Ray Nance
Ray Willis Nance (December 10, 1913 – January 28, 1976) was an American jazz trumpeter, violinist and singer. He is best remembered for his long association with Duke Ellington and his orchestra. |
Birth and Death Data: Born Chicago (city and county seat of Cook County, and largest city in State of Illinois, United States of America), Died January 28, 1976 (New York City (most populous city in the United States) )
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1940 - 1949
Roles Represented in DAHR: trumpet, violin, vocalist
Notes: Ray Nance is credited as Ray Willis Nance, Willis Nance, and Willis Raymond Nance,
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 1-25 of 98 records)
| Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Victor | BS-053621 | 10-in. | 11/11/1940 | Charlie the chulo | Barney Bigard Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | BS-053622 | 10-in. | 11/11/1940 | Lament for Javanette | Barney Bigard Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | BS-053623 | 10-in. | 11/11/1940 | A lull at dawn | Barney Bigard Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | BS-053624 | 10-in. | 11/11/1940 | Ready Eddy | Barney Bigard Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | BS-053780 | 10-in. | 12/28/1940 | The sidewalks of New York | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | BS-053781 | 10-in. | 12/28/1940 | Flamingo | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra ; Herb Jeffries | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | BS-053782 | 10-in. | 12/28/1940 | The girl in my dreams tries to look like you | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra ; Herb Jeffries | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-055283 | 10-in. | 2/15/1941 | Take the "A" train | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-055284 | 10-in. | 2/15/1941 | Jumpin' punkins | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-055285 | 10-in. | 2/15/1941 | John Hardy's wife | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-055286 | 10-in. | 2/15/1941 | Blue serge | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-055287 | 10-in. | 2/15/1941 | After all | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-061283 | 10-in. | 6/5/1941 | Bakiff | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, violin | |
| Victor | PBS-061284 | 10-in. | 6/5/1941 | Are you sticking? | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-061285 | 10-in. | 6/5/1941 | Just a-settin' and a-rockin' | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-061286 | 10-in. | 6/5/1941 | The giddybug gallop | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-061318 | 10-in. | 6/26/1941 | Chocolate shake | Ivie Anderson ; Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-061319 | 10-in. | 6/26/1941 | I got it bad and that ain't good | Ivie Anderson ; Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-061338 | 10-in. | 7/2/1941 | Clementine | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-061339 | 10-in. | 7/2/1941 | The brown skin gal (In calico gown) | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-061340 | 10-in. | 7/2/1941 | Jump for joy | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo; with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-061341 | 10-in. | 7/2/1941 | Moon over Cuba | Duke Ellington Famous Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-061346 | 10-in. | 7/3/1941 | Squaty roo | Johnny Hodges Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-061347 | 10-in. | 7/3/1941 | Passion flower | Johnny Hodges Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet | |
| Victor | PBS-061348 | 10-in. | 7/3/1941 | Things ain't what they used to be | Johnny Hodges Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, trumpet |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Nance, Ray," accessed December 24, 2025, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/103189.
Nance, Ray. (2025). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved December 24, 2025, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/103189.
"Nance, Ray." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2025. Web. 24 December 2025.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Wikipedia: Ray Nance
Discogs: Ray Nance
Allmusic: Ray Nance
Grove: Ray Nance
IMDb: Ray Nance
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Nance, Ray, 1913-1976 - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n81071432
Wikidata: Ray Nance - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q1937573
VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/74038456
MusicBrainz: Ray Nance - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/a765d3e6-0a39-4910-b0d8-f80557be846d
Fast: https://id.worldcat.org/fast/1954619 - https://id.worldcat.org/fast/1954619
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