[Dixielandjazz] Re: It's Right Here For You.

[Bill Haesler]

[This may be of interest to some listmates, but may bore others. Feel free
to delete now.]
Craig Johnson posted the following about that great song "It's Right Here
For You": >........ I am confused as to Composer names. Anderson cites only
Marion Dickerson (L) and Alex Belledna (M) 1925, but redhotjazz.com cites
Perry Bradford alone, or various combinations of Dickerson, Belledna &
Bradford.
DOes anyone know the true attribution?<

Dear Craig,
My apologies for the delay.
Here is what I have on your query regarding the composer for "It's Right
Here For You (If You Don't Get It - 'Tain't No Fault Of Mine)".
Interesting stuff too.

So far as I can ascertain the following credits shown in [] below are those
on the original piano roll and the original 78rpm records of this song:

*Eubie Blake piano roll. Feb 1921. Mel-O-Dee Song Roll S2948.
[1920. Bradford]. Pic available.

*Mamie Smith. 10 August 1920 (but some suggest c. 17 Aug. based on the mx
number). Okeh 4169. This is the reverse of her famous "Crazy Blues" (Perry
Bradford). The first-ever 'blues' record.
[Marion Dickerson - A. Belledna].

*ODJB. 28 Jan 1921. Victor 18729. "Crazy Blues (introducing "It's Right Here
For You If You Don't Get It - 'Tain't No Fault Of Mine)".
[Bradford - Belledna]
 
*Tim Brym and His Black Devil Orchestra. May 1921. OK 8002. As "It's Right
Here For You (introducing "Crazy Blues")".
[Dickerson - Belledna)

*Georgia Strutters. 23 May 1927.  Harmony 468-H
[Bradford]

*Tommy Dorsey. 10 Nov 1928.  Okeh 41178
[Bradford]

*Blanche Calloway. 8 May 1931. Victor 22717.
[Bradford]

*Eddie Condon. 30 Nov 1939. Commodore 530. As "It's All Right Here For You".
[P. Bradford]

In his 'uninhibited autobiography', 'Born With The Blues' (1965. Oak
Publications) Perry Bradford had little to say about "It's Right Here For
You" other than numerous mentions in connection with its coupling to "Crazy
Blues", Mamie Smith's hit record.
  
Chas. Anderson has picked up on the original Mamie Smith Okeh 4169 credit
but I wonder where he found that Alex Belledna was really Edna Belle
Alexander? 
And why/when did Perry Bradford, composer/publisher, assume the credit for
"It's Right Here For You"?

Perhaps the answer lies with the identities of Alex Belledna and Marion
Dickerson. Who were they?
Marion Dickerson was Perry Bradford's "young stage-struck" wife!
Alex Belledna (Edna Belle Alexander) was the wife of famed composer Maceo
Pinkard (author of "Sweet Georgia Brown" among many others)!
A check in my 1952 ASCAP (kindly provided some time ago by dear listmate Dr
Fred Spencer) reveals that Edna B Pinkard became a member of ASCAP in 1946.
More file searches reveal that Alex Belledna was linked with the authorship
of the following songs:
"Squealin' Pig Blues" 1919 as Alexander.
"Granny (You're My Mammy's Mammy)" 1919 with L Wolfe Gilbert.
"Does Your Sweetie Do -  And How" with Sidney Holden and Maceo Pinkard.
"You're In Wrong With the Right Baby" with Maceo Pinkard and Spencer
Williams.
"'Tain't Nothing Else But Jazz" 1921
"Make Those Naughty Eyes Behave" 1925
"Sugar" 1927 using her maiden name Alexander with Maceo Pinkard and Sydney D
Mitchell. 
"Kitchen Man" 1929 with Andy Razaf.
"When Love Comes Along"
"I'll Always Remember Livin' High"
Perhaps she used Alex Belledna at that time because she was a female black
songwriter, a rarity in the discriminating pre and early 1920s.

As sometimes happens with research, after hours of reading, digging and
searching, I came across some of what I had already found independently, all
nicely summarised in 'Spreadin' Rhythm Around. Black Popular Songwriters,
1880-1930' by David A Jasen and Gene Jones (1998. Schirmer Books).
They also added another piece to the puzzle by revealing that 'Variey'
reported on 3 June 1921 that Alex Belledna was a pseudonym for Maceo Pinkard
"which Pinkard did not - and would never deny." and that "What the trade
paper did not know was that Pinkard had recently married an aspiring
songwriter named Edna Belle Alexander....."
However, as can be seen from the above list of songs, she was credited along
with her husband on some of them.

As we know, what is on the label of an original record does not necessarily
identify the copyright owner of a song. So we have yet to resolve the
original query. 
Confirmation of the names and dates from the LoC files and/or the sheet
music is still required for "It's Right Here For You".
Audrey Van Dyke? Adrian Ford?

Kind regards,
Bill. 
PS: Here's a bonus from the excellent <heptune.com> lyrics site, found while
'surfing the net'.

LYRICS
"It's Right Here for You" (Bradford)
[Transcribed from Blanche Calloway and Her Joy Boys, recorded May 8, 1931.
>From Blanche Calloway and Her Joy Boys, 1925-1935]

I heard Jim Jackson say to Mandy Green,
"You been the cruelest gal I've ever seen;
You made me walk around the park last night,
Then wouldn't kiss me; do you think that's right?"
Just then Miss Mandy turned around to him,
And she said, "Listen here, Jim!"

It's right here for you, if you don't get it,
'Tain't a fault of mine;
You know there's honey in each rose for the bee;
It's up to him to get it, you will agree;
I've got a lovin' disposition,
So, dear, I'm in the same position;
It's right here for you, and if you don't get it,
'Tain't no fault of mine, great goin', babe!
'Tain't no fault of mine!

Spoken: Oh, hear me talkin' to you!

It's right here for you, and if you don't get it,
'Tain't no fault of mine;
You know there's honey in each rose for the bee;
Then it's up to him to get it, ah, you will agree;
I've got something that'll sure surprise you,
Ah, something that will hypnotize you;
It's right here for you, and if you don't get it,
'Tain't no fault of mine, how come? how come?
'Tain't no fault of mine!