4455 S. King Drive · Bronzeville · Opened March 9, 1940
Parkway Ballroom Playlist
38 recordings by musicians who played the Parkway Ballroom, from opening night in 1940 to the gospel mornings of today. Every name was checked against period sources, and the date and the evidence sit under each song.
Documented a period source gives the date Reported a reliable source, no date Lore repeated, never shown
Copy the list, then paste it into TuneMyMusic or Soundiiz to build the playlist in Spotify, Apple Music or YouTube Music. Or open songs one at a time with the buttons below.
1940–1944
The ballroom opens
Opening night was March 9, 1940, with Floyd Campbell's orchestra, the house band. Club dances, school proms and battles of the bands filled the calendar, with touring stars on Sunday nights.
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1
Market Street Blues1924
Charlie Creath's Jazz-O-Maniacs (vocal: Floyd Campbell)
Documented Opening night, March 9, 1940, then the regular house band. The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz; Dempsey Travis, An Autobiography of Black Jazz
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2
Chloe (Song of the Swamp)1940
Duke Ellington and His Famous Orchestra
Documented Oct. 28, 1940, Kentucky State alumni scholarship dance. Recorded in Chicago for Victor the same day. Variety, Sept. 25, 1940; The Duke: Where and When
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3
In a Mellotone1940
Duke Ellington
Documented Oct. 28, 1940, the Blanton–Webster band. The Duke: Where and When
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4
T-Bone Blues1940
Les Hite and His Orchestra (vocal T-Bone Walker)
Documented January 1941, the new hall's first band residency. Jazz Information, Jan. 24, 1941
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5
Lonesome Gal1955
Lurlean Hunter
Documented January 1941, singing with Les Hite. Red Saunders Research Foundation, citing the Chicago Defender
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6
'Tain't What You Do (It's the Way That Cha Do It)1939
Jimmie Lunceford
Documented Booked for Oct. 26, 1941. Variety band routes, Oct. 8, 1941
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7
Red Top1947
Gene Ammons
Documented June 1941, in King Kolax's band at a school graduation dance. Johnny Griffin interviews (Ted Panken)
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8
Confessin' the Blues1941
Jay McShann, Walter Brown
Documented Sunday, April 18, 1943. Variety, April 7, 1943; Billboard, April 17, 1943
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9
Misty Night1960
King Fleming Trio
Documented Many 1943 club dances, including a Feb. 5 "Battle of Jazz-nocracy". King Fleming discography, citing Chicago Defender ads
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10
Is You Is or Is You Ain't (Ma' Baby)1944
Louis Jordan & His Tympany Five
Documented Wednesday, Aug. 11, 1943: 2,300 paid admissions. Billboard, Aug. 28, 1943
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11
Let Me Off Uptown1941
Gene Krupa & His Orchestra, Anita O'Day, Roy Eldridge
Documented Sunday dances, winter 1943–44. John Chilton, Roy Eldridge: Little Jazz Giant
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12
Hurry, Hurry!1944
Benny Carter and His Orchestra (vocal by Savannah Churchill); listed on Spotify as Benny Carter, Savannah Churchill
Documented Booked for March 19, 1944. Variety, March 8, 1944
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13
The Congregation1957
Johnny Griffin
Documented April 9, 1944, aged 15, in a battle of the bands. Claude McLin discography, citing Chicago Defender ads
1950s
Mardi Gras balls and one-nighters
The Chicago Defender's charity Mardi Gras ball, society teas and fashion shows, and one-night stands by touring bands. Sun Ra's first Arkestra made the Parkway its home stage in 1955.
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14
If I Didn't Care1939
The Ink Spots
Reported Announced for the Defender Mardi Gras ball, Feb. 5, 1951. Chicago Defender, Feb. 3, 1951 (via Stratemann)
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15
Every Day I Have the Blues1952
Joe Williams with King Kolax and His Orchestra
Reported Defender Mardi Gras ball, Feb. 5, 1951. Cheryl M. Willis, Tappin' at the Apollo (reproduced ad)
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16
The Peanut Vendor1947
Stan Kenton & His Orchestra
Documented One-nighters, Jan. 21 and Sept. 6, 1951. Variety, Jan. 10, 1951; Down Beat, Sept. 21, 1951
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17
That Old Black Magic1951
Billy Daniels
Documented 1952: "crooned Black Magic" at a fashion show. Jet, Sept. 18, 1952
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18
Satin Doll1953
Duke Ellington
Documented Feb. 5, 1951 (Defender ball) and May 31, 1953. The Duke: Where and When; Stratemann; Vail
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19
Boogie Woogie on St. Louis Blues1940
Earl Hines & His Orchestra
Documented July 26, 1953: "packed the Parkway Ballroom". Cash Box, Aug. 1, 1953
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20
Brainville1956
Sun Ra
Documented 1955: the first Arkestra, photographed on the Parkway stage. University of Chicago Library, Sounds from Tomorrow's World
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21
Super Blonde1956
Sun Ra and His Arkestra
Documented 1955–56, the Arkestra's main venue. Red Saunders Research Foundation, Sun Ra
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22
Something's Gotta Give1955
Sammy Davis Jr.
