The Story of Little Liza Jane:
From African American Roots to Jazz and Kids’ Music
The song “Little Liza Jane” has a long and complex history in the United States. It originated from enslaved African Americans on Southern plantations and was passed down for years through oral folk traditions before the first version was published in 1916. It’s become a traditional New Orleans Jazz standard, but there are countless versions of the song in other musical styles like bluegrass, country, folk, and rock and roll. If you want to do a deep dive, check out the book “Poor Gal: The Cultural History of Little Liza Jane”!
The Music Class version of this song was adapted by Mr. Rob. We kept the traditional “Call and Response” style, where the teacher sings one line and the class echoes back, which provides a wonderful exercise of full class participation! We also kept the traditionally improvised verses of Little Liza Jane, where the musicians change the verses to fit whatever is meaningful/fun/relevant in that moment. In our case, we improv for our toddlers, so families can jump, dance, or move in whatever way the music motivates them to move, both in class and at home. :)
In addition to listening to "Little Liza Jane" on your TMC app, here are some other wonderful examples of the song across generations and genres! If you watch these videos with your kids, it’s fun to practice pointing out and naming the different instruments you see in each clip!
Five OG versions of Little Liza Jane
1 Nina Simone: Little Liza Jane (Live at Newport, 1960)
2. Sam Chatmon: Little Liza Jane (1978)
3. Stringbean: Liza Jane (Grand Ole Opry Mid 50s)
4. Harry Belafonte and Gloria Lynn: Liza Jane (New York, 1960)
5. David Bowie: Fun fact, "Liza Jane" was David Bowie's first single! He released it as part of the band Davie Jones with the King-Bees. They released it in 1964 when he was just 17 years old. I can't find any videos, so here is the track on Spotify!
Five versions of Little Liza Jane from the last 10(ish) years!
1 New Orleans Groove Masters: Lil' Liza Jane (Marciac Jazz Festival, 2015) The full video is so fun, but skip to 2:33 to hear the melody really kick in!
2. Wynton Marsalis Septet: Lil Liza Jane (Live at Dizzy's Club, 2012) Ok the video is a little dark, but you can really feel the energy and see how intimate a performance this was, with Wynton Marsalis walking and playing his trumpet through the audience, who were all singing and clapping along!
3. Lorraine Jordan & Carolina Road: Little Liza Jane (2017)
4. Sammy Miller and The Congregation: Li'l Liza Jane (2016)
5. Sierra Hull and Justin Moses: Little Liza Jane (Backstage at the Grand Ole Opry, 2020)
If you can't get enough of Little Liza Jane, they're making a movie! Called "Li'l Liza Jane: The Story of America Through the History of a Song". We can't wait to see it!!