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Description: | Comic song on a local band leader. The song alternates verses between spoken text and rhyme, a device employed by many performers of the day.The song was written by Rowland Harrison and printed some time in 1860s. Harrison was born in King William Street, Gateshead, on 23rd June 1841. From the age of 23 he found success as an author and comic singer, appearing at a number of music halls throughout the North East. Known for his talents at character portrayal, Harrison went on to manage the Geordy Black pub in Gateshead, the Commercial Hotel at Winlaton, and various music halls. It is not known when Rowland Harrison died but references in Allan's Tyneside songs indicate that he outlived Joe Wilson, Ned Corvan and other contemporaries by a number of years.'The Drum-Major' forms part of a small song book issued by an unidentified publisher. It contains over 50 pages of local songs composed by Harrison, and contains an interesting illustration of the author as 'Geordy Black' in his famous song of the same name. The latest reference in the book dates its publication to around 1871. ; A collection of songs composed by Rowland Harrison. | Publisher: | unknown local characters and strange events | Rights holder: | rights holder : Newcastle University | Temporal: | start=1861;end=1900; | Source: | Folk Archive Resource North East | Identifier: | farne:B0301702 | Go to resource |
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