Info on the Vagabonds

[Bazzar]

Hi all,

 

I am looking for any information anyone might have on a small Jazz/Folk trio called the Vagabonds.

 

They were active in Chicago in the late 20's early 30's. The reason for asking is that my father left me his guitar when he died a few years back. Now this guitar he bought in 1935 at a small shop in Jersey, in the Channel Isles UK, where he was born and lived as a young man. The guitar is a small, almost parlour-sized acoustic that had a pickup, control and jack fitted.

 

Dad carried this guitar with him right throughout the war. It came off the beach at Dunkirk, went all over Africa and Egypt with the 8th Army and he played it in a couple of Hawaiian bands after the war right up to the 1960's. The headstock caries the legend : "Vagabonds - Herald Dean Curt - Curt Poulton Special. Over the years Dad fiddled with the guitar, replacing the fretboard and bridge and refinishing it in a matt finish etc. Unfortunately as I live in a tropical climate, the guitar has suffered somewhat and has a few splits etc. So I have decided to have it restored at my local luthier who is going to completely rebuild it to the way it would have looked when Dad first bought it. I need to find the luthier some reference to the kind of pickup it had so he can replicate that and also some more info on the Vagabonds, in particular Curt Poulton. the band members were : Herald Goodman, Curt Poulton, and Dean Upson

 

Apparently they were credited with being one of the first groups to use electricification in guitars in public performance.

 

SO if anyone can help out there I'd be much obliged.

 

There is a little on the band on the internet but not much. The luthier thinks that Dad may well have got his hands on one of the trio's original guitars as there is little reason why a non-mass production American guitar would end up in a shop in Jersey, C.I. Perhaps they played there before the war and needed to sell the guitar for some reason? (interesting thoughts there!)

 

Anyway, once I have the guitar restored I'll post some pictures and see if it jogs any memories.

[ChanMan]

Love a challenge I guess. Here's what I could find. See if there is anything in there you can use to get better info on what you seek. I'll look harder tomorrow when I'm not quite so bushed

 

Good luck! Sounds like they had a tie in to Nashville and Country music as well!

 

1900 Herald Goodman, vocals

b. Ohio, USA.

Member: "The Vagabonds", a group formed in 1927 with members: Curt Poulton (vocals/guitar, b. 1907, Dulaney, W. VA, USA), Dean Upson (b. Nov. 12, 1900, CHicago, IL, USA), Herald Goodman, who joined the group ca. 1930. For a time they had a show called 'The Vagabond Club' over a fifty-six-station hookup with NBC. In late 1931, radio station WSM Nashville Manager Harry Stone invited the trio to join the station as members of the WSM staff, and to appear on the Grand Ole Opry, (they were the first vocal group to star on the Op'ry) After this that they began to emphasize the Old-Time and Folk element of their repertoire. They formed their own publishing and record company, Old Cabin, which became the first such Country organization in Nashville. However, The Vagabonds’ attempt to sell Pop songs to a Country audience eventually caused problems. In 1934, they decided to split. Herald Goodman went to Oklahoma, Dean Upson returned to Chicago and Curt stayed at WSM to work as a soloist, and occasionally with the Delmore Brothers. WSM had a strong hold, and by 1938, the three men were back at the station and The Vagabonds were briefly reactivated. Herald Goodman subsequently formed a Western Swing band, "The Tennessee Valley Boys" (recorded by Bluebird). Upson worked briefly in WSM’s booking department before becoming Commercial Manager for radio KWKH in Shreveport, LA, where he helped to establish "The Louisiana Hayride" show. Poulton formed a band of West Virginia sidemen and worked briefly on the Opry and over Knoxville radio. Later, he worked as a single in the Midwest and died in 1957.

