John Philip Sousa’s fame as ‘The March King’ came about in part due to the tireless touring of Sousa’s Band, attracting worldwide acclaim with thousands...

John Philip Sousa’s fame as ‘The March King’ came about in part due to the tireless touring of Sousa’s Band, attracting worldwide acclaim with thousands of concerts. This final volume in the series explores some of the lesser-known corners of Sousa’s output. These include fantasies and humoresques that use renowned classical works and fashionable melodies of their day. Also featured are the rarely heard processional hymn with choir We March, We March to Victory and The Fancy of the Town, which offers up a world tour of traditional and popular songs.

REVIEW:

"Over the Footlights in New York" treats themes from several classical sources. 'Fancy of the Town' is an arrangement of several songs, some well known, some not. Sousa called the flowing 'What Do You Do Sunday, Mary?' a “humoresque”, though despite the title, ‘I’ve Been Working on the Railroad’ and ‘Oh Susanna’ pop in. We March, We March to Victory (with chorus) is a spirited rouser that somehow seems banal.

The rest of the program is made up of Sousa arrangements. All these works are light, upbeat, and typical of turn-of-the-20th Century music-in-the-park Americana. The performances are well played and recorded, and the notes are nicely written and informative.

-- American Record Guide