# Philly company digitizes 25,000 old records and they're free to download **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 12, 2017, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407 "2017-08-12T03:52:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/1 "2017-08-12T03:52:27Z")
[http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/arts-culture/item/106319-philly-company-digitizes-collection-of-25000-old-records-and-growing-free-to-download](http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/arts-culture/item/106319-philly-company-digitizes-collection-of-25000-old-records-and-growing-free-to-download) > [@](#): > > Twenty-five thousand songs recorded onto 78RPM discs in the early 20th century have been released online, for free. > > They are the first batch of an estimate 400,000-piece virtual record collection to be made available by the Internet Archive, from gospel by the Tuskegee Institute Sings, to opera recorded in Italy, to novelty tunes by Spike Jones, to hot — though obscure — jazz. The (beginning of) the collection: [https://archive.org/details/georgeblood](https://archive.org/details/georgeblood) The second selection on the top of that page (at least at the time of this posting) is relevant to a past discussion on SDMB. > **[Where does that stereotypical "oriental" song come from?](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=300466)** > > Where does that stereotypical “oriental” song come from? You know, the one that goes dee dee dee dee duh duh dee dee duh. Featured heavily in braindead Hollywood flicks made by clueless directors who want to give a scene an “oriental” feel. Also a... > **[Another 'Oriental riff' sighting.](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=486664)** > > Earlier thread Unfortunately, the guy who had the website documenting the history of this riff no longer has the site, at least under the old url. Snippet from ‘Beach Party’ (1963) ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/2 "2017-08-12T05:29:03Z")
I found this gem right on the first page 🙂 “…it ain’t never smelled like that…” :-o ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/3 "2017-08-12T05:41:35Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > I found this gem right on the first page 🙂 > > [Pussy, Pussy, Pussy : Light Crust Doughboys : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive](https://archive.org/details/78_pussy-pussy-pussy_light-crust-doughboys-montgomery_gbia0002907b) > > “…it ain’t never smelled like that…” :-o I wasn’t expecting that from a 1938 record. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/4 "2017-08-12T06:00:19Z")
This is all fascinating, though. Looks like a lot of the albums don’t have years associated with them, which is a shame cuz I’d really like to narrow it down to a lot of super old recordings. I’m guessing in a few years The Crowd will add more info. I’m sitting here at 2 AM listening to Slovak-language recordings from the 20s. Hot damn! ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/5 "2017-08-12T06:33:05Z")
I like the [really early Led Zeppelin](https://archive.org/details/Kansas_Joe_Memphis_Minnie-When_Levee_Breaks) from [here.](https://archive.org/details/78rpm) ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 6:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/6 "2017-08-12T06:47:54Z")
They have 2 from 1902. They both suck, at least to my contemporary ear, but it’s fascinating to listen to something that old. [https://archive.org/details/georgeblood?&and[]=year%3A"1902"](https://archive.org/details/georgeblood?&and%5B%5D=year%3A%221902%22) ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/7 "2017-08-12T06:59:51Z")
> [@davidm](#): > > They have 2 from 1902. They both suck, at least to my contemporary ear, but it’s fascinating to listen to something that old. > [Internet Archive: Digital Library of Free & Borrowable Books, Movies, Music & Wayback Machine](https://archive.org/details/georgeblood?&and%5B%5D=year%3A%221902%22) Sorry. That link seems to be broken. Try this. [https://goo.gl/78xDcE](https://goo.gl/78xDcE) ---
**Author:** ![Anamorphic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/anamorphic/32/3057_2.png) [@Anamorphic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anamorphic)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/8 "2017-08-12T16:06:38Z")
Very cool! This is going to be a hell of a lot of fun to dig through. I very recently discovered through working on my family’s genealogy that the guy who plays trumpet on [this record](https://archive.org/details/78_between-the-devil-and-the-deep-blue-sea_bob-crosby-and-his-orchestra-bob-crosby-ber_gbia0012201) - Rubin “Zeke” Zarchy - was my 2nd cousin once removed. ---
