Fred Gaisberg and side-kick William Sinkler Darby were sent from London to the Continent to make more recordings for the Gramophone Company in 1899. The new Gramophone technology was in great demand and the company was struggling to keep up with it. The company had established a new disc manufacturing plant in Hanover that wasContinue reading “Recording pianists, gypsies and tenors…in Leipzig, Budapest and Vienna”
Category Archives: HISTORY OF RECORDED MUSIC
Publicity photos of the early Gramophone stars #3: Florence Austral, Warrior Queen and proud Australian
This is the third in a series of publicity shots from the early years of the recording business that our friends at the EMI Archive Trust have made available to us. This photo is of Florence Austral who was an Australian soprano who lived between 1892 and 1968. She changed from her original name ofContinue reading “Publicity photos of the early Gramophone stars #3: Florence Austral, Warrior Queen and proud Australian”
The Gramophone “more than takes the place of a piano, banjo, mandolin or cornet”
The Gramophone Company struggled to keep up with demand during their first Christmas rush in 1898. By Christmas 1899 many of the supply chain problems had been fixed and gramophones and discs were pouring into the market. Even the company’s advertising looks established. Here is an advert from that busy season:
Recorded music sales are growing exponentially. Supply can’t keep up with demand….
….in 1898! We followed how the Gramophone Company and its German sister company had some significant teething problems with the production of discs during the first year of business in 1898. Whilst the English company was dependent upon its discs coming from Germany it had also agreed to source its gramophones from the American manufacturingContinue reading “Recorded music sales are growing exponentially. Supply can’t keep up with demand….”
I am the (very first UK) DJ. And I broadcast 87 years ago today.
It’s a far cry from the histrionics of Chris Evans, the authority of Brian Matthew or the intensity of Whispering Bob Harris, but on July 7, 1924, Britain’s first disc-jockey began broadcasting…..in a dinner jacket. As Wikipedia describes… Christopher Stone was educated at Eton College and served in the Royal Fusiliers. He became the LondonContinue reading “I am the (very first UK) DJ. And I broadcast 87 years ago today.”
Fete intervenes 54 years ago today. Lennon meets McCartney.
There are dates in pop history that we most likely all remember, Elvis’ death, Live Aid, Woodstock, but what about July 6, 1957? The late fifties – Cliff Richard was yet to emerge, Elvis was King, Bill Haley was still having hit records and Teddy Boys greased back their hair in the embryonic coffee bars.Continue reading “Fete intervenes 54 years ago today. Lennon meets McCartney.”
Fred Gaisberg’s first foreign recording trip..London to Leipzig
The Gramophone Company decided to step up their recording programme in 1899 by sending Fred Gaisberg to the continent to record local artists in several countries. He was to take the recently arrived William Sinkler Darby with him as his assistant. It was to be the first of many great adventures that the two wouldContinue reading “Fred Gaisberg’s first foreign recording trip..London to Leipzig”
Sounds as useful as a chocolate teapot? The long tradition of chocolate records.
We were sent a link to a contemporary Scottish group called Found who worked with a local baker to create a record made of chocolate. It was for their single Anti-climb Paint and you can watch a video of their experiment here. It seemed like a novel idea. But they were not the first…..this guyContinue reading “Sounds as useful as a chocolate teapot? The long tradition of chocolate records.”
No, its not Peter Sellers….it’s the man who recorded Rolling Stones, The Who & The Eagles
This is Dick Swettenham and, unlikely as it perhaps appears, he contributed to the sound of many of the greatest rock and pop recordings ever made. He also helped invent the recording equipment industry. Until the late 1960’s studios largely made their own core equipment; it was only in that decade that the number ofContinue reading “No, its not Peter Sellers….it’s the man who recorded Rolling Stones, The Who & The Eagles”
Memoirs of a Musical Dog – Edison to The Beatles
As part of their Omnibus series, The BBC made a documentary about the history of recording in the late 1980’s which was called Memoirs of a Musical Dog. It aired on Friday May 27, 1988. It’s very good and thanks to the power of youtube, you can see it here: Part One Early years ofContinue reading “Memoirs of a Musical Dog – Edison to The Beatles”
Sound Of The Hound 