The Session >> Discussions >> Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
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Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
This morning I seriously thought about paying $30 for a John J. Kimmel LP, for instance. Reissue of century-old cylinder recordings, mostly. I think about it and somehow if he actually made discs, why, those just aren't as cool...
Neither is the $25 CD...
Well, for all I know someone out there still plays like that. Do they tour?
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
Closest I can think of is Pat O'Connor, fiddle player from Feakle, who can sometimes be found working at Custy's in place of his brother John. Two CDs out. Coming to New England (hey, it's only 3000 miles from you, Kevin) in late October to early November with Claire Keville. He also sometimes tours in Japan, where his wife is from. You might also hear him from time to time in Gort. Does that constitute "touring"?
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
Gary, I think you're lost?
Kevin, I have friends and acquaintances who played as if they were scratchy old recordings of dead people ~ including the snap, crackle pop ~ does that count?
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
hey, right at this very moment i am desperately seeking paddy carty's scratchy old recording with conor tully; lucy farr's scratchy old cassette recording titled "heart and home"; and mickey doherty's scratchy old cassette recording. and the fact that these scratchy old recordings are inaccessible in a world flooded with shiny new recordings by lunasa, solas and flook, not to mention enya, is feeling so very wrong, wrong, woefully wrong.
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
well i'm glad to hear someone finally agrees with me on the point of the infernal parade ground piano...
i dont even hear the scratches any longer. in fact, i've actually felt somewhat uncomfortable with a CD by noticing their absence. with all the hours i've spent, earbuds crammed into my earcanals to nullify the hiss, i cant even begin to say how much i wish musicians would get back to recording as they used to. i don't necessarily mean how they did in the late 19th century i just mean in a room with decent acoustics (optional), and one microphone. i want to hear a band, not a soundboard. i don't like chrome trim and shiny paint on my music. am i alone here? that's my problem with flook, solas, danu etc. they're all spiffy show (and a hell of a show) but the records sound like new cars.
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
I'd venture to observe that it's easier to learn tunes by ear off live recordings whether old or modern. You have the feeling that the music is unadulterated and that the other person(s) could be sitting there in front of you and hey!, and that you should be able to follow them. With modern CD recordings, that level of trust is diminished.. who knows what tricks have been employed in their making.
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
There are still people alive that can play this type of soul music but very few are left.listen paddy cannys cd a real treat he has nothing to prove, his ego does not get in the way of the music. How many cd producing trad artists can send a shiver down your spine? very few as they go through the motions, technique for the sake of technique, ultra ego most are drifting into a kind of contemporary jazz. We are in a position within the music that you do not have to move people with your music in order to be a celebrity just hit them with somthing fast upbeat and your a winner . Where has the soul in our music gone?
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
I agree with everyone above. An excellent example of this type of recording is the new Junior Crehan complilation. The music and the stories are mesmerizing.
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
ceemonster, the Carty/Tully was a cassette, so scratchy wasn't an issue. You can hear how on Paddy's solo of Galway Bay that they tried to turn Frank Hogan's mandola down all the way, not suceeding either. This could be a new permutation of the scratches/pop/crackle idiom. Like early versions of digital reverb: Brian Eno once said he liked those as much as any expensive high quality plate reverb, simply for its own qualities.
I think it is the sound quality I'm after. Forget the music. Notes schmotes! How about a crackle workshop?
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
If you’re not used to listening to that really old scratchy stuff, a little mental trick is imagining that you’re listening to live music during a pouring rainstorm. Somebody pointed that out to me, and it was amazing the way the music suddenly came alive.
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
'i cant even begin to say how much i wish musicians would get back to recording as they used to. i don't necessarily mean how they did in the late 19th century i just mean in a room with decent acoustics (optional), and one microphone. i want to hear a band, not a soundboard. i don't like chrome trim and shiny paint on my music. am i alone here?'
