Arthur Charles Laibly (April 17, 1894 – October 30, 1971) was an American

record producer A record producer or music producer is a music creating project's overall supervisor whose responsibilities can involve a range of creative and technical leadership roles. Typically the job involves hands-on oversight of recording sessions; ensu ...

and sales manager. He was the first to make commercial recordings of

Blind Lemon Jefferson Lemon Henry "Blind Lemon" Jefferson (September 24, 1893 – December 19, 1929) was an American blues and gospel singer-songwriter and musician. He was one of the most popular and successful blues singers of the 1920s and has been called the "Fat ...

and

Skip James Nehemiah Curtis "Skip" James (June 9, 1902October 3, 1969) was an American Delta blues singer, guitarist, pianist and songwriter. AllMusic stated: "Coupling an oddball guitar tuning set against eerie, falsetto vocals, James' early recordings ...

, and also recorded many other notable

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

performers including

Charley Patton Charlie Patton (April 1891 (probable) – April 28, 1934), more often spelled Charley Patton, was an American Delta blues musician and songwriter. Considered by many to be the "Father of the Delta Blues", he created an enduring body of America ...

and

Son House Edward James "Son" House Jr. (March 21, 1902 – October 19, 1988) was an American Delta blues singer and guitarist, noted for his highly emotional style of singing and slide guitar playing. After years of hostility to secular music, as a prea ...

, for

Paramount Records Paramount Records was an American record label known for its recordings of jazz and blues in the 1920s and early 1930s, including such artists as Ma Rainey, Tommy Johnson (guitarist), Tommy Johnson and Blind Lemon Jefferson. Early years Paramoun ...

in the 1920s and early 1930s. He was born in

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

, moving with his parents to

Covington, Kentucky Covington is a list of cities in Kentucky, home rule-class city in Kenton County, Kentucky, United States. It is located at the confluence of the Ohio River, Ohio and Licking River (Kentucky), Licking rivers, across from Cincinnati to the north ...

as a child. He played violin in local

dance bands (; "dance band"), or in Norwegian and Danish, is a Swedish term for a band that plays (; "dance band music"). ' is often danced to in pairs. Jitterbug and foxtrot music are often included in this category. The music is primarily inspired ...

, and later worked for a lumber company, before becoming a sales manager for the Wisconsin Chair Company, the parent company of Paramount Records, in

Port Washington, Wisconsin Port Washington is a city in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. Located on Lake Michigan's western shore east of Interstate 43, the community is a suburb in the Milwaukee metropolitan area north of Milwaukee. The c ...

. In 1925 he was appointed as Sales Manager and Recording Director at Paramount, with authority over

J. Mayo Williams Jay Mayo "Ink" Williams (September 25, 1894 – January 2, 1980) was a pioneering African Americans, African-American producer of recorded blues music. Some historians have claimed that Ink Williams earned his nickname by his ability to get ...

. In late 1925,

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

record salesman R. T. Ashford wrote suggesting that Laibly record the then-unknown Blind Lemon Jefferson. He did so, in early 1926 in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, and Jefferson's records became highly successful. Laibly also started recording further blues musicians, including

Bo Weavil Jackson Bo Weavil Jackson (dates and places of birth and death unknown) was an American blues singer and guitarist. He was one of the first country bluesmen to be recorded, in 1926, for Paramount Records and Vocalion Records. On the latter label he was ...

Lucille Bogan Lucille Bogan (née Anderson; April 1, 1897August 10, 1948) was an American classic female blues singer and songwriter, among the first to be recorded. She also recorded under the pseudonym Bessie Jackson. Music critic Ernest Borneman noted tha ...

, Charley Patton, Son House, and Skip James, who were recommended to him by

talent agent A talent agent, or booking agent, is a person who finds work for actors, authors, broadcast journalists, film directors, musicians, models, professional athletes, screenwriters, writers, dancers, and other professionals in various entertainm ...

s in the southern States such as

H. C. Speir Henry Columbus Speir (October 6, 1895 – April 22, 1972) was an American "talent broker" and record store owner from Jackson, Mississippi. He was responsible for launching the recording careers of most of the greatest Mississippi blues musici ...

. Laibly reportedly had little regard for the qualities of the music he was recording. He accepted recommendations from agents without auditioning the musicians, and his approach to recording was described as "whimsical"; when recording Son House in

Grafton, Wisconsin Grafton is a village in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. Located about north of Milwaukee and in close proximity to Interstate 43, it is a suburban community in the Milwaukee metropolitan area. The village incorporated in 1896, and a ...

, in 1930, for instance, Laibly would listen to a single verse of each song before deciding whether or not to record it. Stephen Calt, Gayle Dean Wardlow, "Paramount's Decline and Fall (part 5)"
''ParamountsHome.org''. Retrieved 19 September 2016. Laibly was dismissed by Paramount in 1931, partly as a result of the decline in record sales with the development of

radio Radio is the technology of communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 3 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmitter connec ...

. He later worked as a salesman of other products, and as an

insurance agent Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to protect ...

. He died in 1971.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Laibly, Art 1894 births 1971 deaths American music industry executives Record producers from Ohio Record producers from Kentucky