Don Richardson's 1916 country fiddle sides, plus more old-time country

 

Above is the Don Richardson listing from the 1924 Columbia Records catalog, minus the labels and numbers (which didn't show up in my scan).  Today, all six of Don's 1916 country fiddle sides for that label, minus an alternate take of Mississippi Sawyer (which I think I have, but I cannot find) and the second take (5/16/1916) of Mrs. McLeod's Reel, recorded prior to the Columbia A2575 performance of 11/3/1916.  And I've discovered that I have six or seven copies of Arkansas Traveler, which suggests that the record sold quite well back in the day.  (And that people kept it.)  Exactly how I ended up with seven copies, I can't say for sure.  At Wikipedia, Don gets a tiny entry which posits that Don "may have made the first country music recording in 1914, eight years before the first generally recognised country recording was made in 1922."  Actually, no--Don's 1914 A Perfect Day is a mainstream dance side for the time, with no hint of country.

In addition to Don, we have three more Arkansas/Arkansaw Traveler (or Traveller) variants, the most recent from 1941, and the earliest from between 1901 and 1908: The original AT skit, pared down and with narration by Harry Spencer, with George Schweinfest on fiddle.  Things conclude with Maine-born fiddler Mellie Dunham (1853-1931) and his "orchestra" performing Lady of the Lake, with calls by N.A. Noble. I was sort of hoping that Mellie himself had provided the vocal portion, but 'twas not to be.

However, Shorty McCoy provides the calls for the 1941 Bluebird Arkansas Traveler (designated with the modern label, "square dance")--calls with are light-hearted in nature (to the extent I can make them out!).  Meanwhile, the Henry C. Gilliland-A.C. (Eck) Robertson Arkansaw Traveler of 1922 (on Victor) is a solid candidate for the first country record ever recorded, and it's quite unmistakably a folk performance, as opposed to Richardson's formally-trained, highly accomplished musicianship, but then we have the problem of "first" vs. "folk."  Namely, if we regard any and all appearances of country music on sound recordings, regardless of "authenticity," as genuine country, then country recordings date back at least as far as 1901.  Or, if we're going by Richardson's contributions, 1916.  Anyway, to the vintage barn dances... 

DOWNLOAD: Don Richardson and Friends, 1916-1941.zip

Arkansas Traveler--Don Richardson, Violin Solo, piano: Samuel Jospe (Col. A2140; 5/8/1916)

Old Zip Coon (Intro: Old Folks at Home)--Same (Col. A2140; 5/6/1916)

Mississippi Sawyer--Same (Col. A2018; 5/5/1916)

Durang's Hornpipe (Intro: Little Brown Jug)--Same (Col. A2018; 5/8/1916)

Mrs. McLeod's Reel--Same (Col. A2575; 11/3/1916)

The Devil's Dream--Reel--Same (Col. A2575; 5/6/1916)

The Arkansaw Traveller--Descriptive--Harry Spencer w. Gorge Schweinfest, Violin (Col. A406; between 1901 and 1908)

Arkansas Traveler--Square Dance--Shorty McCoy and His Southern Playboys (Bluebird B-8948; 9/12/1941)

Arkansaw Traveler (Country Dance)--Henry C. Gilliland-A.C. (Eck) Robertson (Vic. 18956; 6/30/1922)

Lady of the Lake (Contra Dance)--Mellie Dunham and His Orch. (Vic. 19940; 1/9/1926)

Lee

Vintage Polkas, Part 2! Polish, German, Czech, and Spanish classics, 1904/1905-1930.

 

Digging through two crates that I haven't accessed in a while, I found a number of polka (or polka-related) sides I'd almost forgotten.  These include the very first vintage polka 78 I ever thrifted: Podloteck-Polka of 1927.  I remember at the time (about 25 years ago) being surprised by the smooth, expert, and "symphonic" sound of the selection (and its flip).  However, after having heard many selections in the same vein, it no longer sounds quite so exotic--just brilliantly performed and pleasing.  At any rate, this time we start back in the year 1904 or 1905--the Spanish Tipical Girl polka by the Columbia Mexican Band--and travel through 1909 and the early 1920s to John Wilfahrt's 1930 Aunt Ella's Polka.

I'm tempted to conclude that the earliest mainstream polka music was, like Wilfahrt's music, German in style, but I really can't make such a broad generalization from my own 78-rpm stash.  Therefore, I won't.