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
Okay, okay. I was only being flippant in my previous 'old scratchy recordings' statement in the Loathing Lunasa Thread. I like old scratchy recordings of dead people because (1) they are of dead people and (2) they are old. I like the thought of hearing something that someone did a long time ago, because sound is such an ephemeral thing. But capture it on something, and you can share a moment from the past.
It is something like my obsession with buying clothes in thrift stores. I like things with history.
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
re: [ceemonster, the carty/tully was a cassette, so scratchy wasn't an issue.]
um.....really, gosh, no kidding???? this butterfly has been pinned again by the literalmindedness the folkie woods are so full of........but if we insist on being literal, cassettes do indeed abound in funky noises not discernible on today's digital test-tube confections. and i remain confounded that the scratchy old carty/tully recording, along with the scratchy old lucy farr recording, seem to be inaccessible while the bins overflow with smooth and un-scratchy "crossover appeal" artists....
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
Kevin you're not alone! I really only like scratchy old recordings of dead people as well. Can't explain why, but my 11 year old daughter is getting into them as well. Maybe its in the genes.
Kevin you must get the Kimmel, it's absolutely brilliant and in many ways still groundbreaking 80 years on.
Thanks fidkid for the tip about the 'rainstorm'.
Happy listening!
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
I spent decades listening to scratchy old 78s at home, a wealth of amazing music, so amazing you forget the scratches. Both Irish and American. Rather than chrome and shiny trim, they are raw power.... it's great when you find a live musician that has that spark and drive.....it doesn't even matter if they make some mistakes or even if the intonation goes a little off at times. The guts and passion behind the music are what count the most.
I grew up with a Mexican born father, whose mother, my grandmother was Breton/Spanish , in fact Breton was her last name too, so, whew... some Celtic roots... but anyway he played old Spanish language 78s almost every night and wailed along to them with total abandon, he was a great singer... a trait I did NOT inherit, LOL! So the scratches in a strange way are very nostalgic.
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
Anyone know any stories of the old dead accordion player Peter Conlon? I know someone in Dublin trying to put a history project on his together. There were a bunch of 78s which he has all of I think, but any stories. He lived in Brooklyn and died in the 60's, forget when he came over here. Aside from history, his playing is super. There's not much known about him. Any anecdotes or tidbits would be appreciated for sure.
Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
This morning I seriously thought about paying $30 for a John J. Kimmel LP, for instance. Reissue of century-old cylinder recordings, mostly. I think about it and somehow if he actually made discs, why, those just aren't as cool...
Neither is the $25 CD...
Well, for all I know someone out there still plays like that. Do they tour?
# Posted on August 7th 2006 by KLR
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
I like them...but they're not the only things I like lol (sometimes it is really nice to have good sound quality...)
# Posted on August 8th 2006 by possumawesome
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
Closest I can think of is Pat O'Connor, fiddle player from Feakle, who can sometimes be found working at Custy's in place of his brother John. Two CDs out. Coming to New England (hey, it's only 3000 miles from you, Kevin) in late October to early November with Claire Keville. He also sometimes tours in Japan, where his wife is from. You might also hear him from time to time in Gort. Does that constitute "touring"?
# Posted on August 8th 2006 by GaryAMartin
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
Gary, I think you're lost?
Kevin, I have friends and acquaintances who played as if they were scratchy old recordings of dead people ~ including the snap, crackle pop ~ does that count?
# Posted on August 8th 2006 by ceolachan
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
No. That's all I like! My wife can't stand it, but my 14 year old son is on my side.
# Posted on August 8th 2006 by curamach
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
I have nothing against scratchy old recordings of dead people. However, seeing them in concert can be really boring.
# Posted on August 8th 2006 by Zazzaliss
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
hey, right at this very moment i am desperately seeking paddy carty's scratchy old recording with conor tully; lucy farr's scratchy old cassette recording titled "heart and home"; and mickey doherty's scratchy old cassette recording. and the fact that these scratchy old recordings are inaccessible in a world flooded with shiny new recordings by lunasa, solas and flook, not to mention enya, is feeling so very wrong, wrong, woefully wrong.
