Cecil Macklin (1883-1944); ENG   

Englishman Cecil Macklin was primarily an arranger of dance music for military bands, but at least one number composed by his own volition proved of enormous importance to the development of American popular music—Très Moutarde, a one- or two-step better known as "Too Much Mustard." Although technically a march and not at all syncopated in its original form, the tune's liveliness and high-kicking spirits lent itself to the loose elaboration practiced by ragtime bands and it was widely adopted in the States. Most significantly, Clef Club bandleader James Reese Europe recognized the special qualities of Too Much Mustard and employed it in the routine performed by pre-war dancing duo Vernon and Irene Castle. Europe first recorded Too Much Mustard in December 1913 for Victor; a version by Charles A. Prince's Band followed in 1914 and these proved the first among many recordings to follow.

Macklin tried his hand at a number of other compositions through 1916; none achieving anywhere near the success of Très Moutarde; Tango is the dance for me and Anticipation (1912), That Whistling Rag (1913), Caper Sauce, The Cockney Crawl, and the waltz Gloria co-composed with Montagu Jones (all 1914) and The Honorable Artillery Company March (1916) among them. Macklin appears to have sunk back into making arrangements afterward, a final original entry, Bébé Blue Eyes (1923), might be a leftover from the early teens.

© Uncle Dave Lewis, All Music Guide

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