Some off-the-beaten-trail numbers for today: The Czech Trio from Prague (drums, violin, accordion) with a stylistically spare polka and polka-sounding march (to support Dave's observation that polkas and marches are closely related, which they are); Albert Roussell's turn-of-the-century Lerhone et la Saone--Polka, as performed in 1909(?) by the Banda de Artilleria, and Leonard Gautier's Le Secret, also composed during the late 1800s.  Though not designated as a polka, Le Secret is about as close to a polka as any non-polka can conceivably sound.  And La Tipica has me hoping that I find more Spanish polkas from the early 20th century.

Speaking of typical, the remaining selections are the "usual" Polish, German, and Swedish (Klackjarns Polka) sort, with the aforementioned John Wilfahrt's 1930 "oom-pah-pah" Aunt Ella's Polka taking us into the commercial period of polkas--i.e., when polkas went from specialized ethnic music into the pop mainstream.

Meanwhile, Nejde To means "It's not working" in Czech, and the 1922 "Victor-Orchester" selection (conducted by Nathaniel Shilkret!) Why Have a Pretty Garden is a German polka which I'm simply guessing means something closer to, The Reason for Having a Pretty Garden.  As for Nejde To, your guess is as good as mine.

And I forgot to mention the Vienna Civic Brass Band's 1909 Fruhlingstag (Spring Day) polka, which was recorded in Austria.  The opening grooves of this selection were damaged by (most likely) a loose gramophone soundbox, but the audio quickly recovers.

Possibly the most charming selection in our list is the Columbia Scandinavian Orch.'s Kalckjarns--exceptional sound quality for 1916, too.  In the context of the early recording industry, polkas occupy an interesting place: Whereas cakewalks and rags are generally considered the earliest examples of syncopated popular music, polkas (and, for that matter, waltzes and obereks) were just as likely to feature accented "weak" beats, and sometimes even more interestingly.

So, dance, drink, or just sit and enjoy today's helping of polkas past.  (Polkas past??)

DOWNLOAD: Vintage Polkas, Pt. 2!.7z

Zip file: Vintage Polkas, Pt. 2!.zip

Podlotek--Polka--Kapalka i Jego Orch. (6/20/1927)

On the Windmill Polka--Czech Trio from Prague (9/13/1910)

Klackjarns Polka--Columbia Scandinavian Orch. (Oct. 1916)

Krakowianka Polka--Orkiestra Ulenskiego (6/15/1928)

Fruhlingstag (Spring Day)--Polka--Vienna Civic Brass Band (June 1909)

Give Me a Kiss--Polka--Kapalka i Jego Orch. (6/20/1927)

My Little Horse--Czech March--Czech Trio from Prague (9/13/1910)

Nejde To--Polka--Czech Orchestra (December 1921)

Marynia Polka--Polska Orkiestra Columbia (approx. June 1923)

Srubka Polka--Same (June 1923)

Tipical Girl (La Tipica)--Polka (Spanish)--Columbia Mexican Band, leader: Carlos Curti (1904 or 1905)

As for Marjance So It Is for Zvonu--Polka--Prince's Military Band (Between 1907 and 1910)

Baruska--Polka--Edw. Krolikowki i Jego Radjowas Orkiestra (10/3/1929)

Beloved Country--Polka--The Merry Four (1924?)

Why Have a Pretty Garden--Polka (German)--Victor-Orchester, Male Trio, c. Nathaniel Shilkret (9/20/1922)

Lerhone et al Saone (Polka)--Banda de Artilleria (1909?)

Le Secret--Vessella's Italian Band (1/16/1914)

Aunt Ella's Polka (German)--John Wilfahrt's Concertina Orch. (11/2/1930)

Lee

For reasons I cannot begin to comprehend...

 For reasons I cannot begin to comprehend, my latest ZIP file is not working.  It wouldn't be possible for me to have less of a notion WHY this is happening.

I assume the file is not opening for anyone else?  What should I do?

All I know to do is to gather my FLAC files into a folder, then choose the ZIP option.  The files are working fine in the folder, but nothing happens after I've zipped them.

Any advice would be appreciated.  There seems to be nothing whatsoever wrong with the individual files.  If they were corrupted, or whatever the term is, they wouldn't be opening in the first place, I wouldn't think.  

I tried reinstalling VLC Player, but I got the message that my PC already has it.  Great, except that the player is not working for these files.  I'm totally stumped.

