Blues, Gospel and R&B 78's Record Collection
Delta Blues Museum
Clarksdale, MS
Imagine, if you will, feeling like you are in the room with the musicians you are listening to, and you will understand the sound quality of a well preserved and playable 78 rpm record.
Unfortunately, 78s are a fragile medium and very few are now capable of preservation, not surprising since from 1903, when Caruso 78s began to sell beyond the Record Companies' wildest dreams and 1953, when the more portable and less breakable 45 rpm records began to edge 78s off the market, more 78s were manufactured than there are stars in the sky. Blues and Gospel were there from the beginning, vital strands of the RNA and DNA of American music: Saturday night and Sunday morning.
Since our founding in 1979, the Delta Blues Museum has generously been given donations of thousands of 78s in every conceivable genre. Now, with a Preservation Grant from the Grammy Foundation, the Museum has been able to catalog and archive the 78s that belong in our Collection and begin to find homes for the thousands of other 78s we have been gifted with during the past 38 years.
As you browse the Collection, we hope you will take time and listen because, as Willie Dixon said: "The Blues is the truth". You will indeed discover the truth in the purest form while listening to a 78 by John Lee Hooker, Bessie Smith, Howlin' Wolf, Mamie Smith, Muddy Waters, Clara Smith, Texas Alexander, Victoria Spivey, Eddie Boyd, The Hokum Boys, Leona Williams, and the many other artists in the collection.
Many thanks to the Grammy Foundation for their generous support in making this invaluable recorded resource available to the public once again.
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Boe Hog Blues/Bell Cow Blues
"Texas" Alexander was, surprise, from Texas, born in 1900, he was a vocalist who performed with a who's who of musicians including Blind Lemon Jefferson, The Mississippi Sheiks & Lightnin' Hopkins.
Okeh 8563(1928)
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Anderson with
Ellington Orchestra
"Big Hits of 1942" I've Got It Bad and That Ain't Good/That Old Black Magic (v. Skip Nelson)
RCA Victor began with the purchase of the Victor Talking Machine Company in 1929 and had the distinctive logo of His Master's Voice". After takeovers first by GE, then by Sony, it survives today as RCA Records.
RCA Victor 20-1560 (1946)
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Louis Armstrong &
Louis Jordan
(I'll Be Glad When You're Dead) You Rascal, You/Life Is So Peculiar
Decca Records, today a member of UMG, started in England in 1929 founding an American branch in 1934. It was a major producer of blues records with artists ranging from Peetie Wheatstraw to Sister Rosetta Tharpe.
Decca 27212 (1950)
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Armstrong with
Teagarden
Jack-Armstrong Blues/Rockin' Chair
In National Museum of American History collection. Louis Armstrong is an essential figure in the early blues, known for his trumpet playing on early 78s by Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey and Alberta Hunter, he was a vital force in American Music until his death in 1971.
RCA Victor 20-2348 (1947)
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Louis Armstrong
Jodie Man/I Wonder
Decca Records, today a member of UMG, started in England in 1929 founding an American branch in 1934. It was a major producer of blues records with artists ranging from Peetie Wheatstraw to Sister Rosetta Tharpe.
Decca 18652 (1945)
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Kokomo Arnold
Milk Cow Blues
Decca Records, today a member of UMG, started in England in 1929 founding an American branch in 1934. It was a major producer of blues records with artists ranging from Peetie Wheatstraw to Sister Rosetta Tharpe.
Master Test Pressing: Decca 7026(1934): J. Mayo Williams, Matrix #60574 A: consigned by City Lights Music: 8-3-1994
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Barbecue Bob
Honey, You Don't Know My Mind/ Poor Boy A Long Way From Home
Columbia Records was formed in 1888 in Washington D.C. and is still, after a series of mergers and takeovers, the latest by Sony, a leading label. It was a prolific producer of blues 78s in the 1920s and '30s.
Columbia 14246 (1927)
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Barbecue Bob
Mississippi Heavy Water Blues/Mamma, You Don't Suit Me
Columbia Records was formed in 1888 in Washington D.C. and is still, after a series of mergers and takeovers, the latest by Sony, a leading label. It was a prolific producer of blues 78s in the 1920s and '30s.
