1905

16. 15 January 1905

Bob Roberts

There’s A Dark Man Coming With A Bundle

Written by Bert Leighton

No.2 for 2 weeks

No.1 at the time Bob Roberts – Back Back Back To Baltimore

Bob Roberts was the new sensational ragtime singing star early in 1905 with Arthur Collins and Billy Murray still to appear in the charts this year, he sat at no.1 with Back Back Back To Baltimore, moved up to no.2 with There’s A Dark Man Coming With A Bundle, no.4 with his former no.1 I May Be Crazy But I Aint No Fool and no.6 with By The Watermelon Vine (Lindy Lou). This was the story of Hank Higgins’ wife who most all her life believed in signs you know, she saw one hanging on a house a week or two ago, it simply said your fortune read a quarter fifty cents, she said I want the best you’ve got regardless of expense, I want the kind wherein I find I’m goin’ to be a queen, the fortune teller man he said I know just what you mean, he dealt the cards and told her yards of things that were all a lie, and then with songs mysterious says this I what I see,  there’s a dark man with a bundle, he’s a sneakin along softly singin’ a song, it’s a mighty heavy package for to trundle, and there must be something wrong, there is something vicious in his actions, he’s a hummin something like a tune by the light of the moon, to your house in your home in the night he’s going to roam, there’s a dark man with a bundle soon. This could have been the sister song to the Arthur Collins hit Any Rags, the story of Ragged Jagged Jack, a rag n bone man, a seedy looking black man with dirty torn clothes and a patched bag over his shoulder, here he comes down the street with a pack on his back, he comes in the morning and he comes at night, and he gobbles up everything in sight, he wakes up the neighbourhood for miles around, he’s regular alarm clock always wound, he gets beneath your window when you try to get to sleep, and he yells in a voice so loud and deep. There’s A Dark Man Coming With A Bundle never makes clear exactly who the man is, but you wouldn’t want to meet him on a dark night.

17. 15 February 1905

Peerless Quartet

Sweet Adeline (You’re The Flower Of My Heart)

Written by Richard Husch Gerard & Harry Armstrong

No.2 for 2 weeks

No.1 at the time Bob Roberts – Back Back Back To Baltimore

The Peerless Quartet was another of the great four-part harmony vocal groups of the first decade of the twentieth century, originally known as Columbia Male Quartette when they formed to produce recordings specifically for the Columbia Record Company, but changed their name to Peerless when they began to record for other companies too. The members included tenors Henry Burr and Albert Campbell, baritone Steve Porter and bass Tom Daniels and their first chart entry on the bi-weekly charts was with the classic harmony song Sweet Adeline (You’re The Flower Of My Heart). They entered the charts in August 1904 but for the first three weeks, the chart showed them sharing positions with another version of the song by The Haydn Quartet. But by September they had the chart to themselves with the song and it was on its fourteenth week in February 1905 that it finally peaked at no.2. The song opened with the introduction verse, in the evening when I sit alone a-dreaming, of days gone by love to me so dear, there’s a picture that in fancy oft’ appearing, brings back the time love when you were near, it is then I wonder where you are my darling, and if your heart to me is still the same, for the sighing wind and nightingale a-singing, are breathing only your own sweet name. It was in the chorus that the two versions differed with the Peerless Quartet singing an echo of the final words of each line, sweet Adeline (sweet Adeline), my Adeline (my Adeline), you’re the flower of my heart, sweet Adeline (my Adeline.) The verse was sung by the two tenor members, Henry Burr and Albert Campbell and all four joined in the chorus with the echo of each line starting before the main line had finished, sweet Adeline (sweet Adeline), my Adeline (My Adeline), at night dear heart (at night dear heart), for you I pine (for you I pine), in all my dreams (in all my dreams), your fair face beams (your fair face beams), you’re the flower of my heart sweet Adeline (my Adeline).

