The Mystery Box and Blue American records

Well, what a week it's been! 

Hot damn this has been quite a week for records on my end. Whew!

This last Thursday, I took a trip over to my favorite antique store, thinking there may be something there, as I hadn't gone in about a month. I usually like to go to this place once a month or more if there are interesting lots of things to pick through. Never could I have anticipated the sort of things I'd be picking up that day...

This place I go to is one that I have frequented rather often for the last 6 months or so, grabbing piles of records and other old things of interest. I have gotten a ridiculously good stash of records overall from this place, but of course the only records I was getting, or ever saw from this place were disc records. I was just grabbing all the records, asking no questions and remaining modest and quiet when digging and later buying them. Since I've been going so often to this place, the proprietors have become familiar with the the sort of old things I'm looking for. 

After 6 months of stacking up the disc records from this place, with all colors and rarities of the phonographic rainbow, I finally asked the owner if there were any cylindrical records. The moment he told me there were some stashed up in the house(away from the customers poking around), he made me wait a little while. He had to go drop something off for one of the local customers, but with the promise he made, I was so anxious it was hard to maintain my antique store poker face. I waited about 20 minutes poking around mindlessly, as this was after I combed through all the usual spots here. When he came back, he went upstairs to grab a box of cylinders. 

I still was able to keep my cool as I opened the box and saw a few curious French brown waxes that weren't Pathé's. I inspected those thoroughly, and was interested, but of course I had no idea of their value, but I planned to buy them anyway. 

As I kept digging in this box, there were layers of records stacked on one another. There was a curious old looking case right under these French rarities, it looked to be from the 1890's. I was still keeping my poker face pretty constantly at this point, but it broke in a snap when I opened that old box. 

When I saw what was inside I just about screamed, I threw my hands up and nearly tore the 110 year old sleeves on my coat. 

That's what was inside. 

All brown wax, and only one of them was so moldy it can barely be saved. Unfortunately, as I started digging through all the slips and inspecting each record, a percentage of them were broken. But! despite that, I became passionately determined to take them all. That includes every last shard and piece of brown wax I could find. All the old slips were scattered around in the box and I kept looking over those to get some sort of idea of what was in this box. There were some interesting titles there. All the titles were handwritten in pen, in an almost familiar Spencerian script. The most tantalizing slip I saw in the batch was this one here: 

Yep, that's definitely a good sign. 

A brown wax with that title could either have been and original Hunting or a later Jim White take. That writing looks familiar doesn't it?

When I finally got through the box, I took 7 of them home with me after paying the owner. I was too afraid to grab them all at once, as I had a long and somewhat bumpy ride back home. 

I wasn't originally going to do anything the following day, but I became so bubbly over what sort of titles were in the first batch of 7. So the next day I got up early and got over to the place earlier than usual, to grab the rest of the old box of records and go. I spent no extra time this go around, the records needed to get home to be played and correctly identified. Don't get too worried, I only played the announcements and maybe a little more to get what they were and stored them back in their cozy 1890's box. Every one of these beauties was covered in dust, but under the dust, there's no mold or anything, just flawless recordings all from a very specific period of time. 

So after I finally spent several hours trying to get all of these correctly paired with the matching old slips, I got more into the strange circumstances of this almost flawless box of brown wax. 

So here are a few interesting things about this box:

-They are all Columbia's

-All from 1895-1899

-All the slips are written in pen

-there are two of each artist(almost)

-there's a lot of Len Spencer related selections

-no mold anywhere

-all the same shade of brown wax

-there's quite a variety of selections, from sacred to hot rag-time

-all the titles on the slips are abbreviated like Columbia studio slips I've seen

This box was carefully put together. Someone had quite varied tastes in records. These records were originally sold by Allen Koenigsberg, probably over a decade ago to this collector in Berkeley. The collector's name was on lots items I had previously picked up from this place, so without a doubt these brown wax beauties belonged to him at some point. 

Funny accompanying story, when I bought that batch of Berliners and Zon-O-Phone's from this place, I noticed that most of them were kept in distinct yellow sleeves from Kurt Nauck. With that, I contacted Mr. Nauck about these records, and he promptly told me to whom he sold the records. This collector in Berkeley died a few years ago, so it seems that all of these extremely valuable records were dropped off at this antique store I frequent. 

So the fact that these brown waxes came from Koenigsberg would make sense, since they are so outstanding and prime examples of mid-1890's recordings. 

So all of this is great without a doubt, but what was in the mystery box? I spent hours attempting to grab all the titles on these records, and match the slips with the proper record, as they seemed to have been scattered when I found them. At the current time I still have not gotten all the slips to match every single record, as I do not have a very good phonograph to present them in a decent fashion. I have only an 1898 Columbia Q that is definitely not a high quality machine, but I can play brown wax on it safely. So do not expect any transfers from me soon...
The first one I was anxious to play when I got home was of course the "Casey" sketch. That record was far more intriguing and valuable than I could have ever expected. Hunting's records alone are very rare, especially the brown waxes he made. But one thing is for sure, his pre-1897 cylinders are the most desirable of them. Well it turns out that this one in the mystery box was one of them. This cylinder was recorded probably in late-1895 or early 1896, before he got arrested with Charlie Carson for the smut cylinder scandal. It's got that same pristine sound quality as the few Original Hunting's that are online, such as this one:
https://ia802308.us.archive.org/4/items/RussellHunting/RussellHunting-CaseyattheTelephone.mp3
Now think about this, the record I got was recorded right there with Hunting. It was made under his own supervision, it was in the recording room with him, and he recorded directly onto that surface that I can now hold and handle. 

