Georgia White
Georgia White (9 March 1903 – 1980) was an American blues singer, most prolific in the 1930s and 1940s. White, who was of African American heritage, was born in Sandersville, Georgia in 1903. By the late 1920s she was singing in clubs in Chicago. She made her first recording, "When You're Smiling, the Whole World Smiles With You," with Jimmie Noone's orchestra in 1930. She returned to the studio in 1935, and over the next six years recorded over 100 tracks for Decca Records, usually accompanied by the pianist Richard M. Jones and also, in the late 1930s, by the guitarist Lonnie Johnson. White also recorded under the name Georgia Lawson. Her tracks included "I'll Keep Sitting on It," "Take Me for a Buggy Ride," "Mama Knows What Papa Wants When Papa's Feeling Blue," and "Hot Nuts." Her best-known song was "You Done Lost Your Good Thing Now" (1935). White formed an all-female band in the 1940s. She also performed with Bumble Bee Slim and Gassy Slaps. She joined Big Bill Broonzy's Laughing Trio in 1949 as pianist. "She was very easy to get along with," said Broonzy, "real friendly." She was a club singer in the 1950s, finally performing in 1959 in Chicago. She then resumed performing on weekends at the Blue Pub, a bar on Irving Park Road near the Kennedy Expressway, where she quickly won a loyal following. She sang many of her famous songs, including "Maybe I'm Wrong Again," a ballad from an early Bing Crosby movie. One of her songs, "Alley Boogie" (recorded in 1937), was used as the theme music for the British romantic comedy drama series, Love Soup. White's version of "Hot Nuts" was featured in the 2022 film, Jackass Forever. White died in 1980, in the United States. |
Birth and Death Data: Born Sandersville (city in Washington County, Georgia, United States of America), Died 1980
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1930 - 1941
Roles Represented in DAHR: vocalist, piano, composer, lyricist
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 1-25 of 100 records)
| Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia | DAL1242 | 10-in. | 3/7/1941 | Lovin' baby blues | Ocie Stockard ; Wanderers | String band, with male vocal solo | composer, lyricist | |
| Brunswick | C5754 | 10-in. | 5/16/1930 | When you’re smiling | Jimmie Noone’s Apex Club Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | vocalist | |
| Decca | 60346 | 10-in. | 1/16/1936 | Can't read, can't write | Georgia White | vocalist, instrumentalist, piano | ||
| Decca | 60347 | 10-in. | 1/16/1936 | Tell me baby | Georgia White | vocalist, instrumentalist, piano | ||
| Decca | 60352 | 10-in. | 1/17/1936 | There ain't gonna be no doggone afterwhile | Georgia White | vocalist, instrumentalist, piano | ||
| Decca | 60353 | 10-in. | 1/17/1936 | Someday sweetheart | Georgia White | vocalist, instrumentalist, piano | ||
| Decca | 60354 | 10-in. | 1/17/1936 | River blues | Georgia White | vocalist, instrumentalist, piano | ||
| Decca | 60374 | 10-in. | 1/21/1936 | If you can't get five, take two | Georgia White | vocalist, instrumentalist, piano | ||
| Decca | 60375 | 10-in. | 1/21/1936 | Rattlesnakin' Daddy | Georgia White | vocalist, instrumentalist, piano | ||
| Decca | 60401 | 10-in. | 1/24/1936 | Get 'em from the peanut man | Georgia White | vocalist, instrumentalist, piano | ||
| Decca | 60437 | Feb. 1936 | [Unknown title(s)] | Georgia White | vocalist, instrumentalist, piano | |||
| Decca | 62637 | 10-in. | 10/5/1937 | Georgia man | Georgia White | vocalist | ||
| Decca | 62638 | 10-in. | 10/5/1937 | All night blues | Georgia White | vocalist | ||
| Decca | 62639 | 10-in. | 10/5/1937 | Away all the time | Georgia White | vocalist | ||
| Decca | 62640 | 10-in. | 10/5/1937 | The stuff is here | Georgia White | vocalist | ||
| Decca | 62641 | 10-in. | 10/5/1937 | Strewin' your mess | Georgia White | vocalist | ||
| Decca | 62642 | 10-in. | 10/5/1937 | Fare Thee honey fare Thee well | Georgia White | vocalist | ||
| Decca | 63543 | 10-in. | 4/1/1938 | I'm blue and lonesome | Georgia White | vocalist | ||
| Decca | 63547 | 10-in. | 4/1/1938 | Almost afraid to love | Georgia White | vocalist, instrumentalist, piano | ||
| Decca | 63548 | 10-in. | 4/1/1938 | Too much trouble | Georgia White | vocalist, instrumentalist, piano | ||
| Decca | 63549 | 10-in. | 4/1/1938 | Crazy blues | Georgia White | vocalist, instrumentalist, piano | ||
| Decca | 63550 | 10-in. | 4/1/1938 | T'ain't nobody's business if I do | Georgia White | vocalist, instrumentalist, piano | ||
| Decca | 63551 | 10-in. | 4/1/1938 | Holding my own | Georgia White | vocalist, instrumentalist, piano | ||
| Decca | 65597 | 10-in. | 5/18/1939 | The way I'm feelin' | Georgia White | vocalist | ||
| Decca | 65598 | 10-in. | 5/18/1939 | Married woman blues | Georgia White | vocalist |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "White, Georgia," accessed December 25, 2025, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/110377.
White, Georgia. (2025). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved December 25, 2025, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/110377.
"White, Georgia." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2025. Web. 25 December 2025.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: White, Georgia, 1903-1980 - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no96059104
Wikidata: Georgia White - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q531439
VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/14960662
MusicBrainz: Georgia White - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/baa93085-4b0c-4528-bf6b-52f27fff0162
Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license
Feedback
Send the Editors a message about this record.
