Welcome to Our Patriotic and Nostalgic Music Collection!

We have gathered many public domain recordings from yesteryear for your listening enjoyment. They are in the MP3 format so they should be accessible by both PC and Apple Mac browsers.
A number of these songs come from the Library of Congress collections and were originally recorded on sound discs in analog, usually somewhere between 66 and 80 RPM. More details are given next to each item, including composer, arranger, and performer, where available. Just click on the "Listen" link below each song's details.
Enjoy these great classical music recordings!

Patriotic Music

America : My country 'tis of thee (Metropolitan Quartet)

Composer 
Smith, Samuel Francis
Performer
Metropolitan Quartet
Publisher
Edison
Date Issued
1914
1 sound disc: analog, 80 rpm, mono; 10 in.
Matrix: 3080-C-4-4.
Call Number
Edison 80172-R
  Listen -- MP3

America the beautiful (United States Navy Band)

Composer
Ward, Samuel
Arranger
Dragon, Carmen
Lyricist
Bates, Katharine Lee
Performer
United States Navy Band
Publisher
Department of Defense
Taken from CD entitled: "Remembering the Navy Hour." Featuring the Navy Band and Sea Chanters.
Recorded by Sheffield Recording, Ltd., Inc. at the George Mason University Center for the Arts Concert Hall.
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You're a grand old flag (US Air Force Band)

Performer
US Air Force Band
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You're a grand old rag 

Composer
Cohan, George M.
Performer
Murray, Billy
Publisher
Zon-o-phone Record
Date Issued
1906
Physical Description
1 sound disc: analog, 78 rpm, mono; 10 in.
Type of Material
sound recording-musical
Subjects
National songs--United States
Patriotic music--United States
Notes
"with orchestra accompaniment." Song is popularly known as "You're a grand old flag," which was a later title.
Matrix: 5923 D.
Call Number
Zon-o-phone 425
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The battle hymn of the republic (U.S. Army Band)

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Battle Hymn of the Republic


The Marines Hymn (Second Marine Aircraft Wing Band)

From the halls of Montezuma


Anchors aweigh (United States Navy Band)

Anchors aweigh


The Army Goes Rolling Along (United States Army Ceremonial Band)

The Army Goes Rolling Along


Yankee doodle boy (Billy Murray)

Composer
Cohan, George M.
Publisher
Victor
Date Issued
1905
1 sound disc : analog, 77.5 rpm, mono ; 10 in.
Recording of "Yankee Doodle Boy" made available here with permission from BMG, 1540 Broadway, New York,
Victor 16799-A. mx: 4229, take 6. Matrix on original issue (Victor 4229 -6) B1991.
Playback speed, -1.5%
Call Number
Victor 16799 (78A)
  Listen -- MP3

Star spangled banner (Sousa's Band)

Place of Publication
New York, NY
Publisher
Berliner
Date Issued
April 7, 1898
1 sound disc: 70 rpm, mono, 7 in.
Call Number
Berliner 103 Y
  Listen -- MP3
The Star Spangled Banner

The Stars and Stripes Forever

John Philip Sousa 1854-1932 
Berliner Gramophone Co New York
Publisher 
E. Berliner's Gramophone 
1 sound disc : analog, between 66 and 72 rpm, mono. ; 7 in.
Recorded on one side only; publisher no.: 470 Z E. Berliner's Gramophone.
Vess L. Ossman, banjo; piano acc.
Call Number
Berliner 470 Z  
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When Johnny comes marching home again (John Terrill)

Composer
Gilmore, Patrick Sarsfield
Performer
Terrill, John
Publisher
E. Berliner's Gramophone
Date Issued
1898
1 sound disc: analog, 64 rpm, mono; 7 in.
Call Number
Berliner 177 YY
  Listen -- MP3 

When Johnny comes marching home again,
Hurrah! Hurrah!
We'll give him a hearty welcome then
Hurrah! Hurrah!
The men will cheer and the boys will shout
The ladies they will all turn out
And we'll all feel gay when Johnny comes marching home.

The old church bell will peal with joy
Hurrah! Hurrah!
To welcome home our darling boy,
Hurrah! Hurrah!
The village lads and lassies say
With roses they will strew the way,
And we'll all feel gay when Johnny comes marching home.

Get ready for the Jubilee,
Hurrah! Hurrah!
We'll give the hero three times three,
Hurrah! Hurrah!
The laurel wreath is ready now
To place upon his loyal brow
And we'll all feel gay when Johnny comes marching home.

