Electradisk Records

[Cody K]

I got hold of a short dozen of records sporting the Electradisk label recently. I didn't think much of them at first; the label design seemed to be later than it actually is (1932-34, if I've got it right), and I thought they'd contain hardcore swing, which isn't what I look for. There isn't a great deal of information online about these, but I've gleaned this: along with Timely Tunes and Bluebird (the most successful of the three labels, persisting until the early '40s), Electradisk was Victor's attempt to shore up sagging depression-era sales by entering into the three-for-a- dollar market. Electradisk was the brand associated with Woolworth stores. The first titles were introduced on eight-inch discs in 1932, then came back after a brief hiatus as ten-inch discs.

I didn't recognize the names of the recording artists: Sid Peltyn? Neva hoid of 'im. Turns out it's Gene Kardos, and here he is as Sid in a YouTube video (not mine) with a snappy tune, my favorite among the bunch I got, actually:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QL6jv-N8Ks

Another one I like is a duplication of Mae West's Brunswick release (6675), I Found a New Way to Go to Town b/w I'm No Angel, this time sung by Vera Van http://www.mar-ken.org/biossz/vanv.html -- who was no Mae West. But still. She only wanted to be loved, and to walk around in her underwear, singing, and she was surely charming enough for starletdom, or Electradisk. (I can't find a copy of her West tunes online so this will have to do):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9aKOtlKhIo

So anyway, this label, with its pseudonymous artists, isn't too common, I guess. Looking on eBay, I was surprised when this record

was sold by Mr. Solarski (whose photo this is) for something around thirty dollars. But apparently, they typically go in that range: http://collectorsfrenzy.com/search?q=el ... ch-button=

I get the feeling that pseudonyms were common on this label, and I wonder if anyone knows of a resource that sorts out who is actually whom on Electradisk? It seems complicated. One source (lost track of it, unforch) says that the Tom Berwick Orchestra also recorded as Sid Peltyn, for example. So I'm curious to know what other collectors know about Electradisk. Who, for example, were the "Old Glory Band", and what makes those marches a desirable record?

[victorIIvictor]

Hello, Cody, you wrote, "Timely Tunes and Bluebird (the most successful of the three labels, persisting until the early '40s), Electradisk was Victor's attempt to shore up sagging depression-era sales by entering into the three-for-a- dollar market."

RCA also issued its Sunrise label at this time, not to be confused with the Grey Gull subsidiary label of the late 1920s.

RCA issued Bluebird records through 1945-46 (depending on the series), and revived it in 1949 as "RCA Victor Bluebird Series," (but without an image of the actual bird) into the 1950s, on inexpensive album sets for adults, on children's records, and even LPs. Bluebird lasted even longer in Canada, where C&W sides had the Bluebird Series label and different catalogue numbers than their USA counterparts at least until 1951. I don't believe Bluebirds were made for countries other than USA and Canada.

You also wrote, "Electradisk was the brand associated with Woolworth stores. The first titles were introduced on eight-inch discs in 1932, then came back after a brief hiatus as ten-inch discs."

IIRC, it was Bluebird that was the brand associated with Woolworth stores. Here are some notes that David Diehl, the creator of The Blue Pages, an online discography of "party records," posted on 78L some years ago:

"The 1800 series Bluebirds [the 8 inch discs with the dark blue on royal blue labels] are very rare because they were a market test. They were only sold at ten Woolworth locations in and around New York City [in 1933, the worst year of the depression, no less].
"AFAIK they were all recorded at regular Victor sessions, though there is probably reduced instrumentation on the Bluebird cuts.
"Bluebird recording logs and budget were kept separate from regular Victor operations. Eli Oberstein [later of US Record Corporation, Wright Record Corporation, Record Corporation of America, etc.] was in charge from the label's inception and once stated that the whole operation had a budget of only $30K."

The 8 inch version of Electradisk is similarly rare for the same reason; I just don't think it was test marketed at Woolworth's, but I may be mistaken.

You wrote, "So anyway, this label, with its pseudonymous artists, isn't too common, I guess."

No, it is quite rare. I haven't turned one up in 30 years of collecting on the USA's West Coast, nor have I turned up any of its sisters (including the very early Bluebird). Bluebird, as we know, took flight, but I wonder if its sister labels ever got beyond the "market test in New York City" stage.

Finally, you ask, "I wonder if anyone knows of a resource that sorts out who is actually whom on Electradisk?"

