The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1936-01-14
WRITER'S REAP
RICH HARVEST
ON SONG HIT
Trio Makes $50, 1000 So Far
on The Music Goes
Round and Around

on CNlhEU tBtkN
NEW YORK. Jan. 1.-THE cur
rent psychopathic idiocy, THE
Music Goes Round and Around
still was revolving today and each
turn poured money into the pockets
of the trio that pleads guilty to
having written it.
Mike Riley, whose "gadget" gave
birth to the piece; Eddie Farley,
who thought it would be a sensation
and took the trouble to copyright
it, and Red Hodgson, lyric writer,
figure they have made $4,000 each
on the song to date.
That's only a start, however, and
they expect really to clean up
to use their own expression-since
all Of New York and most of the
United States and a good many
foreign countries still are going
"down and around"
To back up their optimistic out
look they have the following point
with-pride facts:
1.-The Paramount theater, where
they are appearing currently, is
having the best run since a Mae
West picture opened there three
years ago.
2-Sundays matinee at the Para
mount drew the largest matinee
crowd in four years.
3-Sales OF sheet music have gone
beyond 100000, exceeding any sale
record of recent years.
4-On one day 100000 copies of
the sheet music we're sold. This is
an all-time high for a single day.
5-Three motion picture COM
panies are dickering for the appear
ance of the orchestra which fea-
lures Riley and Farley, and they
must give up their work at the
Onyx night club because they have
so many other offers.
Tells How Song Started
You'll have to accept Riley's &C.
count of how the song started be-
cause, as he says, he's stuck with
the tale.
One night he was playing away in
the Onyx club on a strange horn he
had picked up in a Pittsburgh
pawn shop. 1t cost him So. He'd
bought it because he'd never seen
anything like it. He still calls it
shat gadget." The horn is sort of
a ''mongrel tuba" he said.
"One of those sweet young
things" Riley related today, came
up to me with lot of baby talk.
She was pretty drunk-no, you bet
ter say she was bit high"
The conversation went as fol-
lows:
rs that thing hard to play?"
asked the sweet young thing.
"Oh, no." answered Riley, you
just sing in 1t. You blow in here
there (and he pointed to the music
EXIT. You push down this middle
valve here and the music goes down
and around"
Farley Gets M Idea
Farley thought the tipsy girls
questions and his partners answers
had the basis of a song hit and
that's how the music started going
down and around.
Riley, sandy-haired, sharp
nosed young Brooklyn musician,
end Farley are going round and
around themselves" No longer
than a year ago they practically
were on their uppers.
Wed cross the street." Riley ax-
planned, ito avoid our friends. We
were broke, jobless and we didn't
like to have people sympathizing
with us"
The three authors of the song
hit split all earnings equally. They
get cents on each copy of sheet
music sold. Six on each orchestra
ton and 33 1-3 per cent of the pro-
ceeds from the sale of records.
The Select Music Publishing
Company claims Round and
Around to be the biggest smash
since Eyes, We Have No Bananas"
Ordinarily" said Miss Sally
Dluckstein. Of the music company.
I'VE are well pleased when we have
a day when we make 10000 sales on
any single song. Contrast that with
a day when you sell 100000 copies"
Refused to Change Words
Riley revealed that the publishers
were not satisfied with the words at
first.
Farley and I told the publishers
that the song had gone big at the
Onyx and ii it would not go the
way it was why, then, to hell with
it,"
Things were going Round and
Around" during the interview in the
dressing room occupied by Riley
and Farley.
Phones rang constantly, mes
senger boys brought in messages Of
congratulations and Columbia stu
dos, of Hollywood, was taking ex-
perimental pictures of Riley's
strange tuba.
And" said Riley, munching a
hamburger sandwich, Don't forget
this. Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt
wore a Round and Around neck
lace. made of paper clips. at that
big social-doings Saturday"
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