This is exactly why brown wax is so intriguing in a way that no other recordings are. If the record is old enough, it was likely recorded directly on by the recording star who's on it. The record witnessed the musicians and performers in person, and depending on the performer may have been handled by that very performer. This adds a level of personal touch that later records from this time just don't have. This is exactly why this Hunting record in the mystery box is so valuable to me in particular. 

There were several records by Len Spencer in this box. There were as follows:
"What Shall the Harvest Be" from 1896-97
"My Gal is a High Born Lady" with Ossman, 1897
"Crappy Dan" with Ossman, 1897
"-----Honey Boy" with Hylands 1898(I couldn't get the title of this one very well but it's likely something called "Lucinda Does you Love yer Honey Boy?")
Of course since these records are all Columbia's from around the same time, as to be expected, there are quite a few of them with Len Spencer announcements, which is perfectly fine for me!

There were two standout Edward M. Favor records in this box. Usually the Edward Favor records that collectors have are his Zon-O-Phone's from 1900-1903, and his Edison records from the late-1900's. But I assure you these two Favor's were the rarest and most desirable of all the kinds he made. Both of these Favor records are from 1896. They both had that distinct "...of New York City" announcement(as 80 per cent or so of these records have) and that beautiful clear piano accompaniment that was on those Columbia's he made in 1896. The two records sound exactly like this record here:
http://cylinders.library.ucsb.edu/search.php?queryType=@attr+1=1020&num=1&start=1&query=cylinder11859
Same pianist, same recording room, and overall beautiful quality. 
The titles unfortunately I could not make out just yet, and they are hard to match with the remaining slips. 
There was a Gaskin, Steve Porter, and a surprisingly clear Will F. Denny record. 
The Gaskin is a really pretty love song titled "Answer", with that pristine mid-1890's Columbia recording quality. The Steve Porter is an unusual one titled "She Lives on the Same Street with Me". The Denny is a very distinctly early 1897 Columbia titled "Then and Now". 
There were two Clarinet solos by William Tuson which really got me excited! I have a lot of love for those Issler soloists, as they were fantastic musicians that really stood out from the rest of the musicians in the orchestras. 
The two Tuson's were "Southern Plantation Echoes" from 1897 and "Old Black Joe" from 1897-98. Both of these records are online, but the ones I got in the mystery box are definitely different takes. There are some distinct differences between my takes and the ones I've heard online, which is great! To give you an idea, here are the two Columbia takes of these online:
"Old Black Joe"
"Southern Plantation Echoes"
My take of "Southern plantation echoes" is the longest one of the takes I've heard. It hovers right around the three minute mark and there's another chorus of the Tapioca played at the end. The clarinet and piano also alternate playing the Tapioca toward the end which is a really nice added touch. This take also sounds really nice, even on my crappy cheap old Columbia. 
There were a few Columbia orchestra records in the box too, such as an 1897 take of "Ecstasy Waltz"(with a cornet solo by Tom Clark!), and a curious recording of an unnamed "lanciers". 
There was also a super nice early 1897 take of "Stars and Stripes forever" by Sousa's Band, which added a nice touch to all the obscurities in the box. 
I know I'm missing a few to describe here, but I really want to get to the next part of this post. I will do another post once I know what everything is and when I know I can get decent electric transfers of them. I have already been given and offer to get them transferred!





All-right then!

Yesterday I had a serious aha! moment. Amid a moment of thoughtless listening(this is usually how is goes...), I realized something big. 
Many collectors try to grab those Blue American records when they can, as they're very attractive records that stand out from all others in pre-1910 recordings. I have quite a stack of them myself, this hot one included:

I am always amazed at their beauty. 
(in case you're wondering, this curious record is basically like one of Spencer's brown waxes with Hylands but half a decade later!)
Last night I went back and listened to the handful of American records that are online, and was reminded of how hot and tight their house orchestra was. Their orchestra was called the regimental band of the republic, which is quite a generic name for a studio ensemble. No one really knows who they were, as this company was shrouded in secrecy, but for good reason. They were started by a few sketchy Edison employees in 1904, but somehow these sketchy Edison workers managed to create the best sounding records of the era. Their records boom in ways that others just didn't! And how their orchestra did just that, and more!
so as many have been long wondering, who was the regimental band of the republic? Well, you know what, I may have come to a possible answer. 
That orchestra was just absolutely outstanding to all the other studio groups, with familiar sounding musicians. Who do they sound like the most?

Hager. 

