"Bill Bailey Won't You Please Come Home" on the Player Piano

[KawhackitaRag]

"Paul Jouard" and "Cy Walter" were also real, and both fine pianists, although I don't believe either man's hand-playing was used to make their rolls: instead, manuscripts of their own personal piano arrangements were sent in, which a staffer such as Mr. Cook turned into the finished rolls with their names on them.

[KawhackitaRag]

However, if you see a 1940s or 1950s QRS roll played by "Rudolph O. Erlebach", "Frank Milne", "Dick Watson" [real name: Richard Wolfson] or "Douglas Henderson", those were all real people who had a hand in creating those QRS rolls. They were among the few outside people brought in to make rolls during this period of QRS' operation.

[KawhackitaRag]

In addition to creating arrangements under his own name, and also his own personal nom-de-roleaux "Sid Laney", Mr. Cook eventually adopted and re-used the different old noms-de-roleaux of the various QRS roll artists, for example "Ted Baxter" [originally, Max Kortlander], "Walter Redding" [originally, Pete Wendling], and "Osborne and Howe" [originally, whomever QRS could get to make those particular rolls, who didn't want their real names on them].

[KawhackitaRag]

The song, "Bill Bailey", was first published (and I think, copyrighted?) in 1902. It was composed by Hughie Cannon.

According to the "Billings Rollography, Volume 4", This QRS roll dates from February 1958.

From what I understand, "Harold Scott" was originally a nom-de-roleaux used by Lee S. Roberts, and "Jeff Watters" was also a nom-de-roleaux, used by Max Kortlander.

This roll was arranged by J. Lawrence Cook. Almost every QRS roll from about 1932 through the 1950s was his work.

[TheTimVids]

Cool check out my version: j. Mp/cp74vx

[pompokopoop]

COOL PIANO