William F. Wirges Orchestra - I'm Afraid Of You

William Wirges appears to be one of the dozens of Reser's pseudonyms. Harry Reser (1896-1965) was an American banjo player and bandleader. Born in Piqua, Ohio, he was best known as the leader of The Clicquot Club Eskimos. Reser was regarded by some as the best banjoist of the 1920s. He played with midwestern dance bands, relocating to Buffalo, New York in 1920. Arriving in Manhattan the following year, he became an in-demand session musician during the early 1920s. In 1925, he found fame as the director for NBC's Clicquot Club Eskimo Orchestra, continuing with that weekly half-hour until 1935. At the same time, he also led other bands using pseudonyms. "Harry Reser and His Six Jumping Jacks," with vocals by Tom Stacks, were the zany forerunners to comedy bands like Spike Jones and His City Slickers. Reser remained active in music for the rest of his life, leading TV studio orchestras and playing with Broadway theatre orchestras. In 1960 he appeared with Bing Crosby, Peggy Lee and Buster Keaton in "A 70th Birthday Salute to Paul Whiteman". He wrote several instructional books for the banjo, guitar, and ukulele. This brilliant record was made in 1928. Vocal by Frank Munn.