Columbia 14222D (1927)
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Pearl Bailey
St. Louis Blues/Get It Off Your Mind:
Columbia Records was formed in 1888 in Washington D.C. and is still, after a series of mergers and takeovers, the latest by Sony, a leading label. It was a prolific producer of blues 78s in the 1920s and '30s.
Columbia 37570 (1945)
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Pearl Bailey &
Jackie Mabley
Saturday Night Fish Fry/Not Tonight
Columbia Records was formed in 1888 in Washington D.C. and is still, after a series of mergers and takeovers, the latest by Sony, a leading label. It was a prolific producer of blues 78s in the 1920s and '30s.
Columbia 38660 (1949)
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Lottie Beamon
Regular Man Blues/Mamma Can't Lose
Paramount was formed in 1916-17 as a subsidiary of the Wisconsin Chair Company, until it ceased production in 1932, recorded mostly in Grafton, Wisconsin. Its' artists include Charley Patton, Blind Lemon and Son House.
Paramount 12235(1924)
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Buster Bennett Trio
Reefer Head Woman/Leapfrog Blues
Columbia Records was formed in 1888 in Washington D.C. and is still, after a series of mergers and takeovers, the latest by Sony, a leading label. It was a prolific producer of blues 78s in the 1920s and '30s.
Columbia 36873 (1945)
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Chuck Berry
Memphis, Tennessee/Back In The USA
Born in St. Louis in 1926, Chuck Berry was introduced by Muddy Waters to Leonard Chess in 1955, with his first 78, Maybelline reaching #1 on the Billboard R&B chart. Beginning in R&B, he was a founding father of Rock&Roll.
Chess 1729 (1958)
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Chuck Berry
Maybelline/Wee Wee Hours
Born in St. Louis in 1926, Chuck Berry was introduced by Muddy Waters to Leonard Chess in 1955, with his first 78, Maybelline reaching #1 on the Billboard R&B chart. Beginning in R&B, he was a founding father of Rock&Roll.
Chess 1604 (1955)
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Chuck Berry
Oh Baby Doll/Lajuanda
Born in St. Louis in 1926, Chuck Berry was introduced by Muddy Waters to Leonard Chess in 1955, with his first 78, Maybelline reaching #1 on the Billboard R&B chart. Beginning in R&B, he was a founding father of Rock&Roll.
Chess 1664 (1957)
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Chuck Berry
Rock & Roll Music/Blue Feeling
Born in St. Louis in 1926, Chuck Berry was introduced by Muddy Waters to Leonard Chess in 1955, with his first 78, Maybelline reaching #1 on the Billboard R&B chart. Beginning in R&B, he was a founding father of Rock&Roll.
Chess 1671 (1957)
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Big Bill
Trucking Little Woman/Why Did You Do That To Me
Vocalion Records was founded by the Aeolian Piano in 1916 and became one of the major early blues labels, issuing 78s by, among others Robert Johnson. After a series of takeovers, it was ended by Columbia in 1940.
Vocalion 04205 (1938)
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Big Bill &
His Chicago Five
I'm Woke Up Now/Bad Acting Woman:
Okeh (pronounced okay) began in 1916 in New York. It issued the first blues 78: Crazy Blues by Mamie Smith in 1920 and continued to be a powerhouse in blues 78s until 1932. It has been a subsidiary of Columbia since 1926.
Okeh 6724 (1941)
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Big Maceo
Texas Blues/Worried Life Blues
Bluebird Records was a budget subsidiary label of RCA Victor. It began in 1932 and, until the end of World War II, issued so many blues records, many produced by Lester Melrose, that it became known as the home of Chicago Blues.
Bluebird B8827 (1941)
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Bo Diddley
Say, Man/The Clock Strikes Twelve
Checker records was founded in 1952 in Chicago as a subsidiary of Chess Records. Some of its' artists were Bo Diddley, Little Walter and Sonny Boy Williamson II. Sold to GRT in 1969, it became defunct in1971.
Checker 931 (1958)
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Eddie Boyd
Five Long Years/Blue Coat Man
J.O.B. Records was an independent Chicago blues label founded in 1949. In 1952, Eddie Boyd's J.O.B. recording of Five Long Years reached #1 on the R&B charts. It was sold to Jewel Records in 1972 and ceased recording in 1974.
