The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I have heard this for decades, but I have over 800 storage albums my jazz collection is in, had them for ages, play the records a lot, and have never ever broken a record.

Yes, we collectors may tend to be more careful in these matters than the average consumer of that era LOL

Very true. And there are many types of collectables that are worth much more if they still have their original packaging or container!

I have heard this for decades, but I have over 800 storage albums my jazz collection is in, had them for ages, play the records a lot, and have never ever broken a record.[/quote]


And fortunately, I haven't broken a record stored in an album yet, either

Steven

And fortunately, I haven't broken a record stored in an album yet, either

Steven[/quote]

Me neither, but I received several albums in box lots with broken records, the typical half moon shape broken out. It also depends on the type of album, or better on the type of sleeve in the album. Some sleeves are glued in with (originally) some also glued together part that would allow for turning the pages. That glue often is gone, so records slide all the way towards the binding and then break when people who don't know better turn the pages. I recently got an album for free with mostly unremarkable records, but one near mint Okeh with Mamie Smith Crazy Blues. All records were good, except of course the Mamie Smith had a fresh half moon break. If did not cost me anything, but it broke my heart that such an early blues record in unusually good condition was damaged - probably shortly before they gave me the album. So yes, one can use albums safely if one knows how to use them and what to avoid.

Andreas

OMG Andreas the same thing happened to me a few years back. In the back room of a used record shop in LA I found an album with several early jazz and blues 78's that were broken in the same manner, including an otherwise clean copy of the same Mamie Smith you mentioned!
But fortunately there were two unbroken records in top condition: Bertha "Chippie" Hill on electric Vocalion 1264 Hard Time Blues/Some Cold Rainy Day, and Mamie Smith on Okeh 4253 Lovin Sam/Don't Care Blues. That was the best deal on blues records I ever got!

The Mamie Smith, incidentally, I listed for sale yesterday as part of a lot of 3 blues records in the Yankee Trader section LOL.

The Chippie Hill, however, I'm keeping

Steven

Not to derail the thread, but I think there's a fair number of Smith's Crazy Blues still floating around. It was good selling record (often cited as THE first authentic African-American blues record.) Which doesn't devalue finding one, but it's not like it was a mint Charley Patton.

Too true

Steven

Have never seen a Patti in the wild, very cool

Neither have I--none of the early "Patti" label pressings, at any rate. Occasionally, I've run across her records on a later Victor "patents" or even a bat-wing label. Although relatively uncommon, those later pressings aren't particularly valuable. Even first-issue pressings of most of the original "Melba", "Patti", and Tamagno titles, whether on G&T or Victor, while very collectable and nice to have, aren't terribly expensive, even in top condition.

On the other hand, an original G&T label pressing of Patti's recording of "La Calasera" would be a different story. Has anyone ever seen one? I read somewhere that either just before or after it was published, her husband vetoed it as being "too undignified" and it was immediately withdrawn. LOL

It was released much later in the 78 era as part of a collectors subscription series, then in recent years on Historic Masters in best possible sound on new vinyl copies pressed from the original metal parts. It's my favorite of her records.

Steven