[78-L] 78 sighting on Discovery Special

[Michael Biel]

The Klan records were not really "client" records but really more like
"personal" records.  There is a difference.  Most of these are listed in
the Gennett ledgers complete with the name and address of the contractor
who usually either was or supplied the "talent".  They knew the material
because sometimes they were the ones who wrote it -- much like Karl
Schwendler who wrote the lyrics he sang on the Nazi Charlie and his
Orchestra records.  I'm glad I spotted this in time for the repeat.

Mikkke Biel  mbiel at mbiel.com     


-------- Original Message --------
Subject: [78-L] 78 sighting on Discovery Special
From: David Lewis <uncledavelewis at hotmail.com>
Date: Wed, March 20, 2013 11:22 pm
To: 78-l <78-l at 78online.com>

The Discovery Channel debuted a special this evening at 9 pm ET, "KKK:
Beneath the Hood," where an Indiana historian plays some Klan records
from the 1920s. One was with a wide Gennett spiral and, even though I
could only hear bits and pieces of the music, I spun it back and forth
several times because the singer sounded like someone I know of whom I
really wouldn't want singing on Klan records, and would have ample
reasons not to. I realized the singer was not whom I thought -- whew! --
but a later record played unmistakably carried the voice of Henry Burr.


As Klan records were mostly client records, and mostly sung by anonymous
or pseudonymous individuals, I wonder if there is much interest in, or
study of, the extent to which these discs are sung by regular record
company people and not by groups or persons directly associated with the
Klan. There was a time when the Klan was publishing a lot of sheet
music, and as as most vocalists making records around 1920 worked from
sheet music and were often singing their selections for the first time,
I wonder if it was much the same situation with the Klan records. Anyone
know of studies, or have thoughts, on this?


There is a piece about the show below; it airs again at 1 am ET this
evening (morning).
http://tv.yahoo.com/news/discovery-docu-special-uncovers-the-secrets-of-the-kkk--exclusive-video--221434864.html



Uncle Dave Lewis
uncledavelewis at hotmail.com 
_______________________________________________
78-L mailing list
78-L at klickitat.78online.com
http://klickitat.78online.com/mailman/listinfo/78-l