The history of commercial recorded music stretches back over 100 years and has encompasses the stories of many artists and talents.  One of the biggest figures in this early history was Ralph S. Peer.  The A&R (Artists and Repertoire) and publishing pioneer might not be a household name today, but he made major contributions to many varied musical genres including blues, country and Latin.  Sony Music Latin has recently released a wide-ranging, eclectic 3-CD box set entitled The Roots of Popular Music: The Ralph S. Peer Story celebrating his career and legacy.

Peer began his career working for Columbia Records but then moved to OKeh.  It was there that, in 1920, he recorded Mamie Smith singing "Crazy Blues," among the first blues songs to be commercially recorded by and for African-Americans.  In 1923, Peer pioneered "field recording" of music when he took remote equipment to Atlanta, Georgia.  It was there that he made what are considered the first country music recordings when, in June of that year, he recorded Fiddlin' John Carson performing "Little Old Log Cabin in the Lane" and "That Old Hen Cackled and the Rooster's Going to Crow."  Four years later, in 1927, Peer produced what is considered the "big bang" of country music - "The Bristol Sessions" featuring recordings by The Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers.  (Ironically, in 1926, Columbia Records purchased the OKeh label.)

In 1928, Peer founded Southern Music Publishing Company to handle the publishing on all of the music and artists he was recording.  The company would later come to be known as Peermusic.  He began to spread out into other genres, introducing Latin music to America through the recordings of bandleaders Xavier Cugat, Tito Puente, and future I Love Lucy star Desi Arnaz.  Peer also was invested in jazz, working with Louis Armstrong and Jelly Roll Morton, among others.  As a music publisher, he handled some of the most famous songs of the 20th century including "You Are My Sunshine," "Stardust," "Besame Mucho," "Will the Circle Be Unbroken," "Blue Moon of Kentucky" and "Georgia on My Mind."  Peer passed away in 1960, but his music publishing company continues to operate today.  Peer was elected into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1984 and received a Grammy Trustees Award this year.

This new compilation begins in 1920 with that recording of "Crazy Blues" by Mamie Smith and goes all the way through 2015 with Il Divo's cover of Carlos Almaran's "Historia De Un Amor."  In between, you'll find a wide ranges of musical genres and artists represented, including Jimmie Rodgers, The Carter Family, Jimmy Dorsey, Bing Crosby, Desi Arnaz, Tito Puente, Count Basie, Nat "King" Cole, Buddy Holly, Billie Holiday, Dean Martin, Elvis Presley, Ray Charles, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, and Bob Dylan among many others.

The 50 tracks are presented chronologically across the 3 discs.  The set is divided into three "acts" with one act on each disc.  The first two cover Peer's career until his death in 1960, and the third chronicles his legacy up to the present day.  So many varied styles of music make for a most interesting listen.  It is hard to think of another context where you would put "You Belong to My Heart" from Disney's Three Caballeros next to "The Great Pretender" by The Platters next to "Will the Circle be Unbroken" by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band beside Lou Bega's "Mambo No. 5."  All music publishers make sampler discs of their catalogues which are not intended for the general public; this set mirrors one of those collections devoted to the music of Peermusic Publishing, but is commercially available to buy.

The set is presented in a hardback book format.  Co-Producer Anthony Gonzalez provides a one-page introduction and there are 13 pages of liner notes in large type by Peer biographer Barry Mazor, author of Ralph Peer and Making of Popular Roots Music .  The rest of the 50-page book is filled out with photos of memorabilia of Peer's life and career.  The 3 CDs are housed in sleeves at the back of the book.  The set has been newly remastered by Paul Blakemore.

If you would like to take a trip back through the history of blues, country, jazz and Latin music to celebrate the groundbreaking and historically significant career of Ralph Peer, we've got the full tracklisting and ordering links below!

Various Artists, The Roots of Popular Music: The Ralph S. Peer Story (Sony Music Latin, 2017) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

Disc 1

1. Crazy Blues - Mamie Smith & Her Jazz Hounds
2. Blue Yodel No. 4 (California Blues) - Jimmie Rodgers
3. Cool Drink of Water Blues - Tommy Johnson
4. Stealin, Stealin - Memphis Jug Band
5. Keep on the Sunny Side - The Carter Family
6. Blue Yodel #9 (Standin' on the Corner) - Jimme Rodgers & Louis Armstrong
7. You Are My Sunshine - Jimmy Davis
8. Brazil (Aquarela Do Brasil) - Xavier Cugat
9. Besame Mucho - Jimmy Dorsey & His Orchestra (feat. Bob Eberly and Kitty Kallen)
10. You Belong to My Heart (from Disney's 3 Caballeros) - Dora Luz
11. Amor - Bing Crosby
12. El Cumbanchero - Desi Arnaz
13. I Love You So Much It Hurts - Floyd Tillman
14. Granada - Mario Lanza
15. Ran Kan Kan - Tito Puente & His Orchestra
16. If You've Got the Money I've Got the Time - Lefty Frizzell
17. Jimmie Brown, the Newsboy - Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs with The Foggy Mountain Boys

Disc 2

1. Tu Y Las Nubes - Jose Alfredo Jimenez
2. Mambo Inn - Count Basie & His Orchestra
3. The Great Pretender - The Platters
4. Solamente Una Vez - Agustin Lara
5. Everyday - Buddy Holly
6. You've Changed - Billie Holiday
7. Acercate Mas (Come Closer to Me) - Nat King Cole
8. Return to Me - Dean Martin
9. Mambo Jambo (Que Rico El Mambo) - Perez Prado
10. Blue Moon of Kentucky - Elvis Presley
11. Huapango Torero - Joselito con Maricachi
12. Maria Elena - Los Indios Tabajaras
13. Bahia (Na Baixa Do Sapateiro) - Tito Puente & Buddy Morrow Orchestra
14. Georgia on My Mind - Ray Charles
15. The Storms Are On the Ocean - Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs with Mother Maybelle Carter
16. Sugartime - Johnny Cash
17. Sabor A Mi - Eydie Gorme & Los Panchos
18. Foggy Mountain Breakdown - Flatt & Scruggs

Disc 3

1. Born To Lose - Willie Nelson
2. Contigo En La Distancia - Jose Jose
3. Fascination - Orchestra Ennio Morricone
4. T for Texas (Live) - Waylon Jennings
5. Will the Circle Be Unbroken - Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
6. Stardust - Wynton Marsalis
7. My Blue Eyed Jane - Bob Dylan
8. Lamento Boricano - David Sanchez
9. Mambo No. 5 (A Little Bit Of...) - Lou Bega
10. Ella - Julio Iglesias
11. Perfidia - Los Rabanes
12. Amorcito Corazon - Chayanne
13. Cucurrucucu Paloma - Lila Downs
14. La Copa Roat - Marc Anthony
15. Historia De Un Amor - Il Divo