[78-L] DECCA - Porgy & Bess, & the non-Naxos Blues in the U.S. of A.

[victrola78s at aol.com]

Yet another great Naxos reissue that we errant children here in the USA aren't allowed to buy from Naxos. This looks like an excellent set, kudos to Professor Lennick once again. Of the recordings listed I have the Victor set with Tibbett & Jepson(in fact I have two sets, one scroll & one ring label), & I think I have the Decca set with Todd Duncan if that's the same one issued on an early Decca Lp. Also, I have the 1951 Columbia set with Avon Long. I can't throw out catalog numbers as I'm not near the record racks just now.

However, I am now listening to "Harry Lauder-Roamin' in the Gloamin'-Original Recordings 1926-1930", which is Naxos 8.120751, a Lennick-Newton effort. This I received via Amazon within the last two weeks. I've always loved Lauder, & am very happy to get this release. The first Lauder I ever heard was the acoustic "She's The Lass For Me", courtesy of Bill Knowlton's "Dusty Record Shelf" on WCNY in 1975 when I was 13. Imagine my delight to hear an electrical version of it on this Naxos CD! I've had about eight of these Lauder sides as Red Seal scrolls, found in the stacks at a Purple Heart thrift store in 1986. Nice to have so many more of them so well transferred here.

Which brings me back to the Naxos situation. I used to be able to get the Naxos stuff via Dragonfly(tipped off about them by Lennick) in Canada until they ceased the operations. After three orders I vas kaput mitt Naxos! Until about 2004 or 2006 when I bought an armful of Naxos titles at the Tower Records in Marina Pacifica Mall, Long Beach, CA. They included four volumes of Maud Powell, two of Eric Coates, some Kreislers, a Richard Tauber, & at least two each of Prokovief & Romberg. Borders Books(like Tower, now defunct) still carried the Naxos line in 2004-2005. Thanks to the Capitol Records vs. Naxos fiasco, it requires more effort to locate the Historical & Nostalgia lines. Apparently it's perfectly legal to aquire them via Amazon-I ordered through the USA Amazon, not the UK Amazon. In looking at HMV.ca there is a thin selection of Naxos, though I noticed one vintage recording of Beecham conducting Strauss(Dick, not John). Any suggestions as to a good, "constant & legit" source for we Yanks who crave the Naxos vintage releases?

Uh-oh...track 9 of the Lauder CD is skipping on "She's The Lass For Me"! Hmmm...it's playing on my 1996 Pioneer Laserdisc player, must try other drives. Any known pressing problems for this release, my dear Lennick?

Dennis "Just Got Off The Chain" Forkel