Autograph Records was an American

record label "Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of Sound recording and reproduction, music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a Music publisher, ...

in the 1920s owned by Marsh Laboratories of

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, which was owned by Orlando R. Marsh, an electrical engineer. Marsh made recordings by his own experimental methods. Autograph was the first U.S. record label to release recordings made electrically with

microphone A microphone, colloquially called a mic (), or mike, is a transducer that converts sound into an electrical signal. Microphones are used in many applications such as telephones, hearing aids, public address systems for concert halls and publi ...

s, as opposed to the acoustical or mechanical method that was more commonly used.Columbia Graphophone marketed electrical 12-inch in early 20s. According to author Brian Rust, Marsh's first electrical records were made in 1924.Rust, Brian. "Autograph, a glimpse into the past." ''Storyville'' 1972; 40: 124-126.

Organ music

It was reported in ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'' on April 28, 1923, that a device invented by Marsh was successfully used to make a recording of organ music, until then considered impossible. The article stated that Pietro Yon from New York City played his organ composition "Jesu Bambino" in Marsh's Chicago laboratory, and that the reproduction was described as excellent. The article went on to say that this accomplishment appeared to open a new area for the phonograph. Brian Rust also reported that there was a note in the ''Talking Machine Journal'' for October 1924 indicating that "Orlando B. Marsh" had just moved to 78 East Jackson Boulevard. Marsh Laboratories became established on the seventh floor of the Lyon & Healy Building. This location attracted customers. Lyon & Healy sold sheet music, records, and musical instruments.Powell, James R., Jr., Randall G. Stehle, and Jonathan D. Powell. "Vintage microphones and the restoration of early Marsh Laboratories electrical 78-rpm recordings." ''ARSC Journal'' 2006; 37 (1): 36-47.

Discs

Autograph is best known for some of the fine

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

by artists in Chicago which was recorded on the label. The most famous of all are the duets by King Oliver and

Jelly Roll Morton Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe ( Lemott, later Morton; c. September 20, 1890 – July 10, 1941), known professionally as Jelly Roll Morton, was an American blues and jazz pianist, bandleader, and composer of Louisiana Creole descent. Morton was jazz ...

. Autograph's bestselling records, however, were the series of

pipe organ The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurised air (called ''wind'') through the organ pipes selected from a Musical keyboard, keyboard. Because each pipe produces a single tone and pitch, the pipes are provide ...

solos by Jesse Crawford. Marsh's electrical process was the first to be able to capture an approximation of the range of the organ, but it lacked bass in the tone mix. About the time that the Autograph records of Crawford were made, Jesse Crawford accepted an offer to be organist at the Paramount Theatre in New York City. Once there, the Victor became interested in having Crawford make recordings for them, first by the acoustical process. Later, Victor recorded Crawford by the

Western Electric Western Electric Co., Inc. was an American electrical engineering and manufacturing company that operated from 1869 to 1996. A subsidiary of the AT&T Corporation for most of its lifespan, Western Electric was the primary manufacturer, supplier, ...

-licensed process first used by them in 1925. Milton Charles succeeded Jesse Crawford as organist at the

Chicago Theatre The Chicago Theatre, originally known as the Balaban and Katz Chicago Theatre, is a landmark Theater (structure), theater located on North State Street (Chicago), State Street in the Loop, Chicago, Loop area of Chicago, Illinois. Built in 19 ...

and also as the organist used by Orlando Marsh. Charles was recorded by Marsh Laboratories at the Tivoli Theatre (Chicago) with releases on

Paramount Records Paramount Records was an American record label known for its recordings of jazz and blues in the 1920s and early 1930s, including such artists as Ma Rainey, Tommy Johnson (guitarist), Tommy Johnson and Blind Lemon Jefferson. Early years Paramoun ...

. The Paramount recordings were technically superior to those made at the Chicago Theatre. The last Autograph records seem to have been recorded in

1926 In Turkey, the year technically contained only 352 days. As Friday, December 18, 1926 ''(Julian Calendar)'' was followed by Saturday, January 1, 1927 '' (Gregorian Calendar)''. 13 days were dropped to make the switch. Turkey thus became the ...

. Although no longer releasing sides under his own label, Marsh continued to make recordings in Chicago for other labels (including Paramount, Gennett, and Black Patti) through the end of the 1920s.

Radio

Amos 'n' Andy ''Amos 'n' Andy'' was an American radio sitcom about black characters, initially set in Chicago then later in the Harlem section of New York City. While the show had a brief life on 1950s television with black actors, the 1928 to 1960 radio sho ...

was the first radio program to be distributed by recorded syndication, and Marsh Laboratories played a role in this. Elizabeth McLeod indicated in an e-mail of December 27, 2002, that recordings by

Freeman Gosden Freeman Fisher "Gozzie" Gosden (May 5, 1899 – December 10, 1982) was an American radio comedian, actor and pioneer in the development of the situation comedy form. He is best known for his work in the '' Amos 'n' Andy'' radio series. Life and ...

and

Charles Correll Charles James Correll (February 2, 1890 – September 26, 1972) was an American radio comedian, actor and writer who was best known for his work in the radio ''Amos 'n' Andy'' radio series with Freeman Gosden. Correll voiced the main character, ...

were made in advance of the live airing of the Amos 'n' Andy radio shows on

WMAQ (AM) WSCR (670 AM radio, AM) – branded 670 The Score – is a Commercial radio, commercial sports radio station, licensed to Chicago, Illinois, which serves the Chicago metropolitan area. Owned by Audacy, Inc., WSCR is a clear-channel station wit ...

, Chicago, in the 1928–1929 period at Marsh Laboratories. These were pressed for distribution to other radio stations as 12" shellac 78 rpm discs. She indicated that a speed around 80 rpm was sometimes more accurate. On April 29, 1929, the recording contract went to Brunswick-Balke-Collender (

Brunswick Corporation Brunswick Corporation, formerly known as the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company, is an American corporation that has been developing, manufacturing and marketing a wide variety of products since 1845. Brunswick has more than 13,000 employees in ...

) and the audio quality of the discs improved substantially.McLeod, Elizabeth. A & A Recordings; December 27, 2002.

Organ music

Discs

Radio

References

See also