While enjoying successful stint playing in New York in January 1917, the quintet received an invitation to audition for Columbia Gramophone Company, but no releases resulted from the session. A month later, on 26th February, they recorded two tracks for the Victor Talking Machine Company: “Livery Stable Blues” and “Dixie Jass Band One-Step”. Victor released the two tracks as a 78rpm single on 7th March 1917.
The record became a big hit, and may have been the first to sell over one-million copies. Nevertheless, the band failed to copyright “Livery Stable Blues”, prompting two other New Orleans musicians, Ray Lopez and Alcide Nunez (who had recently left the band), to copyright it and release sheet music under their authorship. In response, the Original Dixieland Jass Band copyrighted the tune under the title “Barnyard Blues”, which resulted in litigation between the two parties that ended up being thrown out of court.