This anonymous newspaper clipping appeared on p. 3 of the American St. Lawrence Republican for 27 July 1898.
Many of the titles will be easily recognised, but others might now be better known from amongst surviving American Berliner discs of the 1890s; yet, on the whole, this repertoire needs little comment.
Here I briefly note catalogue numbers, taking into account the date of this listing, recent versions and likely performers (who often varied between different issues having the same catalogue number) – discographic details are taken mainly from Charosh (1995, 2012).
Stars and Stripes Forever (Sousa)
61: Sousa’s Band: several versions, perhaps 7 April 1898
The Crack Regiment (Tobani)
79: Sousa’s Band: New York (three versions), perhaps October 1897
Nearer my God to Thee (Adams, Mason)
Possibly Len Spencer (bar.) on 915Y: 27 February 1897
Rocked in the Cradle of the Deep (Willard, Knight)
Several versions, very possibly here by the popular trombone soloist from Sousa’s band, Arthur Pryor: 3305: New York, 27 July 97
[Private] Tommy Atkins (Hamilton, Potter)
159: George J. Gaskin (ten.): probably 159X: Philadelphia 16 Nov 1896
Just Tell Them that You Saw Me (Dresser)
187: or 189Z: George J. Gaskin (ten.): Philadelphia 18 May 1896
Fakir Selling Corn Cure 639: George Graham: probably 639Y: New York 15 Oct 1897
Advertising Plant’s Baking Powder 641: George Graham: 26 May 1896
The Streets of Cairo (James Thornton)
171: probably William Thornton (ten.) on recent 171X: Washington DC, 8 Mar 1898
Auction Sale of a Piano
644: George Graham: probably 644X: 6 Oct 1897
The Bridge (Longfellow, Lindsay, Carew)
895: The Diamond Four, probably Albert Campbell (ten.), James Kent Reynard (ten.), Steve Porter (bar.), Billy Jones (bass): New York, perhaps June 1897
Morning on the Farm
401: N. R. Wood (imitations): perhaps 401Y or 401W, Washington DC, 5 Aug 1897
The Marriage Bells (O’Riordan)
473: Vess Ossman (banjo): New York, probably 9 Oct 1897 version
The 1896 Baking Powder advertisement on disc 641 by George Graham (who was found by Fred Gaisberg selling quack medicines on the streets of Washington) is worth highlighting for its excellent impression of his persistently persuasive spiel; even when played to modern audiences, it always raises a good laugh. Graham recorded several talks for the Gramophone in 1896, including the Auction Sale of a Piano listed here: that scene was famously repeated in London several times by Burt Shepard (English catalogue 1064, etc).
The highlighted Morning on the Farm imitations were likewise emulated in March 1899 (English catalogue 9292) by no less than the co-founder of the Gramophone Company in Europe, Trevor Williams – as one of his party pieces! The ‘realism’ claimed for the previously unidentified ‘N. R. Wood’ on his American recordings (401, etc) has proved to be not only justified, but worthy of a separate article about his wider astonishing skills.
The title of The Streets of Cairo demands some explanation: it is about a young country girl being (almost?) led astray – not in Egypt but amidst the glitz of the World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893 in Chicago, where one of the elaborate displays on the Midway Plaisance did indeed portray a ‘Street in Cairo.’ See the Notes for links to information about the Fair and the song itself.
The newspaper article’s suggestion of renting the (inexpensive) Gramophone is surely unjustified, and presumably arises from confusion with recent Phonograph trade; and its related enticement of a ‘box at the opera’ has not in fact been borne out by its programme of popular entertainment. There are here no arias sung by Ferruccio Giannini or ‘A. del Campo’, nor even an operatic overture! Yet it is good to learn that by the late 1890s the home entertainment potential of the Gramophone as the ‘pleasantest modern invention’ was already seen as significant.
Reference and Notes
Charosh, Paul (1995) Berliner Gramophone Records: American issues, 1892–1900, Westport, CT, Greenwood Press. In the 2012 second edition (Denver, CO, Mainspring Press) Charosh reproduces (pp. xxiv–xxvi) an earlier extensive article ‘Through the needle’s point’ that suggests a similar programme of 18 items, which appeared in an advertising supplement to The Cosmopolitan of October 1897.
The following links give more information about the Chicago fair of 1893 and the Streets of Cairo:
- https://worldsfairchicago1893.com/2020/01/01/the-city-of-wonders-11
- https://worldsfairchicago1893.com/2025/02/09/172-picturesque-worlds-fair-camels-and-drivers-in-cairo-street
The original 1895 recording (also 171) and text, as sung by Dan Quinn (bar.)
1895 score, subtitled ‘The Poor Little Country Maid’: https://levysheetmusic.mse.jhu.edu/collection/144/023a
See also: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabian_riff and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoochie_coochie