78-RPM AND CYLINDER RECORDS

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Mainspring Press

Record Labels and Companies

THE VICTOR BLUE AND PURPLE LABEL SERIES — AN ILLUSTRATED INTRODUCTION
By John R. Bolig
Victor's blue and purple label series were amazingly diverse, running the gamut from the latest Broadway hits to classical and obscure ethnic material. John Bolig explores the series' history, illustrated with rare graphics from the Victor catalogs.

ONE-HUNDRED YEARS AGO THIS MONTH — HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE VICTOR
MONTHLY CATALOG SUPPLEMENT
Mainspring Press Digital
Victor's monthly catalog supplements are a treasure-trove of artist photos, advertising art, and company news. This rotating exhibit presents highlights for each month from the rare, century-old originals. UPDATED MONTHLY

THEATER-USE RECORDS AND THE "TALKIE" TRANSITION
Theater-use records like Victor's Pict-Ur-Music series bridged the gap between silent and sound films during the none-too-swift conversion to "talkies" in the late 1920s and early 1930s.

CAMDEN, PHILADELPHIA, OR NEW YORK? THE VICTOR STUDIO CONUNDRUM
(1900-1920)
By Allan Sutton
Newly discovered evidence confirms that Philadelphia, not Camden, was the site of most early Victor recording sessions, and clarifies the early role of the New York studio.

A CAMDEN CHRONOLOGY: EVOLUTION OF THE VICTOR TALKING MACHINE CO. COMPLEX (1899–1929)
A year-by-year account of Victor studio and factory construction, and associated activities, based on the memoirs of recording engineers Raymond and Harry O. Sooy.

"DISCONTINUING RECORD PRODUCTION" — DOCUMENTS FROM THE FINAL DAYS OF EDISON’S PHONOGRAPH DIVISION
Courtesy of Raymond Wile and the Edison National Historic Site
A selection of internal memos and reports documenting the closure of Edison’s recording operations during October–November 1929.

THE BIRTH OF HOME THEATER: FILMOPHONE, CINE-TONE, AND THE HOME-TALKIE
FILMS AND RECORDS (1927–29)
Home theater is nothing new. After several similar ventures failed, Home-Talkie films and synchronized records finally gave movie fans a way to watch sound films by major vaudeville stars in the comfort of their homes.

THE BLUES ALBUM
An archive of rare traditional blues and race-record labels, photographs, and epehmera

BILLY MURRAY RECORDS: A GALLERY OF RARE LABELS, 1903–1930
Courtesy of of Anna-Maria Manuel, Kurt Nauck, Dick Carty, and others
An annotated gallery picturing some of Murray's scarcest 78 and cylinder records. Updated regularly.

THE VICTROLA IN THE RURAL SCHOOLS (1919)
Excerpts from the 1919 publication, showing the Victor School Machine in use in country schoolhouses.

“A MINIATURE CONCERT”— The Earliest Issued Victor Electrical Recording
The Victor Talking Machine Co. had been experimenting with electrical recording since 1922, but to no avail until February 26, 1925. On that day, a test of acoustic vs. electric systems produced the first Victor electrical recordings accepted for issue, featuring the Eight Popular Victor Artists.

EDISON DIAMOND DISC MANUFACTURING PROCESSES (1920–29)
By Paul B. Kasakove
In July 1920, Paul Kasakove was hired to streamline Edison's Diamond Disc production. Here, he recalls the disc-manufacturing process in detail.

EDISON DISC RECORD ODDITIES: PROTOTYPES AND SPECIAL-USE RECORDS AT THE EDISON NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE
An illustrated sampling of ENHS rarities, including the Selectatune and Slogan Reproducing Machine records and a Brunswick-Edison hybrid disc.

EDISON DISC RECORD AND PHONOGRAPH SALES STATISTICS (1912–28)
Courtesy of Raymond Wile and the Edison National Historic Site
A sampling of yearly Diamond Disc record and phonograph sales totals, from the original Edison files.

