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James Sylvester Scott  (1886-1938)

According to the Internet source given below, James Scott was an American composer primarily of ragtime piano music. The son of a former slave from North Carolina, he was raised mostly around Carthage, Missouri where showed musical talent when still quite young. He was taught by a Neosho pianist and received some private lessons from a Carthage teacher. He worked in Dumars Music Store in Carthage where he eventually was permitted to demonstrate tunes. The proprietor helped him to publish his first compositions.
Sometime in 1906, he met Scott Joplin who helped arrange publication of his Frog Legs Rag (1906) for John Stark. Stark thereafter published anything that Scott sent to him for the rest of his career. He moved to Kansas City in 1914 where he played in cinemas and formed a band. Here, due to his small stature and energy he earned the sobriquet the little professor. A purist, he remained a ragtime composer to the end, one of his last published works being Don't Jazz Me, (I'm Music) (1921). He kept composing despite poor health until his death, his final works remain unpublished or undiscovered.
Rudi Blesh considers James Scott to one of the classic giants, that is to be one of the "Bach-Beethoven-Brahms" of ragtime, which includes Scott Joplin and Joseph F. Lamb.
List of James Sylvester Scott's works.

Sheet Music:

1. [§] Broadway Rag (1922), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
2. [§] Broadway Rag (1922), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Bass
3. [§] Climax Rag (1914), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
4. [§] Dixie Dimples (1918), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
5. [§] Dixie Dimples (1918), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Bass
6. [§] Don't Jazz Me - Rag (1921), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
7. [§] Don't Jazz Me - Rag (1921), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Bass
8. [§] Efficiency Rag (1917), Descant+Garklein/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
9. [§] Evergreen Rag (1915), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
10. [§] The Fascinator (1903), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
11. [§] Frog Legs Rag (1906), Descant/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
12. [§] Frog Legs Rag (1906), Descant/Tenor/Bass
13. [§] Grace and Beauty (1909), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
14. [§] Grace and Beauty (1909), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Bass
15. [§] Great Scott Rag (1909), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Bass/Bass+Tenor/Great Bass(Bass)
16. [§] Great Scott Rag (1909), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Bass
17. [§] Heart's Longing (1910), Descant+Tenor/Tenor/Tenor/Bass+Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
18. [§] Hilarity Rag (1910), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
19. [§] Hilarity Rag (1910), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Bass
20. [§] Honey Moon Rag (1916), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass+Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
21. [§] Kansas City Rag (1907), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
22. [§] Kansas City Rag (1907), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Bass
23. [§] Modesty Rag (1920), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
24. [§] Modesty Rag (1920), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Bass
25. [§] New Era Rag (1919), Sopranino/Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
26. [§] On the Pike (1904), Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
27. [§] On the Pike (1904), Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass
28. [§] Ophelia Rag (1910), Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
29. [§] Ophelia Rag (1910), Treble/Tenor/Bass
30. [§] Paramount Rag (1917), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor+Sopranino/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
31. [§] Peace and Plenty Rag (1919), Sopranino/Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor+Bass/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
32. [§] Peace and Plenty Rag (1919), Sopranino/Treble/Tenor/Bass
33. [§] Pegasus (1920), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
34. [§] Pegasus (1920), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Bass
35. [§] Princess Rag (1911), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
36. [§] Princess Rag (1911), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Bass
37. [§] Prosperity Rag (1916), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass+Tenor/Great Bass(Bass)
38. [§] Quality (1911), Sopranino/Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass
39. [§] Rag Sentimental (1918), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
40. [§] Rag Sentimental (1918), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Bass
41. [§] The Ragtime "Betty" (1909), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Bass(Great Bass)
42. [§] The Ragtime "Betty" (1909), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Bass
43. [§] Ragtime Oriole (1911), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
44. [§] The Shimmie Shake (1920), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
45. [§] Springtime of Love (1918), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
46. [§] Suffragette Waltz (1914), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
47. [§] A Summer Breeze (1903), Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
48. [§] A Summer Breeze (1903), Treble/Tenor/Bass
49. [§] Sunburst Rag (1909), Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass+Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
50. [§] Sunburst Rag (1909), Treble/Tenor/Bass
51. [§] Troubadour Rag (1919), Sopranino/Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
52. [§] Valse Venice (1909), Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Bass+Tenor/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
53. [§] Victory Rag (1921), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Tenor/Tenor/Bass/Bass/Great Bass(Bass)
54. [§] Victory Rag (1921), Descant/Treble/Tenor/Bass

