Before the Blues- Irish Melodies- the Bermuda link

These links may come as a surprise from a blues-oriented site; first, a 1911 recording of  the setting of Thomas Moore's  poem "Believe Me if All Those Endearing Young Charms," as interpreted by the Irish tenor John McCormack.

Sir Thomas Moore, a close friend of Lord Byron, spent some time in Bermuda (1804).

"Believe me if all those endearing young charms": this lovely song was one of the first my brother ever learnt to play on the guitar.

See also "The Last Rose of Summer"

Now, a 1911 recording of "The Last Rose of Summer" by Italian soprano Luisa Tetrazzini.

Amazing recordings, over a century old.