Mar 20 at 10:30 AM - Sale 2697 -

Sale 2697 - Lot 198

Estimate: $ 1,200 - $ 1,800
(ENTERTAINMENT--MUSIC.) Songs as Sung by the Black Patti Troubadours, the Greatest Colored Show on Earth. [16] pages. 4to, 11½ x 9¼ inches, original illustrated wrappers, moderate wear; moderate toning and wear to contents; early owner's signature on front cover. New York and Chicago: M. Witmark & Sons, [1900]

Additional Details

Matilda Sissieretta Joyner Jones (1868-1933) was a popular Rhode Island-raised soprano. She was often compared favorably to the great Italian singer Adelina Patti, drawing the nickname "the Black Patti." In 1892 she performed at the White House (although she was required to enter in the rear of the building), and became the first Black singer to perform at Carnegie Hall. Although classically trained and successful in operatic roles, she found more opportunities playing vernacular music as the leader of Black Patti's Troubadours, accompanied by vaudeville performers. This songbook includes the words and music to several of the songs performed by the Troubadours, bearing copyright dates from 1898 to 1900. It features a portrait of Jones on the front wrapper, and on the rear wrapper a portrait of the Troubadours in formal attire. No other examples are traced in OCLC, though similar productions with the same title dated 1899, 1902 and 1906 are recorded. Swann sold one on 21 March 2024, lot 197, with the same front cover, but with an advertisement for a "minstrel guide" on the inner rear wrapper.