IN THE EDISON STUDIOS (1905-28)
Courtesy of Raymond Wile and the Edison National Historic Site
Rare photographs and blueprints of Edison's various recording studios

THE SEARS-ROEBUCK LABELS: AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY (1905–50)
By Allan Sutton
Sears built its reputation by offering major manufacturers’ good under its own cut-rate brands, and phonograph records were no exception.

"A MINIATURE CONCERT" — THE EARLIEST ISSUED VICTOR ELECTRICAL RECORDINGS
The Victor Talking Machine Co. experimented with electrical recording as early as 1922 but did not produce a usable electrical recording until February 26, 1925. On that day, a test of old vs. new systems yielded the first Victor electrical recordings to be accepted for release.

THE HIT OF THE WEEK STORY: A HISTORY OF DURIUM PRODUCTS
By Allan Sutton
Durium's 15¢ Hit of the Week records were the perfect product for the Depression. But the company faced many setbacks, including a threatened sale of its trade secrets to RCA, before finally defecting to England.

SEE BEE: PIONEER BLACK RECORD LABEL OF THE 1920s
See Bee is remembered as the label that recorded Marcus Garvey in 1922, but it also tried unsuccessfully to emulate Black Swan, producing gospel and dance band records before quietly disappearing.

WHEN DID MARSH LABORATORIES BEGIN RECORDING ELECTRICALLY?
Orlando Marsh was the first to produce and issue electrical recordings on a regular commercial basis, but the date at which he first used his system has long been debated. A recent discovery may answer that question.

PARAMOUNT'S LEGACY: WHAT HAPPENED TO NYRL'S INVENTORY?
By Alex van der Tuuk
The author of Paramount's Rise and Fall investigates the destruction of Paramount's masters and unsold pressings in the 1930s and 1940s, and John Steiner's revival of the label in 1948.

THE TEN-CENT CARUSO
It was only a snippet, but what more could one ask for a dime? The story behind Emerson's only release by Enrico Caruso.

THE EMERSON RECORD STORY — Part 1
Victor Hugo Emerson, creator of the Little Wonder record, left Columbia in 1915 to challenge them with his own diminutive 78 records. His company's early days are chronicled in the first part of this series.

THE ARTHUR FIELDS SONG SHOP AND ARTHUR FIELDS MELODY RECORDS
In 1923 Arthur Fields teamed with the chronically ill-fated John Fletcher to produce his own Arthur Fields Melody Record label.

SORTING OUT PURITAN
By Allan Sutton
Paramount's less-glamorous sister label led a checkered past that continues to challenge discographers and collectors.

THE MAINSPRING 78 RECORD LABELS GALLERY
A selection of rare, unusual, and occasionally bizarre 78 record labels, based on Allan Sutton & Kurt Nauck's American Record Labels and Companies / American Record Label Image Encyclopedia (a fully revised and expanded edition of which is coming later this year).

EVOLUTION OF THE VICTOR RECORD LABEL (1900–1905): An Illustrated Guide

VICTOR RECORD SALES STATISTICS (1901–1941)

THE KIDDIE RECORD WARS (1917–1930)

ODEON RECORDS IN THE UNITED STATES

Artists and Recording
Industry Pioneers

 
THE BILLY MURRAY PAGES — The Original Murray Website
Contributions from Anna-Maria Manuel, Allan Sutton, Dick Carty, John Bolig, and others
An extensive archive of articles, photographs, ephemera, and discographic data relating to the"Denver Nightingale." Updated regularly.

THOMAS EDISON'S OPINION OF OPERA SINGERS
Courtesy of Raymond Wile and the Edison National Historic Site
Excerpts from Thomas Edison's personal comments on operatic singers used in the 1910–1912 experimental disc sessions.

UNMASKING THE "WORLD'S GREATEST MUSIC" SETS (1938–40)
The anonymous orchestras on these ubiquitous album sets have long posed a guessing game for collectors. The first installment of our ongoing series identifies the well-known, but uncredited, performers on the initial symphonic series, as logged in the RCA-Victor files.