Of course! It made so much sense once I started thinking through ways that could prove this idea. Before I go forth with the explanation, here are a few of their records:
Perhaps the hottest ever, "a Southern Belle(Cake-walk)"

"Cocoanut Dance"(written 1891)

"Princess Pocahontas"(buck dance)

Hager's own "Handsome Harry"

"1863 medley"

So why would it make sense that Hager could have led this this orchestra? They recorded "Handsome Harry" to start, which is Hager's piece from 1904. Of all the record insiders Hager would make the most sense in terms of having his hand in this mysterious and dreaded record company. Hager was part of the Climax scramble in 1901-1902, as he was working for Columbia-Climax-Zonophone when the tensions were boiling hot, but he was taking his orchestra to the more reliable and better quality Climax and Zon-O-Phone instead of Columbia. He managed to escape the battles over patents and record talent unscathed, but he gained ever more knowledge of the recording ropes and where the best fortune would be. With this heightened knowledge, Hager would have seen the great opportunities that American possessed. 
The sound of the orchestra on American nearly mirrors Hager's Zon-O-Phone orchestra from the same time period. This frame of 1904-1907 is also when Hager was working the most overall, so maybe this American notion went into his crowded work schedule. 
Also, I may add that the "1863 Medley" listed above sounds like many of hager's arrangements that were written down and the ones that were played at Zon-O-Phone around the same time. By this I'm meaning a tune of his like this one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrdarM0xKgs
Indeed so. 

Now all of this is very tantalizing indeed, but it's just a possibility. No one really knows what was the deal with those American records, and another thing that particularly intrigues collectors of them is that orchestra announcer. That announcer was always so unenthusiastic and not theatrical about the announcements. It's a very familiar voice though, very recognizable to those who own some of these American records. That announcer very well could be someone in the band. But think about who would be right there with no instrument to keep his mouth shut...



Anyway, I think I'll end it here. I really want to do another blog post this week but I'll be traveling for a week, back this following Tuesday. When I return however, I will be giving a lecture on Hager! Let's hope that turns out all-right, there's quite a lot to cover with his long story...

Hope you enjoyed this!

A Quest

I really do apologise for not writing blog posts frequently...

Using Facebook has consumed much of my time, as it tends to do...
While out on hiatus, I went out to the UC Santa Barbara recorded sound archive, which was an eyeopener! if you know anyone in association with the archive, I would highly recommend going there to dig through cylinders and 78's, and everything else they've got stored there. I really should share a few pictures from the tour! Thanks to knowing people there, I got a full tour of the place, which was endlessly interesting...
It began with a Bell and Tainter machine...

 What a nice picture of that seal!

The inside bits, with a date indicating c.1893 as the date on this scarce machine.
What an amazing way to start!
I got to see the Zon-O-Phone project in process as we began our tour, with a guy taking those high quality pictures of the labels that can be seen on the LOC  website, such as the one below!

This guy was taking those fancy pictures of Zon-O-Phone records right before our eyes! He was taking a picture of a few Zon-O-Phone orchestra records as I recall. For those of you wondering about the Zon-O-Phone project, it's going strong, and making progress every day. 
We then were taken to where the good stuff was---the cylinders! 

Oh yes, that's what it looked like. It's heaven for sure.
Where do we start? it was hard to make decisions of what I wanted to see, since pretty much half the records I've listened to for the past 6 years have been from this very place. The kind young man giving us the tour was really into the Pathe cylinders, so he showed us where most of those are kept, and he was also really into the newly transferred Mexican and Cuban cylinders they recently acquired. 

There are some of those Pathe Concert cylinders. Most of them have the original boxes and record slips, which is really nice.

The guy who was supposed to give us the tour was out of town, so one of his skilled young assistants did the tour, that's why there wasn't as much Columbia digging as there usually would be(that would have kept me there all day...). We soon got to some Columbia's! Of course we did. That's the good stuff.

Since i had for years hear Myers sing "The Bell Buoy", I asked to go see it and hold it. 

What a life-changing little thing! I had never seen or held a North American before. It felt less fragile than the usual brown waxes we usually see and hold. It felt sturdy and ready to be played. A feeling that doesn't usually come when holding brown wax. 

That beautiful, but empty channel rim.

Couldn't believe I was holding that in my hands. It's in beautiful shape for its age, but it looks just as great as it sounds.

You can hear it here: https://archive.org/details/BellBuoyMyersNorthAmerican

Absolutely beautiful, especially after holding it. 

The cylinder was also much darker than I thought North American's were. They could easily be mistaken for Columbia records from c.1902, if you didn't notice the channel rim. 

Later I also spotted a few Len Spencer cylinders...(knowing the Columbia block for him helps...)

You can hear this here:

http://cylinders.library.ucsb.edu/search.php?queryType=@attr+1=1020&num=1&start=1&query=cylinder15435

This one looks how it sounds for sure.

I also requested to hold that infamous cylinder "Will O' The Wisp" by Myers, just to see if it's worth getting transferred...

and how it is!

