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Pua Kai
Ha`aha`a
USA
1007 Posts |
 Posted - 05/28/2007 : 5:15:21 PM
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I think there are comments around the 'patch, but want to ask...
My dad has a LOT of old 78s. I found a recording of Aloha Oi - -
We played some of the records and they sound really awful. Is that about the story? That particular record is also chipped. Dad thinks we don't have much Hawaiian music, but we do have Little Brown Gal.
Is it worth going through all the old records? I believe the good ones are all well-used, but so far, the records sound universally horrid. Is there any reason to go through these? Is there something neat to possibly be in there?
And while we're at it, I have hundreds of piano rolls out of the teens and twenties, though doubt there are any Hawaiian songs there.
As you might guess, this task is a daunting one. My 96 yr old father decided to retire so now he's going through more old stuff and it's "take it now or it's going in the trash". If any of you are old airplane buffs, there's also a lot of that kind of stuff since that's been his business for 62 yrs....
I only started into this because I thought there was a possible non-material value to some old Hawaiian records.
Thanks...
n
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hapakid
Luna Ho`omalu
USA
1533 Posts |
Posted - 05/28/2007 : 6:38:04 PM
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Hi Nancy,
I don't think there are many 78s that can be categorized as rare and valuable. But there can be great sentimental value if you knew the artist of if the song has special meaning for you. I have a small collection of Hawaiian music from the post-WWII on 78s.
Playing 78s requires a phonograph needle made to reproduce them, different from the kind most modern record players (33/45 rpm) have installed. They'll often sound quiet and tinny without the right needle. If you search the topic on the web, there are many hobbyists who can direct you to players and needles that can bring out the best in the recording.
Jesse Tinsley |
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Russell Letson
`Olu`olu
USA
504 Posts |
Posted - 05/29/2007 : 05:51:05 AM
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It's been a couple decades since I messed with this stuff, but Shure used to make a cartridge that would take a 78-spec stylus. Here's a site that refreshed my memory on the topic:
http://audiotools.com/78.html
Almost makes me want to dig out the stack of V-Discs my dad took out of ships he decommissioned back in 1946, except that most of the interesting stuff has now been transferred to CD, and from better originals than the much-played examples in our basement. (Sailors played those records a LOT.)
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Pops
Lokahi
USA
387 Posts |
Posted - 05/29/2007 : 07:47:31 AM
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Nancy,
Check out the new reference text http://www.elderly.com/books/items/676-1.htm which Elderly Instruments is selling. It's all about collecting Hawaiian recordings and who the big collectors are, according to the blurb on Elderly's site. You might have something that someone's interested in collecting. |
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Pua Kai
Ha`aha`a
USA
1007 Posts |
Posted - 05/29/2007 : 10:40:59 AM
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Thanks everyone. I had no idea that the needle requirement was different. I finally found a record player in a catalog a few years ago which I got for my dad. I had no idea that the needle was different, but that would explain why the recordings all sound uniformly bad. As a kid, we had the Army issue wind up record players that also sounded uniformly bad. I doubt any of the records are in the shape that a collector would like them.
What has disappointed me is that some of my favorite albums have not been reproduced on CDs including Ohta-San's with the yellow cover and orange flowers on it. I haven't gottten around to hooking up cables for transmitting it to the computer while playing on the record player. And of course, it's another one oft-played that doesn't sound nearly as nice as a fresh CD would. And yes, Herb asked his dad about it for me. Sigh....
aloha!
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Mark
Ha`aha`a
USA
1628 Posts |
Posted - 05/29/2007 : 11:53:45 AM
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Hi -
I have amassed quite a few 78s over the years -- including a goodly number of Hawaiian records. I play 'em on a lovely RCA portable wind-up in a oak case I bought in Salt Lake City... not quite when it was new, but you get the picture.
There is something truly wonderful about playing these old records in the way they were designed to be heard. Even better on a stormy night when the power's off and the only light is from a flickering kersosene lantern.
That's a value you can't put a dollar sign on.
Please don't take 'em to the dump. Someone might be waiting to discover them anew.
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Russell Letson
`Olu`olu
USA
504 Posts |
Posted - 05/29/2007 : 12:07:39 PM
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Mark--I hope you use bamboo or cactus needles in your wind-up. Steel needles sound better, but they wear out the records faster. I second your sentiment about not discarding old 78s--even *giving* them to a dealer means they have a chance of finding a loving home.
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Mark
Ha`aha`a
USA
1628 Posts |
Posted - 05/30/2007 : 08:59:53 AM
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hadn't heard about bamboo or cactus needle. Interesting... now I have another quest.
RE: Giving records to a dealer. I did that - over two days two different collectors went through my huge LP stash and carted off boxes and boxes of stuff I'd amassed since high school. Some were painful to see go, some not. Some may have been valuable, some culturally significant, some personally significant, some just odd. (anyone remember the Shadows of Night?)
Now that they're gone I think about all the joy they'd given me and how someone new might hear 'em for the first time.
Anybody want a real good bunch of old time stringband records?
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Edited by - Mark on 05/30/2007 09:01:51 AM |
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wcerto
Ahonui
USA
5052 Posts |
Posted - 05/30/2007 : 09:08:33 AM
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| Don't give Paul any more records. Or reel-to-reel... |
Me ke aloha
Malama pono,
Wanda |
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Retro
Ahonui
USA
2368 Posts |
Posted - 05/30/2007 : 12:51:09 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by Pua Kai
I found a recording of Aloha Oi
That's an Australian song, innit?
(Not to be confused with the Yiddish "Aloha Oy.") |
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thumbstruck
Ahonui
USA
2176 Posts |
Posted - 05/30/2007 : 3:12:04 PM
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| I went thru my Dad's 78s, mostly kordeen stuff from guys ya'll never heard of. I gave them to a friend that would appreciate them. They are treasures, encoded slices of life demonstrating artistry from another era. |
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wcerto
Ahonui
USA
5052 Posts |
Posted - 05/30/2007 : 4:14:01 PM
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| Kory - No Frankie Yankovic, Hank Haller or Jimmy Sturr? |
Me ke aloha
Malama pono,
Wanda |
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Pua Kai
Ha`aha`a
USA
1007 Posts |
Posted - 05/31/2007 : 11:38:27 AM
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Anyone want any piano rolls from the 'teens and '20s? Most are operas. My grandfather was a concert violinist and bought a player piano to accompany himself while he practiced.
I bought a bunch in the seventies including Hawaiian War Chant. Sure was surprised that my SIL could sing the whole thing!
Hey, thanks for all the info and advice. After my siblings have been through them, I'll take them to a dealer.
n |
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