Hoyle Osborne
Ragtime Cowboy Joe • Notes 2
Ragtime Cowboy Joe • Notes 2
Sebastián Yradier was a Spanish diplomat in Cuba. Back home in Spain, he wrote several songs that introduced the rest of the world to the Cuban rhythm called the habañera. The most enduring of these is La Paloma.
I’ve included two purely European numbers: Offenbach’s Can-Can , one of the most famous tunes from French opera; and España, my personal favorite of the big Viennese-style waltzes.
Green Grow the Lilacs may have originated during the War of 1812. It was sung by the first wave of American settlers in Texas, and a well-known (but dubious) legend holds that this is why the Spanish-speaking residents started calling the Anglo immigrants gringos. Streets of Laredo and Git Along Little Dogies are cowboy versions of old songs from the British Isles.
A Hot Time in the Old Town, The Bully Song, and Ta-Ra-Ra Boom-De-Ay ! are all reputed to have originated around the brothels of St. Louis. Streets of Cairo, based on Little Egypt’s hoochie-koochie tune, from the Columbian Exposition in Chicago, may ultimately derive from a centuries-old Algerian melody.
More fascinating information about the following songs is available on-line.
A Hot Time in the Old Town
The Streets of Cairo
May Irwin’s “Bully” Song
The Streets of Cairo
May Irwin’s “Bully” Song
