Ada Jones
b. Ada Jane Jones, 1 June 1873, Oldham, Lancashire, England, d. 22 May 1922, Rocky Mount, North Carolina, USA. Jones’ parents emigrated to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, with their daughter around 1879. Her first public appearance came at the age of seven and soon her likeness appeared on sheet music. She made her first recordings, including ‘Sweet Marie’ and ‘The Volunteer Organist’, in the winter of 1893/4, which suggests that Jones was the first female solo artist to record. Resuming recording in 1904 Jones not only sang ballads but also performed currently popular ‘coon’ songs as well as vaudeville sketches in which she displayed skill with dialects. In the meantime, she had continued to perform on stage. According to Tim Gracyk’s impeccable research, Jones suffered from epilepsy, which meant that live performances were always a problem for her. Her return to the studios was apparently with the help of singer Billy Murray.
Jones’ recordings include ‘My Carolina Lady’, ‘You Ain’t The Man I Thought You Was’, ‘I Just Can’t Make My Eyes Behave’, ‘The Yama, Yama Man’, ‘I’ve Got Rings On My Fingers’, ‘Row! Row! Row!’ and ‘Just Plain Folks’. She also sang with other artists, including the American Quartet, recording ‘Call Me Up Some Rainy Afternoon’ and ‘Come Josephine In My Flying Machine’; Murray, recording ‘Wouldn’t You Like To Flirt With Me?’, ‘I’m Sorry’, ‘Will You Be My Teddy Bear’, ‘I’d Like To See A Little More Of You’, ‘Be My Little Baby Bumble Bee’, ‘Smile Smile Smile’, ‘Bye And Bye’ and ‘Rainbow’; Len Spencer, singing ‘Heinie’ and ‘The Hand Of Fate’, and with him performing dozens of sketches as Reuben And Cynthia, Rudolph And Rosie, Louie And Lena and Jimmie And Maggie; Billy Watkins, making ‘By The Beautiful Sea’; and Cal Stewart, appearing in sketches as Uncle Josh And Aunt Nancy.
During World War I Jones made ‘We’ll Keep Things Going Till The Boys Come Home’ and ‘They Were All Out Of Step But Jim’, but these same years saw an abrupt and irreversible decline in her recording career. In 1918 she recorded with her daughter, Sheilah, who was then 12 years old. Jones continued to appear in vaudeville but made few appearances on record. Among her last were sessions in 1921: with Murray she made ‘When Francis Dances With Me’, recording the same song with Billy Jones, with whom she also sang ‘On A Little Side Street’, recording this same song as a solo.
© TiVo
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Discography
21 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
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Classic 1920's Music, Vol. 1
Jazz - Released by Vintage Records on 18 Nov 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Classic 1920's Music, Vol. 2 (Special Edition)
Jazz - Released by Vintage Records on 7 Apr 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Classic 1920's Music, Vol. 1 (Special Edition)
Jazz - Released by Vintage Records on 12 May 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Classic 1920's Music, Vol. 1 (Special Edition)
Jazz - Released by Vintage Records on 18 Nov 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Come, Josephine, In My Flying Machine
Pop - Released by MDA 2.0 on 1 Sep 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Let's Go in to a Picture Show
International Pop - Released by Harbinger Records on 21 Sep 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Come Josephine in My Flying Machine [with The American Quartet] - Single (Remastered)
Pop - Released by Bacci Bros Records on 13 Jan 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Classic 1920's Music, Vol. 1 (Special Edition)
Jazz - Released by Vintage Records on 18 Nov 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Shine Om, Harvest Moon
Jazz - Released by Vintage Vinyl on 6 May 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Classic 1920's Music, Vol. 2
Jazz - Released by Vintage Records on 7 Apr 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Classic 1920's Music, Vol. 2 (Special Edition)
Jazz - Released by Vintage Records on 7 Apr 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kiss Me, My Honey Kiss Me
Jazz - Released by Black Sheep Music on 11 Apr 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Classic 1920's Music, Vol. 2 (Special Edition)
Jazz - Released by Vintage Records on 11 Feb 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kiss Me, My Honey, Kiss Me
Jazz - Released by Vintage Vinyl on 6 May 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Classic 1920's Music, Vol. 2 (Special Edition)
Jazz - Released by Vintage Records on 11 Feb 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Peaches and Cream
Jazz - Released by Black Sheep Music on 23 Apr 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Yama Yama Man [with The Victor Light Opera Company] - Single (Remastered)
Ada Jones, The Victor Light Opera Company
Pop - Released by Bacci Bros Records on 13 Jan 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Classic 1920's Music, Vol. 1 (Special Edition)
Jazz - Released by Vintage Records on 18 Nov 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
A Darktown Courtship - Single (Remastered)
Pop - Released by Bacci Bros Records on 13 Jan 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Si Perkin's Barn Dance
Jazz - Released by Vintage Vinyl on 6 May 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Si Perkin's Barn Dance
Jazz - Released by Black Sheep Music on 9 Apr 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo