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Ford Dabney
Sheet music cover Photo of Bert Williams with drawing of Japanese lanterns Jerome H. Remick & Co., publisher (1919)
Born	Ford Thompson Dabney (1883-03-15)March 15, 1883 Washington, D.C.
Died	June 6, 1958(1958-06-06) (aged 75) Manhattan
Alma mater	Washington, D.C. M Street High School (1900–1902) Armstrong Manual Training School (1903)
Spouse(s)	Martha J. Davis (maiden; 1877–1961), married March 14, 1912, Washington, D.C. – she was the widow of boxer Joe Gans
Parent	John Wesley Dabney (1851–1924)
Musical career
Occupation(s)	Theater owner (film house and vaudeville), theater orchestra leader, bandleader, ragtime pianist, composer, arranger
Years active	1903–1944
Labels	Paramount, Aeolian Vocalion, Belvedere, Puritan

Ford Thompson Dabney (March 15, 1883, Washington, D.C. - June 21, 1958, Manhattan) was an American ragtime pianist, composer, songwriter, and an acclaimed director of bands and orchestras for musical theater, revues, vaudeville, and early recordings; and, for about 2 years in Washington, from 1910 to 1912, he was a pioneering film and vaudeville theater entrepreneur. Dabney is best known as composer and lyricist of the 1910 song "Shine," a jazz standard that, as of 2020, in the jazz genre, has been recorded 646 times, according to the Jazz Discography Online. Dabney and one of his chief collaborators, James Reese Europe (1880–1919), were transitional figures in the prehistory of jazz. Their 1914 composition, "Castle Walk" – recorded in 1914 by Europe's Society Orchestra (Victor 17553-A, Matrix: B-14434) – is one of earliest recordings of jazz.

Growing up

Ford Dabney was born to John Wesley (J.W.) Dabney (1851–1924), a musician and celebrated barber, who, according to the Washington Times in 1903, had cut hair for President McKinley and President Theodore Roosevelt. J.W. Dabney was chronicled by the press as an innovative and successful tonsorial artist. Ford's step-mother, John's second wife – Ford step-mother – Gertrude V. Dabney (née Gertrude V. Adams; born 1876) sold J.W. Dabney's tonic products.

One month after his divorce, James, at age forty-eight, on December 18, 1894, in Washington, remarried 22-year-old Maryland-born Ruby Adams (maiden; 1872–1901). – when Ford was 12.

See article on Ruby

Gertrude's sister, Ruby Dabney (née Ruby Adams; 1872–1901) was the second wife of one of Ford's uncles, John H. Dabney (1846–1923).

Edward Dabney, Ford's cousin

One of Ford's uncles, James H. Dabney (1846–1923), married Lottie Ross May 9, 1878, in Washington, D.C. Their son, James Edward ("Eddie") Dabney, was born August 25, 1878, in Washington, D.C. – three months after they were married.

James and Lottie separated June 15, 1882 They finally divorced November 9, 1994, when Eddie was 16. Eddie Dabney died of tuberculous October 21, 1895 – age 17 – at his mother's residence in New York City.

James, on December 12, 1894, in Washington, D.C., remarried Bethesda-born Ruby H. Adams (1882–1901), who learned the undertaking business and even became nationally known, namely for handling the embalming of slave-born-turned-U.S. Senator Blanche Kelso Bruce (1841–1898). Ruby was the sister of John W. Dabney's second wife, Gertrude V. Adams.

James H. Dabney had three funeral parlors in 1898:

One in Alexandria

One in Georgetown

One on 3rd Street, between M & L, N.W.

High school

• Armstrong Manual Training School in Washington
• 1901: Colored High School (aka M Street High School), grades nine thru eleven, Robert Heberton Terrell, Principal. On June 22, 1901, Dabney was promoted from 1st to 2nd year (for the fall of 1901). This was the same school that James Reese Europe graduated from in 1902.

Choruses during high school

and sang in the church choir at St. Mary's Protestant Episcopal Chapel, a mission of St. John's Parish, 23rd Street, between G and H, Northwest – the current campus of George Washington University.

He studied music privately first with his father, then with his uncle Wendell Phillips Dabney (1865-1952), then

Both W.P. Phillips and Blanche Bruce attended Oberlin College.

• Charles Donch (né Charles Bernard Donch; 1858–1948),
• William Waldecker (1857–1931), an organist for several churches in Washington, and
• Samuel Fabian (né Samuel Monroe Fabian; 1859–1921), a concert pianist. At the age of 18 he made his first appearance as soloist at the Library of Congress. From the end of 1902 he continued his composition training in New York.

Haiti

For about a year, beginning 1902, Dabney went to New York to study at a music conservatory. While there, he reportedly filled many drawing room engagements for prominent society. During that time, he won sponsorship of the Haitian consul to France, Joseph Jefford, who also was a special Haitian envoy to the United States. In the first week of January 1904, Dabney, then an accomplished pianist, sailed to Haiti to accept a four-month post as pianist to the president, Pierre Nord Alexis (1820–1910), for $4,000 (equivalent to $135,644 in 2023). His itinerary included a trip to France to play for President Émile Loubet, then to Germany. His appointment in Haiti was extended through 1907.

Travelling manifests

Ford Thompson Dabney, pianist, arrived in New York May 18, 1906, aboard the Prince Friedrich Wilhelm, having departed from Saint-Marc.

"Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820–1897;" Microfilm Publication M237, 675 rolls. NAI: 6256867. Records of the U.S. Customs Service, Record Group 36. NARA, Washington, D.C. (re: "Ford Thompson Dabney"); 1906; Arrival: New York, New York; Microfilm Serial: T715, 1897-1957; Microfilm Roll: Roll 0712; Line: 9; Page Number: 102

Post Haiti

Upon his return to the United States, he toured with Vaudeville artists.

Career

Dabney, as piano accompanist, toured in 1902 with concert violinist Joseph Douglass (1871–1935) – son of Charles Remond Douglass and grandson of Fredrick Douglass.

Around 1914, during the rise of Vernon and Irene Castle, Dabney co-composed with James Reese Europe several songs.

Dabney and James Reese Europe moved to New York around 1902.

Ford Dabney's Theater, Washington, D.C.

Dabney briefly owned and operated a theater from 1910 to 1912 – Ford Dabney's Theater, at the northeast corner of 9th and U Streets, N.W. (2001 9th Street, N.W.), around the corner from the current African American Civil War Memorial Museum. George W. Hamilton (1871–1910) was general manager – "Refined vaudeville and motion pictures." Ushers were selected from Howard University, the M Street High School, and the Armstrong Manuel Training School. O.L. Garnett, then a student at Howard, was the house electrician. The manager, Hamilton, died December 10, 1910, at Freedmen's Hospital.

In October 1911, Dabney purchased the Chelsea Theatre at 1913 M Street, N.W. (between 19th and 20th Streets, N.W.), then managed by Miss Gertrude Ryan (box office) and Messrs. Louis Mitchell and J. West (house managers). Just a year earlier, around August 1910, S.L. Jones and L. Kohler Chambers (né Luddington Kohler Chambers; 1874–1913) acquired it – "formerly owned and managed by "white people."

The Dabney's Theater changed hands around December 1, 1911, and James H. Hudnell became sole manager, keeping the name, "Dabney's Theater, but initially operating it as a film theater. In January 1912, Hudnell re-introduced vaudeville.

Dabney's Theater received competition when the Hiawatha Theater, at 2006-2008 11th Street, N.W., opened in October 1910 with vaudeville productions and ran until May 1922.

Acts under Manager Hamilton

• Princess Rajah (née Rose Ferran; 1881–1952), the "German African song-bird" or "German African comedienne," (possible this person and this person) was a vocalist who sang in German, French, and English; she was also a dancer (September 1910). Earlier, she had created a sensation while performing on tour with the Buffalo Bill Show
• James C. Moore, vocalist and comedian (September 1910)
• Lizzie Taylor, mezzo-soprano and dancer (September 1910)

Dabney Theater (continued)

• James H. Hudnell, 905 French Street, NW

From December 1911 through at least March 1912, the manager was James H. Hudnell.

The Hudnell (hotel), Washington, D.C., Dallas H. Washington and James Hudnell, proprietors, in April 1909, took over what had been the Burdett Restaurant, 107 6th Street, NW, opposite the Pennsylvania Railroad depot, which had 27 rooms.

• The Red Moon on M Street, in 1911.

In 1920, Dabney was released by the Broadway theater directors. His success declined in the mid-1920s because he had little interest in opening up to the current Jazz. In the 1930s and 40s he continued to work on the New York music scene, including as a consultant for the 1943 film Stormy Weather.