**Author:** ![Flyer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/flyer/32/7298_2.png) [@Flyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyer)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/9 "2017-08-12T16:08:49Z")
> [@davidm](#): > > They have 2 from 1902. They both suck, at least to my contemporary ear, but it’s fascinating to listen to something that old. > [Internet Archive: Digital Library of Free & Borrowable Books, Movies, Music & Wayback Machine](https://archive.org/details/georgeblood?&and%5B%5D=year%3A%221902%22) Any early recording is going to “suck” in an objective sense. The technology just wasn’t mature yet. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/10 "2017-08-12T16:56:01Z")
This is cool. One of the problems with advancing musical technology has always been that 75 to 90% of the previous issued music never gets transferred to the later mediums. Mostly because it was garbage, but it’s the principle here, dammit! Now we can digitize everything we find and make it available to future generations. ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/11 "2017-08-12T17:22:23Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > I found this gem right on the first page 🙂 > > [Pussy, Pussy, Pussy : Light Crust Doughboys : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive](https://archive.org/details/78_pussy-pussy-pussy_light-crust-doughboys-montgomery_gbia0002907b) > > “…it ain’t never smelled like that…” :-o All the lyrics sites say “spelled” but it’s clearly “smelled.” Funny. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/12 "2017-08-12T17:27:49Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > This is cool… > Now we can digitize everything we find and make it available to future generations. Everything? My 8-tracks of [Dan Fogelberg’s backup band](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ni5oOyjMhoI)? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/13 "2017-08-12T17:59:38Z")
Yes! Even my copy of [Cheryl Ladd’s “jiggle-pop.”](http://www.famousfix.com/post/cheryl-ladd-cheryl-ladd-17932642)😃 What I really want digitized is [this one](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/taA22Dx3nzQ/hqdefault.jpg). Pete and I may own the only copies anymore. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/14 "2017-08-12T18:15:29Z")
> [@davidm](#): > > The (beginning of) the collection: > [Internet Archive: Digital Library of Free & Borrowable Books, Movies, Music & Wayback Machine](https://archive.org/details/georgeblood) Note to self: go through there for different tracks to add to Fallout 3 & NV. If only there was some easy way to add tracks to Fallout 4. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/15 "2017-08-12T18:26:22Z")
I had to laugh that the article had to explain what a 78 was. Now I feel even older. ---
**Author:** ![Helena330](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/helena330/32/531_2.png) [@Helena330](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helena330)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/16 "2017-08-12T18:44:23Z")
This is so exciting! Thank you very much for posting. I dated a guy in the 90’s who was an avid collector of 78’s, mostly pop and big band-type. I thought it was a little weird, but then he made me several cassette tapes and I really learned to enjoy that era of music, pops, crackles and all. I still have those cassette tapes and am afraid to play them. Now I bet one of these days I’ll be able to recreate them digitally. I’d guess at some point he’ll be involved with this project as his collection was extensive. He always described fellow collectors as weird and possessive so in some ways this archive surprises me, but I’m glad at least someone wanted to preserve this music for the future. ETA: Try some Harry Richman! He originated _Puttin’ on the Ritz_. Another fun (and famous) one of his is _Birth of the Blues_. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/17 "2017-08-12T19:50:34Z")
> [@Helena330](#): > > This is so exciting! Thank you very much for posting. I dated a guy in the 90’s who was an avid collector of 78’s, mostly pop and big band-type. I thought it was a little weird, but then he made me several cassette tapes and I really learned to enjoy that era of music, pops, crackles and all. I still have those cassette tapes and am afraid to play them. Now I bet one of these days I’ll be able to recreate them digitally. There’s cassete players which can digitize anything directly into a thumb drive. Mine takes vinyls, cassettes and CDs, it cost less than 200€ a couple of years ago; I may never bother chop up the digitized versions of my family’s vinyls into their component songs, but I’ve digitized alll the master cassettes, all the 45s and most of the 33s already. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/18 "2017-08-12T22:53:43Z")
