Irene Giblin was born to printer Richard Thomas Giblin and his wife Nora E. Reardon in Saint Louis, Missouri. She was the oldest of six children, including Gertrude (1/25/1890), Richard Thomas, Jr. (10/28/1891), Leon F. (11/4/1893), Mary (9/7/1895) and Walter Anthony (12/1/1899). Irene lived much of her life in the Saint Louis area, where the family was shown residing at 1322 13th Street for the 1900 census.
Having been a good piano student showing a natural talent for the instrument in her adolescence, she was first employed as a music demonstrator by composers Eddie Dustin and Charles N. Daniels (aka Neil Morét) at the Grand Leader department store in St. Louis.chicken chowder cover Irene had known the pair for at least a year before they hired her at the tender but eager age of 14. Irene was hired to play all of the latest hits from the Jerome H. Remick catalog, and her sister Gertrude was part of the deal, further encouraging people to buy Remick wares through sheer charm and guile. Miss Giblin was later moved to the Stix, Baer & Fuller department store, also in St. Louis, when she was right out of high school at age 17. She ended up working continuously for at least five years, missing only a week of work during that entire period.
In her desirable position, playing the piano several hours every day for anyone who wanted to listen to the latest Remick wonders, it was natural for someone of Irene's creativity to also write some of her own works. Over a period of six years Giblin published ten pieces, most of them piano rags, and most issued by Remick. Among them, Sleepy Lou and The Aviator Rag were substantial sellers. However, it was the simply styled Chicken Chowder, which essentially had one theme turned in different directions for each section that was her runaway hit. Text source : Wikipedia (Hide extended text) ... (Read all)
SHEET MUSIC