Dabney's Syncopated Orchestra

In 1917, Dabney recorded some jazz-oriented titles (such as "At the Darkdown Strutter's Ball" Aeolian Vocalion 1204; recorded August 1917) with his band, Ford Dabney's Syncopated Orchestra, in which the singer Arthur Fields also participated; from 1919 to 1922 further recordings were made for Vocalion and Paramount Records. The orchestra performed regularly on the roof of the New Amsterdam Theater for Ziegfeld's Midnight Follies. In the summers, his orchestra performed at the Palais Royale in Atlantic City. Dabney's recording of "Darktown Strutters Ball" is the earliest known example of an all-black band accompanying a white singer.

read re: interracial recording ... Arthur Fields was white

Selected members of Dabny's Orchestra

1917

• Emporia-born Crickett Smith (1881–1947), trumpet
• Nappy Lee, tuba, euphonium
• Detroit-born Edgar Campbell (né Edgar O. Campbell; born 1889), clarinet
• Louisville-born Alonzo Williams (né Alonzo Theodore Williams; 1888–1953), alto sax
• Raleigh-born John Haywood (né John Craven Haywood; 1877–1968), tuba, violin
• Georgia-born Dennis Johnson (né Dennis Alexander Johnson; born 1879), drums
• Brooklyn-born Allie Ross (né Alfred Wigg Ross; 1892–1933), violin
• Manhattan-born Bernard "Buttercup" Parker (né Bernard Henry Parker; 1895–1975), violin
• Manhattan-born J. Nimrod Jones (né John Nimrod Jones, Jr.; 1880–1934), violin
• Philadelphia-born Arthur Fields (1884–1953), vocalist

1922

• Philadelphia-born Arthur Fields (1884–1953), vocalist
• Baltimore-born Pike Davis (né Clifton Morris Davis; 1895–1976), trumpet
• Wesley Johnson, trumpet
• John Reeves, trombone
• Burlington, Ohio-born, Herschel Brassfield (né Hershel Lee Brassfield; 1895–1931), clarinet, alto sax
• Brooklyn-born Tracy F. Cooper (1892–1925), violin
• Washington, D.C.-born Willie Carroll (né William Thomas Carroll; 1881–1943), violin
• Mose Ross (né Elwin Mose Ross; born 1 May 1891), drums

Ziegfeld Follies

As put by author Paul Lopes, PhD, in his 2002 book, The Rise of a Jazz Art World, "The lack of recognition of black professional musicians by white professional musicians is striking considering the popularity of black orchestras since the syncopated dance craze. The black professional musician Ford Dabney, for example, regularly led his syncopated orchestra at the New Amsterdam Theater on Broadway as part of the Ziegfeld Follies "Midnight Frolic Show" from 1913 to 1921.

Works

Songs

1. "Haytian Blues" (©1907), written for president, Pierre Nord Alexis (1820–1910), who – after declaring himself President for life and being ousted from power December 2, 1908 – went into excile; first to Jamaica, then to New Orleans.
2. "You Can Learn the Hootchie-Kootchie for a Dollar and Thirty Cents" (©1908), words by Henry Creamer (1879–1930), music by Dabney, published by M. Witmark & Sons; featured in the 1909 production, The Blanche Ring Vaudeville Act
3. "Oh! You Devil" (©1909), rag for piano, by Dabney, was published by Maurice Shapiro. Dabney composed it as a quasi-ballet number for Aida Overton Walker, initially as part of his 1909 one-act operetta, The King’s Quest. Its premier is unclear. One account states that Aida Overton Walker introduced it in February 1909 as a dance in Chicago as part of a post-Broadway production of Bandanna Land billed as The New Bandanna Land or "the 2nd edition" of Bandanna Land. The publisher, on February 25, 1910, copyrighted a song version with words by E. Ray Goetz (1886–1954). "Oh! You Devil" became a favorite of the Clef Club Symphony Orchestra.

From His Honor the Barber (1909)

4. "Shine" (©1910), R.C. McPherson (aka Cecil Mack) and Ford Dabney, publisher words Cecil Mack, music by Dabney.

The song debuted in S.H. Dudley's 1909 production of His Honor the Barber, with a notable production in 1911 at the Majestic Theater, currently the site if the Time Warner Center. Stars included Dudley and Aida Overton Walker (1880–1914), who sang "Shine."

According to songwriter Perry Bradford, the song was inspired by a real person named 'Shine' (possibly 'Kid Shine'), a street tough who was a friend of George Walker, and who was caught with Walker in the New York City race riot of August 1900.

David Krasner, in his 1995 article, "Parody and Double Consciousness in the Language of Early Black Musical Theatre," stated, "Not only do the lyrics echo themes in Paul Laurence Dunbar's 1895 poem 'We Wear the Mask,' the text signifies what Du Bois calls living a 'double life, with double thoughts, double duties, and double social classes ... ' The lyrics of 'Shine' draw our attention to the double consciousness of racial identity, and parody racism through inverting the position of the signifier. The signifier (Walker) inverts the signified (racial identification; i.e., names), subverting racist signification. 'Shine,' Richard Newman writes, 'is almost a song of social protest in its antiracism."

In 1924, fourteen years after "Shine" was published, Lew Brown changed the lyrics from a black man singing about himself to a shoe shine man who has a sunny outlook.