18. 15 May 1905

JW Myers

He’s Me Pal

Written by Vincent Bryan & Gus Edwards

No.2 for 1 week

No.1 at the time Henry Burr – In The Shade Of The Old Apple Tree

JW Myers had now had one no.1 single and his third song stopped at no.2, He’s Me Pal which was a song singing the virtues of a best friend who’d do anything for you. Myers sang, I know a lad and when I feel bad he drives all me troubles away, when he’s your friend he’s yours to the end no matter what others may say, he don’t tell me how I ought to be he likes me just as I am, so when I gets blue he’s the one I go to for his heart is as big as a ham, he’s me pal he’s me pal there ain’t nobody else I can see, I know he’s dead tough but his love is no bluff, he’d share his last dollar with me, I’d rather have him with his fifteen a week than be some old millionaire’s girl, he’s the best ever one and I love him because, he’s me pal he’s me pal, my pal is poor but I am dead sure he’s better than most millionaires, I’m satisfied when he’s at me side, me joys and me troubles he shares, I’d give me arm to keep him from harm, he’d do the same thing for me, he’ll always be there stormy weather or fair, that’s the reason I like him you see. Wouldn’t everybody be happier if they had a friend they could say this about.

19. 1 June 1905

Arthur Collins & Byron G Harlan

Tammany

Written by Vincent Bryan & Gus Edwards

No.2 for 4 weeks

No.1 at the time Henry Burr – In The Shade Of The Old Apple Tree

Two number two singles in a row composed by Vincent Bryan and Gus Edwards and both of them stuck behind In The Shade Of The Old Apple Tree and the song Tammany by two of the biggest ragtime singers of the era Arthur Collins and Byron G Harlan remained at no.2 for four weeks. There had been a few successful songs with Native American Indian themes, Hiawatha in 1903 and Navajo in 1904 and both of these were mentioned in the first line of the song, Tammany. Tammany, born around 1625 was one of the chiefs of the Lenni-Lenape nation in the Delaware Valley at the time Philadelphia was established. He negotiated with the European settlers and was a well-known figure still, especially in the thirteen founder states. The song was more of a spoof on Indian themed songs and was more about the relationship between Tammany and the various settlers he and his tribe had to deal with including immigrants from Spain and Ireland, reformers, farmers, railroad workers and the prohibition advocates the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union and the Anti-Saloon League. There were lots of tom-tom drums, whoops and war cries and it also namechecked Dave B Hill, a former governor of New York, politician Tom Platt, the notorious Canadian swindler Cassie Chadwick and publisher William Randolph Hearst. There were at least twenty verses, far too many to fit onto a recorded disc which had limitations on time and some of the ones that Collins & Harlan sang included, Hiawatha was an Indian so was Navajo, Paleface organ grinders killed them many moons ago, but there is a band of Indians that will never die, when they’re at the Indian Club this is their battle cry, Tammany Tammany, Big Chief sits in his tepee cheering braves to victory, Tammany Tammany, swamp ’em swamp ’em get the wampum Tammany, on the island of Manhattan by the bitter sea, lived this tribe of noble Red Men tribe of Tammany, from the Totem of the Greenlight Wampum they would bring, when their big Chief Man Behind would pass the pipe and sing. Some of the verses that missed the cut from the Collins & Harlan version were, Chris Columbo sailed from Spain, across a deep blue sea, brought along a Dago vote to beat out Tammany, Tammany found Colombo’s crew were living on a boat, Big Chief said they’re floaters and would not let them vote, then to the tribe he wrote, Tammany Tammany, get those Dagos jobs at once they can vote in twelve more months, Tammany Tammany, make those floaters Tammany voters Tammany, fifteen thousand Irishmen, from Erin came across, Tammany put these Irish Indians on the police force, I asked one cop if he wanted three platoons or four, he said keep your old platoons I’ve got a Cuspidor what would I want with more, Doctor Osler says all men of sixty we should kill, that would give old Tammany a lot of jobs to fill, they would chloroform old Doctor Parkhurst first I know, after that they’d fix Tom Platt because they love him so and then Depew would go, Tammany Tammany, when you chloroform to kill don’t forget old Dave B Hill, if we’d let the women vote they would all get rich soon, think how old man Platt gave all his money to a coon, Mrs Chadwick is a girl who’d lead in politics, she could show our politicians, lots of little tricks the Wall Street vote she’d fix, Tammany Tammany, Cassie Chadwick leads them all she should be in Tammany Hall, Tammany Tammany, who got rich quick Cassie Chadwick Tammany, Tammany Tammany, Murphy is your big chief’s name he’s a Rothschild just the same, Tammany Tammany, Willie Hearst will do his worst to Tammany.

 1906