Here is a gem in 2 parts: Earliest Rhapsody in Blue recording apparently. [https://archive.org/details/rhapblue11924](https://archive.org/details/rhapblue11924) & [Rhapsody In Blue Part 2 : Paul Whiteman and George Gershwin : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive](https://archive.org/details/rhapblue21924) I love the _When the Levee Breaks_, great old Blues song. I’ve seen a version close to this performed once at a Jazz & Blues Festival. ( I Love the Zep version of course also) ---
**Author:** ![Ignatz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/3be4f8/32.png) [@Ignatz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ignatz)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2017, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/19 "2017-08-12T23:29:15Z")
> [@Helena330](#): > > This is so exciting! Thank you very much for posting. I dated a guy in the 90’s who was an avid collector of 78’s, mostly pop and big band-type. I thought it was a little weird, but then he made me several cassette tapes and I really learned to enjoy that era of music, pops, crackles and all. I still have those cassette tapes and am afraid to play them. Now I bet one of these days I’ll be able to recreate them digitally. > > I’d guess at some point he’ll be involved with this project as his collection was extensive. He always described fellow collectors as weird and possessive so in some ways this archive surprises me, but I’m glad at least someone wanted to preserve this music for the future. > > ETA: Try some Harry Richman! He originated _Puttin’ on the Ritz_. Another fun (and famous) one of his is _Birth of the Blues_. From Hammacher Schlemmer @ $400 The LP And Cassette To CD/Digital Converter Description Reviews Lifetime Guarantee . Available only from Hammacher Schlemmer, this is the combination recorder and stereo system that preserves classic vinyl records and cassette tapes by recording them to audio CDs or converting the songs to MP3s. It faithfully transfers an LP or cassette to a digital audio CD-R or CD-R/RW, and at any time during recording you can pause to select only certain songs, turn the album or cassette over, and change albums or cassettes to make compilation recordings. Using the free downloadable Audacity software that works on Windows 8, Windows 7, XP, Vista, or a Mac, it can convert LPs and cassettes to MP3s for use on a computer or MP3 player. The system also plays 33s, 45s, 78s, and cassettes through two 3 1/2-watt speakers, and has a built-in AM/FM stereo with digital tuner and single CD playback tray, all in a footprint less than 2’ sq. Two RCA inputs in the rear enable you to connect the device to another stereo system or external speakers. Includes automatic/manual track, increment control, record-level indicator, record-level control, backlit LCD, and remote control that requires two AA batteries. Needle plays LPs for up to 50 hours before requiring replacement. Plugs into AC. 9" H x 19" W x 15" D. (23 lbs.) Reviews The LP And Cassette To CD/Digital Converter comes with The Hammacher Schlemmer Lifetime Guarantee. If this product ever disappoints you, for any reason, you may return your Hammacher Schlemmer purchase for exchange, credit, or refund. Should you have any questions, we are available seven days a week (8:00 am – midnight EST). Please call 1-800-321-1484 to speak with a specialist or email us at [customerservice@hammacher.com](mailto:customerservice@hammacher.com) to receive a response within three business hours or less. Item 81557 Price $399.95 How Many? ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2017, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407/20 "2017-08-13T04:29:44Z")
The local Goodwill had someone’s estate collection of 78 RPM records in about ten albums with ten or so sleeves in each, and each sleeve had a different record along these lines. They weren’t priced, and my wife would have killed me if I bought them, but I alerted them to get them off the main store floor (records are $1.49!) and into their showcase. I stopped by a few days later and they were gone. Now I don’t feel bad, because I can listen to any of these at any time. Please continue making recommendations! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/philly-company-digitizes-25-000-old-records-and-theyre-free-to-download/793407.md?page=2)