Evening star., 1928-11-18
- "Graham
"A McNamee
Speaking-''
McNafnee
Speaking

days and industrial America as 1t IS
| today-all one big work shop. AS a
matter of fact, music would swing In
| better with a lot of modern machine
rhythms than it did with the old handi-
craft.
OF course, there's nothing new in
2dapting musical rhythms to the work
a-day world There are the sea chan
ties, for instance. There's no doubt in
the world that the sailors on the old
windjammers heaved on the haWSer
with a lot more happiness and en-
thuSiasm when they sang BLOW the
Men Down" or "Ranzo Was No Sailor" :"
All around the Levant today the load
ing and unloading crews of the ships
work under singing master.
l remember the school history books
told how when the Civil War was over
and President Grant made his tri-
umphal march down Pennsylvania ave-
nue. at the head of the tattered Union
Army hundred of thousands of persons
Joined in singing American folk songs
and songs which had come out of the
war Then in later years, we often
heard it said that the machines had
killed the folk song in America, and
that, with one or two exceptions, no
worthwhile songs had come out of the
Great War; that we had made the
world safe for democracy, but that
democracy had forgotten how to sing
During the last three or four years
nave been watching the effect of radio
not only in spreading musical educa-
ton, but in getting people back into
the singing habit. Everybody knows
that the Song publishing business is
fouriShing as 1t never did before, and
there are plenty of reasons for believ-
ing that the radio has had lot to DO
with this And then there is a surpris-
ing familiarity with formerly obscure
American folk songs, which few years
ago were known to only few. AT
little evening affair last month ! was
surprised to hear guest sing that
quaint old Boil Weevil' song which
originated down on the leveeS Of New
Orleans and remained unscored for
perhaps half a century before anybody
ever heard of it. I asked the singer
where he got it, and he said he had
first heard it over the radio. This
artist, splendid musician and vocal
ist. had been in the classical field all
his life.
Il never dreamed what rich mine
of poetical and musical material there
is in these old American songs" he
said. II don't believe would ever have
discovered them if 1t weren't for the
radio"
Everywhere I go I find people who
know the whole cycle of those charming
old English "Foggy Dew songs: Then
there are such rollicking soings as
Casey Jones' and that newer and
more respectable version of frankie
and Johnny" and a whole treasure
house of negro Spirituals, now widely
known because of the radio. OF course
there is a wide range of artistic worth
in these songs, but the point I am try
ing to make is that they come from
the people, and that the radio is going
about the peoples business when 1t puts
them on the air and gets folks to sing
ing again in spite of machines and two
by-four apartments.
Perhaps I am inclined to be too seri-
Gus about these things, but 1 have been
deeply touched by the thousands of let
ters which / have received from work
men, from elderly, shut-in women, from
invalids, from tired and discouraged
people, telling me how their lives have
been enriched by the radio.
About a year ago I read an article