12/31/1951 | Midnight in the barrel house | Johnny Otis Band ; Pete "Guitar" Lewis ; Big Jay McNeely | instrumentalist, tenor saxophone | ||
| Excelsior | OR-536-B | 10-in. | 12/31/1951 | Barrel house stomp | Johnny Otis Band | instrumentalist, tenor saxophone | ||
| Excelsior | OR-536-A | 10-in. | 12/31/1951 | Happy new year baby | Johnny Otis Band ; Lem Tally | instrumentalist, tenor saxophone | ||
| Exclusive | EXC-1374 | 10-in. | 12/31/1949 | Midnight dreams | Clifford Blivens ; Big Jay McNeely | leader, songwriter | ||
| Exclusive | EXC-1375 | 10-in. | 12/31/1949 | Blow big Jay | Big Jay McNeely | leader, composer | ||
| Exclusive | EXC-1376 | 10-in. | 12/31/1949 | Boogie in front | Big Jay McNeely | instrumentalist, tenor saxophone, composer | ||
| Exclusive | EXC-1377 | 10-in. | 12/31/1949 | Willie the cool cat | Big Jay McNeely | composer, instrumentalist, tenor saxophone | ||
| Exclusive | EXC-1390 | 10-in. | 12/31/1949 | Gingercake | Big Jay McNeely | instrumentalist, tenor saxophone, composer | ||
| Exclusive | EXC-1391 | 10-in. | 12/31/1949 | K & h boogie | Big Jay McNeely | composer, leader | ||
| Exclusive | EXC-1392 | 10-in. | 12/31/1949 | Road house boogie | Big Jay McNeely | instrumentalist, tenor saxophone, vocalist, songwriter | ||
| Exclusive | EXC-1397 | 10-in. | 12/31/1949 | Hoppin' with Hunter | Big Jay McNeely | composer, leader | ||
| Exclusive | EXC-1399 | 10-in. | 12/31/1949 | Tondalayo | Big Jay McNeely | leader, composer | ||
| Exclusive | EXC-1400 | 10-in. | 12/31/1949 | Junie flip | Clifford Blivins ; Big Jay McNeely | songwriter, leader | ||
| Imperial | IM-261 | 10-in. | January, 1951 | Insect ball | Big Jay McNeely & Band ; Ernest "Skillet" Mayhand | instrumentalist, tenor saxophone, leader | ||
| Imperial | IM-262 | 10-in. | January, 1951 | Sad story | Jesse Belvin ; Big Jay McNeely & Band | instrumentalist, tenor saxophone, leader | ||
| Imperial | IM-263 | 10-in. | 1/31/1951 | All that wine is gone | Jesse Belvin ; Big Jay McNeely ; Three Dots and a Dash | instrumentalist, tenor saxophone, leader | ||
| Imperial | IM-264 | 10-in. | 1/31/1951 | Don't cry baby | Jesse Belvin ; Big Jay McNeely ; Three Dots and a Dash | leader, instrumentalist, tenor saxophone | ||
| Imperial | IM-365 | 10-in. | November, 1951 | Let's do it | Big Jay McNeely & Band ; Three Dots and a Dash | instrumentalist, tenor saxophone, leader, songwriter | ||
| Imperial | IM-366 | 10-in. | November, 1951 | I'll never love again | Big Jay McNeely & Band ; Three Dots and a Dash | instrumentalist, tenor saxophone, leader | ||
| Imperial | IM-367 | 10-in. | November, 1951 | True love | Big Jay McNeely & Band ; Three Dots and a Dash | instrumentalist, tenor saxophone, leader | ||
| Imperial | IM-368 | 10-in. | November, 1951 | That old mule | Big Jay McNeely & Band | instrumentalist, tenor saxophone, leader | ||
| Imperial | IM-373 | 10-in. | November or December, 1951 | The deacon blows for Ray | Big Jay McNeely | leader, instrumentalist, tenor saxophone, songwriter | ||
| Imperial | IM-374 | 10-in. | November or December, 1951 | Tall brown woman | Big Jay McNeely | leader, instrumentalist, tenor saxophone | ||
| Imperial | IM-375 | 10-in. | November or December 1951 | Deacon rides again | Big Jay McNeely | instrumentalist, tenor saxophone, songwriter, leader | ||
| Imperial | IM-376 | 10-in. | November or December, 1951 | Blow, blow, blow | Big Jay McNeely | leader, instrumentalist, tenor saxophone, songwriter |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "McNeely, Big Jay," accessed January 3, 2026, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/400822.
McNeely, Big Jay. (2026). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved January 3, 2026, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/400822.
"McNeely, Big Jay." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2026. Web. 3 January 2026.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: McNeely, Big Jay, 1927-2018 - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n87831534
Wikidata: Big Jay McNeely - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q352225
VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/67272666
MusicBrainz: Big Jay McNeely - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/17356cb5-7789-42b4-9486-fdd72288d513
Fast: https://id.worldcat.org/fast/200209 - https://id.worldcat.org/fast/200209
Feedback
Send the Editors a message about this record.