[78-L] Velvet Tone 7000 series

[Steven C. Barr]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Han Enderman" <jcenderman at solcon.nl>
> Referring to the recent remarks about Rust's (incorrect) statement that 
> Har 1-H = VT 1001-V,
> it can be noted that Rust's JR-6 lists Har 4-H & Har 70-H under Henderson 
> (1925) without VT issue
> (here confirming that VT did not yet exist).
>
Harmony was Columbia's first attempt at a "bargain" label, launched in late 
1925; the first
three issues used much older "standard" Columbia sides, while the first new 
sides
(acoustic, probably cut specifically for the label) were recorded in August 
1925. Velvet
Tone seems to have appeared a few months later; it paralleled Harmony 1000 
higher.
Since there is no Abrams VT file, I have no idea if any VT versions of early 
Harmonys
were pressed. In 1927, Columbia started pressing Diva records for W. T. 
Grant;
these ended in 1930-31; while it existed, Diva numbering also paralleled 
Harmony
but was 2000 higher. Harmony seems to have ended in 1932; a few months prior
to that saw the ending of thr "parallel numbering" for Ha and VT. Clarion 
was the
"super-bargain" label, selling for 35 cents; these were numbered separately 
in a
5xxx series. Both Harmony and VT were also pressed in Canada, BTW...!

Steven C. Barr