UPDATE: I just made another zip file (with other FLAC files), and VLC Player is having no problem with it.  So, quite obviously, VLC Player is my default zip file player--and still functioning as such.  Except, that is, for "Vintage Polka Party."

Why would the ZIP function work in one instance and not the other??

UPDATE #2: Timmy has confirmed that the zip is working on both his WMP and VLC player, so the problem (as I suspected, once I'd given the matter clear review) is unique to my PC, and it's because some files have multiple locations.  Thus, my PC doesn't know how to open them.  

Lee

Vintage Polka Party, 1910-1929! "Polka Bum-Cyk-Cyk," "In the Green Grove," "Julinka Polka," "Obertas from Dukla," more!

So, I had a series of vintage polka sides ripped and ready, and I decided to do a post--so, I added three or four tracks, and here we are.

I guesstimated the year of Polka Bum-Cyk-Cyk as 1910, and from comparing the catalog number (not always a reliable method).  A lively, "modern"-sounding polka, the number has vocal refrains which include a standard, strange high female voice which shows up on many a polka side.   And the lively, almost-nonsense chorus seems quite ahead of its time.

The polkas run the gamut from Polish, to Slovenian, to German, to "Bohemian," to Finnish, and a couple of triple-time obereks are in the mix.  I thought I had at least one mazurka, but gazing at the track list, I don't see one.  And I found a photo of the Hoyer Trio on line, but I don't want to get a copyright complaint, so I won't present it.

The musical units include peasant orchestras, village bands, and large brass bands, but there's a nice unity of style throughout the selections.  Some of these are in frequently-played condition (as in, played on a gramophone), so expect some condition issues, though nothing serious.  Oddly enough, the first selection fared best with an aftermarket 2.7 mil stylus--my better (3.0 and 3.5 mil) needles had the record sounding quite distorted in spots.  Which has me suspecting that the grooves are unusually close together for a Victor 78 of this vintage.

A handful of selections have a formal, large-orchestra sound, while most have something (more or less) closer to the commercial sound to arrive come the 1930s.  With the folk performances, there are some amusing errors by way of chord-change glitches, but the musicians typically adjust quickly to these moments and get right back on track.  Nearly all of these feature the usual multiple-strain/multiple-key form, with the modulations usually going to the subdominant or dominant.  "Related" keys, in other words.  Most selections include no segue passages between the modulations.

The "sokol" band is Czech, and the "bandas" are Polish.  Ditto for the orkiestras.  All of these, far as I know, were recorded in the United States--typically, Chicago or New York.  The "concertina" orchestra is likely German.  The Polish polkas and obertas strike my ears as the most complicated, musically (at least in the area of polyphonic ornamentation).

Almost finished right now are two more posts: One of my favorite junk-label LPs (TV Western Themes on Coronet, with only two of the selections actual TV themes!), and eight 1947 Percy Faith tracks which originally appeared on a Majestic 78 album.

Anyway, polka time!! 

DOWNLOAD: Vintage Polka Party 6-2026.zip

Polka Bum Cyk-Cyk-Cyk--Karol Namyslowski's Peasant Orch., circa 1910
Grasshopper Polka--John Lager and Eric Olson, accordion duet (Scandavian, approx. 3/1918)
In the Green Grove--Polka--Lous Solar's Concertina Orchestra, 8/1918

Husia Siusia--Polka--Pulaski Instrumental Trio, 1928

A Dark Forest Around--Polka--Fr. Dukli Wiejska Banda, 1926

Obertas from Dukla--Same

Clarinet Polka--Edw. Krolikowski i. Jego Orkiestra, 1929

Wasa Polka (Finnish)--Maki Trio, 1929

Crawniak--Polka--Deta Orkiestra Ludowa (small folk orch.), 1921
Goraca Krew--Polka--Polska Orkiestra M. Tesmera, 1926

Julinka Polka--Obersteirische Bauerkapelle (Upper Styrian Farmers' Band, 1912 or 1913)
The Wedding in the House of Wilkos--Orkiestra Witkowskiego, 1927

Happy Girl (Polish)--Fr. Dukli Wiejska Banda (The Village Gang), V: Jan Kapalka, 1927

Sokolska Koracnica (Falcon March)--Slovenian--Hoyer Trio, 1927

The Golden Prague--Cleveland Sokol Band, 1926

Lee