It's in gorgeous condition, and fully worth getting transferred! Hopefully the tale of Hylands playing this piece till he dropped is fully demonstrated with this cylinder. I had assumed it would he the same shade of brown as "Little Yaller Coon" by Spencer, but it's comparable to the North American's shade, which was unexpected. There were also some newly acquired editions of Hobbies written by Jim Walsh, but they were poorly patched together and not in good shape in the first place(they were rather brittle and yellowing). Those were interesting, since I had never seen these famous articles in their entirety, nor had I held any of them in my hands. That was some thing there it was...

That was all nice, with record catalogs we dug through, saw some piano rolls, piles of disc records, record encyclopedias, and miscellaneous stuff related to records stacked in shelves and we saw the boss' office! Mr. Seubert's office was especially nice, with some of the most interesting books about records and recording, and a few machines on shelves and scattered catalogs. 

Enough of that...since it's certain I will be visiting again very soon...

Now for the main reason of this post, referring to the title listed above.

This "mission" is something I've been piecing together for a while now, and it's beginning to take form now. In just over a year from now, I will be trekking to the Eastern U. S. to tour the North East to write a book. This book will be a journal of my travels in historical documentation, which will include tracking down and visiting all of the studio locations, recording artists' homes, publishing firms, theaters, and anything else related of interest. On this quest, I will go all of these places and write a day-to-day journal of thoughts and connections, as well as documentation of where and if things are still in place. 

Among these places that I will visit will include the following:

1155 Broadway(Columbia), 33 W. 27th street, most of E. 14th street(where all the theaters were and where musicians lived), where Frank P. Banta lived, stroll down 28th street(Tin Pan Alley), Columbia's headquarters in Washington DC, Sousa's house in DC, The site of the Berliner studio in DC, the street corner where Gaisberg indicated he discovered George Graham, where the Spencer Business college was in DC, find where John Yorke AtLee lived in DC, find all the famous theaters where the big early Broadway shows premiered, visit the Edison recording studio address in NYC(on 5th avenue), visit the very house that Russell Hunting and Charlie Carson lived and were arrested in(!), find where Vess Ossman lived,  Spencer's Lyceum, visit all the places where Hylands lived in New York, go to where this picture was taken:

(and maybe even get a few rag-time friends to pose similarly here if this place is still there somewhere...)

Of course, I intend to do some of this journey with my good friends on the East coast, like Charlie, who almost every day walks by some of these historic places. I will go inside all of these places(the ones that are left...) and dig around for any remnants of the history that happened there. I'd be especially curious about what might be hidden in the house Russell Hunting was arrested in. That could be very interesting and fruitful all the same, since he had to have hid things in that house somewhere... This also goes for the places where Hylands lived, since he was very unorganized it seems, he may have left some stuff occasionally while moving. The boardinghouse he lived in around 1910 would also be curious, since that was a house full of actors. Finding all of these places where the recording stars lived will be a chore...since I know where only a few of them lived at a certain point while they were recording. Certainly I will visit the fabled Dyker Heights where Spencer and Porter lived so highly around 1899 and 1900. I'll find all the musicians too, Issler, Schweinfest, Tuson, Dana, Hager, Geib(he played tuba for Edison early on), Banta, Chris. Booth, Arthur Pryor, Albert Benzler, Gaisberg, etc. The recording stars homes will remain a priority, because as soon as I get to the east coast, I ought to track down as many addresses as I can and notify them that I will be doing all of this "snooping" around if you will, for historical research. Luckily their addresses(some of them) are scattered around in recording magazines and theatrical papers. After getting the home addresses, I will start with the recording studios, and luckily, this will mean passing by Columbia at 27th and Broadway many times ,which is perfect for writing often about the amount of historic things that occurred there in such a short period of time. Many entries will refer to the Columbia studio, as well as the Edison studio(in NYC), and it helps that both of these places are on the way to other places of interest. I will also make many commutes that the recording stars once made, such as Gaskin, Spener(wherever he lived from 1897-1900...), Porter, Banta, Hylands(of course), Roger Harding, Issler(to where the U.S. Company was, and to Columbia), Schweinfest, Tuson, and the rest of the studio musicians we can track down. Of course, this quest wouldn't be complete without visiting the graves of everyone! 

I already visited and cleaned up Vess Ossman's grave, so one down... a whole lot more to go. I got to go find everyone on the east coast(if they didn't end up anywhere else). Luckily, Victor Emerson didn't end up there, he ended up not too far from me actually, in the valley of California..(what a coincidence). Unfortunately, one of my favourites to visit, Fred Hager, is in Florida, and there's no way I'm going to Florida just for that. 

As much as I love you Hager, you're in an awfully inconvenient place for me to visit so soon. Sometime along the line when I'm in Florida I will go pay a visit to him with a huge bundle of blood red roses tied in old silk with a bow, and a lot of kind sweet words to say for him. 

