Edison Dance Bands #6 CD176F Recorded 1925 - 1926
I used a little science to get around the rumble issue with these vertical cut Edison Diamond Disc records. I use a very special vintage tonearm made by Pickering - the 190D. The arm has no vertical travel aside from a very light assembly holding the cartridge. When the record is played at a low speed, the small assembly can move up and down with the irregularities, reducing the rumble. However, the bass frequencies were reduced due to the extremely low mass of the cartridge assembly. The solution was adding some mass to the assembly, which, because of inertia, the added mass serves to stabilize the cartridge, and extract the lower frequencies. I started this project about 30 years ago, and had recorded about 20 of my Edison Doamond Disc records and passed them on to other collectors, so for those I had to rely on my original transfers. The rest are fresh transfers from records still in my collection. The resulting warmth and depth of sound is really amazing. I only wish I'd kept the records for my original selection to do the fresh transfers for them too. They still sound pretty good regardless.
Co-Ed was the first side recorded by Irwin Abrams-vn-ldr -Julian Hess-t/ Louis Harmin-tb/ Harold Marcus-Jules Towers-cl-ss-as/ Glenn Wakeman-cl-ss-as-ts/ Fred Bilotti-vn/ Elliott Jacoby-p/ Joe Felline-bj/ Albert R.Smith-bb/ Fred Bauer-d. Plaza, Okeh, Pathe. On later recordings, the Dorsey brothers and Joe Venuti also played with this band. A Reser group, the Tennesee Happy boys featured Earl Oliver-Jack Stillman-t/ Sam Lewis-tb/ Nathan Glantz-as/ Ken "Goof" Moyer-cl-as/ unknown cl-ts-bar/ Harry Reser-bj/ Unknown-bb/ Unknown-d Benjamin Albert Rolfe was born in Brasher Falls NY in 1879 and was known as "The Boy Trumpet Wonder". He was the son of a music director, playing piccolo and trumpet, touring with his father's band on the U.S. east coast and Europe at a young age. After graduating high school, he was engaged as a musical clown befor joining the Majestic Theatre Orchestra in Utica N.Y. He went on to head the brass department at the Utica Conservatory of Music. He went on to producing shows, leading a band, and by 1914 started his own silent film production company Rolfe Photoplays Inc, producing over 50 films distributed through Louis B. Mayer's Metro Pictures Corporation. He collaborated with director/screenwriter Oscar A.C. Lund producing the 1916 drama Dorian's Divorce starring Lionel Barrymore. His final efforts was a 15 episode series - the Master Mystery in 1919, starring Harry Houdini. After working with Vincent Lopez - another Edison recording artist, in 1924 but left to lead "B.A. Rolfe (Trumpet Virtuoso) and his Palais D'Or Orchestra," and was the orchestra for a radio show starting in 1928 when he was known as "B.A. Rolfe and his Lucky Strike Orchestra" Radio transcriptions followed in the early thirties and in 1934 and 1935 he made two Vitaphone shorts. By 1935 - 1936 he directed the The Goodrich Silvertown Cord Orchestra. His broadcasting continued until the late thirties, and he was the narrator for Ripley's "Believe It Or Not" radio series. During WWII, he assembled an all-girl orchestra to perform patriotic songs.
Edison Dance Bands #6 CD176F Recorded 1925 - 1926
LITTLE DEVIL BROADWAY DANCE ORCHESTRA ED 51513 02/24/25 10217 BIBO-LYMAN
LADY OF THE NILE BROADWAY DANCE ORCHESTRA ED 51513 02/24/25 10218 KAHN-JONES
MOONLIGHT AND ROSES POLLA'S CLOVER GARDENS ORCHESTRA HELEN CLARK-JOSEPH PHILLIPS ED 51540 04/09/25 10308 BLACK-MORET
WHEN YOU AND I WERE SEVENTEEN POLLA'S CLOVER GARDENS ORCHESTRA CHARLES HART ED 51540 04/09/25 10309 KAHN-ROSOFF
EVERYTHING IS HOTSY TOTSY NOW CALIFORNIA RAMBLERS VERNON DALHART ED 51551 04/22/25 10331 MCHUGH-MILLS 274
FLAPPER WIFE CALIFORNIA RAMBLERS ARTHUR HALL ED 51551 04/22/25 10332 BURTON-RUPP 274
AH-HA! HENRI GENDRON AND HIS STRAND ROOF ORCHESTRA BUD KENNEDY ED 51570 05/29/25 10385 CLARE-MONACO
SEMINOLA HENRI GENDRON AND HIS STRAND ROOF ORCHESTRA ED 51570 05/29/25 10386 KING-WARREN
I MISS MY SWISS HARRY RESER (TENNESSEE HAPPY BOYS) ARTHUR HALL ED 51587 07/07/25 10489 GILBERT-BAER
JUST A LITTLE DRINK HARRY RESER (TENNESSEE HAPPY BOYS) BUD KENNEDY ED 51587 07/07/25 10490 GAY
CO-ED IRWIN ABRAMS AND HIS KNICKERBOCKER GRILL ORCHESTRA ED 51633 09/24/25 10591 CON CONRAD-SAUL BERNIE
FRESHIE CALIFORNIA RAMBLERS ARTHUR HALL ED 51633 10/15/25 10637 GREER-BERG 274
DREAMING OF A CASTLE IN THE AIR JACK STILLMAN ORCHESTRA ED 51679 01/08/26 10758 CHICK ENDOR-E.WARD
LOVE BOUND JACK STILLMAN ORCHESTRA ED 51679 01/08/26 10759 KERR-RUPP
VALENCIA JACK STILLMAN ORCHESTRA CHARLES HART ED 51738 04/20/26 10934 BOYER-CHARLES-PADILLA
LULU BELLE JACK STILLMAN ORCHESTRA ED 51738 04/20/26 10935 ROBIN-MYERS
BYE BYE BLACKBIRD B.A.ROLFE AND HIS PALAIS D'OR ORCHESTRA ED 51757 05/14/26 10983 DIXON-HENDERSON