Songs (continued)

5. "Anoma," [characteristic] rag, Jerome H. Remick, publisher (©1910),
   William Starmer or Frederick Starmer, cover art.
6. "The Pensacola Mooch" (©1910), Will Cook & Dabney (w&m)
7. "Enticement" (©1914), Argentine idyl, by Eporue Yenbad (pseudonyms of James Reese Europe and Ford Dabney), arranged by William H. Penn (né William Henry Penn; 1868–1929)

From Ziegfeld Follies of 1910

8. "That Minor Strain" (©1910), Gotham-Attucks Music Co., publisher
9. "Porto Rico," rag intermezzo (©1910), Maurice Shapiro, publisher
10. "Oh! You Angel," rag (©1911), Maurice Shapiro, publisher
11. "Georgia Grind" (©1915), Jos. W. Stern & Co., publisher

Castle compositions, co-composed with James Reese Europe, Joseph W. Stern (1870–1934), publisher

12. "The Castle Walk," trot and one-step (©1914)
13. "Castle Innovation Tango," Argentine tango (©1914)
14. "Castle Combination," waltz-trot (©1914)
15. "Congratulations Valse" (aka "Castle Lame Duck"), waltz (©1914)
16. "Castle Valse Classique," humoreske (©1914)
17. "Castle Perfect Trot," one trot, arranged by Carl F. Williams (©1914) (image of the violin part)
18. "Castle Maxixe," Brazilian maxixe (©1914)
19. "Castles' Half and Half" (©1914)

From Kern and Bolton's Nobody's Home, Princess Theatre (1915)

20. "The San Francisco Fair," lyrics by Schuyler Greene, music by Dabney and James Reese Europe; performed in Act 2 sang by the character Miss Tony Miller with Chorus; Miller was played by Adele Rowland and Zoe Barnett

Songs (continued)

21. "The Last Waltz," music by Dabney, published by Jos. W. Stern & Co. (©1914)
22. "Boy of Mine" (©1917), words by Gene Buck, music by Dabney and James Reese Europe
23. "Come Back and Bring My Heart," words by Lester Aglar Walton (1882–1965) and Alex (aka Alec) Rogers (né Alexander Claude Rogers; 1876–1930), music by Dabney, arrangement by Alfred Ross (né Alfred Wigg Ross; 1892–1933) (©1917)
24. "Just Live on Love" words by Lester Aglar Walton (1882–1965) and Alex Rogers, music by Dabney, arrangement by Alfred Ross (©1917)
25. "Bugle Call Blues" (aka "Bugle Call Rag")
26. "Camp Meeting Blues" (1919)
27. "You Can't Shake That Shimmie Here" (©1919), words by Alex Rogers, music by Dabney, Jerome H. Remick & Co., publisher
28. "Honey Dear" (©1934), from the 1934 film Social Register; Harms, Inc., publisher
29. "I'll Love You Next" (©1951), word by R.C. McPherson, music by Dabney, Shapiro, Bernstein & Co.

Scores

The King's Quest (©1909)

— An operetta, lyrics by J. Mord Allen (né Junius Mordecai Allen; 1875–1953), an African American poet, music by Dabney, which includes the song, "Oh! You Devil."

Rang Tang (©1927)

— A musical revue in 2 acts, book by Kaj (Kay) Gynt, Joseph H. Trent co-wrote the lyrics with Ford Dabney, who wrote the music for Mae Barnes and Evelyn Preer. Leo Feist published it (©1927; renewed 1954). It ran on Broadway from July 12, 1927, through Oct 24, 1927, at the Royale Theater and September 1927 through sometime October 1927 at the Majestic Theater.

Cast: The presence of performers Flournoy Miller and Aubrey Lyles was the reason it ran over 14 weeks. Also in the cast, Daniel L. Haynes, who sings bass; Zaidee Jackson, Josephine Hall, Inez Draw, Lillian Westmoreland, James Strange ...

In September 1927, "The Witch Doctor," a new scene by Trent and Dabney was added to the show.

After closing on Broadway, Rang Tang opened in Brooklyn at Werba's Theater.

30. "Brown"
31. "Come to Africa"
32. "Ee Yah"
33. "Everybody Shout"
34. "Feelin' Kinda Good"
35. "Harlem"
36. "Jubilee in Monkeyland"
37. "Jungle Rose"
38. "King and Queen"
39. "Pay Me"
40. "Sammy and Topsy"
41. "Sammy's Banjo"
42. "Six Little Wives"
43. "Some Day"
44. "Sweet Evening Breeze"
45. "Voodoo"
46. "Zulu Fifth Avenue"

Quotes

“ According to songwriter Perry Bradford, the song was inspired by a real person named 'Shine' (possibly 'Kid Shine'), a street tough who was a friend of George Walker, and who was caught with Walker in the New York City race riot of August 1900 ” — (attribution?)