Also, when I go an do the grave visiting, I will have bundles of specific flowers to place on them. For Banta of course, will be a bunch of pretty violets. For Hylands, a few pink carnations, sunflowers, yellow roses and a single blood red rose. For the rest of these performers, I will have to make a key to what certain flowers represent, and make sure to match what I feel about them and what they were like. Of course, there will be mixed messages in many of these bundles, like Hylands' I just listed. The pink carnations are more disdainful, sunflowers haughty and flamboyant, yellow roses for infidelity, and the red for passion and devotion. This will go on and on as I piece together the bundles for everyone...

Anyhow, that's all I got for now. I pretty much explained this quest fully. 

Hope you enjoyed this! 

Len Spencer's relationship with Johnson, and Pathe records

The subject addressed in the title of this post is something that is rather contradictory once digging into the matter. We know very well of Len Spencer's friendship with George W. Johnson, and somewhat how complicated and strange it was compared to other famous relationships between black and white. 

Around the time when Spencer looked like this is when he "discovered" Johnson's talent. Though, according to one newspaper source I read recently, it stated that George Gaskin first "discovered" Johnson's talent and recognised his potential, and this would have been in 1891, when he made his first batch of records for Edison. Gaskin may have seen Johnson's talent first, but what did he do about it? Just had him make records, and that was all. Gaskin didn't step nearly as far across the color line as Spencer did. Spencer hopped over that line many times when working with Johnson, more so than the other Columbia staff. Spencer's intentions with Johnson were immediately the same as Gaskin's, but in the long term, they seemed more like that of a friendship than just a talent scout for Johnson. Spencer soon became an advisor and kind source of help for Johnson's hard luck, such as his domestic woes. 

At the beginning of their friendship, Spencer helped Johnson along with earning a decent amount of money from the minstrel records that they made, paying him just as much as the other recording stars on the records. That amount cannot be traced, but the profits from these records were shared equally with everyone, including Johnson. Of course, their friendship had time to build from 1894 to 1898, and that's just what it did. By 1898. Spencer knew Johnson's mannerisms, habits, and mindset, all of which are still debated to-day, as the murder trial questioned Johnson's true innocence. Spencer's good side must have found Johnson's single lifestyle despicable, but didn't want to interfere with his personal affairs. His so-called "bad' side would have wanted to go out and drink or gamble with Johnson, and would have well accepted his ways, and wouldn't have minded the fact that he beat his common-law wife. (I am only using the two sides of Spencer here because of his contradicting ways that are perhaps exhibited in every section I've read on him). By the time he was first put on trial in 1898, Spencer must have become a little suspicious of Johnson's means, thought before that, he must have had some notion of this. 

Keep in mind that the shock that struck the Columbia staff in October 1899 wasn't exactly that Johnson did this, is was more of the fact that they had to manage the trial in the months ahead, and that they would have to gather a defense team. 

Of course, since it was Columbia mediating this defense team, there was seemingly no way that Johnson could be found guilty, considering Columbia's luck and status in court battles. Since Fred Hylands was so confident with himself and the publishing firm, he threw in Rollin Wooster, of which I don't need to explain for the thirtieth time. Since Spencer and Hylands were working together in the publishing firm, they had to work together in the defense, dodging every possible way they could to not have to testify before the jury. They didn't of course, none of Johnson's close friends did, which is strange, and a little frustrating to us record historians. If there was anyone who would have testified but didn't, that would have been Spencer. Hylands would have been good too, since he had a studio relationship with Johnson, though some of the positive things he would have said would be lies. Hylands would have had to scramble for things to say. That would have been funny, but very awkward for Columbia's "perfect" defense team. Spencer threw in money for the defense team, however much money out of $2,100 collected by Vic and Georgie Emerson. Remember that Hylands' publishing firm was distracting everyone at Columbia when word was spread about Johnson murdering his common-law wife. Spencer was determined to let this pass, as awful as a situation it was. 
Once it did, Hylands and Spencer were bitter toward one another; Hylands  almost broke, and Spencer left without a scratch. Johnson was still popular, and making records under Spencer's obliging, to earn him more money(though it seemed he was not being paid as much by this time as some sources state oddly enough). Spencer didn't let go of his relationship with Johnson, even after the horrid stress and strain of the trial. He calmed down, and began a new endeavor in 1904, a Lyceum(or a vaudeville theater of a sort). This new venture was a big step away from his recording career, and in a way kind of a middle finger to Hylands' leadership and musical directing skills(that's what he was doing by 1904 and 1905). Like everything that these recording stars began outside of their record companies, the Lyceum had problems when it got started, such as legal troubles, performers, and everything else that goes into herding the cats that are stage performers. It was in September 1904 that the papers reported a fight behind the curtain with Spencer, his fellow manager, and one of his performers. It was in the early days of the Lyceum that Spencer had Johnson as his doorman, all dressed up in a military costume to greet people at the door to the Crystal Theater(which was at Union Square!).  That would have been a really interesting, yet somewhat depressing thing to see if I had come up to that door. Spencer stated that he paid Johnson fairly for a little while, until he realised that doing that wasn't really a good idea(AND NO, IT'S NOT JUST BECAUSE HE WAS BLACK) because Johnson would be gone for a little while if he gave him too much money, since he would drink away all that money in that time. Spencer's good side was coming through with that matter, as he wanted his employees to be there when he needed them, but eventually, Spencer let Johnson go from his position. Though oddly enough, Spencer still allowed him to live at the Lyceum. Johnson lived under Spencer's "radar" so to speak until early 1914, when he was sent off to a hospital, only to die there the next day.