Let love and friendship on that day,
Hurrah, hurrah!
Their choicest pleasures then display,
Hurrah, hurrah!
And let each one perform some part,
To fill with joy the warrior's heart,
And we'll all feel gay when Johnny comes marching home

Over There (George M. Cohan)

Arranger
P. Holbrook
Performing Ensemble
United States Army Ground Forces Band
Call Number
MENC3085
Recording Type
Compact disc recording
More about Over There

O, Columbia! The Gem of the Ocean

Composer
Becket
Performer
U.S. Navy Band, Great Lakes, IL
Call Number
MENC3085
Recording Type
sound recording-musical
More about Columbia Gem Of The Ocean

Nostalgia Music

Home On The Range

More about Home On The Range

Swanee River

PERFORMER(S)
Reed, Henry; harmonica
Duration: 57 seconds
NOTES
Composed by Stephen Foster in 1851, "Old Folks at Home" (or "Swanee River," as it is often known) has become virtually universal in American culture. Henry Reed here "varies" it by first playing it on the harmonica, then repeating it with extra graces and flourishes.
MUSICAL FEATURES
Key: C
Meter: 4/4
Strains: 2 (low-high, 8-8)
Rendition: 1-2-1-2
Phrase Structure: ABCDABEF QRSTABEF
Compass: 8
ALTERNATE TITLE(S)
Old Folks at Home
Suwanee River
COMPOSER(S)
Stephen Foster, 1851
GENRE(S)
Airs
Instrumentals--harmonica
SPOKEN
ALAN JABBOUR and HENRY REED: [Laugh]
COLLECTOR(S)
Jabbour, Alan
Jabbour, Karen Singer
CREATED/PUBLISHED
1967/07/17
LOCATION
Reed family home, Glen Lyn, Virginia (Giles County)
FORMAT
sound recording
CALL NUMBER
LWO 5379 reel 3A, AFS 13705A:53
DIGITAL ID
afcreed 13705a53
  Listen -- MP3


Pop Goes the Weasel

PERFORMER(S)
Reed, Henry; fiddle

Duration:  36 seconds
NOTES
"Pop Goes the Weasel" is widely distributed in the English-speaking world and has especially broad popularity in America, probably because it sustains itself as a song for children--often, actually, for adults to sing or play for the entertainment of children. It also has been used for dancing, though not necessarily for jigs, despite its 6/8 meter. Typical sets are Sharp, Country Dance Tunes, vol. 1, pp. 10-11; Linscott, Folk Songs of Old New England, p. 108; Randolph, Ozark Folksongs, vol. 3, p. 368; Ford, Traditional Music of America, p. 40; Winner's Collection of Music for the Violin, p. 79; One Thousand Fiddle Tunes, p. 24 (with dance directions); Ruth, Pioneer Western Folk Tunes, p. 3 (with left-hand picking directions).

On the fiddle, it is a perennial favorite with a special feature: the "pop" is played by picking the E-string with the left hand. Henry Reed's version is in G, which is customary and indeed required to make the "pop" come out on the open E-string; but in his version the "pop" is actually "pop goes"--that is, it is two picked strings, the open E-string followed by the open A-string.

MUSICAL FEATURES
Key: G
Meter: 6/8
Strains: 2 (high-low, 4-4)
Rendition: 1r-2r-1
Phrase Structure: AA'BC QQ'BC (aba'b' cdef qrqr' cdef)
Compass: 12

STYLISTIC FEATURES
Noticeable tendency toward 2/4. If Henry Reed has a normal jig speed and style, this is perhaps it. Note that he appears to begin on high strain.

GENRE(S)
Jigs
Fiddle tunes
Instrumentals--fiddle
 

SPOKEN
HENRY REED: You know that?
ALAN JABBOUR: Yeah, "Pop Goes the Weasel."
HENRY REED: [Laughs]

COLLECTOR(S)
Jabbour, Alan
Jabbour, Karen Singer

CREATED/PUBLISHED
1966/06/18

LOCATION
Reed family home, Glen Lyn, Virginia (Giles County)

FORMAT
sound recording

CALL NUMBER
LWO 5031 reel 3B, AFS 13033B:32  

DIGITAL ID
afcreed 13033b32
  Listen -- MP3

Shoo Fly

PERFORMER(S)
Reed, Henry; fiddle

Duration: 1 minute, 12 seconds

NOTES
"Shoo Fly" is the tune associated with the "Shoo fly don't bother me" lyrics. It has the feel of a lively dance tune in the melodic style of the later nineteenth century. One hallmark of the style is the implied chord shift from tonic to dominant at the end of the first phrase, remaining in the dominant till the cadence at the end of the second phrase. For instrumental sets of the tune, see Person, A Collection of Popular Airs (1889), p. 9; White's Excelsior Collection, p. 71. Another tune in this collection with a tantalizing resemblance to "Shoo Fly" is "Ladies Won't You Marry" (AFS 13705a54), which Henry Reed played on harmonica.

MUSICAL FEATURES
Key: D
Meter: 4/4
Strains: 2 (low-high, 4-4)
Rendition: 1-2r-1r-2r-1r
Phrase Structure: ABCD QRQS
Compass: 13

STYLISTIC FEATURES
Fast tempo, simple noting (lots of eighth notes), syncopation.