“ Not only do the lyrics echo themes in Paul Laurence Dunbar's 1895 poem 'We Wear the Mask,' the text signifies what Du Bois calls living a 'double life, with double thoughts, double duties, and double social classes ... ' The lyrics of 'Shine' draw our attention to the double consciousness of racial identity, and parody racism through inverting the position of the signifier. The signifier (Walker) inverts the signified (racial identification; i.e., names), subverting racist signification. 'Shine,' Richard Newman writes, 'is almost a song of social protest in its antiracism.' ”

Professional affiliations

• In April 1910, Dabney and several professional colleagues – including James Reese Europe, William Tyers (fr) (1870–1924), and Joe Jordan – formed the Clef Club, a union and booking agency that elevated the working conditions for black musicians in New York City.
• Around 1910, Dabney formed several touring vaudeville groups, among which, he and violinist Willie Carroll (né William Thomas Carroll; 1881–1943) conceived and produced Dabney's Ginger Girls, who first performed at his theater in Washington, D.C., before going on the road. The Ginger girls were a duet: Lottie Gee (née Charlotte O. Gee; 1886–1973), dancer and soprano, and Effie King, dancer and contralto (photo in New York Age, June 12, 1913, p. 6; accessible via Newspapers.com; subscription required)
• Dabney, Europe, and others left the Clef Club and, in 1913, organized the Tempo Club (an African American talent bureau), which became a rival to the Clef Club.
• Dabney became a member of ASCAP in 1937

Chief collaborators

As bandleaders, songwriters, professional organization founders

• James Reese Europe (1880–1919): Dabney worked as a composer with the band leader James Reese Europe, with whom he founded the Clef Club

As songwriters

• Joe Trent (né Joseph Hannibal Trent; 1892–1954), American lyricist; re: 1927 Broadway production of Rang Tang
• Cecil Mack (1873–1944); re: Shine
• Lew Brown (1893–1958)
• Tim Brymn (1874–1946)

As theater orchestra musical director

• Florenz Ziegfeld (1867–1932): Dabney collaborated with Florenz Ziegfeld in the 1915 production of Midnight Frolic.

Discography

• Ford Dabney's Orchestra, "The Allies Trumphal," march, composed by Frederick M. Bryan, Aeolian Company, recorded in New York, 1919

1919: Death of James Reese Europe

James Reese Europe in Boston at Mechanics Hall, during an intermission, berated a snare drummer, Herbert B. Wright (born 1895), who became enraged and lunged at Europe's neck with a pen knife; in what seemed initially to be a minor nick, but quickly turned fatal. Wright was convicted of manslaughter and served 8 years of a 10-to-12-year sentence in the Massachusetts State Prison.

After his release on March 30, 1927, he, with his wife Lillie, lived in Roxbury, Boston, at 23 Haskins Street, working as an elevator operator, a dance band drummer, and a private drum teacher. One of Wright's young students, Roy Haynes, lived across the street at 30 Haskins.

Selected audio, discography, and rollography

As composer

1. "Anoma"
   1. Elliott Adams and Tom Brier
      (audio via YouTube)
2. "Enticement," composed by G. Noceti (pseudonym of Ford Dabney)
   2. Prince's Band, Columbia A-5620, Matrix 37065, recorded 1914
3. "Castle Walk"
   3. Europe's Society Orchestra, Victor 17553-A, Matrix: B-14434, recorded February 10, 1914, New York
      Dabney is pianist
      (audio via YouTube)
   4. Black Manhattan, Vol. 2, The Paragon Ragtime Orchestra, Rick Benjamin, director, New World Records (2012): OCLC 820126531
      (audio via YouTube)
4. "Castle Perfect Trot"
   5. Black Manhattan (Vol. 1 of 3) (2002); OCLC 1131516363
      (audio via YouTube)
5. "Oh! You Devil"
   6. Black Manhattan, Vol. 2 (2012): OCLC 820126531
      (audio via YouTube)
   7. Willie "The Lion" Smith, Reminiscing The Piano Greats, Dial 305, recorded January 29, 1950, Paris
6. "Shine"
   8. Showarama Gypsy Jazz, Magnolia Entertainment NOLA
      (instrumental only; audio via YouTube)
   9. Dick Hyman, from the album There Will Never Be Another You, Jazz Connaisseur JCCD 9831-2, Live, Old Church (de), Boswil, Switzerland, October 25, 1998
      (audio via YouTube)
   10. Bing Crosby with the The Mills Brothers, Brunswick 6276 & 6485, Matrix B11376A, recorded February 29, 1932, New York; OCLC 244487099

