Manhansett Quartette

The Manhansett (or Manhassett) Quartet (or Quartette) was an American vocal group active between about 1891 and 1901. They were the first vocal quartette to make commercial recordings under their own name. They were formed in the Bowery of New York City. Original line-up consisted of George J. Gaskin, [a3720233], Joe Riley and someone remembered only as "Evans". John Bieling joined as a tenor in 1894. The earliest recordings by the group were made for the United States Phonograph Company of Newark, NJ in 1892, but they would go on to record for Edison Records and Columbia Phonograph Co. over much of the next decade. The group disbanded around 1901 after George J. Gaskin launched a successful solo career and John Bieling left to join [a424111]/[a847629]. [a3720233] also continued recording, using his talents for mimicking animal and bird sounds as part of a duo with Len Spencer. They left behind several notable recordings characteristic of the 1890s, including "The Picture Turned Towards The Wall" and "Sally In Our Alley" (both 1892), and "The Old Oaken Bucket" (1894).