It took a few days for word of Johnson's death to reach Spencer, and some of the high management at the Lyceum. When it did, all of Spencer's guilt with Johnson was thrown right before him. This is clear from the accounts that survive describing Spencer when this news got to him. The regrets must have been overwhelming for him, probably completely setting aside the racial factors involved in their friendship. As it has been said before on this blog, Spencer would really be the one of these strange characters to write a book on, and this is just one of those many reasons why this is so. This entire tale of Johnson working with Spencer, or vice versa, gives a very different view than the traditionally taught history lessons of race relations in the nineteenth century. It's something that should at least be noted in books about black vaudeville and stage performance, since this is such a unique story compared to those of Williams and Walker, or the extraordinary James Reese Europe. 




Now to enter in a different subject, the Pathe record company. In the period of about 1908 to the early 1920's, Pathe was run by a familiar face of the earliest days of recording:

Yes indeed, my favourite of the earliest recording stars. 

Hunting's genius lasted far beyond his creation of the pantograph machine in 1892 and thousands of crass recordings in the mid-1890's. When he sailed off for Europe in late-1898, he was determined to start with a fresh slate, and become known to people who knew nothing of his past experiences. He was immediately liked in England, and around 1902, he trekked to France, where the Pathe Feres company was making cylinders, as well as the outpost for Columbia's Paris headquarters, where his old friend(manager more or less) Frank Dorian

was waiting for him. 
Once Hunting reacquainted with all of the old friends at the Paris outpost for Columbia, he decided to take up another neighboring company--Pathe. He was taken in to the community at the relatively small Pathe company rather quick, because they must have found his past in America an absolute riot, and he fit in very well with the progressive culture of the French city dwellers. By 1906, he was practically running Pathe, after helping out Steve Porter at Nicole in England and running much of the engineer work at Edison bell in 1903(that's why he announces many of the records made for them in 1902 and 1903). Pathe was really his project and main commitment. He began the idea of the center start records that many collectors run across in batches of early Pathe records, and promoted the idea of vertical cut records, since he must have heard about the patent battles that were going on back home at the main Columbia headquarters. He tried to avoid that as much as possible, and it certainly helped that he had the Atlantic Ocean to separate him from the old boys of the clan back home. By the early 1910's, he had decided to move Pathe's operation back to the U.S., and in 1914 sent back to the U.S. for the first time in 16 years. After being regaled with stories from the remaining clan members, probably including Len Spencer and Victor Emerson, he set up Pathe's operations in New York, and began anew for the hundredth time. His logic with making Pathe records was genius, and combined new with old technology, something that no one had done before. he had the original masters recorded on brown wax, with the old recording format he was accustomed to from the late-1890's.He used the setup that was have seen in a certain picture from his own The Phonoscope:

Yes, like that. 
This was the format he used for recording masters, with possibly a few alternate takes just for some variation of the records sold. The masters were then dubbed or pantographed somehow, and this means of copying is debated, since the transfers of the copies were so sharp and clear, like an original brown wax master, no one really knows what Hunting did. Whatever he did, he made Pathe records the best sounding recordings of the acoustic era, and I would be willing to argue that, because in the teen's, recordmaking became more of a business than an art form and process like it was in the 1890's. It was no longer experimental, so making records was a mass production business by the 1910's, and therefore meant a general drop in quality of recordings. Hunting refused to let Pathe become one of those companies. He did just what he loved to do, invent, and his method of listening to and playing Pathe records was wholly unique and ingenious. The idea of using a Sapphire ball instead of a needle to listen to the records made the records not only sound better, but were meant to last over a century. It seems Hunting was really the first one of these recording stars to have the notion that his records would be listened to generations after he was long gone. 

Think about that for a moment. At the back of his mind, he knew his voice would still be heard a century after the records were made. Now that's thinking ahead! Most of the early recording stars never thought of this, but Hunting not only knew it, but also wanted this to happen, which is absolutely amazing. 

He never ceases to amaze me. 

Really take some listens to your (pre-1920) Pathe records out there! Listen to them slower than 80 rpm, because recently I learned that the "played at 80 revolutions" on these Pathe records is actually just mush. You're especially in luck if you've got a Pathe machine! 






Before I end this post, I must set something straight about a picture I have used on this blog before. That picture of the supposed "Hylands" lady on one one of Fred Hylands' 1899 sheet music covers:

Well, that's not his wife Marie. 

That's originally who I had assumed this was, but actually, it's Fred's sister Etta! The only way that I caught this is from glancing back over the image of Fred's niece "Little Ethel":

She looks almost exactly like the lady on the Hylands music(and a whole lot like uncle Freddy) so it just had to be Etta. So as of now, we are still awaiting for the discovery of a picture of Fred's supposedly lovely wife Marie. 

Hope you enjoyed this! 

