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Lost Sounds: Blacks and the Birth of the Recording Industry, 1891-1922
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About Lost Sounds: Blacks And The Birth Of The Recording
Product Description If you believe Robert Johnson was the first to play rock ’n’ roll, listen up. Records made by African-American artists in the 1890s anticipated by decades the essentials of jazz, rhythm and blues, rock ’n’ roll—and yes, even Robert Johnson. Unlike the pioneer blues and jazzmen of the 1920s—whose contributions to American music are duly documented and appreciated today—the achievements of their forgotten predecessors are all but erased from history: the sound too limited, the grooves too noisy, the words too painful. Tim Brooks brought the Lost Sounds of these pioneer black performers to our notice with the publication of his groundbreaking book. Archeophone brings these Lost Sounds to life with the release of this CD. And none too soon, as the precious few sounds that have survived a century of neglect are fading fast. Those experienced with pioneer recordings are in for some surprises, as most are reissued here for the first time. And those who are not . . . you’ve not heard anything like them before. Many are not easy to listen to. But they are worth the effort, as they let us hear—as close to first hand as possible—the forgotten black artists who contributed so significantly to American music and culture. Your view of history is about to be rocked. Review "a must for anyone [with] an interest in the social structure of America.... It's educational, enlightening and thought provoking." --Steve Ramm, In the Groove, November 2005 About the Artist Fifty-four tracks by 43 artists, and 60 pages of in-depth commentary and analysis: Lost Sounds is a monumental achievement that stretches back to the faint beginnings of commercial recordings and travels to the brink of the Jazz Age to trace the contributions of black artists on American records. Sometimes noisy and raucous, sometimes quiet and austere, these recordings demonstrate the deep involvement and lasting influence of African Americans in the nascent recording industry. The release of Lost Sounds is nothing short of historic. You have heard of many of these singers, musicians, and public figures, but you probably haven't heard the sonic documents they left behind. Here for the first time is Thomas Craig, "the colored basso," stage star Opal Cooper, boxer Jack Johnson, and Tuskegee Institute founder Booker T. Washington. Also featured are five operatic performers who made records for Broome Special Phonograph Records, ca. 1919, and who led distinguished musical careers: Harry Burleigh, Edward Boatner, Florence Cole–Talbert, Nathaniel Dett, and Clarence Cameron White. Lost Sounds also includes one of the ultra-rare personal records made by Roland Hayes, "Vesti la giubba," that helped him jump-start his career. With the help of gracious collectors we have also unearthed rarities whose importance cannot be overstated. Here for the first time is heard an African-American vocal group from 1895: the Oriole Quartette doing "Brother Michael, Won't You Hand Down that Rope?" Also included is one of the earliest minstrel records in existence; from 1894, it's Spencer, Williams & Quinn's Imperial Minstrels doing their Minstrel First Part and featuring George W. Johnson's great "Laughing Song." Those who have heard Cousins and DeMoss doing "Poor Mourner" for Berliner in 1898 have a treat in store with their rousing rendition of "Who Broke the Lock" also from 1898. These guys were making rock records before anybody knew what that meant. Four distinct musical genres emerged when the recordings were laid out: Vocal Harmonies, Minstrel & Vaudeville Traditions, Aspirational Motives, and Dance Rhythms. The two CDs are arranged according to these themes, with a full trajectory of nearly 30 years' worth of material covered in each section. Of special interest on Lost Sounds is George W. Johnson, the first black man to record. "Lost Sounds" includes all eight of his extant recordings, from the 1891 North American cylinder of "The Whistling Coon" and "The Laughing Song," whic
