 In 1916 Talbot contributed to a reworking of an American musical, "High Jinks" for the Adelphi Theatre, which adapted a Rudolf Friml score.At the same time, he had been composing music for short musical pieces for variety theatres.The careers of other major composers of the Edwardian era (for example, Sidney Jones), began to fade by World War I when they failed to adopt the new American dance rhythms and styles, such as ragtime.