In celebration of our release of Monarchs of Minstrelsy, which presents rare recordings by actual veterans of the minstrel stage, here is an example of a miniature Minstrel First Part recording—the kind of which was very popular in the first decade of the 20th century.
The Rambler Minstrels consisted of baritones Steve Porter and Arthur Collins, and tenors Billy Murray and Byron G. Harlan—a rather unusual grouping, since they did not do any group work together ordinarily. The American, Haydn, and Peerless Quartets, by contrast, did minstrel routines under other ensemble names (such as the "North Carolina Minstrels" for the American Quartet) as sidelines to their other recording activities.
The Rambler series of records were an unconnected, non-sequential grab-bag of Minstrel First Part recordings. So there is no special value to playing records A through H (there is no Record G on Columbia) consecutively. Their interest lies primarily in hearing the 20th-century adaptations of the old-time minstrel routines. However, they do tend to feature contemporary songs in the singing portions of the routines.
Except for his distinct harmonizing, Harlan is mostly silent here. The main stars are the Interlocutor, Steve Porter, and the two end men: the first played by Murray, the second played by Collins.
Record B has many typical characteristics of the genre. One is the generous play on words for the punchline of a joke, as when Collins winkingly mistakes Porter's use of the word "own" in reference to his jail time. And that's another common trait: jokes about the end men or members of their family having served time in prison. |
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