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I've only heard Vernon Dalhart singing countless rural ballads in a very twangy nasal style, so it was a pleasant surprise to hear this Blue Amberol cylinder bought last weekend:

"The Nightingale's Song" (from "HMS Pinafore") Gilbert-Sullivan
BA 3385 (Issued January 1918)

http://www.box.net/shared/b0b8oy2541

I read that he began his career as an opera and concert tenor.
I think he handles this aria very well!
Enjoy

Bob

Not too bad.

His voice has still got that nasally tone that ultimately proved more successful for him, when warbling out The Wreck of... (fill in the blank) and The Storm That Struck...(fill in the blank) and what not.

There's A Tear In My Eye After Grandma's Ship Sank Tonight.

Well, who'd a thunk...

And here I always thought Vernon only waxed doggerel like "The Ballad of Floyd Collins" and "That old Religion's Better After All" (Scopes Monkey Trial)

It's true! Dalhart started out singing Operetta, and was starving. He switched over to his country style and made a nice living. This is why the Country Music Foundation for many years refused to consider him a country artist, even though he was a major player in creating the country market for records in the early 20s. By the way, his real name was Marion Try Slaughter---Vernon and Dalhart are two towns in the panhandle of his native Texas. Another artist, who had two careers was Mitch Miller. As Mitchell Miller, he was one of the most respected oboe and english horn players, who made several excellent recordings. He made his fortune as A&R man for Columbia Records in the U.S., especially when he started his "Sing Along with Mitch" series of records. I first ran across his name as a child seeing it on "Little Golden Records", a label that made 5-inch diameter childrens' records in yellow plastic. Miller directed the studio orchestra on those [I'd love to know where they were recorded--did Columbia have something to do with them?].