Louis J Vasnier Jr. Recorded the First Country Song in History

In the world of early audio enthusiasts, a ‘unicorn’ is a reputed piece of audio that's credibly known to exist but has never been found.

The first recorded country song was "Thompson's Old Gray Mule," which was recorded in 1891 by Black singer and entertainer Louis J Vasnier Jr. for the Louisiana Phonograph Co in New Orleans. The song, which was written by Thomas P Westendorf in 1884, is a playful take on a farmer's short-tempered mule. It's also a fascinating footnote in the music history of the US, placing a Black singer on the cutting edge of country music some 60 years before the Country Music Hall of Fame inducted its first Black performer, Charley Pride, in 2000.

As the story goes, a box of primitive cylinders was snapped up for $100 by a collector, John Levin, at a Pennsylvania coal country auction. Among them was a gem: a Louisiana Phonograph cylinder from the 1890s, which sold for $650 at auction in 2023.

As the story goes, a box of primitive cylinders was snapped up for $100 by a collector, John Levin, at a Pennsylvania coal country auction. Among them was a gem: a Louisiana Phonograph cylinder from the 1890s, which sold for $650 at auction in 2023.

Invented by American industrialist Thomas Edison in 1877, the phonograph pushed the emerging sound recording technology to a crucial next step in affording one the ability to playback the audio captured. Transmitting soundwaves through a needle via a spinning cylinder, a new era of phonograph machines suddenly began springing up in major US cities where a passerby with a spare nickel could hear a bawdy joke, a vaudeville number, or—in anticipation of the jukebox—a song of the day.

Invented by American industrialist Thomas Edison in 1877, the phonograph pushed the emerging sound recording technology to a crucial next step in affording one the ability to playback the audio captured. Transmitting soundwaves through a needle via a spinning cylinder, a new era of phonograph machines suddenly began springing up in major US cities where a passerby with a spare nickel could hear a bawdy joke, a vaudeville number, or—in anticipation of the jukebox—a song of the day.

New Orleans was no different. Spotting an opportunity to capitalise on the growing interest in slot-operated audio devices, the Louisiana Phonograph Co began leasing coin-op machines and manufacturing new cylinders in earnest. It boasted the most profitable public player in the country, with the Canal and Chartres Street’s corner drugstore proto-jukebox earning over $1,400 across three months in the summer of 1891.

New Orleans was no different. Spotting an opportunity to capitalise on the growing interest in slot-operated audio devices, the Louisiana Phonograph Co began leasing coin-op machines and manufacturing new cylinders in earnest. It boasted the most profitable public player in the country, with the Canal and Chartres Street’s corner drugstore proto-jukebox earning over $1,400 across three months in the summer of 1891.

Among the novel recordings collated by the firm was the Black singer and working-class entertainer Louis J Vasnier Jr, who was born in 1858 to a father who was formerly a slave. Vasnier earned a reputation with his comic dexterity and mastery of multiple dialects—including Dutch, Irish, and French, which spoke to the city’s colonial heritage. The marketing advertisement also boasted his parody sermons in the guise of fictional preacher ‘Brudder Rasmus’, a style of vaudeville both poking fun at the Southern Black experience of religious pulpit oratory while also playing to the stereotypes of the day. They proved successful, with Louisiana Phonograph Co documenting many of his comedy bits, including 'Adam and Eve and de Winter Apple', delivered in the exaggerated Black affectation popular at the time.

Among the novel recordings collated by the firm was the Black singer and working-class entertainer Louis J Vasnier Jr, who was born in 1858 to a father who was formerly a slave. Vasnier earned a reputation with his comic dexterity and mastery of multiple dialects—including Dutch, Irish, and French, which spoke to the city’s colonial heritage. The marketing advertisement also boasted his parody sermons in the guise of fictional preacher ‘Brudder Rasmus’, a style of vaudeville both poking fun at the Southern Black experience of religious pulpit oratory while also playing to the stereotypes of the day. They proved successful, with Louisiana Phonograph Co documenting many of his comedy bits, including 'Adam and Eve and de Winter Apple', delivered in the exaggerated Black affectation popular at the time.

Accompanied with a piano over his usual banjo, Vasnier also sang Thomas P Westendorf’s 1884 piece 'Thompson's Old Gray Mule', a primitive slice of country recorded in 1891. Vasnier opens the cut with the song’s title and the phonograph company responsible, and the lyric is lost on the stirrings of the piano chord progression.

Accompanied with a piano over his usual banjo, Vasnier also sang Thomas P Westendorf’s 1884 piece 'Thompson's Old Gray Mule', a primitive slice of country recorded in 1891. Vasnier opens the cut with the song’s title and the phonograph company responsible, and the lyric is lost on the stirrings of the piano chord progression.

A new 45-rpm record from Archeophone—a label dedicated to restoring and issuing early recordings—collects the two pieces, with Vasnier’s comedy preacher act on the B-side. It's a small but significant release, as it marks the first time that any music by Vasnier has been made commercially available.

A new 45-rpm record from Archeophone—a label dedicated to restoring and issuing early recordings—collects the two pieces, with Vasnier’s comedy preacher act on the B-side. It's a small but significant release, as it marks the first time that any music by Vasnier has been made commercially available.