prize17-1, Exercise 3: Questioning "the first jazz record"

Model answer (check the details):

1. First by what measure? The 1917 disc is generally described as the first commercially released jazz record. Earlier recordings of related music (ragtime, brass bands, blues-influenced songs) exist, so the claim depends on how jazz is defined. Where to look: a survey history of jazz and the Discography of American Historical Recordings.
2. Who was recorded, and who was not? The band was white, while many of the musicians who shaped early jazz in New Orleans were Black and were not recorded then. Where to look: histories of early New Orleans jazz and of the record industry's segregation.
3. How reliable are the release date and sales figures? Sources give March or May 1917 for release and figures from hundreds of thousands to over a million. Where to look: Victor company records and the Library of Congress or Smithsonian collections.

Care: "first" claims are the easiest to repeat and the hardest to prove. State what the evidence supports and say what it does not.