A rare find of a 1930s concertina player in a dance band 78!

[kevin toner]

https://archive.org/details/78_six-hit-medley-no10-pt-1_mel-rose-and-his-band_sam-costa

 

or click same at:-

 

LINK - a 78, rarely with concertina player in an accordionist-led dance band

 

A rare find for the record!

 

Hope you enjoy this - there's an accompanying 78 this weekend as with every one (two 78s a week at Kevin Toner - My 78s : Free Audio : Free Download, Borrow and Streaming : Internet Archive).  Note the other is purely accordion orientated or led by comparison, but offers a comparison nonetheless if interested (it is even as button-boxy at times - clearly there's a little romance for the instrument perhaps because of stars playing sailors with them in Hollywood, ha it's true for the time - Serenade in the Night / Red Sails in the Sunset / Harbour Lights / etc. says so from the Thirties songbook I use/study).  Also maybe check out the flipside as I think the concertinist may be still around in the background.

 

I'm after my study songbook songs of 40 or so popular song standards, so I rarely ever hear concertina in the line-up (since it's mainly post 30s popular band material with the instrument losing popularity by then - although there's plenty solo to be found though up to that point, but I'm not there yet - stuck documenting the study songs on 78s and learning from these song standards in the form of the fairly different - and fab for chromatic 4+ octave English Concertina - piano scores).   I mustn't go off on a tangent.  Enjoy this quirky airing from what sounds like a good player involved.

 

The discography I use or offer sources from is Rust & Forbes 1970s who provide personnel &/or instrument lineups: here though there are question marks and no mention of the instrument - clearly it's a very rare item in the mainstream of popular band 78s.

 

If anyone wants a list of the musicians listed by the dance band discography for this band/outfit let me know - they appear in the 1920s and then again active, like here in the late 30s, towards WWII (i.e. the leader accordionist Ronnie Munro not pseudonym Mel Rose).  I think they do sound quite accomplished from former novelty orchestra backgrounds perhaps.  I wouldn't know as I'm not studying personnel at the moment - simply documenting 78s for preservation.

 

Thanks for reading/listening.

Kevin

PS I think I will be using archive.org to put more of my granddad's/relatives EC playing up.  I'll keep you posted!

 

 

 

 

[kevin toner]

Actually I think this is possibly an accordion sounding like a concertina - using a non-piano voicing.  It sounds to glissando like to be concertina.  However, it has the same kind of voicing and maybe it is a concertina - I wouldn't like to put my money on it!  If I hear any more sound-alikes I'll let you know, here.  Cheers, how embarrassing - from someone expected to have a good as well as keen ear.  Not to worry!

[Dimble]

Thanks for this wonderful oddball find. I listened to both sides of the nominally concertina record and one of the accordion band. Recording technology in the 1930s isn't great, so I doubt we can fully tell concertina vs. accordian without outside info. @kevin toner, no need to be embarrassed for your ear.

 

Very interested stuff. The pre-WW2 dance bands have such wild variety. Always good to see another example.

[kevin toner]

Thanks so much Dimble, very kind of you to say all of that.  Glad to hear your views and also pleased you enjoyed some of that particular music.  I'll keep my ears open for any more closely resembling concertina sound in the mix of such wide ranging past performers, on such music.  Hopefully something else will be discovered without deliberately looking and searching for ones instrument among the songs!

Cheers, and many thanks for replying.

 

 

 

[wes williams]

Well, it might be Alf Edwards. I've listed him on my site in the audio section - 'He recorded on concertina for HMV before WW2 with both Jack Payne and Bonnie Monroe...' which I think came from an interview in the 1950s Accordion Review magazine that I'd used, long before I became a 78rpm research nut, and  I think that could be a typo for Ronnie Munro.

[wes williams]

Found the magazine again. Download link. Bonnie was my typo, Monroe came from the magazine.

Edit: I checked it out in Frank Andrews handwritten R-Z notebook, which I'm currently transcribing. Recorded Oct 7 1938, released Nov 1938, Deleted by Jan 1941. No more info on the line-up.

Edited July 4, 2024 by wes williams

[Matthew Heumann]

Thanks for posting the old magazine, it was a real delight to read. Ahd WOW, that giant duet deserves its own postal code!

[wes williams]

Yes, I believe it's Alf Edwards. I've taken the liberty of cleaning up Kevin's audio and you can hear this on my site (as mp3). Thanks Kevin!!