New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1921-08-14
New Dixiela nd
Melodies T )ae
On BroaG twav
Cotton Belts Hal:;l Times
Make Colored Brother
ssng, Says Al Herman

al Herman, biackface q median, has
just come up from Dixie 18th a collec
ton of new negro melodi IS, which he
wal sing in "The Green rch Village
Follies."
Mr.. Herman has made an extensive
WAY of Southern meao dies and has
featured them in his professional
work He makes trip each year to
the South and goes ilat the country
districts to find new ongs. In this
way he gets fresh mate rial as we'll as
such variations as oct a1r in the atmos-
phere of that part of! he country.
This year there sre many new
songs" he says. "Tkirt is in contrast
to last year, when it s eemed for a time
as if the negroes in the South had
turned from their own beautiful melodies
to the hash of synco'p alton. When went
South last year I nj sited various parts
of Georgia, Louisi ans and Mississippi.
as I like the SONGS composed by the
negroes in these Sst a,tes best To. me
they seem sweete'n, both in melody and
sentiment. But AT, that time there
seemed to be no desire on the part Of the
colored people toNsing their own songs.
for they wero too busy trying to spend
their money.
An Enemy Entssrs
The Negroes Als ada
"The wave of prosperity which swept
oyer the Soutfr after the war seemed
to set the colt IN pickers wild. They
had no other islea than to spend every
cent which CHI ne to them on automo-
biles and dresrs., Unless one knows tho
South it is ain ost impossible to appre-
ciate the Wy the colored people
squandered tn cir money.
II was in store in New Orleans one
day when sell-to-do woman, socially
prominent. a. me in. She asked to sac
some fur co dts. Several were shown
her and ONE caught her fancy. She
asked the P rice of it and was told
1T was 5000 I'm sorry, but that is a
little more Il IAN I feel I can pay for a
coat she 81 i'd. A colored woman who
was stand1lr near her said: I'll buy
That coat, and before the astonished
saiesiady ma d time to catch her breath
the colored woman handed her nine
500 bills.
Silk shir is caught the fancy of the
colored mel in Memphis one day.
was in a tore when a colored man
came in an< asked for silk shirts The
clerk said Our silk shirts are all very
expensive. The cheapest we have are
500. do at want such cheap shirts
rs that emarked the colored man,
and before he left the store he bought
half doze shirts at $40 each. l mere
ly cite tn sse incidents to show the
effect of II lie prosperity Of that period
on the col FRED people. I could relate
other int costing and amusing Incl
dents, but the two I have mentioned,
l think, st rive to illustrate my story.
81 have always found the real negro
melody or tginated not in the city but
insthe cou ntry, and last year the col
ored Peep Re in the country had no
time to sir " their songs. Each family
was strivir n to spend more money than
their neif Slbors, and to me it was
pathetic t o ride through these rural
districts nd not hear the accustomed
singing Last year I did not hear a
single nev tune. The people really
seemed to be ashamed Of their own
beautiful rings and what they did sing
were the c seap music hall compositions.
"I asked , one old colored man about
this, and he remarked: The colored
people arc und here have just naturally
gone craz:f They think it shows ig-
norance tt sing our old songs. I can
think of no more pitiable sight than
some of the cotton pckers trying to
sing the cheap Jazz ballads But I am
glad Their q. has come happy change
this year >. and once more the cotton
fields and Sthe countryside ring with the
good Odd negro melodies. Their own
songs of .this year have . very happy
effect on@Nthe singers, and their faces
beam cts they sing, whereas last year
they se eursed to have an alien express
sion as they tried to MARBLE music un-
suited to their voices and untitled TO
their ~ at,rre.
sThis, revival of the negro melodies
of this wear has had very inspiring
effect hon the character Of the people.
The Goa ored man In the cotton fields, or
wherever he may be laboring, can do
more ard better work if he sings his
own So IS. They make hira happy and
content ed. don't know il many peo-
pIe app 'reciate it, but your colored
man, in originating his songs, develops
himself mentally and morally. The
processa is Imaginative and creative"
Old N CIV York Versus