Well, since it's St. Patrick's day, I thought it would be fit to do a post on many of the Irish singers and performers in the earliest days of the recording business. Many of these performers were either half Irish of were full-blooded as such. One of these half Irish performers is:
Vess Ossman.
Yes, I know, his name is fully Dutch-Germanic, but the Irish comes from his mother. He did not often acknowledge his Irish ancestry, but many knew it was there, and often made jokes about how his terrible temper came from his side of him. As a stereotype of the Irish, his temper fit this very well, firey and quick. Much like the rumors of his accompanist Banta being Jewish, the Irish temper of Ossman's spread like wildfire, and since he practically worked with everyone, it was hard to be avoided. Ossman did not really record too many Irish songs, again referring back to how he did not well recognise the Irish in him. Even with his reluctance to acknowledge it, he did look like a true mix of the two nationalities that created him-- German and Irish.
Now to begin with some records, not really getting to the Irish ones just yet.
Here are a few good and fun Ossman records:
recorded in 1898 with Fred Hylands(played a little too slow though...)
The tune just above "The Tyro Mazurka", also has the alternative title called "The Climbing Rose Mazurka".
Ossman and Hylands' "Whistling Rufus" is among one of the best recordings of Banjo Rag-Time from before 1900(just barely before 1900...) in my opinion, as you not only get a classic in Rag-Time as the piece, but both performers are Rag-Time eccentrics. It is played extremely well also, Ossman is perfect, and even Hylands is flawless!(which as we all know is very unusual!).
Now to begin with the most famous of the Irish singers on early records:
Dan W. Quinn.
Yes indeed, he was the most Irish of the early singers, that wasn't an Irish tenor. More like an Irish baritone! Quinn was Irish on both sides of his family, and what's so great about him is that when he sang, he genuinely sounded Irish, no dialect needed. It wasn't thick and hard to understand like George Gaskin, but it was slight to the point of where sometimes it couldn't be noticed. The only way to really catch his Irish dialect is to be listening just enough to how he pronounced certain words when he sang. He was pretty much the more authentic version of Edward M. Favor. By this it is meant that Quinn was actually Irish, and did many Irish songs very well, but Favor was not actually not Irish at all. That was a very strange thing to me when
I first learned of that, as I knew of Favor as the one who popularized "Who threw the Overalls in Missus Murphy's Chowder", and many more Irish songs, but he was actually of French descent. Quinn's Irish songs were much more authentic, in more ways than just the Irish part of it.
To begin with the records by Quinn, I won't start with the Irish songs outright, just to save that for a little later. The first one I have here is one that is dear to my heart in many ways, because it was the first 1890's tune that I learned after hearing the cylinder. "Put me Off at Buffalo" by Quinn with Hylands, 1898.
When I first heard this cylinder three years ago, I was captivated by the piano accompaniment behind Quinn. The song was hilarious, and I enjoyed the lyrics very much, but the piano was really the thing that caught the attention of my ears first. At that time, that was when I was really wanting to know who that pianist was. Didn't know at the time, and didn't think I ever would. Well, I know that it's Fred Hylands now, and that he was probably tipsy by the time that this take rolled around. Yes indeed, and you can clearly hear many of his mistakes, and this time, they're not really very well obscured(like that one at 1:54. Ooh! That's a painful one!). Furthermore, Quinn's Irish dialect can be heard easily on this one.
This next one is not exactly an Irish song, but as Quinn did, he pretty much made anything he sang that way, just by how he was. Now this one was actually one that Quinn was, and still is apparently, known for singing. Here's "Glorious Beer" by Hylands and Quinn, recorded in 1899. Yep, this was recorded right smack in the middle of Hylands running that publishing firm. Hylands just goes absolutely wild on this one. I don't really know how to put it into words, but he's playing as many notes as he possibly can in a single few bars. I think. Well, he attempts to at least. The ironic thing about Quinn singing this is that he was a prominent supporter of the temperance movement. Wow. That's very weird. Also it's comical to take into consideration that the pianist behind him is probably drunk, or drugged of some kind(his playing is awfully fast and anxious...). This fact adds to the paradox that surrounds the circumstances of this cylinder. Hylands probably enjoyed recording this song.
Now onto Quinn's Irish songs. Now we known that he made many of them, including the one that Edward Favor was known for(that I said before in this post), and many others of that kind. The first one I would like to showcase is Quinn's "Nothing's Too Good for the Irish" with Fred Hylands on piano, recorded in 1898. This was probably recorded within the same week or few weeks of "Put Me Off at Buffalo". Why? Well, listen to how similar the piano sounds on this one compared to his cylinder of "Put Me Off at Buffalo", though the piano is quite a bit more out of tune on this one. It's almost painfully out of tune on this one. I really love Hylands' accompaniment on this one, even if the piano is VERY out of tune here. The "Irish jig" solo at the end is particularly funny and really playful. It just goes to show that Hylands was a true Vaudeville pianist, and could play all of the corny vaudeville riffs we think of for that era.
Another song that Quinn was famous for was recording "And the Band Played On", which is, as I have heard, still a popular song that is representing of the spirit of the 1890's. You can hear his version of this with the piano accompaniment by Fred Gaisberg, recorded in November 1895. This is a classic, hands down. Both in terms of Irish songs and just recordings in general, it's as such.