J.O.B. 1007 (1952)
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Eddie Boyd
I Got The Blues/She's The One
Chess Records was founded in 1950 in Chicago by the Chess Brothers when they re-named Aristocrat Records which they had acquired in 1947. It became Bluebird's successor as the home of Chicago Blues and is now a part of UMG.
Chess 1674 (1954)
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Eddie Boyd
Nothing But Trouble/Picture In The Frame
Chess Records was founded in 1950 in Chicago by the Chess Brothers when they re-named Aristocrat Records which they had acquired in 1947. It became Bluebird's successor as the home of Chicago Blues and is now a part of UMG.
Chess 1561 (1953)
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Calvin Boze
Satisfied/Working With My Baby
Score Records was begun in 1947 as the budget record subsidiary of Aladdin Records in Los Angeles. It also ended when Aladdin ceased production in 1961. Lightnin' Hopkins & Louis Jordan were 2 of its' artists.
Score 4008 (1949)
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Calvin Boze
Satisfied/Working With My Baby
Score Records was begun in 1947 as the budget record subsidiary of Aladdin Records in Los Angeles. It also ended when Aladdin ceased production in 1961. Lightnin' Hopkins & Louis Jordan were 2 of its' artists.
Score 4008 (1949) (copy 2)
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Jackie Brenston &
His Delta Cats
Rocket 88/Come Back Where You Belong
Widely regarded as the first Rock & Roll record, it was recorded in Memphis by Ike Turner's Kings of Rhythm, a band from Clarksdale, MS, but renamed when issued by Chess. It was #1 on the R&B charts for 5 weeks.
Chess 1458 (1951)
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Jackie Brenston &
His Delta Cats
Rocket 88/Come Back Where You Belong
Widely regarded as the first Rock & Roll record, it was recorded in Memphis by Ike Turner's Kings of Rhythm, a band from Clarksdale, MS, but renamed when issued by Chess. It was #1 on the R&B charts for 5 weeks.
Chess 1458 (1951) (copy 2)
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Brother Rodney
Softly and Tenderly/Sweet Hour of Prayer
Okeh (pronounced okay) began in 1916 in New York. It issued the first blues 78: Crazy Blues by Mamie Smith in 1920 and continued to be a powerhouse in blues 78s until 1932. It has been a subsidiary of Columbia since 1926.
Okeh 6854 (1952)
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Charles Brown
Trouble Blues/Honey Keep Your Mind On Me
Aladdin Records began in Los Angeles in 1945. Originally Philo Records, the label had an outstanding series of blues and R&B releases until 1961, it was purchased by Imperial Records and ceased production.
Aladdin 3024 (1949)
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Charles Brown
Black Night/Once There Lived A Fool
Aladdin Records began in Los Angeles in 1945. Originally Philo Records, the label had an outstanding series of blues and R&B releases until 1961, it was purchased by Imperial Records and ceased production.
Aladdin 3076 (1950)
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Roy Brown
New Rebecca/Hard Luck Blues
De-luxe Records was founded in 1944 by the Braun brothers in Linden, NJ. In 1947, Syd Nathan of King Records bought a majority interest and moved De Luxe to Cincinnati where it made records until the early 1970's.
De-Luxe 3304 (1950)
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Roy Brown &
His Mighty,
Mighty Men
Cadillac Baby/Long About Sundown
De-luxe Records was founded in 1944 by the Braun brothers in Linden, NJ. In 1947, Syd Nathan of King Records bought a majority interest and moved De Luxe to Cincinnati where it made records until the early 1970's.
De-Luxe 3308 (1950)
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Brown with
Johnson's Orchestra
I Don't Want Anybody (If I Can't Have You)/I Know
Atlantic Records was begun in 1947 in New York by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson, it is one of the legendary labels for R&B. In 1967, it became a subsidiary of Warner Brothers-7 Arts and is still in production.
Atlantic 941 (1950)
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This site made possible through the support of Mississippi Arts Commission, National Endowment for the Humanities and the Rock River Foundation.
This site made possible through the support of Mississippi Arts Commission, National Endowment for the Humanities and the Rock River Foundation.
Support for the Delta Blues Foudation, Inc has been provided by explore.org, a direct charitable activity of the Annenberg Foundation.
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Museum Contact information
#1 Blues Alley Lane
Clarksdale, MS 38614
Phone: 662-627-6820
Email: info@deltabluesmuseum.org