James Chapman & Leroy Smith

One o' them things! by James Chapman and Leroy Smith contains the first known published blues chorus as its main theme. Issued in 1904, the rag predates W.C. Handy's Memphis Blues, usually cited as the first published blues, by eight years. The 12-measure form of this blues strain is highly unusual in the realm of early ragtime. Generally this music, apparently descended from the European march tradition, conforms to the march's 16-measure metric and harmonic structures.

Notes by Roy Wiseman