Ol' Man River (Robeson 1928)

Paul Robeson, bass
Austin Young
Mixed Chorus
Paul Whiteman and His Orchestra
Date: 1 March 1928
Location: Liederkranz Hall, NYC

Ol’ Man River from “Show Boat”
Lyrics: Oscar Hammerstein
Music: Jerome Kern

Restored from Victor 35912

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[johns.]

Never heard this recording. Interesting as it's about a minor third higher pitched than Robeson's later recordings. At first I thought the speed of the recording versus playback was the reason, as his vibrato sounds faster than other recordings, but maybe it was the arrangement as he jumps octaves mid-verse to accommodate the higher key. Sonically, the opening notes are striking crisp. Nice.

[dovbarleib]

Missing the beginning of the Song. ##s gotta work on the Mississippi. ##s gotta work while the white folks play. Yes, the gut-wrenching lyrics might be too harsh for our safe spaces, but that was the US South before 1861.