Kilburn Queen

I’m a Crackajack man (nobody knows or understands). Have to be, being born in Melbourne. Boomerangs were Sydney – sold by J Albert & Son. Crackajacks were vended in Melbourne by Allan & Co. This affinity originated with the find of an early Crackajack Concert Grand on a family holiday in Rye and it sent me on a pilgrimage to locate its maker. The journey culminated last year when HRR discovered a crucial connection between F A Rauner’s Cracker Jack mouth organ and Allan & Co’s Crackajack mouth organ – the digits 28285 (the registration number for both mouth organs). I am honoured in announcing a new addition to our Crackajack family – the Crackajack Artist.

The top of the new Crackajack range in 1926 was the Crackajack Artist which sold for 8/6. The new models (from the Junior up) all had unique fluting on the cover plates – identical to F A Rauner’s World Master. With the world fast approaching a depression and F A Rauner leading a merger with Seydel and F A Bohm in 1929 this model was soon to be a deleted item. In 1932 Melbourne’s Edments (309-311 Bourke Street) was trading it at 1/2 price as surplus stock. The Artist then disappears without a trace – until now!

By the way Guru Pat (Missin) has done it again sending HRR the Bosker Trademark, which identifies Ernst Hess of Klingenthal as the manufacturer of this Aussie harp sold by Chapman’s of Sydney. Thanks mate.

I’m also in gratitude to Dave Hoppo who made an amazing discovery while refurbishing an old train carriage and then passing the find on to HRR. Here are the photographs (and post) Dave supplied relating to Stephen Hogan from our article Hogan’s Heroes.

“Hi, My name is Dave and I have a 1900’s Adelaide train carriage that I got from the Salisbury McDonalds restaurant (used as a party room) many years ago. A lot of the interior had been removed and we refitted it as a home office. Whilst doing this I found a hand written letter written in pencil behind one of the seats (note is written in pencil onto the wood that would have been behind the upholstered death back), it is a little difficult to read but it goes along these lines:”

Stephen MacDonald Hogan 3rd yr App Trimmer
9th August 1939 Day of Kilburn Football Club Queen competition final held in progressive hall Chicago Kilburn 8pm – 12MN
Winner – Miss (not sure about this name) Jean Rival
7602 Votes

I sent an email off to Bryan Hogan, son of Stephen and here’s his reply.

“Dave Hoppo, that’s amazing! This is definitely my Dad the note is referring to, he did his apprenticeship at the old Islington workshops, was a lifetime member of Kilburn Football Club (known as the Chicks from the days when Kilburn was Chicago) and I have a feeling that Jean may have been one of his old flames.”

A review for one over the ditch and one from the US. Darren Watson, from Wellington New Zealand, has a fantastic release out now on Bandcamp – Getting Sober For The End Of The World. Darren has a smooth groove happening on his seventh album and on several tunes the harmonica of Terry Casey puts the hip into hypnotising. Love Self Made and checkout Evil Man for a spoonful of the Wolf.

Kim Wilson has a new album out. Not volume two of Blues & Boogie (that was due for release this year), but Take Me Back (The Bigtone Sessions). Many similarities with volume one of Blues & Boogie and maybe this title had something to do with the label change from Severn Records to M.C. Records. Kim blows the blues in the style of old fifties recordings – live and in mono. Highlight for me was track fourteen, the old Jimmy Roger’s tune Goin’ Away Baby – I just love the riff. Kim has featured this toon before with his band the Fabulous Thunderbirds, but this version is well worth a spin.

“Called I’ll Be Gone (what else?) the book is about my life and times and various bands. I’ll Be Gone is entertainingly written by Craig Horne (who also wrote Daddy Who? about Ross Wilson), and a ZOOM launch is planned by the publisher Melbourne Books at Readings for Monday the 16th of November at 8.00pm. To book for this exclusive on-line event, go to Readings. In the meantime you can pre-purchase your copy of I’ll Be Gone from Melbourne Books.”

The 30th Wangaratta Jazz & Blues Festival will be streaming this year over seven evenings from several cities across Australia and the Netherlands. On Sunday 1st November at 6:30 the fabulous enigmatic Lazy Eye will be performing at Adelaide’s premier live music venue, the Governor Hindmarsh Hotel. For more details head here Wangaratta Jazz Festival.

If your interested in reading more about the original Crackajack journey hit this 🧨 and this 28285. For more on Stephen Hogan and his family tap this 🚞. Check out last month’s Huff’n’Puff segment on Peej’s The Imaginary Friend’s Show (last Tuesday of the month on 3mdr) hear here 📻 (approx 2hrs in).

Ch EssDawg