This last Irish song by Quinn is actually one of the earliest examples of his recordings that I know of. It's called "Oh Missus O'Flaherty, What Did You Mean Be That?" recorded in 1893, with Fred Gaisberg once more. What an obscure one! It's very rare, and strange in the range of Quinn's repertoire. Quinn was known for songs exactly like this one, Irish comic songs, as being Irish, he made any song full of Irish wit, regardless of the circumstances.
The next two Irish singers I would like to showcase are jointly going to be showcased, George J. Gaskin and Arthur Collins.
Gaskin(c. 1894)
Collins(c.1904-05)
To begin with Gaskin, he was actually claimed to be the most popular 1890's recording artist. That fact has been debunked since the 1930's, as it's certain that there's really no way to know who made the most records in that time, Gaskin, or Len Spencer(though I am convinced that Spencer made more records and was more committed to making records...) Gaskin was a singer who worked as a carpenter before Edison's men discovered him, and since old man Edison had a nitch for Irish tenors, Gaskin was golden to him. This was back in 1891, and for some reason, his voice was perfect for the phonograph. He was immediately considered one of the best recording artists in the business, and by 1895, he was making Berliners and Columbia cylinders like mad, as the record buyers often came to exhibitions solely to buy Gaskin's records. Now, to begin with some of his Irish songs, which he did many of(not surprisingly...).
Here is his version of "My Wild Irish Rose" with Fred Hylands, recorded in 1898. Again, Hylands is probably tipsy when they recorded this, as there's this one thing that he plays in the solo at the beginning. Hm. What? It's very strange, and it doesn't really make any sense, much like how he played behind Quinn on "Glorious Beer". All that needs to be said it that there are too many notes. Anyhow, Gaskin is fantastic on this one, not too showy, and not too modest. Just the right amount of Irish dialect.
This next one is also a famous one that Gaskin recorded, as well as about a handful of other recording stars at the same time. Here is a take of "Bedelia". Now that you've heard that one, here is a different take of it:
Both of these have Hylands on piano, doing completely different things on both of them. They are both fantastic records nonetheless, the best takes of the song in my opinion.
This next one is a rarer one by Gaskin, but it's an Irish song for sure. Here you go: https://ia601409.us.archive.org/12/items/GeorgeJGaskin/GeorgeJGaskin-TheBestintheHouseisNoneTooGoodForReilly.mp3 This is a very odd one, but it's also a very interesting configuration of people. Why? Well, if your ears are good enough, you probably might recognise one of the other voices in this cylinder. Yes indeed, it's Russell Hunting! The two voices cheering on this cylinder are Russell Hunting and Fred Hylands. Hunting was also another Irish performer(not really being Irish though...) as we all know that he was known as "The Original Michael Casey", which was a character that a whole generation of people grew up with. Much like how Spongebob Squarepants is an icon of the younger generation now, the "Michael Casey" character was like this as well.
Before I get to Collins, I should probably have a Hunting "Casey" sketch listed here, as those are all iconic in Irish humor. Just for giggles and genuine satirical comedy, here's Hunting's famous "Casey At the Telephone" recorded around February of 1896(this was recorded before he went to jail). This is funny every time I hear it. It's truly the genius of Hunting at work, though it might seem like simple vaudeville, it's actually amazing in many respects, as it's before he was sent to prison, and he uses many kinds of balancing techniques just for his voice. Since this was recorded before he was sent to prison, his humor is very slightly crass, which makes it even more charming, and realistic.
Anyhow, here are a few Irish Collins records. This first one is one that Steve Porter was more known for(who was also an Irish singer, but wasn't Irish). Here you go with Collins and Hylands' "Armful of Kittens and a Cat" recorded in 1901. Hylands is good on this one! So is Collins, with his not-the-best Irish dialect. Collins was half-Irish, but was very much raised in a Catholic household, as the 10 children and Irish mother can say all for itself. Collins recorded many Irish songs solo before teaming with Byron Harlan in 1902, including many with the accompaniment of Frank P. Banta, not just Hylands.
Now, this next one is actually the most politically-incorrect of any of the Irish songs that I have had here on this post. For some reason, I have the sheet music for this tune, anyhow before I get to that story I have with that music, here's the cylinder:
"The Mick Who Threw the Brick" by Collins with Frank P. Banta, recorded in 1900. For some reason the piano sounds a little bit like a banjo at some points of this cylinder.
Anyhow, I have a very strange story in sheet music collecting with this song. I got the music to "The Mansion of Aching Hearts" at a sheet music giveaway three years ago, and I long thought it was just that tune that I got. Until about a year after I got the music, I was looking through my album of music, and I saw it once more, so I slid it out of the sleeve, and found that there was another piece attached to it. Guess what it was... ... "The Mick Who Threw the Brick" from 1899. WHOA! That was very bizarre! The cover of the music was not there, but all the rest of it was, and I didn't know that I had it until then.
Now to end this post, because this post could go on for a VERY long time, I would like to end the St. Patrick's Day festivities with the descriptive selection by Banta's Popular orchestra called "Scene at and Irish Ball" recorded in 1895. Now this cylinder explains quite a lot about Banta's doings in Chicago in the mid-1890's, as this was recorded for the Chicago Talking machine Company around the time that W. H. Krell was getting to the top, and when Fred Hylands was a prominent director at that time. Well, it's a fantastic cylinder nonetheless, with all sorts of fun antics, that probably include Banta speaking at some point(not sure where though...).
For a fun extra, here's Spencer singing a very strange but funny Irish song in 1903:
(not sure who the pianist is, though it's probably Hylands since it's Spencer singing...)
I hope you all had a great St. Patrick's Day!
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