One of the joys of writing a historical novel is getting lost in the research. Something as benign as looking up women’s fashion for a particular year or sifting through old photographs of a particular place at a particular time can lead to so many interesting and unexpected discoveries.
One of the most fascinating rabbit holes I fell down during the research of the story that became THE GIRL ON THE VAUDEVILLE STAGE had to do with the music that was performed on theater stages in 1906 and 1907. Thanks to the wonders of the Internet, and especially the sidebar recommendations on YouTube, I stumbled onto all sorts of music that was popular at that time.
I spent countless hours listening to original ragtime recordings, as well as new and restored versions of the old classics. It was a joy to discover this incredible window onto the past, and I thought you might enjoy listening in on some of the recordings I refer to in the novel.
MAPLE LEAF RAG, composed and played by Scott Joplin
FROG LEGS RAG, composed by James Scott
IN MY MERRY OLDSMOBILE, sung by Billy Murray
ESPANA WALTZ, played on a music box
DON’T LET HER LOSE HER WAY, played on a music box
I’ll share more inspiration Monday 🙂
In the meantime, check out my Inspiration board on Pinterest.
THE GIRL ON THE VAUDEVILLE STAGE is a richly drawn historical tale that takes readers behind the scenes of the exuberant, exciting, and often eccentric world of early New York vaudeville and one woman’s romantic journey to find the life she craves and the love she deserves — with a little help from the legendary showman Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr.
Frog Legs Rag sheet music cover artwork courtesy of Wikicommons.