Ragtime Music CDs:
 John Arpin on "Classics in the Park" 
 John Arpin on "Kings of Ragtime" 
 Mimi Blais on "Geraldine" 
 Peter Bocage on "Peter Bocage with the Creole Serenaders and the Love-Jiles Ragtime Orchestra" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 William Bolcom on "Heliotrope Bouquet Piano Rags (1900-1970)" 
 William Bolcom on "Sweet Sixteenths: A Ragtime Concert" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Budapest Ragtime Band on "Caravan" 
 Budapest Ragtime Band on "Elite Syncopations" 
 Budapest Ragtime Band on "Funny Christmas" 
 Budapest Ragtime Band on "Grace and Beauty" 
 Budapest Ragtime Band on "Trubadur" 
 Jo Ann Castle on "Ragtime Piano Gal" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Eddie Condon on "Eddie Condon 1947-1950" 
 Richard Dowling on "World's Greatest Piano Rags" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 "Perfessor" Bill Edwards on "Don't Jazz Me - I'm Ragtime!" 
 "Perfessor" Bill Edwards on "Quality Ragtime" 
 "Perfessor" Bill Edwards on "Rags of Grace and Beauty" 
 "Perfessor" Bill Edwards on "Rags of Peace and Plenty" 
 "Perfessor" Bill Edwards on "A Ragtime Sampler" 
 "Perfessor" Bill Edwards on "Strenuous Life" 
 Elite Syncopators on "American Sampler Rag" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Elite Syncopators on "Ragtime Special" 
 Evergreen Ragtime Trio on "It's a Rouser" 
 Frank French on "James Scott's Ragtime" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Audley Green on "Spirituals and Rags" 
 James P. Johnson on "The Best of Scott Joplin and Other Rag Classics" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Jazzou Jones on "Riverboat Ragtime: Then and Now" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Jazzou Jones on "Hilarity" 
 Sue Keller on "I Got What It Takes" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Sue Keller on "Kellerized" 
 Sue Keller on "Live in Kalamazoo" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Sue Keller on "Rag Time Sue" 
 Sue Keller on "Ragtime Reflections" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Franklin Kennedy on "Ragtime The Music Of James Scott" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Scott Kirby on "Bucktown in the 90's" 
 Scott Kirby on "Grace & Beauty: Ragtime Classics" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Scott Kirby on "More Damn Good Ragtime" 
 Max Kortlander on "Piano Roll Artistry of Max Kortlander" 
 Various Artists on "1904 St. Louis World's Fair: Meet Me At The Fair" 
 Various Artists on "American Roots Music: Ragtime" 
 Various Artists on "A Century of Ragtime 1897-1997" 
 Various Artists on "Classic Ragtime from Rare Piano Rolls" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Various Artists on "Fingerpicking Guitar Delights" 
 Various Artists on "Orion-New Ragtime Guitar" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Various Artists on "Kings of the Ragtime Banjo" 
 Various Artists on "Piano Music In America 1900-1945" 
 Various Artists on "Pianola Ragtime: Early Piano Jazz and Ragtime Played on Pianola Rolls: Vol. 2" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Various Artists on "Player Piano Memories" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Various Artists on "Ragtime" 
 Various Artists on "Ragtime - The Best Of James Scott" 
 Various Artists on "Ragtime Memories" 
 Various Artists on "The Riverside History of Classic Jazz" 
 Various Artists on "S. Joplin; G. Gershwin; I. Berlin; P. Whiteman" 
 Various Artists on "Scott Joplin and the Age of Ragtime" 
 Various Artists on "Spirit of Ragtime" 
 Various Artists on "The Traditional Jazz Ragtime Collection" 
 Max Morath on "The Best of Scott Joplin and Other Rag Classics" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Max Morath on "Jonah Man: A Tribute to Bert Williams" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Max Morath on "Living a Ragtime Life" 
 Max Morath on "Presenting That Celebrated Maestro" 
 Max Morath on "The Ragtime Man" 
 Max Morath on "The World of Scott Joplin Vol. 1" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Max Morath on "The World of Scott Joplin Vol. 2" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Jelly Roll Morton on "The Chronological Jelly Morton (1930-1939)" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Jelly Roll Morton on "The Original Mr. Jelly Lord" 
 Peter Muir on "Spontaneous Ragtime" 
 Guido Nielsen on "James Scott: The Complete Works 1903-1922" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 New Orleans Ragtime Orchestra on "Grace and Beauty" 
 Ophelia Ragtime Orchestra on "Echoes from the Snowball Club" 
 Paragon Ragtime Orchestra on "The Paragon Ragtime Orchestra (finally) Plays "The Entertainer"" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Paragon Ragtime Orchestra on "That Demon Rag!" 
 Tony Parenti on "Ragtime Jubilee" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Miguel Pineda-Van Gelder on "A Ragtime Feast: Forgotten Rags No. 4" 
 Ralph Press on "The Great American Ragtime Revival/with Sound Effects" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Ratzkowski/Thomsen Duo on "Ragtime" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Royce Reynolds on "Ragtime The James Scott Songbook" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
  Joshua Rifkin on "Rags & Tangos" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Reginald R. Robinson on "Euphonic Sounds" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Wally Rose on "Ragtime Classics" 
 Bennet Sayles on "Ragtime Heroes: The James Scott Songbook" 
 Gary Smart on "American Beauty: A Ragtime Bouquet" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Squeek Steele on "Ragtime Volume One" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Fred Sturm on "American Rags, Brazilian Tangos, Afrocuban Dances" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Butch Thompson on "Butch Thompson's King Oliver Centennial Band" 
 Turpintyme Ragsters on "Chicken Chowder" 
 Craig Ventresco on "The Past Is Yet To Come" 
 Terry Waldo on "Ragtime Classics Vol. 2" 
 Brent Watkins on "The Heroes of Parlor Town - Volume 1" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Brent Watkins on "The Heroes of Parlor Town - Volume 2" CD(s) & MP3 Album(s)
 Lu Watters on "Originals & Ragtime: San Francisco Style: Vol. 2" 
 Ron Weatherburn on "Ragtime Piano and Beyond" 
 Steven Williams on "Classic Ragtime From Rare Piano Rolls"