Documented March 4, 1957: "entertained a packed Parkway ballroom" at the Defender Mardi Gras. Chicago Defender, March 7, 1957 (via Postcard Past)
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23
Old Man River1958
Paul Robeson
Documented Recital, Sunday, April 13, 1958. Robeson's FBI file (archive.org)
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24
Move On Up a Little Higher1947
Mahalia Jackson
Reported 1950s: sang at a victory ball and dinner. Mark Burford, Mahalia Jackson and the Black Gospel Field
1960s–1970s
Saturday mornings and a Basie date
In the late 1960s, Jesse Jackson's Operation Breadbasket held its Saturday morning meetings in the ballroom, with Ben Branch's band and choir. In 1976 the Count Basie Orchestra played and recorded there.
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25
Precious Lord, Take My Hand1968
Ben Branch & The Operation Breadbasket Orchestra & Choir (solo vocal: Rev. Clay Evans)
Documented 1968: Saturday morning meetings "in the big and draughty old Chicago Parkway Ballroom". Jet, Aug. 8, 1968
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26
One O'Clock Jump1937
Count Basie and His Orchestra
Reported "Regularly appeared at the Parkway"; his orchestra recorded there Dec. 8, 1976. Robert E. Weems, Black Business in the Black Metropolis; Chris Sheridan, Count Basie: A Bio-Discography
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27
My One and Only Love1963
John Coltrane, Johnny Hartman
Documented Dec. 8, 1976, with the Count Basie Orchestra (led by Nat Pierce). Chris Sheridan, Count Basie: A Bio-Discography
Since 2002
The room comes back
Reopened in 2002, the ballroom hosts galas, lectures, community dinners and gospel mornings, and is now home to Parkway Social.
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28
Groove Awakening2013
Ari Brown
Documented April 11, 2015: concert after the first Timuel Black lecture. UChicago News, April 7, 2015
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29
Change the World2008
The Reminders
Documented Nov. 21, 2008: IMAN Community Cafe. RedEye Chicago, Nov. 21, 2008
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30
Reality Check2000
Binary Star
Documented Oct. 2, 2009: Community Cafe Eid celebration. RedEye Chicago, Oct. 2, 2009
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31
Your Will2004
Darius Brooks
Documented Dec. 21, 2019: Rainbow PUSH Founder's Day. Rainbow PUSH Coalition livestream
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32
Available to You1988
Rev. Milton Brunson & The Thompson Community Singers
Documented Dec. 21, 2019, as the Tommies Reunion. Rainbow PUSH Coalition livestream
Said to have played
Ballroom lore
These names are repeated in articles and on the venue's website, but we found no ad, notice, itinerary or photo that puts them on the Parkway stage. They're here as a bonus, marked as unverified.
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33
What a Wonderful World1967
Louis Armstrong
Lore Named on Parkway Social's website; no date or event found. Parkway Social, About
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34
Straighten Up and Fly Right1943
The King Cole Trio
Lore Named in many articles, all repeating the venue's website. DNAinfo, 2016
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35
How High the Moon1947
Ella Fitzgerald
Lore Named in blog posts with no date or source. Postcard Past, 2024
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36
Groovin' High1945
Dizzy Gillespie
Lore Named by the Bronzeville Historical Society's founder in 2021. Chicago Defender, Nov. 11, 2021
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37
God Bless the Child1941
Billie Holiday
Reported One line in an academic book, with no date. Brown & Smith, eds., Race and Real Estate (Oxford, 2015)
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38
Lullaby of Birdland1954
Sarah Vaughan
Lore At the Parkway in 1952 to present a raffle prize; no documented performance. Jet, May 1, 1952
Also on the bandstand
- Captain Walter Dyett, DuSable High's band director, led dance orchestras at the Parkway from 1943 to 1959. He left no commercial records, so he isn't on the playlist.
- McKie Fitzhugh, DJ and promoter, started his dances at the Parkway in 1942 and presented Duke Ellington there in 1953.
- Fred Guy, Ellington's guitarist for over 20 years, managed the Parkway Ballroom from 1949 until his death in 1971.
- Lonnie Simmons, jazz organist, was signed in 1958 to a Saturday radio show broadcast from the Parkway's Blue Room. Lorna Boston and LB's Blues Machine played a 2014 blues night there. Neither has a recording we could find on streaming services.
- Mavis Staples held her first wedding reception there in 1964.
Not on the list
Lena Horne and Josephine Baker are often named as Parkway guests. The only source is a 2024 article saying they "stepped foot in" the building, and no record shows either one performing there.
Playing it in the restaurant
Personal Spotify and Apple Music accounts are licensed for personal listening only. To play music for customers, use a business music service or a public-performance license (ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, GMR).
Researched October 2026 from Variety, Billboard, Cash Box, Down Beat, Jazz Information, Jet, the Chicago Defender, Duke Ellington day-by-day itineraries, jazz discographies, oral histories and the University of Chicago Library. The venue's opening date comes from The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz and Floyd Campbell's own account.