Centennial, the definitive deluxe box set of the King Oliver 1923 sides, is now available
The 1923 recordings by King Oliver’s working Chicago band are the stuff of legend. Nothing like them had ever been heard on record before, and nothing in jazz would be the same afterward. Here, for the first time, all 37 sides are presented—in release order—on two LPs and two CDs, along with 55 additional tracks (on CDs 3 and 4) that allow us to understand these musical giants not only as innovators but also as products of the acoustic-era recording industry. Features all-new restorations and remastering by Richard Martin and insightful notes GRAMMY-winning author Ricky Riccardi. Learn more and order your copy today!
After Midnight, featuring Ford Dabney’s Syncopated Orchestras, now available
Ford Dabney was a founding member of the all-Black Clef Club whose reputation grew through providing the syncopated dance sounds for Flo Ziegfeld’s Midnight Frolic. In 1917, he began making records, and our double-CD release, After Midnight lets you discover his artistry for yourself. Features 48 tracks remastered by Grammy-winning audio engineer Richard Martin and and a 36-page booklet with notes and scholarship by GRAMMY-nominated author Tim Brooks. Learn more and order your copy today!
“In the digital age, when liner notes have been reduced to a song name scrolling across a streaming playlist, the husband-and-wife team of [Richard] Martin and Meagan Hennessey are an anomaly. They gather rarities from the earliest era of recordings, research the music and put out entire books of analysis alongside the music.”
Geoff EdgersWashington Post
“Truly epochal reissues, which unearth completely forgotten chapters of musical history. The tiny Illinois-based Archeophone label has been doing that kind of archaeology for several years now, almost single-handedly championing the popular music of the acoustic recording era.”
Guest blog by Colin Hancock The Moaninest Moan of Them All represents many firsts. It’s the first CD devoted to Loren McMurray, pioneer of jazz saxophone. It’s the first in-depth look at the saxophone’s transition into a major voice in jazz and American popular music. It’s the first time many early sides by the orchestras … Continue reading A Love Letter to the 1920 Eddie Kuhn Records→ posted: June 7, 2023
Guest blog post by Marcus Cederström While transcribing the many songs from Swede Home Chicago: Wallin’s Svenska Records, 1923–1927, I reached out to friends and family for help. After listening to the same song for hours on end, you reach a sort of impasse. You slow things down. You turn things up. You adjust your … Continue reading The Captain and The Jazz Boy→ posted: September 23, 2021
Guest blog post by Jim Leary Old discs serve as singing tombstones. Spinning grooves and printed labels yield voices and virtuosity, names and places, commemoratively situating dead souls. Discs are all we have sometimes, but happily they’re often where we start. Swede Home Chicago started with a search to identify the otherwise anonymous impresario whose … Continue reading Wallin’s Performers...→ posted: September 3, 2021
