Alpine Dreaming:
The Helvetia Records Story, 1920-1924

◈  2 CDs with 36 tracks
◈  Tells the story of Wisconsin-based Helvetia Records
◈  Includes a 60-page booklet with liner notes by
      Grammy-nominated author and folklorist James Leary
◈  Includes transcriptions and translations of all selections

GRAMMY Nominee: Best Album Notes

The Product of Our Souls

The Sound and Sway of James Reese
Europe's Society Orchestra

◈  22 selections, including all 8 sides by Europe's Orchestra
◈  Packaged in a digipak with a 56-page full-color booklet
◈  Liner notes by author David Gilbert
◈  Companion to the UNC Press volume

GRAMMY Nominee: Best Album Notes

Slide thumbnail
◈  7-inch 45-rpm EP in a gatefold sleeve
◈  4 songs recorded between 1891 and 1897
◈  Includes full lyrics and a 16-page booklet
     with notes by Grammy-nominated authors
     Richard Martin and Ted Olson

Charles A. Asbury
4 Banjo Songs, 1891-1897

GRAMMY Nominee: Best Album Notes

Save 15% on titles by African-American
recording pioneers for the entire month
of February. Featured artists include
Bert Williams, Charles Asbury, King Oliver,
James Reese Europe, Wilbur Sweatman,
Mary Stafford & Edith Wilson, and more.

See all eligible releases

FEBRUARY SPECIAL

Home

NEWS

Celebrate African-American Recording Pioneers

Save 15% on all in-stock releases featuring African-American recording pioneers this February. The offer includes Volumes 2 and 3 of our Complete Bert Williams series, Wilbur Sweatman’s Jazzin’ Straight Thru Paradise, Mary Stafford & Edith Wilson Ain’t Gonna Settle Down, this year’s Grammy nominees 4 Banjo Songs and The Product of Our Souls, and more. See the full list of included titles >

Three GRAMMY Nominations for Archeophone

Grammy nominations have been announced, and three of our releases—4 Banjo Songs, Alpine Dreaming, and The Product of Our Souls—have been nominated in the field of Best Album Notes. Hats off to our writers, Dave Gilbert, Jim Leary, Richard Martin, and Ted Olson. And congrats to our esteemed friends and fellow nominees! The winner will be announced February 10, 2019.

Screengrab of 2018 Grammy Nominations for Best Album Notes4 Banjo Songs featured in The Washington Post

4 Banjo Songs, our collection of banjo recordings by Charles Asbury, is featured in today’s Washington Post. Read Geoff Edgers’ terrific piece and listen to the podcast.

TODAY IN ACOUSTIC HISTORY

PRAISE FOR ARCHEOPHONE

  • “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.”
    Jody RosenSlate.com
  • “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

      FROM OUR BLOG

      Some Thoughts on Charles Asbury’s Race and the Question of Passing

      Archeophone’s 4  Banjo Songs, 1891-1897 by African American recording pioneer, Charles A. Asbury, is nominated for Best Album Notes, written by myself (Richard Martin) and Ted Olson. We’re very appreciative for this recognition, but there is a misapprehension floating around out Asbury’s background that needs addressing. Some reviewers have summed up the notes by saying … Continue reading Some ...→
      posted: January 4, 2019

      Helvetia Records: Unrealized Ambitious Dreams

      With the recent acquisition of Helvetia 1002, our upcoming set, Alpine Dreaming, will now have every known release put out by the small Helvetia label in the early 1920s. Thanks to Eric Gallinger for contributing that record to the effort. Eric found the disc at an estate sale in Oregon and, inspired by his wife’s … Continue reading Helvetia Records: Unrealized Ambitious Dreams→
      posted: June 20, 2018

      Mystery Banjo Players Identified?

      Last week we wondered whether record titles, such as those listed in a ca. 1891 catalog of the New Jersey Phonograph Company, might not all have been actually recorded. Then we traced the offerings of Charles Asbury in New Jersey/U.S. Phono. Co. and Columbia catalogs from 1892 through 1897 to see which of his records … Continue reading Mystery Banjo Players Identified?→
      posted: May 9, 2018

      Send this to a friend