SYNTHETIC COUNTRY: Fred Hall, Arthur Fields, and the Hillbilly Stereotype
In the early 1930s, New York entertainers Fred Hall and Arthur Fields pandered to urban audiences with their take on country music. In partnership with businessman Rex Cole, they concocted an artificial — but quite popular — "mountaineer" band employing the same stereotypes later perpetuated by the likes of "Li'l Abner" and "The Beverly Hillbillies."

'GENE GREENE'S VICTOR RECORDINGS — An Illustrated Discography
Compiled and annotated by Allan Sutton
Updated from the Victor files, and featuring rare Victor advertising for recordings by "The Ragtime King".

“RAGTIME” BOB ROBERTS
By Allan Sutton
The son of a prominent mime-turned-theatrical manager, Robert A. "Bob" Roberts was one of the foremosty exponents of the syncopated song. He recorded prolifically before finally finding success on the West Coast vaudeville circuits.

FLO BERT: A CASE OF DISCOGRAPHIC MISTAKEN IDENTITY
By Allan Sutton
Flo Bert and Florence-Cole Talbert were not the same individual — in fact, they were not even the same race — despite the claims of two eminent discographers.

THE SCANLAN SCANDAL: THE REST OF THE WALTER VAN BRUNT STORY
By Allan Sutton
The saga of Walter Van Brunt's reinvention as "'Walter Scanlan," his rise to fame in the theatrical world, and the bigamy charge that made national headlines and possibly ended his career on the New York stage.

CAL STEWART'S RECORDING CONTRACTS
By Allan Sutton
Cal Stewart's impact on the early recording industry went far beyond the success of his "Uncle Josh" records. His insistence on being paid royalties, at a time when other studio artists accepted modest flat rates as a matter of course, was revolutionary for its day.

UNCLE JOSH'S PUNKIN CENTRE STORIES: CAL STEWART AS WRITER, PUBLISHER, AND ENTREPRENEUR
Behind Cal Stewart's country-bumpkin stage persona was a successful author and businessman. His Punkin Centre Stories, initially self-produced, later passed through the hands of multiple publishers.

A PREHISTORY OF ADA JONES (1889–1905)
By Allan Sutton
Before she was a phonograph star, Ada Jones led a checkered career, singing in Broadway flops and dime museums, and sharing billing with "The Eight Fat Women" and "Signor Monstrom’s Troupe of Boxing Monkeys."

JACK KAUFMAN’S PERSONAL SCRAPBOOK (1910–25)
Courtesy of Phil Kaufman
Rare Kaufman Brothers photos and memorabilia (1910–25) from Jack Kaufman's scrapbook, courtesy of rock-legend grandson Phil ("The Road Mangler") Kaufman.

THE KAUFMAN BROTHERS: A PREHISTORY OF PHIL, JACK, AND IRVING
By Allan Sutton
The Kaufman Brothers were a hit in vaudeville long before they made their first records.

A HISTORY OF THE AVON COMEDY FOUR
By Allan Sutton
The legendary vaudeville team of Smith & Dale scrambled their way from Bowery saloons to top billing at America's and England's premier theaters as front-men for the Avon Comedy Four. Irving Kaufman, Arthur Fields, and Eddie Miller were some of the supporting members who came and went during the act's long life.

BILLY MURRAY'S RECORDING CONTRACTS: A CASE STUDY
From The Billy Murray Pages
Murray's recording contracts provide a deeper understanding of his recording career, as well as a glimpse into the legal workings of the early American recording industry.

BILLY MURRAY'S VICTOR CONTRACTS — THE COMPLETE ORIGINAL TEXTS
From The Billy Murray Pages
The complete, unaltered texts of Murray's 1909, 1919, and 1920 recording contracts, made public here for the first time, along with additional amendments and riders restricting his broadcasting and touring.

BILLY MURRAY ON THE RADIO (1925–42): A HISTORY AND ANNOTATED
PROGRAM LISTING
By Anna-Maria Manuel, from The Billy Murray Pages
The original Billy Murray radio webpage, offering frequently updated listings of Murray's radio broadcasts, all carefully documented from primary-source materials.

PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST IN DECLINE: Billy Murray's Comeback and Final Year
Compiled from the Martindale–Walsh letters, and annotated by Allan Sutton
Martindale, a noted legal publisher, was closely involved with Murray's later comeback attempts. His letters to columnist Jim Walsh provide an intimate first-hand look at the the singer's later years.

STEVE PORTER, GLOBAL ENTREPRENEUR
Stephen Carl Porter was hardly the dimwitted bumpkin he liked to portray on records. From his pioneering work in India as a recording engineer to his successful Port-O-Phone hearing-aid business, Porter was a far more ambitious and accomplished man than his records might lead one to believe.

VICTOR’S SINGING EXECUTIVE: HARRY MACDONOUGH
Record buyers had no idea that singing was a sideline for tenor Harry Macdonough, who in real life was Victor Talking Machine Coompany executive John S. Macdonald.

EVERYMAN'S McCORMACK: A JOHN STEEL BIO-DISCOGRAPHY
John Steel was no John McCormack, although he attempted to emulate the great Irish tenor. But he was a colorful personality and a major stage star of the 1920s whose full story is finally emerging.

JAZZ COMES TO NEW YORK (1917): A GALLERY OF EARLY JAZZ BAND ADS
The Original Dixieland Jazz Band's success at Reisenweber's in 1917 brought an influx of would-be competitors to New York — some historically significant, some noisy novelty acts, and some not jazz at all.

THE IMAGINARY CARL FENTON: Gus Haenschen, Rubie Greenberg, and the Conductor Who Never Existed
Brunswick's popular band leader was a fiction — a trade-name entity that was later sold, and that once even filed for bankruptcy.

PASSING FOR BLACK: DISGUISED WHITE PERFORMERS ON BLACK SWAN RECORDS
Although Harry Pace claimed his Black Swan records would use only black talent, many issues were actually by white performers using the aliases listed here.

BLACK SWAN'S OTHER STARS
Harry Pace set his sights high for his pioneering black-owned and -operated record label. "While it is true that we will feature to a great extent 'blue' numbers," Pace told the press, "we will also release many numbers of a higher standard."

REDISCOVERING SAM MOORE
By Allan Sutton, with Betsy Loar
Sam Moore's 1921 "Laughing Rag" is a pioneering blend of Hawaiian, ragtime, and Southern folk influences unlike anything previously recorded. Aside from his guitar work, Moore championed unconventional instruments ranging from the sublime to the utterly ridiculous, and for a time even jaded New Yorkers sat up and listened.

PARAMOUNT'S 1929 "MASKED MARVEL" CONTEST
Blues legend Charley Patton went incognito for his introduction to Paramount record buyers.

THE OTHER SIDES OF VICTOR H. EMERSON

JOHN FLETCHER: FROM SOUSA'S BAND TO BLACK SWAN, AND BEYOND

Current Topics in Research
and Discography

THE MAINSPRING ONLINE DISCOGRAPHY PROJECT
A Collaborative Effort
A free online project documenting early labels that have not been well-documented in printed discographies. Join in with our many contributors, and enjoy the process! — Latest Updates: December 23, 2009

THE ARTIFACTS OF RECORDING HISTORY: CREATORS, USERS, LOSERS, KEEPERS
By Tim Brooks
A report on the resources available to record collectors and researchers, their accessibility and state of preservation, the dangers those materials face, and what might be done to ensure their continued survival. (Courtesy of the ARSC Journal)

JELLY ROLL MORTON'S PRE-VICTOR BAND RECORDINGS (1923–26): A COMPARATIVE DISCOGRAPHY MODEL
By Allan Sutton
An analysis of conflicting data and questionable sources in published jazz discographies, using Morton's early Paramount, Okeh, and Autograph band recordings to demonstrate the challenges facing a new generation of jazz discographers.

