Peter Dawson "Yeomen Of England" Merrie England (Edward German successor to Sir Arthur Sullivan?)

Peter Dawson sings "Yeomen Of England" from the operetta Merrie England.
Recorded on April 26, 1929. George Byng is the conductor.
Great lyrics:
And Spaniards and Dutchmen, and Frenchmen and such men,
As foemen did curse them, the bowmen of England!
No other land could nurse them
But their motherland, Old England!
And on her broad bosom did they ever thrive!
Music is by Edward German, who seemed like a successor to Sir Arthur Sullivan (the latter died in 1901)--after all, Merrie England was very successful, and it was also a Savoy production.
In one sense, Edward German was literally Sullivan's successor in that German finished Sullivan's The Emerald Isle.
But Edward German did not produce gem after gem the way Sullivan did, and German's style was going out of fashion during Edwardian England ("out-of-fashion" should not be said about Sullivan, who very much captured his times and helped define them).
Book and lyrics for Merrie England are by Basil Hood. The light opera was first performed at the Savoy Theatre, London, on April 2, 1902.
This area is sung by the Earl of Essex in Act I. He is jealous of the favor Raleigh enjoys with the Queen.
Peter Smith Dawson, born on January 31, 1882, in Adelaide, South Australia, was one of his generation's most versatile singers, including great success with records of operatic arias, oratorio solos, sentimental ballads, upbeat popular songs, and parlor tunes.
He possessed an incredibly rich bass-baritone voice. He was deft at interpretation, and his enunciation was spectacular.
He came from a humble background. His father was Thomas Dawson, ironworker and plumber.
Peter Dawson sang as a boy soprano at a social at the College Park Congregational Church, St Peters, and was later in the St Andrew's Presbyterian Church choir.
In 1902, Dawson moved to London and studied with Charles Santley and others.
On 20 May 1905 he married Annie Mortimer Noble, a soprano with the stage name of Annette George. They had no children.
He was incredibly popular as a recording artist. He could have enjoyed more success on the stage as an opera singer had he made a stronger effort with opera companies. In 1909, he appeared at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, as the Night Watchman in Richard Wagner's Mastersingers of Nuremberg--one time he did appear in opera.
But he realized a career in opera would not have been nearly as lucrative as the one he chose--as a concert and oratorio singer. Making records fit perfectly with this choice. Had he been born in an earlier generation, this career of concert singer balanced with recording work would not have been available. He was born at the right time, taking advantage of recording opportunities that came his way, his voice "right" for the recording technology evolving in the years Dawson was in peak form (his voice never really declined until the 1950s).
In 1904 he made a test record for the Edison Bell Phonograph Co., and later that year began a long career (five decades) for HMV--that is, His Master's Voice.
During World War II until 1947, Dawson lived in Sydney. During the war he sang for the troops and on recruiting drives in Australia and elsewhere.
He wanted to retire after the war but the income from singing (and recording) continued to prove alluring. He continued to give his time and talent to recording studios long after others might have retired.
Dawson died on September 27, 1961, in Sydney.
Peter Dawson "Yeomen Of England" Merrie England (Edward German successor to Sir Arthur Sullivan?)