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"The Orange and the Black"
(Who dun it?)
Last Updated August 30, 2000
by Leonard Mather '35
For the 50th reunion of the Class of 1935 (in 1938), we wanted
the music for our Alma Mater, and found that Chaffey High had the music
score for only the trumpet lead. Imagine! So Leonard Mather asked Kay Henry
'37 to arrange it and he did the artwork. But who wrote it?
No one at Chaffey knew, so Leonard spent a day in the basement of the
library going through all the old Fastis and Tatlers and found the words
but no music. No source was given for the words, and the music wasn't mentioned.
It was sung in the 20s. It was always assumed it came from Princeton University.
Leonard's brother Norman was a professor at Princeton and he had a good
friend who had graduated from Princeton and had sung in the Glee Club in
the early 30s.
So the Princetonians were contacted and they researched it and sent
a copy of the Princeton Song Book and their research. The Princeton "Orange
and Black" and Chaffey's have some identical measures, but not in the same
order and not complete.
The words are identical except for the "P" and the "C" words and Leonard
assumed that perhaps S. Earle Blakeslee had arranged it for Chaffey. (He
came in 1916.)
Then, Leonard was in Kengraphics in Ontario to get some copies made
of it. Owner Ken Lemmon's offspring had just graduated from CHUS and when
he saw the music he said, "I know that song, but the words are different."
He sang his version with exactly the same melody. What high school, you
ask? Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania! So, Leonard contacted Beaver Falls and
no one there had any idea about who wrote the song except, they assumed,
the same as we, it came from Princeton.
Now Leonard guesses that Princeton had this song originally and his
brother just didn't find it. Have you got a better idea?
This article was taken from the following "The Tiger Rag" (Alumni
Edition), Winter 2000 issue, page 11
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