"BIXING" — MYTHS, LIES, AND POLITICAL CORRECTNESS IN JAZZ RESEARCH
By Malcolm Shaw
What's "Bixing"? It's a common habit in jazz history of passing off rumor and opinion as fact. It's named for Bix Beiderbecke because people have probably used more smoke and mirrors to augment and glorify his particular legend than anyone else's. "Bixing" creates a folklore tradition that newcomers to jazz collecting often believe at the expense of truth.

CARUSO AND DISCOGRAPHY: A CONVERSATION WITH JOHN BOLIG
An Interview by Barry Ashpole
The author of Caruso Records: A History and Discography and the Victor Discography Series discusses his research into Enrico Caruso's records, and his views on the current state of the discographic art, with the editor of the ARSC Journal.

RE-DATING THE NEW YORK RECORDING LABORATORIES' L-SERIES MATRIXES
By Alex van der Tuuk
The author of Paramount's Rise and Fall examines the evidence — ranging from the markings on issued 78s and test pressings, to dates of historic events, and even Wisconsin's weather on a given day — to arrive at more accurate dates for Paramount's legendary Grafton sessions.

Online Discographies

Label Discographies

AMERICAN RECORD CO. (HAWTHORNE, SHEBLE & PRESCOTT): Preliminary Discography
The Mainspring Online Discography Project

ARTO: A PRELIMINARY DISCOGRAPHY (1919–1923)
The Mainspring Online Discography Project

BUSY BEE CYLINDERS: The Online Cylinderography
The Mainspring Online Discography Project

CAMEO: A Preliminary Discography (1922–1927)
The Mainspring Online Discography Project

EMERSON 7" DISCS (700 and 700 Series): A Preliminary Discography
The Mainspring Online Discography Project

LEEDS & CATLIN FOIL-LABEL DISCS: A Preliminary Discography
The Mainspring Online Discography Project

MARSH LABORATORIES: A Prelimiary Project (1922–1926)
The Mainspring Online Discography Project
A discography-in-progress covering Autograph and the many other labels produced by Orlando Marsh, the self-proclaimed "Originator of Electrical Recording."

ZON-O-PHONE (Victor Subsidiary Issues, 1904–1912): A Preliminary Discography
The Mainspring Online Discography Project

   
Artist Discographies

ADA JONES: Edison Blue Amberol Cylinderography

ARTHUR FIELDS: Edison Blue Amberol Cylinderography

THE BILLY MURRAY ONLINE DISCOGRAPHY PROJECT

*JAMES REESE EUROPE & THE HELL FIGHTERS BAND: The Revised Discography

*MAMIE SMITH: The Revised Discography

*ORIGINAL DIXIELAND JAZZ BAND: The Revised Discography

* Adobe Acrobat Reader required

Photo Galleries

BROADWAY CANDID: The Stars Offstage (1915–20)

ENRICO CARUSO: The Bain News Service Photos (1918–21)*

INSIDE THE EARLY RECORDING STUDIOS

A BILLY MURRY ICONOGRAPHY: Rare Ads, Photos, and Memorabilia (1902–53)

BILLY MURRAY AT HOME: The Bain News Service Photos (1919–20)*

ADA JONES AT HOME: The Bain News Service Photos*

ARTHUR FIELDS AT WORK AND PLAY: The Bain News Service Photos (1919)*

IRVING KAUFMAN AT HOME: The Bain News Service Photos (c. 1919)*

VERNON DALHART AT HOME: The Bain News Service Photos (c. 1919–20)*

PIONEER STUDIO STARS AT WORK AND PLAY

* Courtesy of the Library of Congress (G. G. Bain Collection)

Phonographs and Audio Equipment

PLAYING CYLINDERS ELECTRICALLY: The Archeophone and the ACT Reproducer
There's amazing sound in your cylinders, and these two devices can help you recover it.

BEWARE OF THE CRAP-O-PHONE!
They're counterfeit, they're junk, and they're everywhere — from eBay (especially eBay!) to upscale antique shops and mail-order catalogs. Hold onto your wallets until you've read our exposé of these truly crappy 78 record players.