OMG - Can this go much higher?

[Valecnik]

Richard, had the seller posted a link to your recording his might have even sold higher.

Nice recording but definitely the price is up tthere!

[Neophone]

Vocalion 14686-B is very possibly the earliest recording of "Charleston." It may not show up in many searches, as it's part of a medley and is titled "Old Fashioned Love" in the On-Line Discography. This record was recorded by the Ambassadors in September 1923, one month prior to Arthur Gibbs' Victor recording of "Charleston." Most recordings of the "Charleston" were made in 1925.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjWqea_nays



Rocky

Rocky,

That's the recording I was trying to think of when we spoke. I believe Old Fashioned Love was a Eubie Blake and/or James P. Johnson composition.


Regards,
John

[gramophoneshane]

Ive been watching this auction all week for this recording of the Savoy Orpheans playing their version of "The Charleston" on HMV.
OMG - can the bidding go any higher?!!!

I found this recording in a pile of about 25 records I bought at an antique shop a few months ago. I paid $8 for the pile - so that means I paid about 32 cents for the copy (and it is in very good condition). I don't know if $125 is too much or not, but given the significance of the song to the era, I guess $125 seems just fine to the buyer who got it. It certainly is a must have record though.

I have yet to even SEE a copy of this song by any band on any record, and this after 30+ years of collecting. Having said that, the price isn't $125, it's 122 British Pounds, which (I think) converts to around $300, but if I have to pay anywhere near a price like that I will happily live without ever owning this record.

I'm the same- after 30 yrs I haven't found "The Charleston" on any label at all.
I suspect if I did, the record would be in rather worn condition.
I have about 5 copies of "Black Bottom" on various labels, and only one copy is in good condition.
The rest have been played to death, I suspect by young flappers repeatedly playing the latest dance craze & dancing their A off
I'd imagine most copies of The Charleston would have succome to the same fate

[richardh]

Well this is the highest I have seen this record go for. The last highest (in E to E+ condition) was £100. As Shane said most copies have either been played to death or broken...but then in the scheme of things probably only one main run of pressings were done and then this version became old hat. So there were proably not that many floating around in the first place.

Then there was the drive to recycle old shellac during WW2, and then the flower pot craze of the 1950's and then finally the arrival of vinyl in the late 50's when people threw out most of their shellac collections in total. It's amazing any have survived!

When I did my original transfer I was playing about with a feature on the software I use that enables you to slow the music down whilst maintaining the original pitch (a curious but interesting feature) and the orchestration and rhythm on this recording when listened to slowly is surprisingly complex. I'll look and see if I can find the MP3 I made of it as it is interesting to listen to, and I'll post it here.

RJ

[richardh]

Here is the MP3 I made of the Charleston slowed down but with the pitch maintained. There are some digital effects as a result of the slowing but it does at least enable you to listen to the intracasies of the orchestration. Sounds a bit like the Golden Gate Orchestra version at this speed!

Its an interesting feature which if I do a transfer and decide the speed isn't quite right I can use this tool to tweak it - but just not to the extreeme that I have done on the sample below! I have also used it on some Louis Armstorng scat playing sections of music to hear the intracasies of what he was playing.

Charleston - slowed version

RJ