Character Studies--Russell Hunting(1864-1943)

"I don't give a @$%* about Comstock! I'll give 'em what they want to hear!"
That was Russ Hunting's logic when it came to his smut cylinders.

Russ Hunting was one of the more daring and crass of the early recording stars of the first full decade of recording. He really tried to get his message out that the "smut" he was recording was what his friends wanted to hear, and what the majority of the public wanted to hear. It was awful and it's hard on the ears to bare the language that Hunting used on his "smut" cylinders. It's all the cuss words we know, and he used them as a joke, and to get his points across. He made his records even more terrifying with the tones of voice and drama that he had mastered so well as a Shakespearean actor. His humor was very clever, even if the premise of many of these smut cylinders seemed wrong, the humor is genuinely funny, and very sophisticated. Hunting was truly the most forward-thinking of any of the early recording stars. His "Casey" sketches are a good example of his sense of humor, but his half a dozen surviving smut cylinders are really where his sense of humor lies. 


Hunting found the antics of his conservative friends foolish. He was always going in that direction that he was going in, and it seemed always as though it was a tangent from the others around him. Hunting went out and did many of the things that he described in his crass cylinders, so many of the scenes he set in these cylinders were actually things that he experienced. All the tales of wild men he told on these now lost cylinders, were just descriptions of his friends in the studios, and in the management of the few studios he worked for. He would never name them, "Len", "George", "Steve", or "Freddy", but he knew exactly who he was speaking of, even if his friends with these names hadn't a clue. All the friends of his found the "smut" cylinder idea a great thing as a joke for a little while, but that sense of esoteric records didn't last, as Hunting knew some phonograph parlor owners who were willing to buy dozens of his records. He was actually getting very good profits from these records that were only intended for him and his friends. It was a great idea, and all the parlor owners wanted more of them, and he was willing to do them favors. Hunting became a sort of Satan to the law by 1895, with all the Christian law authorities searching for him everywhere. They went to many parlors and destroyed the boxes filled with the brown cylinders Hunting made all his smut recordings on. He knew the law was after him, and he found it amusing that they were. He laughed at their strong beliefs in ridding of his "Radical cylinders", and his friends did for a short time. He continued to make more of these records, and gain even more profits from this. This all ended in early 1896, when he began to go out on the streets of Manhattan all bundled up and hidden, and he saw what Anthony Comstock's men were doing to his records, and to the parlor and saloon owners. He began to see how much the Christian authorities hated his records. In March of 1896, one of Comstock's men slyly came in disguise to Hunting's staying place at the time posing as a record buyer with kind intentions, but not long after he saw Hunting actually make one of these smut cylinders, he handcuffed him and grabbed hold of him, smashing the brown wax cylinder once he got Hunting on the ground. Hunting was a lost cause in the courts, and he lost the case inevitably, even if he claimed he was giving what the public really wanted, what the record companies wouldn't sell themselves. He thought he was doing them a favor. He stayed in prison for three months, thinking up some new ideas of what he could do to improve his reputation after he was let out. He was let out at the end of the summer of 1896, and he returned first to Steve Porter to start a film company. Hunting's intent was to make films illustrating the scenes in his "Casey" sketches, which was a great idea to start with, but it never came through and seemed to work. The film idea didn't work, but Hunting and Porter still kept interest in the film business, so this dual interest came together as one when Hunting began The Phonoscope. After that began in November of 1896, it was an instant success, and it got more people interested in the recording business, and into the exhibitions. Since Hunting ran hundreds of Columbia exhibitions, he saw the dramatic changes in attendance of these exhibitions. He remained in the United States for a few more years, earning great success all over the world, seemingly more than before the whole bust of 1896. In later-1898, he set off for England to start another career at the Edison-Bell phonograph company. He remained there for almost 20 years, making Pathe the best record company in all of Europe, and building up the Edison lines out in England. He came back to the US in 1915 to establish the Pathe Company in New York. That was a monumental success, and Pathe records were a hit in many ways. They were not only an interesting innovation in recording style, but also in sound quality. Hunting had somehow found out how ti make reverb on his records, which in that time was considered an alien type of thing, since the studios were so small. Hunting's Pathe studio was small, but he did something that made it sound just like a concert hall. This is really where he showed his genius side, was when he worked at Pathe, as he was also the man who decided to record the "Hell Fighters Band" after their return from the French Trenches. Hunting must have loved the idea of "Jass" that was emerging, so he was up on every trend that came around, even if he was thinking a few steps ahead usually. His love for drama and humor stayed with him for the entirety of his life, as he could be seen in the 1920's and 30's still doing some of his old "Casey" sketches, and also performing some Shakespeare here and there. He was a very fun and amiable man, short, slim, dark-haired, and had some comical-looking pointy ears that were a crowning feature about him. He never dressed frivolously, and wasn't one to over-compensate for anything by what he wore or what he said. He was a very honest man, who was willing to state the actual truth about anyone to their face, whether it be good or bad. He would use all sorts of slang and dirty words and phrases, which made his informal speech always interesting to listen to. He truly left a legacy that mustn't be forgotten. 