       (audio via YouTube)
       (audio via YouTube)

   11. Quintette du Hot Club de France: Stephane Grappelli (violin), Django Reinhardt (guitar), Joseph Reinhardt (guitar), Baro Ferret (guitar), Louis Vola (bass), Freddy Taylor, vocalist

       Grammophon (F)K-7790, Matrix OLA1293-1, recorded October 15, 1936, Paris
       

       (audio via YouTube)
7. "Bugle Call Blues"
   12. Ford Dabney's Syncopated Orchestra, Paramount 20125, Matrix 1018-3; recorded March 1922, New York; OCLC 82413982
       (audio via YouTube)

As band and orchestra leader

8. "The Dancing Deacon" (©1919), by Frederick M. Bryan (1889–1929)
   13. Dabney's Band, Aeolian Vocalion B 12217, recorded September 1919, New York
       (audio via YouTube)
9. "Lassus Trombone" (©1915), one step (and trombone smear), by Henry Fillmore
   14. Dabney's Band with Ziegfeld's Midnight Frolic, Aeolian Vocalion B 12119, matrix 1486, recorded February 1919, New York
       (audio via YouTube)
10. "I'm So Glad My Mamma Don't Know Where I'm At" (©1915), words and music by Willie Toosweet (né Willie Perry)
    15. Dabney's Band, Aeolian, released December 1918, New York; OCLC 1007628740
11. "Sweet Man O' Mine" (©1921), words and music by Roy Turk and J. Russel Robinson
    16. Ford Dabney's Syncopated Orchestra, Paramount 20120, Matrix 1017-2, recorded March 1922, New York; OCLC 82413978, 83431860
        (audio via YouTube)
12. "Doo Dah Blues" (©1922), Fred Rose & Eddie White (pseudonym of Ted Fio Rito)
    17. Ford Dabney's Syncopated Orchestra, Paramount 20120, Matrix 1043-1, 2, recorded May 1922, New York; OCLC 81844518
        (audio via YouTube)

Rollography

13. "Shine"
    18. Played by Lee Sims (1898–1966), United States Piano Roll Company, Roll 42089
        (audio via YouTube)
    19. Played by Ferde Grofé (1892–1972) ("assisted"), Ampico 205001-E, "recording with words"
14. "Anoma"
    20. Played by Lee Sims (1898–1966), Ampico Lexington 88n, recut of early US 88-note 64714 B
        (audio via YouTube)

Filmography

"Shine"

• 1931: A Rhapsody in Black and Blue – performed by Louis Armstrong and band
• 1941: Birth of the Blues – sang by Bing Crosby
• 1942: Casablanca – sang by Dooley Wilson as Sam accompanied by the band in the setting at Rick's Cafe
• 1943: Cabin in the Sky – John William Sublett (aka John W. Bubbles) animates "Shine" in a song-and-dance number in the movie
• 1955: The Benny Goodman Story – performed on trumpet by Harry James
• 1956: The Eddy Duchin Story – performed by Tyrone Power as Eddy Duchin and Rex Thompson as Peter Duchin with accompaniment

Pioneers and early purveyors of ragtime piano

In an effort to place Dabney as a ragtime pianist among peers, Elliott Shapiro (1895–1956), son of one of Dabney's publishers, Maurice Shapiro, in a 1951 article, offered a list of standout ragtime pianists — in two categories:

Ragtime pioneers

• Mike Bernard (1875–1936)
• George Botsford (1874–1949)
• Louis Chauvin (1881–1908)
• Ben Harney (1872–1938)
• Tony Jackson (1882–1921)
• Scott Joplin (1868–1917)
• Jelly Roll Morton (1890–1941)
• Tom Turpin (1871–1932)
• Percy Wenrich (1887–1952)

Later ragtimers

• Eubie Blake (1887–1983)
• Ed. B. Claypoole (fr) (1883–1952)
• Les C. Copeland (1887–1942)
• Ford Dabney
• Lucien Denni (1886–1947)
• James P. Johnson (1894–1955)
• Jay Roberts (fr) (1890–1932)
• Luckey Roberts (1887–1968)
• J. Russel Robinson (1892–1963)
• Willie "The Lion" Smith (1893–1973)
• Fats Waller (1904–1943)
• Pete Wendling (1888–1974)
• James Edison 'Slap' White (1881– c. 1930s)

Many ragtime pianist, beginning around the 1920s, went on to perform Stride (music) and boogie-woogie and various lists included artists more identified with either. Elliott's two lists above, excludes those who are more known as (i) non-piano ragtime composers (ii) ragtime revivalist (iii) stride pianists, and (iv) boogie-woogie pianists. Early standout ragtime pianists not included on Elliott's above two lists include:

