Mr. Flotsam and Mr. Jetsam

Mr. Flotsam and Mr. Jetsam were an Anglo-[Australian]] musical comedy duo of the 1920s and 1930s. Mr. Flotsam's real name was Bentley Collingwood Hilliam (1890–1968) and Mr. Jetsam's real name was Malcolm McEachern (1883–1945). Hilliam wrote most of their songs, played the piano and sang in a light, high tenor voice. By contrast, McEachern had one of the deepest bass voices on record. Their material consisted of comic songs with rapid-fire delivery and songs with mild social commentary, as well as sentimental songs.

They are sometimes considered a precursor of Flanders and Swann.

Songs in their repertoire

• "Simon the Bootlegger"
• "The Alsatian and the Pekinese"
• "The Changing of the Guard"
• "Is he an Aussie"
• "I Want to be a Military Man"
• "King Canute"
• "Little Betty Bouncer"
• "What's the Matter With Rachmaninoff?"
• "The spooning of the knife and fork"

Their only film appearance is in the prelude of the 1936 Tod Slaughter melodrama The Crimes of Stephen Hawke.

McEachern, though, appears without Hilliam as Abdullah in the 1936 film "Chu Chin Chow" where his deep voice is heard to great effect.

External links

• Recording session outline with photos of the two
• National Library of Australia digital recording listing for "The Changing of the Guard"