Ashley's Melody Men
Ashley's Melody Men | |
---|---|
General information | |
Genre (s) | Old-time music |
occupation | |
Hobart N. Ashley | |
Anson Fuller (ca.1907–1936) | |
Fiddle |
Vern Baker |
Homer Treat | |
Arle Baker | |
singing |
Hubert M. (Hugh) Ashley (* 1915) |
Gerald Ashley |
Ashley's Melody Men were an American string band from Arkansas . They also appeared under the names Ashley's Melody Makers and Hobart N. Ashley Singers .
history
Ashley's Melody Men were directed by guitarist Hobart N. Ashley in Marshall , Arkansas. Ashley's sons Gerald and Hubert (Hugh) Ashley were also members of the band. Ashley's Melody Men performed primarily in Arkansas and were some of the few old-time groups from that state that made a significant number of recordings.
The group held their first session on October 2, 1929 in Memphis , Tennessee , for Victor Records . The cast that day consisted of Hobart Ashley, Anson Fuller and Vern Baker as Fiddler, Homer Treat on banjo and Arle Baker on guitar. The song material consisted mainly of self-written pieces, which was rather unusual for a string band at the time. Many groups had traditional fiddle pieces in their repertoire and relied less on original songs. The group's first release was Bath House Blues / Searcy County Rag , two original compositions. The Bath House Blues , for example, was written by Hugh Ashley and Homer Treat.
The line-up of Hobart Ashley's band changed from time to time. In the second session, which she recorded as Ashley's Melody Makers , for example, only Hobart Ashley, Homer Treat and Hugh Ashley were represented. Hugh Ashley showed his talent as a singer and yodeler in the style of Jimmie Rodgers on some recordings (e.g. on his composition Somewhere in Arkansas ). In February 1932 the group played their last recordings for Victor in Dallas , Texas . Between 1929 and 1932 there were six published records.
While Fiddler Anson Fuller died in 1936 and the other members disappeared from the music business, Hugh Ashley started a career as a songwriter and singer. In the early 1930s he was Elton Britt's predecessor with the Beverly Hill Billies and in the 1940s he recorded a number of soundalikes for Eli Oberstein's budget labels . He was also mayor of Harrison, Arkansas, a state politician, and until at least 2008 ran a record store in Harrison, Arkansas.
Discography
year | title | # | Remarks |
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Published titles | |||
Victor Records | |||
Bath House Blues / Searcy County Rag | V-40158 | ||
There'll Be No Kisses To-night / Sweetest Flower Waltz | V-40199 | ||
Somewhere in Arkansas / The Rambling Woman | V-40300 | ||
Methodist Pie / I Never Felt So Blue | 23661 | ||
I'm Lonely Too / Come Back, Lottie | 23767 | ||
Other recordings | |||
1929 |
|
Victor | unpublished |
1932 |
|
Victor | unpublished |
literature
- Robert Cochran: Our Own Sweet Sound: A Celebration of Popular Music in Arkansas (2005), pp. 31-32; University of Arkansas Press, ISBN 9781557287939
- Drew Beisswenger, Gordon McCann: Ozark Fiddle Music (2008), p. 185; Mel Bay Publications, ISBN 9780786677306
- Tony Russell: Country Music Records: A Discography, 1921-1942 (2005), 68; Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-536621-1