[78-L] BACKGROUND ARTIFACTS

[Randy Skretvedt]

One of the best examples is the Victor Gene Austin record of "Me Too," where a thunderstorm is raging outside the studio!

By the way, why were so many Victor records by Gene Austin, Whispering Jack Smith and Helen Kane recorded at such low levels?  They all had quiet voices, you'd think the engineers would have increased the recording volume.  Does this have something to do with the characteristics of period phonographs?  For all three artists, one needs to find pristine copies if you're going to hear them at all, as the weak signals are easily obliterated by even moderate surface noise.