February Full Moon - Moon Winks (1908)

With February the time for lovers and, therefore, much winking I thought I'd select an appropriately flirty tune. Moon Winks is billed as a three-step, what those of us who have a passing familiarity with more modern dance terminology would call it a waltz.

As always when writing one of these little missives, I started combing the web for information on George Stevens. I came across a lot of Moon Winks sheet music covers and even came up with a good YouTube video with commentary by a vintage platter collector who goes by the handle of Ifmudge. There's some nice information about the disc and the bandleader featured on the recording and I recommend taking a listen.


Sadly, though, even after enjoying the tune I still didn't know anything more about the illusive Mr. Stevens. I spent some time exploring the bottoms of various internet rabbit holes, chasing copyright information for different interpretations of the song Moon Winks until I eventually checked the Catalog of Copyright Entries - Musical Composers, Part 3 from 1932.

Yes, the problem was that George Stevens was actually the pseudonym for Frederic J. A. Forster, the author of Moon Winks. A breakthrough worthy of eureka? Well, not really. Though I now knew that Mr. Stevens was actually Mr. Forster, the mystery more-or-less remained. I managed to discover he was born in 1878 and died in 1956 and even found his short death notice as seen on the obituary page in the May 11, 1956 issue of the Indiana Gazette:

Frederic J. A. Forster, 80, founder and president of a music publishing firm, publisher of such songs as “The Missouri Waltz,” “It Ain’t Gonna Rain No More,” and “Down by the Old Millstream,” died Wednesday. SAN DIEGO. Calif

It seems a sad thing, a man who filled more than one couple's evening with the lovely music that sparked romance and set hearts pattering should find his end as a side note on the obituary page. Still, every waltz must have its end and so many times love is a bittersweet thing. Take your loved one out under the February moon tonight, bundle up warm, and stare up at the winking moon and be thankful for this moment, because when it comes right down to it that's all you really have.