James A. Bland

Bland, James A. (1854–1911), African-American composer. In the late 1800s he helped popularize “minstrel music” and was an accomplished banjo player. Among the songs he wrote were “Carry Me Back to Old Virginny” (1878), “Oh, Dem Golden Slippers” (1879), and “In the Evening by the Moonlight” (1879).