[78-L] Bessie Smith album

[Glenn Longwell]

According to Geoffrey Wheeler's book - The Bessie Smith album had  no album number.  It was released "a few months after her death" which was Sept. 26, 1937.  However, a Columbia Records catalog from the mid-40s gives a number of C-8 for the album.  He also mentions that there was no booklet with it.
 
Glenn

--- On Mon, 1/11/10, David Lennick <dlennick at sympatico.ca> wrote:


From: David Lennick <dlennick at sympatico.ca>
Subject: Re: [78-L] Bessie Smith album
To: "78-L Mail List" <78-l at klickitat.78online.com>
Date: Monday, January 11, 2010, 9:27 AM


Wossamatta all you guys! The Bessie Smith album is C-8.

C-1 is Tango Album No. 1
C-2 is Tango Album No. 2
C-3 is Rumba and Congo Album
C-4 is the first issue of Air Raid, which no living person has ever seen
C-5 is the second issue of Air Raid
C-6 is Merchant of Venice
C-7 is Twelfth Night
C-9 is European Dance Album
C-10 is Julius Caesar

This would put the Bessie Smith album in 1938, unless it WAS issued earlier 
without a number (as was the case with Victor's Bix Beiderbecke Memorial 
Album). From the October 1940 catalog (designed by Steinweiss, by the way).

dl

Michael Biel wrote:
> If I wake up in time (I gotta start getting to bed earlier) Leah and I
> are going to R&H to look at some catalogs and magazines and I will be
> looking to see the issue date.  I do think the album was sold with the
> specific records and I think that George Blacker and I did figure out an
> album catalog number decades ago, but it wasn't easy.  If I can't come
> up with a copy to photograph myself, I NEED a color scan or photo of
> it!!!  Is the photo a glued-on glossy photo?
> 
> By the way, on Friday in less than three hours, Leah and I BLEW THE
> STEINWEISS LEGEND OUT OF THE WATER with some of the evidence we found at
> another branch of NYPL in journals unrelated directly to records that I
> bet nobody has ever thought to use.  No further hints about this stuff
> -- you will have to go to ARSC in New Orleans to find out.  It helps to
> know where to find things.
> 
> Mike Biel  mbiel at mbiel.com  
> 
>       
> 
>   -------- Original Message --------
>  Subject: [78-L] Bessie Smith album
>  From: "Philip Fukuda" <pfukuda at att.net>
>  Date: Mon, January 11, 2010 2:23 am
>  To: 78-l at klickitat.78online.com
>  
>  
>  
>  I'm just catching up on reading my emails after my vacation, so forgive
> me if this has been discussed before.
>  
>  I've been following the Alex Steinweiss thread with interest, but
> didn't have anything to add to the discussion until today. Imagine my
> surprise at finding the c1937 (Driggs and Lewine's "Black Beauty, White
> Heat" say 1938, but I think the label was defunct by then) Bessie Smith
> Album at the 78 swap meet today. It has a brown cover with a photo of
> Bessie with the names of the accompanying musicians. I tend to believe
> the 1937 date since there is no mention of Bessie's death. Did it come
> with a booklet (mine doesn't have one)?
>  
>  There is no text on the inside front or back covers. The album itself
> doesn't have a number, so doesn't look like part of a series.
> Unfortunately, I only have 4 of the 6 records. Also, I get the feeling
> the records were sold individually, but the album was a "freebie" if the
> customer bought all six records. Of course, they are the last six
> records in the -D series.
>  
>  Does anyone have a 1937 or 1938 Columbia catalog or monthly supplements
> to back up any of my wild guesses? 
>  
>  By the way, Happy New Year to all,
>  Philip
> 
> _______________________________
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