Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
50
"PATCHES" INCREASING IN DEMAND
Lee S. Roberts' Recent Hit Growing in Popu-
larity—Film of That Name to Be Issued
"Patches," Lee S. Roberts' success in the
catalog of G. Schirmer, Inc., has by no means
reached the height of its popularity, despite the
fact that it is not what could be considered a
new song. Its popularity as a dance appears to
be increasing, and as a song it is going over
bigger than ever. G. Schirmer, Inc., are exploit-
ing the number on a big scale and the co-opera-
tion which they are receiving from the dealers
throughout the country is very gratifying to the
sales department. "Patches" is not a-number
that reaches the height of popularity rapidly and
then suddenly dies. It is of the style that sells
over a long period, and while popular it is of
the higher type.
Announcement has been recently made that
a motion picture production entitled "Patches"
will shortly be released and this, no doubt, will
be the means of adding to the number's popu-
larity.
PLAN NATIONAL WEEK OF SONG
Next Week to Be Devoted to Song Programs
Throughout Country—Music Dealers Helping
Following the success of Music Week in New
York and vicinity, music dealers throughout the
country should take an active interest in the
plans for a national week of song, commencing
next Sunday and continuing until Saturday,
February 28.
The schools will be prominent in arranging
public entertainments suitable for the occasion.
Community choruses will present interesting
programs—the results of the year's work along
those lines. Churches and theatres are asked
to contribute. Informal home musicales are
being arranged, so that every channel will pour
a stream of song into this great week of song
celebration.
The deep underlying- motive behind the Na-
tional Week of Song is the desire to bring to
people of all ages and kinds the best songs in
the musical literature of the world—patriotic
selections, folk-melodies and home ballads of
standard type, songs that will inspire people to
the highest efforts in their daily lives and bring
to them the benefits that music alone can
bestow.
McKINLEY MUSIC CO.'S
New Hit Ballad
1920
BOW-WOW
By WHEELER WADSWORTH
WOW! what a song! Instrumental, too. Five phonograph firms have already recorded' it. Director
Busoni, of Delmonico's, plays it to encores. Tells a clever story of "puppy love." "Bow-Wow" is a
"howling" success.
S A L L Y SINGAPOO SAMOA
8HA3IE ON YOB
Has all the "key" of success of
"Mickey" and tne punch or "peg"
of "Peggy." By the same com-
poser, too. Dou't forget it—GET
IT!—now, while it's brand new.
"Made in California."
By MAUDE FULTON, author of "The Brat,"
and NEIL MORET, famous composer
Receiving greatest orders and re orders in
the history of the firm. "Sing 'SINGAPOO' "
is getting to be a mighty popular slogan
these days. Exceptionally melodious music;
charming words.
Five color art title on
pebble finish paper. Sells on sight and
"sound."
By WE8L.YN and MORET
Better than "Hawaiian Dreams."
A "soothing south sea of sym-
phony," whose gentle waves of
melody fairly carry you off to
Samoa. Another of our "Golden
Snnjis from the Golden West."
DANIELS & WILSON, INC.
WHY MUSICAL COMEDIES FAIL
Victor Herbert Blames Poor Music on the At-
titude of the Music Publishers, Who Insist
That There Must Be Salable Interpolations
For some seasons theatrical managers and
particularly dramatic critics of the newspapers
have been endeavoring to discover what is
wrong with the musical comedies of the day,
for all too many of them lack the musical quali-
ties and the right caliber of libretto to make a
popular appeal to the public. There has been
some blame attached to the librettist, but not a
small share of it has been placed on the weak-
ness of the musical scores. Certainly there is
some definite reason why so many musical
comedies fall by the wayside.
Now comes Victor Herbert to place the
blame upon the music publishers, who, he de-
clares in substance, are too much inclined to
consider the salability rather than the quality
of the music, though a publisher would not be in
business very long if he did not figure very
largely in terms of sales.
"One very interesting phase of the question,"
says Mr. Herbert, "is the growth of the music
publishing business. Songs from successful
plays are printed in great numbers and are the
source of big profits. In order that these songs
may sell, they must have words that are inde-
pendent of the play—that is, on some general
theme and attractive to the person who has not
seen the play. I think this may have had its
effect in weaning us (the composers) away
from comic opera in which the lyrics are woven
into the plot and are a part of it."
"In other words," declares Louis De Voe, of
18 Cents
SAN FRANCISCO
New York Office
145 West 45th St.
the New York World, commenting on Mr.
Herbert's charge, "musical shows for which the
public is compelled to pay exorbitant admission
prices on the plea that they are expensive to
produce have been purposely debased to some-
thing below the level of the variety show in
order that Tin Pan Alley may wax rich on the
by-products. Or, to put its case equally truth-
fully, musical comedy, because of the commer-
cial value of its irrelevant songs, has itself be-
come a by-product of the factories along Tin
Pan Alley with whose business the theatre pub-
lic has nothing whatever to do. It is no longer
profitable for authors and composers to collabo-
rate in closely woven plots which tell their
stories coherently and wittily because the music
publishing houses offer them money induce-
ments to affront the intelligence of their audi-
ences. Therefore Mr. Herbert now composes a
'Golden Girl' instead of a 'Toyland,' and Harry
B. Smith writes an 'Angel Face' instead of a
'Robin Hood' or a 'Fencing Master.' Their
inspiration is the sheet music printer's royalty
check, and the deteriorated quality of what they
create shows the effect.
"Here, then, is a frank confession of commer-
cialism in what masquerades in the peacock
feathers of art, which is as illuminating as it is
disheartening. We may as well give up hope
for the recovery of the ailing musical comedy
patient. The magnates of Tin Pan Alley have
decreed that it must remain sick."
What have the music publishers themselves
to say regarding the charge?
IN THE AFTERGLOW
By J. Will Callahan and Frank Grey
Dear Heart
If You Would Care
for a Lonely^Heart
You Know
My Castles inTthe Air
Are Tumbling Down
Sunshine Rose
Girl of My Dreams
Valse Gloria
Buddy
Programmed by America's Foremost Con-
cert Artists. Featured by
Vaudeville's Greatest Headliners
Played by 15,000 Good Orchestras
ir.weatodd la tto
Re4
.f.lerglow.
In the
were jourchtekiln the
blub
Iflerflow,
Like lh«
ways
m*
t
af-ler-flow
of tbe tvl . llftit
But,« . IM, tbitwubick la tha
And our
*
bmb
Tbalone
there'll be il • wiyi the
•
mo - Dent left In
?
my
»
I-
-I
beart..
Copyrighted, 1919. by Hinds, Hayden & Eldredge, Inc.
K HENRI KtiCWWWt
Mr.KINI.F"Y MusicG>
FEBRUARY 21,
C. C. CHURCH AND COMPANY
Hartford
New York
London
[ Paris
Sydney
HINDS, HAYDEN & ELDREDGE, Inc.
11 UNION SQUARE
NEW YORK CITY