Not on Elliott's list

• Winifred Atwell (1910 or 1914–1983)
• Frank P. Banta (1870–1903)
• William Bolcom (born 1938)
• Euday L. Bowman (1887–1949)
• Brun Campbell (1884–1952)
• Hughie Cannon (1877–1912)
• Glover Compton (1884–1964)
• William Ezell (1892–1963)
• Blind Leroy Garnett (1897–1933)
• Wallie Herzer (1885–1961)
• Fred Hylands (1872–1913)
• Dick Hyman (born 1927)
• Sue Keller (born 1952)
• Jean-Baptiste Lafrenière (1874–1912)
• Lincoln Mayorga (born 1937)
• Bob Milne – "ragtime boogie"
• Lewis F. Muir (1883–1915)
• Wally Rose (1913–1997)
• Scott (1885–1938)
• William Turk (1866–1911)
• Bee Walker (1898–1997)
• Arnold Wiley (1898–1964)

Family

Parents
Ford Thompson Dabney was born to John Wesley (J.W.) Dabney (1851–1924) and Rebecca Ford (maiden; 1854–1896). J.W. and Rebecca married November 13, 1879, in Alexandria, Virginia. J.W. was a musician and celebrated barber, who, according to the Washington Times in 1903, had cut hair for President McKinley and President Theodore Roosevelt. Beginning around 1889, J.W. Dabney was often referred to as Capt. J.W. Dabney, reflecting his rank in a Washington, D.C.-based African-American milita known as the Washington Cadet Corps, founded June 12, 1880 – which in 1887, was the first unit to become a permanent part of the then newly established District of Columbia National Guard, Fifth Battalion. Capt. Dabney, nonetheless, as a professional, was chronicled as an innovative and successful tonsorial artist. Ford's step-mother, Capt. Dabney's second wife (married December 21, 1898) – Gertrude V. Dabney (née Gertrude V. Adams; 1876–1961) – sold J.W. Dabney's tonic products.

J.W. Dabney's barber shop, in the latter 1880s, was at the Hamilton House Hotel, 14th and K Streets, N.W. (same site as the Hamilton Hotel erected in 1922 at the northwest corner of Franklin Square). On November 15, 1888, J.W. Dabney opened a barber shop at Welckers Hotel (see photo below), 721 15th Street, N.W., between New York Avenue and H Street, N.W.

Ford Dabney's stepmother, Gertrude, in 1929, held the distinction of serving on the first all-women jury in Washington, D.C. She was the only non-white.

Wife
Dabney married on March 14, 1912, in Washington to Martha D. Gans, widow of boxer Joe Gans who owned the Goldfield Hotel in Baltimore at the corner of East Lexington and Colvin Streets, just east of downtown, in the Pleasant View Gardens neighborhood.

Ford and Martha had a son, Ford Thompson Dabney, Jr. (1917–1983).

Uncle and step-aunt: James H. and Ruby H. Dabney
Gertrude's sister (Ford Dabney's step-aunt), Ruby H. Dabney (née Ruby Adams; 1872–1901) (see photo below), was the second of three wives of one of Ford's uncles, James H. Dabney (1846–1923), a prominent and affluent Washington, D.C.-based undertaker and philanthropist. Ruby, in 1898, earned a professional degree from the Massachusetts College of Embalming, Boston (founded 1895) – notable because she was the first African American woman in the history of Washington, D.C., to earn a college diploma.

Uncle: Wendell Phillips Dabney
His uncle, Wendell Phillips Dabney (1965–1952), who is chronicled as having been one of his music teachers, became founding president of Cincinnati chapter of the NAACP, author, and newspaper editor and publisher of the Ohio Enterprise, later named The Union, both late of Cincinnati.

Great uncle: John Marshall Dabney
One of Ford Dabney's great uncles, John Marshall Dabney (1824–1900) was, in November 2015, honored in Richmond, Virginia, at the Quirk Hotel as a famed caterer and bartender – known as the world's greatest mint julep maker. The event was attended by notable community members and one of his great-great granddaughters, Jennifer Hardy (née Jennifer Dehaven Jackson). Jennifer's mother (great-granddaughter-in-law of John Marshall Dabney), Mary Hinkson (1925–2014), was an internationally celebrated modern dancer.

One of John Marshall Dabney's sons
John Milton Dabney (1867–1967) was a player in the Black baseball leagues. Alexander "Buck" Spottswood, as manager, and J. Milton Dabney as team captain, reorganized, in 1895, the Manhattan Baseball Club of Richmond, Virginia. J.M. Dabney also played for the Original Cuban Giants of St. Augustine, Florida, and Trenton, New Jersey – the first professional African-American baseball team.

