That old scratchy sound.

flapjax at midnite — Sun, 25 Nov 2007 04:21:27 -0800

Collectors of 78rpm records are a breed unto themselves. Obsessively scouring the flea markets of the world in search of sonic treasures from yesteryear, they are a big part of the reason we can today enjoy so much wonderful old music. One such collector who's bringing some of his finds to the internets, sharing with us his scratchy old audio ghosts from eras long gone, is Johnny Bitterman. Currently up on his audio player is You Gonna Look Like a Monkey When You Get Old, along with 3 other tunes for your listening/downloading pleasure. You'll also find there a fabulous gallery of photographs featuring lovely old labels from many of his discs. Regarding the labels pictured on Bitterman's site: aside from the antique graphic design interest angle, there's those song titles: "What Is It That Tastes Like Gravy?", "Married Girl's Troubles", "The Terror", "Too Tight Blues", "In the Garden Where the Irish Potatoes Grow" (by none other than 'Dr. Smith's Champion Horse Hair Pullers Orchestra'), "I Had To Give Up Gym" (by the 'Hokum Boys'), "I Ain't a Bit Drunk"... Anyway, it seems Johnny changes up his selection of audio clips from time to time, so if any of these colorful titles whet your appetite, stay tuned, cause they may well show up at one time or another in audio form there on his page. The man really has a fantastic collection. BTW, one of the labels on Bitterman's page shows "I Got Your Ice Cold Nugrape" by the Nugrape Twins, a very curious little recording duo who you can hear here. The tune in question appeared on the Revenant release "American Primitive". Recommended! Otherwise, I stumbled across this little diversion while snooping around for 78rpm stuff: Vinyl Record Generator. Never know when something like that might come in handy...

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That old scratchy sound.