 

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Herald Goodman was one of three ministers' sons who made up the membership of the stunningly successful vocal harmony trio the Vagabonds, then fronted his own Tennessee Valley Boys, also with a string of 78 releases and Grand Old Opry appearances. The group was considered one of the first professional ensembles to perform on the Opry, but this opinion is based on the assumption that all the groups that acted like hillbillies, or sported ridiculous names, were truly hayseeds, which they weren't. The Vagabonds came along around the same time as the Delmore Brothers and in fact, these two groups traveled to Chicago together to make their first Bluebird records for the RCA Victor label. The success of the former group led to a breakthrough in the Opry's usual policy of presenting only acts with a so-called downhome folk appeal, as well as a preference for string bands over vocal harmony ensembles. In retrospect, the decision of the Opry überlords to feature the group has been granted greater and greater historic import as the years go on. To some, it was the Vagabonds who brought pop music to the Opry in 1931, meaning poisoned darts fired at folks such as Shania Twain perhaps should seek a more vintage target. It is certainly true that it was the Vagabonds who cooked up, early on in the game, some of the strongest dishes in the country music merchandising repertoire. The members with the group are credited with creating the city's first souvenir songbook and established Nashville's first country music song publishing company, Old Cabin Music, as well. In addition, Goodman and his fellow pickers apparently made use of some of the earliest amplified guitar sounds; the Vagabonds were sighted with electric guitars as far back as the late '20s. Goodman and fellow Vagabonds Dean Upson and Curt Poulton were all trained musicians who read and arranged music, quite different than the by-ear players who made up the usual Opry cast. The group proved so popular that it was slotted into the other programming on Chicago's WSM, the host station for the Opry. The Vagabonds, not to be confused with blues, garage rock, and many other bands of the same name, even a notorious motorcycle gang, had a vast repertoire that included gospel, pop, string band, and country music. Best-remembered is the absorbing and thoughtful ballad "When It's Lamp Lighting Time in the Valley" written by either Goodman alone or in conjunction with the others, but in either case quite a vindication for having initiated one's own publishing representation. The song was first performed on the Grand Ole Opry by the Vagabonds in 1932, recorded by the group the following year, and quickly passed into tradition. By 1936, it was cut by a Library of Congress field worker in Crossville, TN, and has since been covered by many artists, including Tex Ritter, Hylo Brown, Ola Belle Reed, and even Irish performer Cyril Poacher. While the Vagabonds wandered on, Goodman went on his own by the late '30s. He fronted the Tennessee Valley Boys and continued to be an Opry mainstay. Top country players went through his band, including the brilliant guitarist Billy Byrd, later of Ernest Tubb & the Texas Troubadours fame, who played with Goodman's Grand Ole Opry group in 1938. The leader continued to prove his knack for coming up with material that would appeal to a great number of artists. His record of "Banjo Rag" is said to be a pre-cognitive version of "Salty Dog," a tune that became an incredibly popular rag recording in the '50s. This time around, the publishing demons don't seem to have been on his side. "Salty Dog" is sometimes credited to Nashville's Papa John Gordy, but also has as many contesting opinions as to authorship as Howard Hughes will. There is now speculation that a certain Goodman really deserves the acknowledgement, the "Salty Dog." ~ Eugene Chadbourne, Rovi

 

 

 

__________________________________________________________________________________________

 

 

 

On Air Encyclopedia

 

 

Vagabonds Biography

 

Link to a Google Book that mentions the Vagabonds

 

______________________________________________________________________________

[Bazzar]

Love a challenge I guess. Here's what I could find. See if there is anything in there you can use to get better info on what you seek. I'll look harder tomorrow when I'm not quite so bushed

 

Good luck! Sounds like they had a tie in to Nashville and Country music as well!

 

1900 Herald Goodman, vocals

b. Ohio, USA.

Member: "The Vagabonds", a group formed in 1927 with members: Curt Poulton (vocals/guitar, b. 1907, Dulaney, W. VA, USA), Dean Upson (b. Nov. 12, 1900, CHicago, IL, USA), Herald Goodman, who joined the group ca. 1930. For a time they had a show called 'The Vagabond Club' over a fifty-six-station hookup with NBC. In late 1931, radio station WSM Nashville Manager Harry Stone invited the trio to join the station as members of the WSM staff, and to appear on the Grand Ole Opry, (they were the first vocal group to star on the Op'ry) After this that they began to emphasize the Old-Time and Folk element of their repertoire. They formed their own publishing and record company, Old Cabin, which became the first such Country organization in Nashville. However, The Vagabonds’ attempt to sell Pop songs to a Country audience eventually caused problems. In 1934, they decided to split. Herald Goodman went to Oklahoma, Dean Upson returned to Chicago and Curt stayed at WSM to work as a soloist, and occasionally with the Delmore Brothers. WSM had a strong hold, and by 1938, the three men were back at the station and The Vagabonds were briefly reactivated. Herald Goodman subsequently formed a Western Swing band, "The Tennessee Valley Boys" (recorded by Bluebird). Upson worked briefly in WSM’s booking department before becoming Commercial Manager for radio KWKH in Shreveport, LA, where he helped to establish "The Louisiana Hayride" show. Poulton formed a band of West Virginia sidemen and worked briefly on the Opry and over Knoxville radio. Later, he worked as a single in the Midwest and died in 1957.