Spottswood

• Alexander "Buck" Spottswood was, in 1895, president of the "Richmond Rooters' Cycle Club." He, with Albert Smith, was also co-proprietor of the Richmond Rooters' Saloon on at 312 North 17th Street.

Photo gallery

• 
  1898
  Ruby H. Dabney
• 
  March 1906
  15th St, N.W., looking north from New York Avenue. Welcker's Hotel – second building on the right

Parents and uncle addresses

LeDroit Park???

James W. Dabney

1894: James H. & Ruby Dabney – 418 L Street, N.W.

1923: James H. & Ruth Dabney – 1132 3rd St., N.W. (built by J.H. Dabney in 1897; 7 rooms and bath, brick, 3-story)

John W. Dabney

1892: John W. Dabney: 442 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W. (per city directory)

1904: John W. Dabney, 1006 F Street, N.W. (per city directory)

1906: J.W. Dabney, 1006 F Street, N.W. (per passenger arrival list)

In May 1906, John W. Dabney purchased from Lomza-born Jacob Keroes (1863–1932), a tailor, and his wife, Lomza-born Rose Cohen (1861–1940), through realtor Charles J. Butler, 618 R Street, N.W., lot 174, square 444, for $10.

1910: J.W. Dabney, 618 R Street, N.W. (per 1910 US Census)

1920: J.W. Dabney, 618 R Street, N.W. (per 1920 US Census)

1930: Gertrude V. Dabney, 618 R Street, N.W. (per 1930 US Census)

1933: Gertrude V. Dabney, 618 R Street, N.W. (per city directory)

J.W. Dabney's barber shop

15th St, N.W., looking north from New York Avenue, March 1906. Welcker's Hotel – second building on the right.

1886–1888: Hamilton House Hotel, 14th and K Streets, N.W. (same site as the Hamilton Hotel erected in 1922 at the northwest corner of Franklin Square)

1888 (opened November 15, 1888): Welckers Hotel, 721 15th Street, N.W., between New York Avenue and H Street, N.W.

1891: Welcker's Hotel Barber Shop, 10th, 11th and F Streets, N.W.

1892: 727 15th Street, N.W. (per city directory)

Hamilton House Hotel

Gertrude Dabney, barber

1929: 1344 G Street, N.W. (per city directory)

1931: 1344 G Street, N.W. (per city directory)

1935: 809 13th Street, N.W. (per city directory)

1937: 809 13th Street, N.W. (per city directory)

1938: 809 13th Street, N.W. (per city directory)

Mrs. J.W. Dabney, sales

1901: 1132 3rd Street, N.W.

Notes, copyrights, references

Copyrights

Catalog of Copyright Entries, Part 3 – Musical Compositions, New Series (ending 1945) & Third Series (beginning 1946), Library of Congress, Copyright Office

Original copyrights

Copyright renewals

Encyclopedic/biographical references

1. The ASCAP Biographical Dictionary (3rd ed.), American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (1966)
2. Biographical Dictionary of American Music, by Charles Eugene Claghorn (1911–2005), West Nyack: Parker Publishing Company, Inc. (1973), p. 113; OCLC 499284774; ISBNs 0-1307-6331-4; 978-0-1307-6331-0
3. The Oxford Companion to Popular Music, by Peter Gammond (1925–2019), Oxford Companions, Oxford University Press (1991)
4. Biography Index, A cumulative index to biographical material in books and magazines, Vol. 14, September 1984 – August 1986, H.W. Wilson Co. (1986)
5. Profiles of African American Stage Performers and Theatre People, 1816–1960, by Bernard L. Peterson, Jr., Greenwood Press (2001)
6. Biographical Dictionary of Afro-American and African Musicians, by Eileen Jackson Southern (1920–2002), Greenwood Press (1982)
7. In Black and White, A guide to magazine articles, newspaper articles, and books concerning black individuals and groups (3rd ed.), Mary Mace Spradling (née Mary Elizabeth Mace; 1911–2009) (ed.)
   (Vol. 1 of 2), Gale Research (1980); OCLC 631458944

   (3rd ed.; supplement), Gale Research (1985); OCLC 849767637

Historic newspapers, magazines, and journals

Category:1883 births

Category:1958 deaths

Category:American military personnel of World War I

Category:African-American military personnel

Category:Military musicians

Category:United States Army officers

Category:Ragtime pianists

Category:Ragtime composers

Category:American jazz bandleaders

Category:African-American musicians

Category:African-American jazz composers

Category:Burials at Arlington National Cemetery

Category:Musicians from Washington, D.C.

Category:Songwriters from Washington, D.C.

Category:Entertainers from Washington, D.C.