|
|
Canada's premiere popular tenor of the early 20th century recorded this 7-inch Victor disc in 1904. The tune was written by Egbert Anson Vanalstyne with lyrics by Harry Williams. It was their first of many hits, and was one of the first of a trend in songwriting to use Indian names in song titles (such as "Hiawatha", "Red Wing", "Cheyenne", "Silver Heels", and "Snow Deer"). The lyrics play on two racial stereotypes simultaneously, which may offend some (and amaze others), but the tune itself is fundamentally cheerful and still sounds fresh. This copy was played a lot, and is generally noisy (as are all Victors of this vintage), but after some noise reduction it's presentable once again. (The "Virtual Gramophone of Canada", an amazing web site, has many more sound samples of MacDonough's work, as well as a biography.) |
 |
 |
 |