Books about Phonographs from Amazon.com

12 volt DC operation; will work anywhere in the world. RIAA freq response 20hz-20,000hz +/- 0.5dB, S/N ratio 85dB. Gold plated jacks and black anodized metal casing. Includes AC adaptor, RCA cable, miniplug adaptor. Ground wire terminal and power indicator.
Price: $43.50 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Out of attics and barns, out from under the dust of a century, out of collections far and wide come these spectacular survivors of the phonograph's early years. In 1996, the authors began writing a history of recorded sound. After two successful books, they have continued traveling, researching and documenting these wonderful machines. Few could have imagined how much remained to be discovered! Out of these further explorations, this gorgeous new book has come to life-illustrating entirely different talking machines. Through over 400 beautiful color illustrations, follow the progress of the acoustic talking machine from its crude beginnings in the 1870s to its most splendid and sophisticated heights in the early 20th century. An unparalleled archive of rare, fascinating, and previously undocumented objects has been assembled. The story behind the beautiful, bright machinery is told through clear and insightful descriptions, revealing many previously unpublished facts. A value guide will further enlighten the collector on the modern marketplace. Be ready to embark on an astounding journey. Prepare to discover the incredible variety and endearing charm of the antique phonograph.unding journey. Prepare to discover the incredible variety and endearing charm of the antique phonograph..
Price: $30.00 [Notify me when price goes down.]

In 1877 Thomas Edison dreamed that one day there would be a talking machine in every home, but even his legendary vision could not have foreseen the way that recorded sound would pervade modern life. From the first thin sheet of tinfoil that was manipulated into retaining sound to the home recordings of rappers in the 1980s and the high-tech studios of the 1990s, this book examines the important technical developments of acoustic, electric, and digital sound reproduction while outlining the cultural impact of recorded music and movies. This second edition highlights the digital revolution of sound recording. First Edition Hb (1995) 0-521-47544-9 First Edition Pb (1995) 0-521-47556-2.
Price: $20.00 [Notify me when price goes down.]

When record men first traveled from Chicago or invited musicians to studios in New York, these entrepreneurs had no conception how their technology would change the dynamics of what constituted a musical performance. 78 Blues: Folksongs and Phonographs in the American South covers a revolution in artist performance and audience perception through close examination of hundreds of key "hillbilly" and "race" records released between the 1920s and World War II.

In the postwar period, regional strains recorded on pioneering 78 r.p.m. discs exploded into urban blues and R&B, honky-tonk and western swing, gospel, soul, and rock 'n' roll. These old-time records preserve the work of some of America's greatest musical geniuses such as Jimmie Rodgers, Robert Johnson, Charlie Poole, and Blind Lemon Jefferson. They are also crucial mile markers in the course of American popular music and the growth of the modern recording industry.

When these records first circulated, the very notion of recorded music was still a novelty. All music had been created live and tied to particular, intimate occasions. How were listeners to understand an impersonal technology like the phonograph record as a musical event? How could they reconcile firsthand interactions and traditional customs with technological innovations and mass media? The records themselves, several hundred of which are explored fully in this book, offer answers in scores of spoken commentaries and skits, in song lyrics and monologues, or other more subtle means.

John Minton is professor of folklore at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne. He is also a musician, songwriter, and the author of "The Coon in the Box": A Global Folktale in African-American Tradition (with David Evans) and "Big 'Fraid and Little 'Fraid": An Afro-American Folktale..
Price: $40.00 [Notify me when price goes down.]

The invention of the cylinder phonograph at the end of the nineteenth century opened up a new world for cultural research. Indeed, Edison's talking machine became one of the basic tools of anthropology. It not only equipped researchers with the means of preserving folk songs but it also enabled them to investigate a wide spectrum of distinct vocal expressions in the emerging fields of anthropology and folklore. Ethnographers grasped its huge potential and fanned out through regional America to record rituals, stories, word lists, and songs in isolated cultures.

