[Dixielandjazz] Entertainer discussion...

[Stephen Heist]

Hi guys...

Being an old ragtime man myself from St. Louis, I am almost positive that J. R. Johnson wrote the LYRICS to "The Entertainer!!! (Yes, I HAVE seen the lyrics. I promise you, they DO exsist!) 
(They're NOT that great :-) But I DO remember Trebor Tichenor (St. Louis Ragtimers) showing me a copy and I think THAT'S where the confusion has come in. I know for a FACT that Joplin wrote "The Entertainer" (the music...).

Believe this or not, my aunt "Myrtle" came in one day while I was practicing the Maple Leaf Rag and asked me, "Isn't that Scott Joplin?" I was stunned because I had NO idea she knew ANYTHING about ragtime, so I said, "Yes mam, but how did YOU know???" She said, "Well, Clara Stark, at out bridge club used to sit and play the dickens out of that song and used to shout and laugh, "This is where our family made all our money!"" I immediately sat my aunt down and got tons of great stories about those grand old days :-) (P.S. Clara was John Stark's (publisher's) daughter...)

Hope this helps...
All the Best, 
Steve Heist

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> [Original Message]
> From: Anton Crouch <anton.crouch at optusnet.com.au>
> To: DJML <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
> Date: 2/21/2006 12:36:36 AM
> Subject: [Dixielandjazz] Entertainer/Bunk Johnson - more
>
> Hello all
>
> I also have the 2 LP set (Kid Ory/Bunk Johnson) that Geoff Holden (via Bill
> Haesler) provided details for. Mine is Dutch CBS however - CBS 88144. It's
> a repackaging of two US Columbias - Kid Ory (CL 835) and Bunk Johnson (GL
> 520/ML 4802).
>
> The credits for "The Entertainer" are
>
> Inner sleeve: Scott Joplin - Arr. J.R. Johnson
> Label: J.R. Johnson , E.B. Marks Music Corp.
>
> My conclusions are, (a) to agree with Bill Haesler that "J.R. Johnson" is
> not Joplin's contemporary J. Rosamond Johnson, and (b) that the name of the
> "other" J.R. Johnson on the Columbia issue(s) is not a mistake but a
> reflection of the "other" Johnson's claim to the piece.
>
> The plot does indeed thicken.
>
> All the best
> Anton