Annotation:Charleston No. 1
Back to Charleston No. 1
CHARLESTON NO. 1. Old-Time, Breakdown. USA; Missouri, Mississippi. C Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB (Christeson, Phillips): AA'BB'C. The melody (which is related to "Done Gone (2);" similar primarily in the first part) was composed by William T. 'Willie' Narmour (Carroll County, Mississippi), and became a hit in 1929 (it was the flip side of "Carroll County Blues," also a hit). English authority Tony Russell suggests: "The several 'Charleston's' they (Narmour and his playing partner, S.W. "Shellie" Smith) recorded are essentially hornpipes; their roots seem to lie in North Britain." Charles Wolfe explains that this tune had nothing to do with the dance craze of the 1920's, but rather refers to an area in Mississippi, Charleston being a town in Tallahatchie County, near where Narmour lived. Christeson credits only "old 78's" for his version, which could be Narmour's, Doc Roberts', or another version. In fact, the Doc Roberts Trio version (1933) is a cover of Narmour's popular composition, and the story goes that Roberts' recording company, Gennett, gave him a copy of Narmour's recording and told him to learn it for his next recording session. Narmour and Smith re-recorded the tune is 1934, with different accompaniment, calling it "New Charleston No. 1."
Sources for notated versions: Doc Roberts (Ky.) [Phillips]; Willy Bilyeu (1902-1973, Taney County, Mo.) [Beisswenger & McCann].
Printed sources: Beisswenger & McCann (Ozark Fiddle Music), 2008; p. 171. Christeson (Old Time Fiddlers Repertory, vol. 2), 1984; No. 46, p. 33. Phillips (Traditional American Fiddle Tunes, vol. 1), 1994; p. 46.
Recorded sources:
Conqueror 8104 (78 RPM), Doc Roberts (1933).
County 412, Fiddling Doc Roberts - "Old Time Tunes" (1983).
County 529, Narmour & Smith - "Traditional Fiddle Music of Mississippi, vol. 2."
Gennet GE 16640 (78 RPM) Tweedy Brothers (W.Va.: Harry, George, and Charles played twin fiddles and the piano), 1930.
Rounder Records RO-0388, Gene Goforth - "Eminence Breakdown" (1997).
See also listings at:
Jane Keefer's Folk Music Index: An Index to Recorded Sources [1]