ALTERNATE TITLE(S)
Ladies Won't You Marry

TRANSCRIPTION
Shoo Fly [transcription]

GENRE(S)
Breakdowns
Reels
Fiddle tunes
Instrumentals--fiddle

SPOKEN
HENRY REED: That's one I ain't played for many years.
ALAN JABBOUR: What's the name of it?
HENRY REED: "Shoo Fly."
ALAN JABBOUR: "Shoo Fly."

COLLECTOR(S)
Jabbour, Alan

CREATED/PUBLISHED
1966/08/27

LOCATION
Reed family home, Glen Lyn, Virginia (Giles County)

FORMAT
sound recording

CALL NUMBER
LWO 5031 reel 5A, AFS 13035A:40

DIGITAL ID
afcreed 13035a40
  Listen -- MP3


Arkansas Traveler

More about Arkansas Traveler


Indiana Polka

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Solace  

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I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles

 (Vintage recording)
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I'm forever blowing bubbles,
Pretty bubbles in the air.
They fly so high,
Nearly reach the sky,
Then like my dreams,
They fade and die.
Fortune's always hiding,
I've looked everywhere,
I'm forever blowing bubbles,
Pretty bubbles in the air.



Foolin Around  

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Peppy Song

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Accordion

(Vintage recording)
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Lilly Bell Quickstep"

(Band). By G.W.E. Friederich  From the Brass Band Journal (New York: Firth, Pond & Co., 1854). The trio of this march is an up-tempo version of a sentimental ballad, "Lilly Bell," by Charles Mueller, published in 1853 by the same firm.     Listen -- MP3


Strike Up the Band   

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Hall of Mountain Kings

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"Why, No One to Love?"

(Vocal). Words and music by Stephen Collins Foster.  First edition, New York: S.T. Gordon, 1862.     Listen -- MP3

No one to love in this beautiful world,
Full of warm hearts and bright beaming eyes?
Where is the lone heart that nothing can find
That is lovely beneath the blue skies.
No one to love!
No one to love!
Why, no one to love?
What have you done in this beautiful world,
That you're sighing of no one to love?

Dark is the soul that has nothing to dwell on!
How sad must its brightest hours prove!
Lonely the dull brooding spirit must be
That has no one to cherish and love.
No one to love!
No one to love!
Why, no one to love?
What have you done in this beautiful world,
That you're sighing of no one to love?

Many a fair one that dwells on the earth
Who would greet you with kind words of cheer,
Many who gladly would join in your pleasures
Or share in your grief with a tear.
No one to love!
No one to love!
Why, no one to love?
Where have you roamed in this beautiful world,
That you're sighing of no one to love?

"Ah! May the Red Rose Live Alway" (Vocal).

Words and music by Stephen Collins Foster. First edition: Baltimore: F.D. Benteen [1850].
  Listen -- MP3
This is perhaps Foster's most ambitious and successful "serious" song. Better known for his sentimental pieces in stereoptypical African-American dialect ("Old Black Joe"), or his lighter minstrel songs ("Oh! Susanna"), Foster composed a number of highly skillful, though unpretentious, "art" songs. A characteristic of his genius was his ability to use the simplest harmonic devices to the greatest effect, and this song represents no fundamental departure in this respect. But in the context of the uniquely Fosterian style, the brief shift to the minor mode in the solo piano passages following each verse is particularly striking. Especially unusual, too, is Foster's vocal ornament at the end of the second quatrain of each verse.

Ah! may the red rose live alway,
To smile upon earth and sky!
Why should the beautiful ever weep?
Why should the beautiful die?
Lending a charm to ev'ry ray
That falls on her cheeks of light,
Giving the zephyr kiss for kiss,
And nursing the dew-drop bright--
Ah! may the red rose live alway,
To smile upon earth and sky!
Why should the beautiful ever weep?
Why should the beautiful die?

Long may the daisies dance the field,
Frolicking far and near!
Why should the innocent hide their heads?
Why should the innocent fear?
Spreading their petals in mute delight
When morn in its radiance breaks,
Keeping a floral festival
Till the night-loving primrose wakes--
Long may the daisies dance the field,
Frolicking far and near!
Why should the innocent hide their heads?
Why should the innocent fear?

Lulled be the dirge in the cypress bough,
That tells of departed flowers!
Ah! that the butterfly's gilded wing
Fluttered in evergreen bowers!
Sad is my heart for the blighted plants--
Its pleasures are aye as brief--
They bloom at the young year's joyful call,
And fade with the autumn leaf:
Ah! may the red rose live alway,
To smile upon earth and sky!
Why should the beautiful ever weep?
Why should the beautiful die?

"The Herdsman's Mountain Song" (Vocal).

Words and music by Adolf Fredrik Lindblad.

  Listen -- MP3
The Herdsman's Mountain Song

Credit for some: Library of Congress, Music Division.