[78-L] OKC record store

[Bill McClung]

I was in Oklahoma City last week and visited the Trolley Line Record
Store.  The store opened last fall with it's entire stock coming from some
hoarder's houses in OKC.  The store's owner is sixty-something and has been
an antiques dealer for many years.  He made contact with a guy who was
acting as caretaker for three houses full of records and newspapers and
magazines owned by an elderly man who had recently been confined to a
nursing home.  The store is stocked with 15,000 lps, several thousand 45s,
and 80 milk crates of 78s, all coming from the hoard.  Two weeks after the
records were liberated all three houses were bulldozed by the city.

I was first there in March and only had time to look through 20 of the milk
crates and bought about 50 78s for $2 each.  This time I looked through the
other 60 crates and bought 150 78s, again for $2 each.

Didn't find anything particularly rare but did find a few fun things:
Selma 1001 Perdido by Morton Craft & Orch. In the margin it says "Trombone
solos by K. and J.J." I assume this refers to Kai Winding and J.J.
Johnson.  Anyone know for sure?

Capitol 3498  Andy Griffith No Time For Sergeants/Standing On the Corner
Hadn't seen this one in a long time.

A couple of Billy Eckstine big band bop instrumentals on DeLuxe and a
couple of Gerald Wilson big band bop instrumentals on Black & White in mint
condition.  I never see these in mint.

Manor 1051  Rev. Utah Smith  I Want Two Wings/God's Mighty Hand  What is
interesting is that side A says New York, NY and side B says Newark, NJ.

Viking 105   Kay Thompson  Ay, Ay, Ay/High On a Windy Hill    The Viking
sleeve announces "This is a NEW PLASTIC RECORD/Tough, Durable, and Elastic
with a Rich Range of Tone Reproduction.  Flexible, Durable, Unbreakable,
Lightweight, Scientifically Electrically Recorded.   Made in U.S.A. by
Nu-Phonic Corporation.  New York, N.Y."

Found eight Texas label 78s I didn't have (four Peacocks, one Duke, two
Royaltys, and one Texas label I'd never seen before-Harvester from
Waxahachie).  I've got about 85% of the Peacocks and Dukes so anytime I
find one I don't have I feel lucky.

But my real prize was Prize 6900   Willie John and Three Lads and a Lass
Mommy What Happened to Our Christmas Tree/Jingle Bells   This was Little
Willie John's first recording.  Prize was a Detroit label.  John Waters
included "Mommy" on his Christmas cd from a couple of years ago.  First
time I'd ever seen it.

I had a fun time.