Cincinnati musicians left their mark on the history of 20th-century pop, from native son singing cowboy Roy Rogers on through 1950s King Records artists Bonnie Lou and the Charms, up to ‘90s alt-rockers Ass Ponys.
So posits longtime New York folk singer Peter Stampfel in the form of his new ambitious recording project.
“Peter Stampfel’s 20th Century in 100 Songs” is a five-CD collection of Stampfel’s versions of one song from each year of the last century, from familiar ancient titles like “I Love You Truly” and “Charleston” to more recent ones like “Wannabe” and “Tubthumping.”
There’s also plenty of obscurity. “Stumblin’,” according to Stampfel’s voluminous liner notes, was written in 1919 by an Ohio native named Frank Crumit, who studied voice in Cincinnati.
Stampfel, 82, shares tales in the liner notes of hanging out with Bob Dylan and first encountering Jimi Hendrix in 1960s New York as a member of the folk group Holy Modal Rounders. And he had more to say, during a recent phone conversation centered on the topic of Cincinnati music.
Question: Was Roy Rogers’ version of the 1948 song “Blue Shadows on the Trail” the definitive one?
Answer: Yeah. The song was written for the Disney animated pastiche “Melody Time.” It was a Disney feature that was individual songs set to animation.
Q: You have two songs back-to-back on your list released by Cincinnati’s King Records: “Tennessee Wig Walk” in 1953 and “Hearts of Stone” in 1954. Can you remember hearing Tennessee Wig Walk as sung by Bonnie Lou when it was a hit?
A: Yeah. I heard it on the radio in Milwaukee.
Q: Why did you pick that song?
A: The early ‘50s I feel was one of the most fallow parts of American popular music. It was like pre-rock and roll, and the great-American-songbook constructions had kind of faded by that time for the most part. And there were really insipid – like “Dear Hearts and Gentle People,” “How Much is that Doggie in the Window,” “Mockin’ Bird Hill,” “Open Up Your Heart (And Let the Sun Shine In).” There was a lot of real pap going on. It was kind of slim pickings. “Tennessee Wig Walk” was goofy, and I have a real thing for goofy songs.
Q: Was the Charms’ version of Hearts of Stone the first you heard?
A: The first version I heard was the white cover (by the Fontane Sisters). During this bland period of the early ‘50s…you’re a white singer, and you look at the rhythm-and-blues charts, which prior to 1949 was still called race music. Country and western was another 1949 label. It was called hillbilly music. So it was hillbilly music and race music. White singers in the ‘40s would just go to the hillbilly charts and cover a number-one song, and it was an easy, simple way to get a song that was guaranteed to be a hit, and with no competition, because you aren’t going to have the country artist compete on the pop level. By the early ‘50s, rhythm and blues were exploited in the same manner. It was like a foolproof way of getting a number-one hit with no competition from the person whose hit it actually was.
Q: How did the Ass Ponys get on your radar?
A: The name. I saw the name before I ever heard them, and I always thought it was a brave name. And I started hearing about Wussy in the aughts. A lot of people with great taste said Wussy is terrific. I heard a couple tracks, and thought, “Yeah, they’re terrific, absolutely.” And then I read that one of the members was originally in the Ass Ponys. I became aware of Wussy via this Facebook site called Expert Witness, basically a bunch of people that really know a lot of stuff about music. My knowledge of ‘80s and ‘90s music is sketchier than pre-1980 music for a number of reasons, so I went to this bunch and said, “Look, here are the years I need a song from.” Somebody had posted “Earth To Grandma,” and I heard it and said, “Yeah, OK. There it is.”
Q: Why do you like that song?
A: It’s funny. And also it resonates. The whole phenomenon of grandma-type people and their crafts is kind of like this area of, oh my God, look at what they’re doing. On the other hand, that’s kind of sweet, and they’re occupying themselves, which amuses them, and, you know, God bless them. “A toothpick cross where Jesus died.” Whoa, good writing.
Q: You know the lyrics.
A: They’re extremely memorable verses. I pointed it out in my notes, midwestern weirdness, of which “Earth to Grandma” is an absolutely perfect example. I’m from the Midwest. I’m from Milwaukee. People think of the Midwest as being this bland place but, actually, there’s a streak of deep, deep weirdness, which is, in some ways, extra weird, because it’s from a place that’s considered extra unweird.
The full list of song titles in the collection:
1901 – I Love You Truly
1902 – Under The Bamboo Tree
1903 – Ida
1904 – Toyland
1905 – Whistler And His Dog
1906 – Nobody
1907 – School Days
1908 – Take Me Out To The Ball Game
1909 – Ace In The Hole
1910 – Ah, Sweet Mystery Of Life
1911 – Put Your Arms Around Me Honey (Hold Me Tight)
1912 – Ragtime Cowboy Joe
1913 – Row Row Row
1914 – By the Beautiful Sea
1915 – They Didn’t Believe Me
1916 – Poor Butterfly
1917 – Look For The Silver Lining
1918 – Till We Meet Again
1919 – Stumblin’
1920 – Swinging Down The Lane
1921 – Charleston
1922 – I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles
1923 – Let The Rest Of The World Go By
1924 – Somebody Loves Me
1925 – I Never Knew
1926 – Who?
1927 – Blue Skies
1928 – My Heart Stood Still
1929 – Wedding Of The Painted Doll
1930 – My Ideal
1931 – Out Of Nowhere
1932 – Home
1933 – Lazybones
1934 – Moonglow
1935 – East Of The Sun
1936 – The Way You Look Tonight
1937 – Where Or When
1938 – My Reverie
1939 – They Say It’s Wonderful
1940 – Indian Summer
1941 – Oh, Look At Me Now
1942 – I Remember You
1943 – Pistol Packin’ Momma
1944 – Long Ago And Far Away
1945 – Love On A Greyhound Bus
1946 – All Through The Day
1947 – How Are Things In Glocca Morra?
1948 – Blue Shadows On The Trail
1949 – Slipping Around-
1950 – It Isn’t Fair
1951 – Jezebel
1952 – Night Train
1953/. Tennessee Wig Walk
1954 – Hearts Made Of Stone
1955 – Shambolar
1956 – I’m In Love Again
1957 – Chicken Baby Chicken
1958 – Rave On
1959 – Handy Man
1960 – Running Bear
1961 – Moon River
1962 – I Sold My Heart To The Junkman
1963 – Momma Didn’t Lie
1964 – The Years
1965 – Concrete And Clay
1966 – Along Comes Mary
1967 – Waterloo Sunset
1968 – Goodbye
1969 – Log Cabin Home In The Sky
1970 – Let’s Work Together
1971 – Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep
1972 – Eyes Eyes
1973 – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
1974 – September Gurls
1975 – Tangled Up In Blue
1976 – I Wanna Be Your Boy Friend
1977 – 2 4 6 8 Motorway
1978 – Have You Ever Fallen In Love
1979 – I Will Survive
1980 – Girl’s Talk
1981 – Dancing With Myself
1982 – Stepping Out
1983 – Swingin’
1984 – You Take Me Up
1985 – Drink American
1986 – My Hometown
1987 – Don’t Dream, It’s Over
1988 – Everybody Knows
1989 – She Drives Me Crazy
1990 – Women And Men
1991 – Texarkana
1992 – Laura The Horse
1993 – Loser
1994 – Earth To Grandma
1995 – Common People
1996 – Wannabee
1997 – The Way
1998 – Tubthumping
1999 – In Spite Of Ourselves
2000 – Yellow