What was the first American musical recording in history to use a swear word?
The first American musical recording to use a swear word is widely considered to be The Jim Jones Town by The Jarvis Conservatory, released in 1906. The song contains the word damn and was recorded on a cylinder record. The use of swear words in music was a relatively new phenomenon at the time, and their inclusion on recordings was a cause for controversy.
Damn is not really a swear word.
Not in today's context no, but from 1900 to the 1950s, damn was an unprintable word. Damn was the most offensive word back then when blasphemy and religion were central to everyday life, as to Damn meant to send to Hell.