Listen to Fred Hylands play tipsy!

Listening to Fred. Hylands on records is always fascinating. 

But of course, as I have said before, the records where the piano accompaniment sounds broken and out-of-place is when it gets really interesting. 

There were no rules in Columbia's recording studio in the 1890's, so drinking and all sorts of drugs were allowed naturally. 

And Fred liked to drink. Oh  and how he did.

He took advantage of this opportunity, by bringing in a flask to almost every recording session he had there. Getting a little drunk always kept his Ragtime rough, and gave it that addictive sound it had. But as expected, if he drank too much, his playing would just go downhill from there. He would be far from the state he was in when he arrived at the studio. But how he would feel great! 
He would be all loose, and anxious to play hard. And when he wasn't playing Ragtime, his right hand would throw quick and almost impossible-to-execute patterns which forced his fingers to fumble keys all over the place, but what did he care! He was enjoying the fun! 

here's a great example of a non-Ragtime number of Hylands with Dan W. Quinn in 1899:
https://ia601401.us.archive.org/3/items/DanWQuinn/DanWQuinn-GloriousBeer.mp3

The record listed above is often considered one of the most famous records by Dan W. Quinn, as many people know it and have heard it before, just because of the song's lyrics. but for the first time, I ask of  you all---LISTEN TO THE PIANO PLAYER! It's absolutely WILD!

Everyone has also hear this one, but it is a wonderful and perfect example of an obviously hammered Fred Hylands with none other than George W. Johnson in 1898: 
https://ia902307.us.archive.org/20/items/GeorgeWJohnson/GeorgeWJohnson-TheLaughingSongCoonSong.mp3

It's a comical picture to imagine him drunk. 
(he may not even be completely sober in this picture for all I know!)
Well, he isn't smiling clearly, but I can see so much in him from this picture. 
This last one(being the oldest example I have found of Hylands playing Ragtime, and on records in general) I have exhibited before, but it is always an amazing thing to listen to. 

Here is a wasted Fred Hylands accompanying Billy Golden in 1897(don't forget that wonderful and CLEAR announcement by Len Spencer!):
http://cylinders.library.ucsb.edu/mp3s/11000/11728/cusb-cyl11728d.mp3

Really take a listen to these three examples, and hear all of the fumbled notes and jarring time changes that Hylands does under the will of his drinks. He's still great to listen to in general, even if he was about to collapse(whether it be the drinks, or from exhaustion). Do remember, that is was also his utter exhaustion that would have him loose his accuracy, do remember that he said this:

(this was from the same issue of The Phonoscope that had that picture above...)

He hadn't really been working there for vey long when he began to complain. But he still had some of that laziness in him...

I hope you enjoyed this(sorry It's been a few days, I've been busy with my book!)