As the 1990s drew to a close, Timeless Historical reissued a large number of recordings from the '20s and '30s by musicians both legendary and obscure, in a series coordinated by seasoned specialists
Chris Barber, John R.T. Davies, and Brian Rust. One fascinating aspect of this label's catalog is an interconnected web of bands that all lead back to the
California Ramblers, a Midwestern group which was among the most prolific studio ensembles of the '20s. While the full-sized Ramblers recorded for various labels as the
Golden Gate Orchestra, the
Varsity Eight, the
University Six, and the Vagabonds, a scaled-down version of the band made records for Columbia as
the Little Ramblers, for Pathe as
the Five Birmingham Babies, and for Okeh, Odeon, and Parlophone as the
Goofus Five. The instrument that gave the latter group its name was patented in France as a saxophone jouet or toy; it became known throughout Europe as the couesnophone; in England as the queenophone, and in the U.S. as the goofus. Shaped like a little sax, this free reed instrument emitted a sound similar to the mouth organ or the Hohner melodica. It was cousin to several 19th century hybrid instruments including the oboe-like harmonicor and the piston-keyed, cornet-shaped harmonitrompe. The keys of the goofus were laid out like two parallel keyboards, with one set generating tones corresponding to the C major scale and the other a series of sharps and flats. A rubber tube was provided so that the goofus could be laid on its side and played like a toy piano while the operator blew into it through the hose. The only person wacky, daring, and inventive enough to incorporate this contraption into the early jazz ensemble appears to have been multi-instrumentalist
Adrian Rollini, who confined himself to the goofus on the first four tracks heard on this collection (dating from August and September 1924), then began doubling on bass sax during the session which took pace in October of the same year and yielded what might well be the first
Duke Ellington cover ever recorded ("Choo Choo") and "Go 'Long Mule," a tune which had been recorded about two-and-a-half weeks earlier by
Fletcher Henderson's Orchestra. The vocalist heard on the
Goofus Five's "Mule" was vaudeville comedian Ernest Hare, who also sings "I Like Pie, I Like Cake -- But I Like You Best of All." Hare is best remembered as one half of the comedic duo known as the Happiness Boys; Billy Jones, his partner in that enterprise, may be heard with the
Goofus Five singing "Oh! Mabel," "I Ain't Got Nobody to Love," and "That Certain Party" (which was also a definitive hit for the Happiness Boys) with spoken commentary by
Ed Kirkeby, longtime manager of the
California Ramblers. Other vocalists heard on this zippy collection are Earl Richard, who introduces "Hot Tamale Molly," and Blanche Vincent, who handles "You Better Keep the Homes Fires Burning ('Cause Your Mama's Getting Cold)." In addition to
Rollini the core instrumentalists in the
Goofus Five were cornetist Bill Moore, clarinet and sax man Bobby Davis, pianist Irving Brodsky, banjoist Tommy Feline, and drummer
Stan King. On "Yes, Sir! That's My Baby" and "Honey, I'm In Love with You," the group was augmented by trumpeter
Red Nichols and tenor saxophonist Sam Ruby. Beginning with "Are You Sorry?"
Nichols was replaced by Chelsea Quealey, a cardinal member of the
California Ramblers. The music on this delightful collection dates from the years 1924-1925; for a somewhat more evolved approach, go directly to the other Timeless volume devoted to the
Goofus Five, which taps into the years 1926-1927. ~ arwulf arwulf