Dance band on the Titanic
Sing “Nearer, my God, to Thee”
The iceberg’s on the starboard bow
Won’t you dance with me.

- Harry Chapin – Dance Band on the Titanic: 1977

We’ve all seen the movie, “Titanic,” and the famous scene where the band continues to play as the liner is sinking. Wallace Hartley was the band leader and was born was born in Colne, Lincoshire. He was a violinist and had worked for years on ocean liners. His band on the RMS “Titanic” was to play at church services and also during afternoon tea and for after dinner.

Hartley and his brave band members wanted the passengers and crew to remain calm and upbeat while getting off the ship into lifeboats. They continued to play in the cold air even though they knew there was no hope for they themselves to get off. “Nearer My God to Thee” was often quoted as the last song they played but wireless operator Harold Bride reported that the band’s last song was called “Autumn,” a popular hymn at the time.

Memorial

Hartley’s body was found 2 weeks after the sinking and he was given a large funeral in his hometown. There is  a plaque in Liverpool’s Philarmonic Hall to commemorate the band naming all eight members .

Harry Chapin’s “Dance Band on the Titanic”

In 1977 Harry Chapin released his 7th album called “Dance Band on the Titanic,” a double record set containing 14 songs

If any one person defined blues piano it was Joseph William Perkins, also known as Pinetop Perkins. Born on July 7, 1913 he played piano right up until his death last week at the age of 97 1/2. One of the original Mississippi bluesmen he started out as a guitar player but lost the flexibility in his left arm as the result of a fight. In the beginning he worked with Robert Nighthawk and Sonny Boy Williamson. During the 1950′s he toured with Earl Hooker and recorded his famous ”

Perkins became well-known with a new generation of blues lovers in 1969 when he joined Muddy Waters’ band. After 10 years with this group he formed the Legendary Blues Band with Willie “Big Eyes ” Smith. This lasted well into the 1990′s.

Until his death, Perkins lived in Austin, Texas and performed a couple of nights a week at Nuno’s on Sixth Street. In 2005, Perkins also received Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. He died on March 21, 2011.