Our song choice today is a big departure from the music we normally feature, but today is the anniversary of the "King of Ragtime" Scott Joplin's birth. He was a piano virtuoso and brilliant composer, and the first African-American music star for his introduction and popularization of ragtime music in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Ragtime's free flowing, syncopated sound influenced many jazz artists in the 20th century, including the great Duke Ellington. His music gained a new following after the hit movie "The Sting" featured his "The Entertainer" as its theme. Another popular hit of Joplin's was the "Maple Leaf Rag," here performed by Joplin himself in a rare recording on a Pianola roll.
