The First Columbia Disc Recording

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oldphonographsteve
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The First Columbia Disc Recording

Post by oldphonographsteve »

Hello all!

I decided to transfer the rarest record in my collection today. It is the first disc recording by Columbia called "In the Clock Store." It is a Climax "broken ring" label pressing with a brass grommet on the label. Several years ago I had uploaded a video of it playing on a Grafonola, but now I have the equipment to do a proper transfer and equalize the sound accurately. Let me know what you think! :D

-Stephen
[youtubehd]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DQEoC3dN_U[/youtubehd]

EdiBrunsVic
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Re: The First Columbia Disc Recording

Post by EdiBrunsVic »

It was a great transfer. Thank you for sharing it. I am using the Victor version of the record this week at an elementary school near me as part of a special lesson using my VV-VI and the portable VV 2-55. The second graders like this selection.

bfinan11
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Re: The First Columbia Disc Recording

Post by bfinan11 »

Is that a 7" disc or did Climax/Columbia go straight to 10"? I've certainly never seen one in the wild...

Rastus10
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Re: The First Columbia Disc Recording

Post by Rastus10 »

Great job! It was a pleasure to listen to this nice early recording. I wish all my pre-1904-ish records sounded that good.

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oldphonographsteve
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Re: The First Columbia Disc Recording

Post by oldphonographsteve »

bfinan11 wrote:Is that a 7" disc or did Climax/Columbia go straight to 10"? I've certainly never seen one in the wild...
It is a 10 inch record. This is a slightly later pressing from 1902, and the broken ring climax label is hard to come by. In the dead wax area of the disc it says 1-1, which I take to mean the disc number and the take. Since Columbia started pressing discs in 1901 I think it's entirely possible that they were pressing 10 inch discs right from the beginning.

PS

I'm glad everyone enjoyed the transfer!

-Stephen

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Re: The First Columbia Disc Recording

Post by Pathe Logical »

Great record to have in your collection Stephen --- thanks for sharing Columbia's lowest-numbered, 10-inch record (bearing the black-with-silver print, broken-ring style label)!!!

I wonder if this record was initially released in the 10-inch format with the Burt Companies Globe Record Co., black-with-gold print, Climax label (the first-style, paper label used by GRCo in late 1901). As I understand it, your disc bears the second variety of the GRCo.s Climax paper label (from late 1901 to early 1902). Pictured below is the same record bearing the fifth-style, Columbia paper label (introduced late 1902 to early 1903).

Ref.: Note the Notes, An Illustrated History of the Columbia Record Label, 1901-1958; Sherman and Nauck

Thanks again,
Bob
Attachments
Columbia 10-inch disc, cataloged  No. 1, bearing the fifth paper-label style. Matrix Number 1-1 at 6:00 below label.
Columbia 10-inch disc, cataloged No. 1, bearing the fifth paper-label style. Matrix Number 1-1 at 6:00 below label.
Last edited by Pathe Logical on Fri May 19, 2017 1:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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oldphonographsteve
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Re: The First Columbia Disc Recording

Post by oldphonographsteve »

Pathé Logical wrote:Pictured below is the same record bearing the fifth-style, Columbia paper label (introduced late 1902 to early 1903).

Ref.: Note the Notes, An Illustrated History of the Columbia Record Label, 1901-1958; Sherman and Nauck

Thanks again,
Bob
Wow! It even has the same matrix number and everything, so this must be the same exact recording. Thanks for sharing. So is is this not Columbia's first disc recording? I know Columbia did some toy brown wax discs in the 1890's, but I'm not sure if that would count. I would suspect that this disc would have initially been on the gold and black Climax label, but perhaps it was even an etched label record, which came before the Climax label.

-Stephen

bfinan11
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Re: The First Columbia Disc Recording

Post by bfinan11 »

Brown-wax discs from the 1890s? That certainly counts for something. Where did you find out about those?

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Re: The First Columbia Disc Recording

Post by Phototone »

bfinan11 wrote:Brown-wax discs from the 1890s? That certainly counts for something. Where did you find out about those?
Along with their cylinder machines, Columbia made a childs phonograph that played vertical cut brown wax records, small about 3 or 4 inches in size. More of a novelty than anything else. Similar to the Stollwerk toy phonographs that played chocolate discs.

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Re: The First Columbia Disc Recording

Post by oldphonographsteve »

Phototone wrote:
bfinan11 wrote:Brown-wax discs from the 1890s? That certainly counts for something. Where did you find out about those?
Along with their cylinder machines, Columbia made a childs phonograph that played vertical cut brown wax records, small about 3 or 4 inches in size. More of a novelty than anything else. Similar to the Stollwerk toy phonographs that played chocolate discs.
Here is an image for reference.

-Stephen
Attachments
1128phx.jpg

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