Perry Bradford

The first recording of vocal blues by an African-American singer, Mamie Smith's performance of Perry Bradford's "Crazy Blues" in 1920.

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Perry Bradford (February 14, 1893, Montgomery, Alabama – April 20, 1970, New York City) was an American composer, songwriter, and vaudeville performer. His most notable songs included "Crazy Blues," "That Thing Called Love," and "You Can't Keep A Good Man Down."^[1] He was nicknamed "Mule" because of his stubbornness, and he is credited with finally persuading Okeh Records to work with Mamie Smith leading to her historic blues recording in 1920.^[2]

^ Cite error: The named reference AMG was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Lynskey, Dorian (2021-02-16). "The forgotten story of America's first black superstars". Retrieved 2022-02-22.

[AMG-1] Cite error: The named reference AMG was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[2] Lynskey, Dorian (2021-02-16). "The forgotten story of America's first black superstars". Retrieved 2022-02-22.

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