Roba Stanley
Roba Stanley (February 11, 1908 – June 8, 1986) was a country music singer who has been said to be the first woman to record country music. Others have pointed out that Samantha Bumgarner and Eva Davis recorded a session (including solos) three months before Roba recorded. However, she can still be said to be among the earliest of the women who recorded early country music. She was the daughter of Robert Morland Stanley, an old-time fiddler who recorded with her on some of her records. |
Birth and Death Data: Born Dacula (city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States of America), Died June 8, 1986 (Gainesville (city and county seat of Alachua County, Florida, United States) )
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1924 - 1929
Roles Represented in DAHR: vocalist, harmonica, guitar, lyricist
Notes: Daughter of Bob Stanley (Robert Morland Stanley).
= 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OKeh | 8694 | Not documented | August 1924 | [Unknown title(s)] | Stanley Trio | Guitar duet, with male vocal solo or female-male vocal duet | vocalist | |
| OKeh | 8695 | Not documented | August 1924 | [Unknown title(s)] | Stanley Trio | Guitar duet, with male vocal solo or female-male vocal duet | vocalist | |
| OKeh | 8696 | 10-in. | August 1924 | Nellie Gray | Stanley Trio | Instrumental trio, with male vocal solo | instrumentalist, guitar | |
| OKeh | 8697 | 10-in. | August 1924 | Whoa! Mule | Stanley Trio | Instrumental trio, with female-male vocal duet | vocalist, instrumentalist, guitar | |
| OKeh | 8698 | 10-in. | August 1924 | Devilish Mary | Bill Patterson ; Roba Stanley | 2 guitars and harmonica, with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, guitar, vocalist | |
| OKeh | 8699 | 10-in. | August 1924 | Mister Chicken | Bill Patterson ; Roba Stanley | Guitar and harmonica duet, with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, harmonica, vocalist | |
| OKeh | 8847 | 10-in. | January 1925 | All night long | Bill Patterson ; Roba Stanley | 2 guitars and harmonica, with female vocal solo | vocalist, instrumentalist, guitar | |
| OKeh | 8848 | 10-in. | January 1925 | Little Frankie | Bill Patterson ; Roba Stanley | Guitar and harmonica duet, with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, harmonica, vocalist | |
| OKeh | 8849 | Not documented | January 1925 | [Unknown title(s)] | Bill Patterson ; Roba Stanley | Guitar and harmonica duet, with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, harmonica, vocalist | |
| OKeh | 8850 | Not documented | January 1925 | [Unknown title(s)] | Bill Patterson ; Roba Stanley | Guitar and harmonica duet, with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, harmonica, vocalist | |
| OKeh | 8851 | Not documented | January 1925 | [Unknown title(s)] | Bill Patterson ; Roba Stanley | Guitar and harmonica duet, with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, harmonica, vocalist | |
| OKeh | 8852 | 10-in. | January 1925 | Railroad Bill | Bill Patterson ; Bob Stanley ; Roba Stanley | Violin and 2 guitars, with female vocal solo | vocalist, instrumentalist, guitar | |
| OKeh | 9213 | 10-in. | 7/1/1925 | Old maid blues | Roba Stanley | Male vocal solo, with guitar and harmonica | vocalist | |
| OKeh | 9214 | Not documented | 7/1/1925 | [Unknown title(s)] | Roba Stanley | Male vocal solo, with guitar and harmonica | vocalist | |
| OKeh | 9215 | 10-in. | 7/1/1925 | A single life | Roba Stanley | Male vocal solo, with guitar and harmonica | vocalist | |
| OKeh | 9216 | Not documented | 7/1/1925 | [Unknown title(s)] | Roba Stanley | Male vocal solo, with guitar and harmonica | vocalist | |
| OKeh | W80594 | 10-in. | 3/21/1927 | Railroad Bill | The Georgia Crackers [OKeh Records jazz/dance band, 1927] | Male vocal duet, with fiddle (violin), banjo, and guitar | lyricist | |
| OKeh | W402509 | 10-in. | 7/9/1929 | Railroad Bill | Frank Hutchison | Male vocal solo, with guitar | lyricist | |
| OKeh | W403158 | 10-in. | 10/17/1929 | Railroad Bill | Otis Mote | Male vocal solo, with guitar and harmonica | lyricist |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Stanley, Roba," accessed December 25, 2025, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/112367.
Stanley, Roba. (2025). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved December 25, 2025, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/112367.
"Stanley, Roba." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2025. Web. 25 December 2025.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Stanley, Roba, 1910-1986 - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no2004041771
Wikidata: Roba Stanley - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q2156121
VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/24309871
MusicBrainz: Roba Stanley - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/32756b58-2f80-4041-bdf6-adbc9cdb7a02
Fast: https://id.worldcat.org/fast/1589423 - https://id.worldcat.org/fast/1589423
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