28 for 1909

 

One of many contemporary “Oh, You Kid!” themed illustrations. (Library of Congress)

You fans of our Phonographic Yearbook series have waited a long time for the newest one, so we have a little gift for you. We had a lot of great material from which to choose our playlist for “1909,” and we weighed and sifted our options to try to cut down the list. In the end we decided to give you an extra song (or two) over the usual. So it’s a total of 28 tracks and 77 and a half minutes of playing time. Is everybody good with that?

The year in music for 1909 is probably best remembered for the popularity of the slang phrase, “Oh, You Kid!”—especially in the form of the song, “I Love, I Love, I Love My Wife, but Oh, You Kid!” Other songs borrowed the phrase (and occasionally the musical motif) as well. Besides that, though, a number of songs deal slyly with the subject of marital infidelity to a degree that seems pretty shocking for our forebears. Thus, the subtitle, “Talk of Your Scand’lous Times.”

On the other end of the spectrum, there’s a healthy dose of songs about being lonesome or a male speaker wishing to find a girlfriend. It’s definitely a case of the “haves” versus the “have nots.” Here’s what we’ve got for you:

1909: “Talk of Your Scand’lous Times”

1. Good Evening, Caroline!—Elise Stevenson and Frank C. Stanley
2. The Right Church, but the Wrong Pew—Collins and Harlan
3. Shine On, Harvest Moon—Harry Macdonough and Miss Walton
4. Beautiful Isle of Somewhere—Harold Jarvis
5. I’ve Got Rings on My Fingers—Ada Jones
6. Yip! I Adee! I Aye—Blanche Ring
7. I Love, I Love, I Love My Wife, But Oh You Kid—Arthur Collins
8. Nobody Knows, Nobody Cares—Will Oakland
9. My Cousin Caruso—Billy Murray
10. Down Among the Sugar Cane—Collins and Harlan
11. Lonesome—Byron G. Harlan
12. To the End of the World with You—Henry Burr
13. Fairest of the Fair March—Sousa’s Band
14. The Yama–Yama Man—Ada Jones and Victor Light Opera Company
15. She’s My Daisy—Harry Lauder
16. I’ve Got Rings on My Fingers—Blanche Ring
17. In the Garden of My Heart—Frank C. Stanley and Henry Burr
18. My Pony Boy—Columbia Quartette
19. It Looks Like a Big Night To-Night—Clarice Vance
20. Beautiful Eyes—Ada Jones
21. That’s a Plenty—Arthur Collins
22. Shine On, Harvest Moon—Ada Jones and Billy Murray
23. My Wife’s Gone to the Country, Hurrah! Hurrah!—Collins and Harlan
24. Wild Cherry Rag—Ed. Morton
25. I Wonder Who’s Kissing Her Now—Henry Burr
26. I Wish I Had a Girl—Harry Tally
27. Take Me Up with You, Dearie—Billy Murray and Haydn Quartet
28. Put on Your Old Grey Bonnet—Haydn Quartet

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