You could purchase, or see if your library has,

http://www.mainspringpress.com/book_pseudos.html

Occasionally, the publisher sells slightly damaged but new copies of his books on eBay at reduced prices; he had the pseudonyms book for sale up just a week or so ago. Check here from time to time:

http://www.ebay.com/usr/mspbooks

Best wishes, Mark

[Cody K]

Mark, thanks so much for filling in some of the holes in my post, including your reminder about the Sunrise label, and correcting my misimpression that Bluebird's production ended earlier than it did.

I'll have to do some further digging regarding which labels were associated with which stores. I do think, though, that these labels made it out of the New York test market and into, at least, the Northeast. I've seen them from time to time in boxes at flea markets, yard sales and so on. But until I got the ones I acquired accidentally recently with a machine, I never paid them any mind (apart from Bluebird) because I'd thought they were issued later than the period I'm interested in, which is pre-1935 or so.

Thanks especially for the suggestion of the Allan Sutton book, which looks very interesting even beyond my questions about this particular label. I'll check the library for it today. I doubt if it's at the local branch, but I'm sure they can get it through the library network.

[victorIIvictor]

You are welcome, Cody, and I'm glad you found it helpful. Your reply jogged my memory about this website,

http://www.78rpm.net.nz/78s/storeslabels.htm

… headed "78 RPM record labels associated with chain stores, mail order companies, and the like." I post it because I think it is a handy free reference and several well-known discographers contributed to it (although the list doesn't say who contributed what), although checking with any more up-to-date references with sources is always a good idea.

Unfortunately, none of the labels we are discussing are listed, darn it! http://forum.talkingmachine.info/postin ... =3&t=23461# However, that fact lends weight to your contention that these RCA low-priced labels were not limited to sale in particular stores for very long (and maybe only the 8 inch issues at that).

Best wishes, Mark

[Cody K]

Mark, my digging around turns up the following regarding the Woolworth's connection: https://books.google.com/books?id=pSvHK ... ds&f=false

Most other sources I've found online trace back to the Wikipedia entry on Bluebird, which, being Wikipedia, is without author attribution: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bluebird_Records

Though it's interesting in terms of Electradisk's history, whether or not it was associated with Woolworth's is kind of just a quibble that will probably be resolved by Allan Sutton's book. I'm looking forward to getting my hands on it. Thanks again for pointing it out.

Thanks, too, for the link to the store labels data. That's a great, concise resource that I'm bookmarking for future reference.

What was second link in your last post? Clicking it sends me to the log-in page here at the forum.

The Electradisk pseudonym mysteries seem to be a real rabbit hole. I ran across something tonight that seemed to refer to an Electradisk release by an orchestra whose name I didn't recognize as being actually by Sid Peltyn -- who, from anything I've found so far, is also a fictitious name. Again, I'm eager to see the Sutton book, which I hope will help sort this stuff out.



Best,
Cody

[victorIIvictor]

> Mark, my digging around turns up the following regarding the Woolworth's connection: https://books.google.com/books?id=pSvHK ... ds&f=false

Well, I'm not going to argue with Tony Russell, though I do wonder why RCA chose to test market 2 labels featuring the exact same material(same couplings, too, I think) in the same store. Maybe Bluebird was test marketed in 10 Woolworth stores, and Electradisk was test marketed in 10 different Woolworth stores. Or maybe one of the sources is mistaken (thanks for telling me yours!) I have the print copy of Russell's book as well as Sutton's "American Record Labels…" Neither is at hand, unfortunately.

> What was second link in your last post?

I thought I could drag and drop an alternate smiley to the one I know how to use. Clearly I don't know what I'm doing.

Best wishes, Mark

[Cody K]

Hmmm...so, according to Sherman's book (which your mention in the other thread reminded me that I have), "In August 1932...RCA Victor introduced the Bluebird label. Releases in 1932 and early 1933 were numbered in an 1800 series and sold through Woolworth's. [...] This initial issue was drawn from RCA Victor's short-lived 8" Electradisk label that was also being distributed through Woolworth stores." [...] "Electradisk was released in the summer of 1932 in an 8" size; larger 10" records followed and were sold in Woolworth stores through the end of 1933." (p. 158, 2010 edition)

So while there's no evidence of how the distribution scheme was worked out, it does look like both Bluebird and Electradisk were marketed through Woolworth's. Possibly they were just trying to establish which label design caught the public's attention more than the other?

[victorIIvictor]

Right you are! Now, why didn't **I** think of looking up this topic in Sherman?

[Cody K]

Heh. The internet's so seductive that I now think of using it to find information far more often than it occurs to me to grab a book -- and then I even forget that I have the book nearby! It's the age we live in...

Best --
Cody