In December 2010, a mysterious banjo tune popped up on a website devoted to early recordings. Even by that definition, this song stood out. It dated to when Grover Cleveland occupied the White House, opening with a crackle before the steady voice of Charles Asbury introduces himself and his performance of “Haul the Woodpile Down.” Seven seconds in, Asbury was off, plucking out dazzling runs and singing with confidence.
Dan Gellert, a banjo player and amateur historian, stumbled upon Asbury’s performance during his periodic browsing of the University of California at Santa Barbara’s online archive. He was stunned.
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“Haul the Woodpile Down,” he realized, was a sonic time capsule, a musical missing link from the minstrel shows that dominated the 1800s before fading near the turn of the…