From the outset the federal government helped fuel the momentum to record cultures that were at risk of being lost. Through the Bureau of American Ethnology, the Smithsonian Institution took an active role in preserving native heritage. It supported projects to make phonographic documentation of American Indian language, music, and rituals before developing technologies and national expansion might futher undermine them.

This study of the early phonograph's impact shows traditional ethnography being transformed, for attitudes of both ethnographers and performers were reshaped by this exciting technology. In the presence of the phonograph both fieldwork and the materials collected were revolutionized. By radically altering the old research modes, the phonograph brought the disciplines of anthropology and folklore into the modern era.

At first the instrument was as strange and new to the fieldworkers as it was to their subjects. To some the first encounter with the phonograph was a deeply unsettling experience. When it was demonstrated in 1878 before members of the National Academy of Sciences, several members of the audience fainted. Even its inventor was astonished. Of his first successful test of his tinfoil phonograph, Thomas A. Edison said, "I was never taken so aback in my life."

The cylinders that have survived from these times offer an unrivaled resource not only for contemporary scholarship but also for a grassroots renaissance of cultural and religious values. In tracing the historical interplay of the talking machine with field research, The Spiral Way underscores the natural adaptiblity of cultural study to this new technology. Erika Brady is an associate professor in the folk studies programs at Western Kentucky University. She served as technical consultant and researcher on the staff of the Federal Cylinder Project of the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress..
Price: $9.95 [Notify me when price goes down.]

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Price: $39.98 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Antique phonographs enjoyed a vigorous commercial existence 100 years ago. The market they inhabited was as filled with options, accessories, gadgets and gizmos as today's late-night television is populated with slicers, dicers, car waxes and beauty secrets. Collectors have acquired, examined and used these peripherals for years, but little has been written about them. In an effort to reveal more about the fascinating accessories, horns, storage cabinets, advertising and ephemera which surrounded the antique phonograph, the authors have examined nearly 20,000 pages of primary documents, and photographed examples from over 35 collections. Over 500 color photographs illustrate nearly 700 items from the early years of recorded sound. To finally discover this long-lost aspect of the antique phonograph hobby is something akin to Dorothy's first faltering steps into the Land of Oz. The world is suddenly in Technicolor! There is suddenly more excitement, more romance, more fun-as readers of this book will happily discover..
Price: $30.00 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Antique talking machines are among todays hottest collectibles. Names like Edison and Victrola call to mind an era of polished wood, brightly-painted morning glory horns, and fascinating machinery. This revised and expanded second edition of The Talking Machine contains over 525 color photographs showing an incredible variety models, and including over 30 never before published photos. The authoritative text and up-to-date values complement the wealth of visuals, making this book a veritable library of information in one volume! Topping off this award-winning combination is a music CD featuring some of the rarest and most historically important recordings of all time. Hear the voice of explorer Ernest Shackleton describe his perilous expedition to the South Pole. Listen to a dramatic recreation of the San Francisco earthquake recorded mere months after the actual event. Enjoy two different recordings of the voice of the great inventor Thomas A. Edison..
Price: $49.50 [Notify me when price goes down.]

In this, their fifth collaboration, award-winning authors Timothy C. Fabrizio and George F. Paul examine the fascinating and collectible field of phonograph advertising. Whether pragmatic, inspirational, or merely avaricious, talking machine promotion assumed a variety of mantles during its first fifty years. Charming trade cards, brightly lithographed posters, flamboyant letterheads, and a wide variety of bizarre objects emblazoned with marketing slogans were used to sell phonographs and records during the 1877-1929 period. Additionally, phonograph records were used as a medium for promoting products as disparate as toothpaste, automobiles, and presidents. Indulge yourself with this visual feast of 450 color illustrations of phonograph and record marketing from yesteryear, plus detailed captions, values, and an insightful text..
Price: $38.40 [Notify me when price goes down.]