Japanese Tommy's Reel

Comment by Greg Adams on June 23, 2010 at 11:02pm

Great job. I love the "B" part on this piece. It just feels great.

Comment by Ian Bell on June 26, 2010 at 6:37am

Do we have any idea who Japanese Tommy might have been? Your intonation way up the neck is mighty impressive. Do you use the ogee shapes cut in the top of the neck as position markers? It just occurred to me while watching this that maybe that's why they put them there on some banjos. Or maybe just because they looked cool.

Comment by Tim Twiss on June 26, 2010 at 7:19am

There actually is a photo of him in Monarchs of Minstrelsy (googlebooks if you don't own it). I don't know if he actually played banjo or not. Very short fellow...37 ".
Yes, I do use the ogee shapes. When Jim made the banjo, I requested he try to line them up with intonated spots for my scale length...and it worked out. Lucky me.

Comment by Sylvia on June 26, 2010 at 11:14am

According to Wikipedia, Japanese Tommy aka Thomas Dilward, 1840-1902. Singing, dancing and violin, no mention of Banjo.

Comment by Ian Bell on June 26, 2010 at 9:13pm

Monarchs of Minstrelsy is quite the book! I looked up some other names I'd found on old handbills of Ontario performances and was pleased to find that some of them were homegrown "stars". Thanks for the lead.

Comment by Bob Sayers on June 28, 2010 at 9:15pm

There were actually two Japanese Tommys. The first was a 17-year-old member of the first Japanese Embassy (mission) to the United States in 1860. His real name was Tateishi Onojiro and, unlike the rather dour senior members of the embassy, he was very lively and liked to flirt with young American girls. The summer 1860 newspapers are full of stories about Tommy's exploits. He is the subject of the "Tommy Polka" and probably "Japanese Tommy's Reel." Here's a photo of Tommy from my collection:

Comment by Bob Sayers on June 28, 2010 at 9:21pm

The second Japanese Tommy was an African American dwarf who performed with Bryant's Minstrels through the 1860s. His real name was Thomas Dilward (he probably appropriated the name "Japanese Tommy" from the first Tommy) and, as Sylvia Heckley notes, he sang, danced, and played the violin. He died in 1887 (not 1902, as some sources suggest). Early accounts suggest that this Tommy coined the term "hunky dory," although that's still open to some debage. Anyway, much research remains to be done on Dilward. Here's a rare CDV from my collection showing "Japanese Tommy" in Liverpool, England where he lived for some years:

Comment by Bob Sayers on June 28, 2010 at 9:27pm

P.S.: The minstrel "Japanese Tommy" (Thomas Dilward) apparently published a book of his own songs. I've yet to see a copy of the songbook; so I'd be delighted to hear from anyone who knows the whereabouts of one--or any sheet music related to Dilward. Many thanks in advance!

Bob

Comment by Greg Adams on June 29, 2010 at 8:42am

Brilliant additions to this great conversation Bob. BTW, I'll try to get my interpretation of "Tommy Polka" back under my fingers (perhaps I'll youtube it). I don't think I've played it since I played it for you at the 2007 Banjo Collectors Gathering in Philadelphia.

Comment by Bob Sayers on June 30, 2010 at 5:05pm

Thanks for you comment, Greg. I've attached below an engraving of "Tommy" surrounded by his female admirers from the New-York Illustrated News for 7 July 1860. This is the Tommy of the "Tommy Polka" and probably "Japanese Tommy's Reel." The Museum of the City of New York has just posted a rendition of the "Tommy Polka" on their website in commemoration of the sesquicentennial of the 1860 Embassy. But the best version is found on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ucb1vKEd7Ig.

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