Unusual Supertone Label?

[Shane]

I picked up three 78s today on a label I had never seen before. A google search isn't turning up anything either. They were in a stack with some Grey Gull records, and these seem to very strongly resemble a product made by the same manufacturer. Has anybody seen these before?

[EdiBrunsVic]

I have never seen these records, but according to The American Record Label Book by Brian Rust, the label history is complicated. A store in Chicago, Straus & Schram, sponsored the label in the 1920s. (Is this mentioned on the label in your records? It was hard to determine from the photos.) The book refers to black, gold, and white colors, the large Gothic S, but does not mention blue.

[Shane]

Yes, the label says "Straus & Schram Chicago" on it. They are made of the same (cheap) type of material as other dime-store labels. They are marked 75 cents on the label, which seems a little on the high side!

Many Grey Gull records also have this weird distinctive EQ on the recordings from their early electric process, somewhat tinny... and these have that exact same sound.

[phonojim]

Good finds. I don't think I've ever junked any of those. Check out the artists in the pseudonyms book and in Rust. Some great bands recorded for Grey Gull including such people as Clarence Williams and King Oliver. If you don't have the books, I do, so post the titles, artists and record numbers here and I'll see if you have any real gems there.

Jim

[Shane]

Hmmm... what is the name of the pseudonyms book? I don't have either of them. Here's the titles:

1473 Highways are happy ways- White Way Dance Orch/For A Little While- International Dance Orch

1475 A Shady Tree- Harmony Trio with Vocal Chorus/In Wishing Land With You- Mike Mosiello and his Hot Peppers

2369 Among My Souvenirs- Westello Gordon/ When We Were Sweethearts- Sam Ash

[phonojim]

No rarities in the group, unfortunately. Mike Mosiello And His Hot Peppers is (one of the names used for) the Grey Gull house band under Mosiello's direction. He was a good trumpet player and some of the GG house band sides may have a good hot solo or two, but the quality of this band's sides varies all over the map. Also, unfortunately, they would use the same name (Big Town Jazzers for example) for house band sides as well as sides by such bands as King Oliver or Clarence Williams and you can't know the difference without hearing the record or researching it. Sometimes if you run into a GG or related label, it's worth taking a chance on if the price is right. Some of the house band sides are good but the sound quality of GG products is almost always terrible at best.

The references I mantioned are: Pseudonyms On American Records by Allan Sutton and Jazz Records by Brian Rust. Both are out of print, but available in CD-ROM form. Kurt Nauck sells them on his website, http://www.78rpm.com or you may be able to find hard copies on Ebay, Amazon, etc. The latest editions are: Pseudonyms, 2nd and Rust, 6th; both according to Nauck's site.

Hope this helps.

Jim

[estott]

Grey Gull actually aimed to be a good quality label- at least in the beginning. Their records weren't badly recorded but they were pressed in an inferior grade of shellac that wears badly. A well preserved copy can sound at least as good as Columbia's late acoustics (Harmony, Diva, Velvet Tone, Etc)

[Shane]

Many thanks for the info... the Mike Mosiello side was disappointingly not hot, which makes perfect sense in what you're saying.

[Shane]

Question for Jim or anyone else who might know-

I've taken a real liking to the reading of "Among My Souvenirs" in this batch of records. The label lists "Westello Gordon", which I'm almost sure is a pseudonym. Does anyone know who is actually singing on this record? Thanks.

[MordEth]

...which I'm almost sure is a pseudonym. Does anyone know who is actually singing on this record?

Shane,

Maybe someone else here knows more about him than I do (since all I know is a result of futzing around with Google searches for a bit ), but if I had to guess, maybe this isn‘t a pseudonym? If it was, it’s a rather prolific one...

Hopefully this helps.

— MordEth