The first actual band to appear on record was the Original Dixiland Jazz Band or ODJB, sometimes referred to as the Original Dixiland "Jass" Band because of the socially questionable meaning of the word "jazz" during this period. The ODJB had a "hot," punchy sound but their arrangements featured little or no soloing. In that sense the ODJB, made up of white musicians who had worked together in New Orleans, was probably more typical of the true New Orleans collective improvisational style, both black and white, than the bands which recorded subsequently.
The leader of the ODJB was Nick La Rocca, a left-handed cornet player in New Orleans in 1889. The rest of the band included clarinetist Larry Shields, Eddie Edwards playing tailgate trombone, Henry Ragas playing piano and Tony Sbarbaro playing drums. Their first hit record was "Livery Stable Blues" on side A and "Original Dixieland One-Step" on side B - recorded on February 24, 1917. They opened at Reisenweber's Restaurant on Columbus Circle in downtown New York during the same year. These two things combined made the ODJB a household word during this period. By 1919, the ODJB was so popular that the group was asked to come to England and record there. Trombonist Edwards and pianist Ragas couldn't make the trip and were replaced by Emile Christian and Billy Jones. Edwards rejoined the band in 1920, but Raga, replaced by Jones for the England trip and later by Frank Signorelli, never recorded with the band after 1918. La Rocca, Shields, Edwards and Sbarbaro remained together throughout most of the remainder of the bands existence. As late as 1943, the ODJB rerecorded their 1918 performances of "Tiger Rag" and "Sensation Rag" on a v-disk intended for distribution to American soldiers stationed in Europe and Asia in WWII.
From the very beginning, the group's rhythmic feel, over-all sound and collective improvisation were recognized as being first rate, however it is generally acknowledged that if the ODJB and contained at least one truly outstanding soloist, they would have gotten far more recognition than they actually received.

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