The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

You are welcome. Columbia changed from the "Magic Notes" label to the "Gold Band" label in 1916. It is important to note that at first, what became known as the "Gold Band" label actually had the word "Columbia" in gold, with no "band." Fairly quickly the word "Columbia" became the color of the underlying label, surrounded by a gold band.I have often wondered if this change was because of a lawsuit threat from Victor, which had recently redesigned its label to the familiar "batwing" style.

You can be sure that a standard like ""Near, my God, to Thee" stayed in the catalogue a long, long time.

Best wishes, Mark

Are there any double sided copies of Columbia A406 that has "The Arkansas Traveler" skit with announcing?The single sided number is 21,and I also wonder if it ever had announcing?edisonplayer

victorIIvictor wrote:You are welcome. Columbia changed from the "Magic Notes" label to the "Gold Band" label in 1916. It is important to note that at first, what became known as the "Gold Band" label actually had the word "Columbia" in gold, with no "band." Fairly quickly the word "Columbia" became the color of the underlying label,

Some of the early "no band" labels were black instead of blue.

Rastus10 wrote:Well, Columbia certainly used some of their matrices that ante-dated 1904 more generously than Victor.

Maybe that's been you're observation, and perfectly valid. Mine has been the opposite, I've found more plentiful Victors using old masters that can go back as far as 1902, than Columbia.

edisonplayer wrote:Are there any double sided copies of Columbia A406 that has "The Arkansas Traveler" skit with announcing?The single sided number is 21,and I also wonder if it ever had announcing?edisonplayer

Not according to the Master Books, which list only take 3 as announced. Take 3 was issued on Columbia 21, but so were take 2 (which may or may not have been announced… That Master Books don't say), as well as takes 12 & 13, which were not announced. Take 12 appears on Columbia A406, but also Harmony A406, Lakeside 70586, Marconi 0381, Oxford 21 (which was also issued with unannounced take one), and Silvertone 3256. Take 12 is the only take used on these client labels. As I said, Columbia had a strong incentive for using an unannounced take on these client labels.

There is an unnumbered take, issued on Climax and other client labels (but not Columbia), but the Master Books don't say whether or not it was announced.