 

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Herald Goodman was one of three ministers' sons who made up the membership of the stunningly successful vocal harmony trio the Vagabonds, then fronted his own Tennessee Valley Boys, also with a string of 78 releases and Grand Old Opry appearances. The group was considered one of the first professional ensembles to perform on the Opry, but this opinion is based on the assumption that all the groups that acted like hillbillies, or sported ridiculous names, were truly hayseeds, which they weren't. The Vagabonds came along around the same time as the Delmore Brothers and in fact, these two groups traveled to Chicago together to make their first Bluebird records for the RCA Victor label. The success of the former group led to a breakthrough in the Opry's usual policy of presenting only acts with a so-called downhome folk appeal, as well as a preference for string bands over vocal harmony ensembles. In retrospect, the decision of the Opry überlords to feature the group has been granted greater and greater historic import as the years go on. To some, it was the Vagabonds who brought pop music to the Opry in 1931, meaning poisoned darts fired at folks such as Shania Twain perhaps should seek a more vintage target. It is certainly true that it was the Vagabonds who cooked up, early on in the game, some of the strongest dishes in the country music merchandising repertoire. The members with the group are credited with creating the city's first souvenir songbook and established Nashville's first country music song publishing company, Old Cabin Music, as well. In addition, Goodman and his fellow pickers apparently made use of some of the earliest amplified guitar sounds; the Vagabonds were sighted with electric guitars as far back as the late '20s. Goodman and fellow Vagabonds Dean Upson and Curt Poulton were all trained musicians who read and arranged music, quite different than the by-ear players who made up the usual Opry cast. The group proved so popular that it was slotted into the other programming on Chicago's WSM, the host station for the Opry. The Vagabonds, not to be confused with blues, garage rock, and many other bands of the same name, even a notorious motorcycle gang, had a vast repertoire that included gospel, pop, string band, and country music. Best-remembered is the absorbing and thoughtful ballad "When It's Lamp Lighting Time in the Valley" written by either Goodman alone or in conjunction with the others, but in either case quite a vindication for having initiated one's own publishing representation. The song was first performed on the Grand Ole Opry by the Vagabonds in 1932, recorded by the group the following year, and quickly passed into tradition. By 1936, it was cut by a Library of Congress field worker in Crossville, TN, and has since been covered by many artists, including Tex Ritter, Hylo Brown, Ola Belle Reed, and even Irish performer Cyril Poacher. While the Vagabonds wandered on, Goodman went on his own by the late '30s. He fronted the Tennessee Valley Boys and continued to be an Opry mainstay. Top country players went through his band, including the brilliant guitarist Billy Byrd, later of Ernest Tubb & the Texas Troubadours fame, who played with Goodman's Grand Ole Opry group in 1938. The leader continued to prove his knack for coming up with material that would appeal to a great number of artists. His record of "Banjo Rag" is said to be a pre-cognitive version of "Salty Dog," a tune that became an incredibly popular rag recording in the '50s. This time around, the publishing demons don't seem to have been on his side. "Salty Dog" is sometimes credited to Nashville's Papa John Gordy, but also has as many contesting opinions as to authorship as Howard Hughes will. There is now speculation that a certain Goodman really deserves the acknowledgement, the "Salty Dog." ~ Eugene Chadbourne, Rovi

 

 

 

__________________________________________________________________________________________

 

 

 

On Air Encyclopedia

 

 

Vagabonds Biography

 

Link to a Google Book that mentions the Vagabonds

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

 

Well that's a great start thanks. I have found a sheet music cover that shows Poulton with a guitar very like Dad's. Unfortunately it is a little indistinct but is definitely the right style and size. Maybe he did put his name to a line of guitars. Unfortunately I do not have the paper from inside the soundbox so I don't know what actual make it is. I believe Poulton's family made instruments so you never know...One thing is for sure, according to the luthier, it has a cross-braced strengthener under the top which would definitely make it an American guitar.