I hope you enjoyed this! 

Some Tales and Yarns of the old studios

As a collector and early recording nerd, I have been told many theories and tales about these early recording stars. Some are true, and some are unconfirmed. As expected from performer types, many ideas and yarns were "spoken a little too highly"(quoting Burt Shepard!). I oftentimes question some of the things that certain artists said when they were ever asked about their days in the recording studio. Just like any stories, some sound more realistic than others. This is why the book They All Played Ragtime is now being looked back on for its legitimacy on historical content. It is a wonderful and fascinating book, which gave unique perspectives on all the early Rag-Time and on the most popular stars of the era. The truths behind some of the tales are being considered by the most esoteric of Rag-Time researchers now. The Rag-Time stories are more varied and diverse than the studio stories, and that can be expected, as the Rag-Time stories are more like stage tragedies. The studio stories are a mix of comedic tales, and legal troubles. 

Here are a few stories of both categories:

-Edward Easton, founder of Columbia, was in so deep of a depression that he stepped on some railroad tracks to attempt suicide. This was back in 1908, and luckily, a man close by caught him by the collar just in time before the train whacked him. 

-Fred Hylands' sister Etta had several children(from several marriages!), and created a vaudeville act with her kids in the 1900's and the early teen's. She played piano, while her girls sang popular songs. Etta was also an overall Vaudevillian like Fred, but she wasn't as funny, said the critics! Etta was even contracted for the White Rats actor's union in 1911(ha! Under Fred's obliging of course!). 

-Ada Jones remembered one specific thing about Len Spencer, other than having to stand on a box next to him when they made records, she remembered a scar on the side of his face. He told her that it came from a terribly foolish knife fight in his youth. You might be able to see it here:

(right under his lower lip next to the center of his chin, very hard to see, but I can notice it slightly)

-Russell Hunting's legal trouble of the mid-1890's earned him respect and honor for his bravery in going against the rules of obscenity. 

-Vess Ossman's temper was so short and fiery, that any singer or accompanist who was in the room with him when he broke a banjo string was in terrible luck, and was constantly frightened that he might get angry about any little thing. He wouldn't beat his accompanist, be he could get almost too close to doing it. He wanted things done his way---OR ELSE!

-Len Spencer and Fred Hylands got into some bets in the late 1890's. And one of those bets was to see if Len could get to that fad of the late-1890's which was the ancient Roman physique. Len was already very tall, hence being just over 200 pounds, he wanted to see if he could get enough muscle to get to Fred's over 250. Here is the evidence of this queer notion:

Publisher friends, what 'er ya goin ta do? According to his daughter Ethel, Len did indeed achieve that goal, and he got his money from Fred by the end of the summer of 1899. Nice way to waste some money Fred...

-Fred Hylands was regarded as one of the best accompanists of his time(no foolin!), was well liked by all the performer communities he got into, and hundreds were said to have attended his funeral. Similar to Frank P. Banta, but he was never mentioned in the best accompanists of the time, even though he should have been. 

-Arthur Collins:

Was in many failed troupes in the late-1880's, but after all that failure, he was set up as a minor character in Francis Wilson's shows, and later DeWolf Hopper's. While on Hopper's troupe, Collins was in his oriental burlesque Wang, and may have been in an early production of El Capitan.

-Len Spencer was connected with many composers and performers outside of the recording business, but one of the most odd ones is his possible connection with DeWolf Hopper. Len Spencer sang ALL of the vocal selections from El Capitan , even imitating Hopper very distinctly, word for word. In 1898, Hopper heard tell on this and came to Spencer once and told him what he thought of it. That they were finely made, and some other comments that have not been disclosed. Here is one of them(with Fred Hylands on piano!):

http://cylinders.library.ucsb.edu/mp3s/8000/8009/cusb-cyl8009d.mp3

Anything from El Capitan that isn't the main march is very rare to hear ever! 

-Silas Leachman was said to have wanted his days of making records to go completely forgotten. While he worked his long term at the Chicago Police department(from c. 1910 to 1936), whenever anyone spoke to him about making records years back, he would refuse to talk about it, and would act like that never happened. They all knew it was him though.

-Fred Hylands was a very popular stage manager and musical director, so one would ponder upon all the tight-legged girls and abbreviated dressed dames around him, such as Anna Held:

and Lillian Russell even

Did he ever allow his eyes to wander around, if you know what I mean...

I don't know personally, but I really do wonder. He did do this line of work until he died, so I will forever question this fact. I'm only saying this because Fred's wife went off and married another actor man two years after Fred croaked. It is Fred Hylands I'm talking about here, and thinking of what he was like, I'm unsure if any ladies(other than his wife, who didn't really get to be very flirtatious with him) would take an interest to him.

Hmm... ... 

-Russell Hunting kept his Shakespearean ways until he died, as he was said to still have done monologues in this style into his days after being Pathe's manager, which was the mid-1920's.

There are dozens more of these stories, and I may have repeated some from other posts, even if I really tried not to. 

I hope you enjoyed this!