The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Hey guys,

Can anyone help tell me whether this is a 2 or 4min record? i am looking for a 2min version.
http://cgi.ebay.com/EDISON-CYLINDER-REC ... dZViewItem

Thanks,
Aaron

Aaron,

According to the Cylinder Preservation & Digitization Project, that is a 4M Blue Amberol.

I usually use them first to do quick searches for cylinders, even though there are other resources.

— MordEth

Aaron, this looks like a 4M blue amberol in a 2M wax cylinder box. Perhaps someone else can confirm but I think it unlikely this would have also been issued as a 2M record. I believe the composer was Irving Berlin ~ 1917 or 18.

cheers, bruce

I always check them first too.But the cylinder seem to be a 2min just by the looks.And i know they have gotten 4min and 2min numbers mixed before.

Aaron

thanks to you too Bruce.I know i have seen this in a 2min version before.But who knows i could be wrong.

Aaron

Blue Amberol 3275 was recorded on July 3, 1917 and released in October. "Over There" was never released on a 2-minute cylinder, as the song was written in 1917 and Edison ceased recording music on 2-minute cylinders with the releases for September 1912.


Rocky

This is definitely a Blue Amberol. Look at the background color of the picture which is slightly reddish. Now compare the color of the cylinder which is in fact dark blue.

Furthermore, 3275 must have been issued previously during the brown wax era to be a 2-minute number. But 3275 matches perfectly to the BA number in the list I have. If you have a seen a 2-minute Edison with this particular title, then it was certainly a different song because 'Over there' is from 1917.

The only Edison 2-minute that would come close enough to that would be #9989 'The Home over there' - a hymn by the Edison Quartet from April 1908.

Norman

I think that enough people have chimed in on this to prove that it is definitely a Blue Amberol, but to add a bit more information, expanding on what was mentioned previously, “Over There” was composed and published in 1917 by George M. Cohan.

Norman mentioned that the color was off in the photo, and so here is a cropped and color-corrected photo (Auto Tone, Auto Contrast and Auto Color in Photoshop).

It’s still rather dark, but I think the blue in that is more obvious than the photo on eBay.

— MordEth

Thanks for the replies you guys i thought this look like a bluely but i sware there was a 2min copy for sale on ebay or on "the other forum" and i missed it... Perhap an indistustable or columbia??


Aaron

WDC wrote:The only Edison 2-minute that would come close enough to that would be #9989 'The Home over there' - a hymn by the Edison Quartet from April 1908.

Norman

Aaron,

Darrell Lehman listed Edison 2-minute cylinder 9899, "The Home Over There" in his Ebay auction that closed last week. I've asked Darrell for the Ebay number of the listing so I can post it here for you to see. Then you will know whether that was the "Over There" that you recall seeing.

By the way, I didn't bid on the record as I don't really care much for the Edison Mixed Quartet; if it had been recorded by the Edison (Male) Quartet, I might have gone for it. IMHO, the Peerless Quartet gives a rousing performance of the song on Victor.

Rocky