# Posted on August 8th 2006 by ceemonster
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
It's not the scratchy old that counts. If you are listening to the recording quality and not the music, it's time to give up on the music.
Coleman could have done without that piano though.
# Posted on August 8th 2006 by LastToFinish
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
well i'm glad to hear someone finally agrees with me on the point of the infernal parade ground piano...
i dont even hear the scratches any longer. in fact, i've actually felt somewhat uncomfortable with a CD by noticing their absence. with all the hours i've spent, earbuds crammed into my earcanals to nullify the hiss, i cant even begin to say how much i wish musicians would get back to recording as they used to. i don't necessarily mean how they did in the late 19th century i just mean in a room with decent acoustics (optional), and one microphone. i want to hear a band, not a soundboard. i don't like chrome trim and shiny paint on my music. am i alone here? that's my problem with flook, solas, danu etc. they're all spiffy show (and a hell of a show) but the records sound like new cars.
# Posted on August 8th 2006 by gravelwalks
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
I'd venture to observe that it's easier to learn tunes by ear off live recordings whether old or modern. You have the feeling that the music is unadulterated and that the other person(s) could be sitting there in front of you and hey!, and that you should be able to follow them. With modern CD recordings, that level of trust is diminished.. who knows what tricks have been employed in their making.
# Posted on August 8th 2006 by the wounded hussar
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
There are still people alive that can play this type of soul music but very few are left.listen paddy cannys cd a real treat he has nothing to prove, his ego does not get in the way of the music. How many cd producing trad artists can send a shiver down your spine? very few as they go through the motions, technique for the sake of technique, ultra ego most are drifting into a kind of contemporary jazz. We are in a position within the music that you do not have to move people with your music in order to be a celebrity just hit them with somthing fast upbeat and your a winner . Where has the soul in our music gone?
# Posted on August 8th 2006 by brians
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
I agree with everyone above. An excellent example of this type of recording is the new Junior Crehan complilation. The music and the stories are mesmerizing.
# Posted on August 8th 2006 by Jiml
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
ceemonster, the Carty/Tully was a cassette, so scratchy wasn't an issue. You can hear how on Paddy's solo of Galway Bay that they tried to turn Frank Hogan's mandola down all the way, not suceeding either. This could be a new permutation of the scratches/pop/crackle idiom. Like early versions of digital reverb: Brian Eno once said he liked those as much as any expensive high quality plate reverb, simply for its own qualities.
I think it is the sound quality I'm after. Forget the music. Notes schmotes! How about a crackle workshop?
# Posted on August 8th 2006 by KLR
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
If you’re not used to listening to that really old scratchy stuff, a little mental trick is imagining that you’re listening to live music during a pouring rainstorm. Somebody pointed that out to me, and it was amazing the way the music suddenly came alive.
# Posted on August 8th 2006 by fidkid
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
'i cant even begin to say how much i wish musicians would get back to recording as they used to. i don't necessarily mean how they did in the late 19th century i just mean in a room with decent acoustics (optional), and one microphone. i want to hear a band, not a soundboard. i don't like chrome trim and shiny paint on my music. am i alone here?'
http://www.thesession.org/recordings/display/1889
# Posted on August 8th 2006 by Prof. Prlwytzkofski
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
Okay, okay. I was only being flippant in my previous 'old scratchy recordings' statement in the Loathing Lunasa Thread. I like old scratchy recordings of dead people because (1) they are of dead people and (2) they are old. I like the thought of hearing something that someone did a long time ago, because sound is such an ephemeral thing. But capture it on something, and you can share a moment from the past.
It is something like my obsession with buying clothes in thrift stores. I like things with history.
# Posted on August 8th 2006 by Michele Sims
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
re: [ceemonster, the carty/tully was a cassette, so scratchy wasn't an issue.]
um.....really, gosh, no kidding???? this butterfly has been pinned again by the literalmindedness the folkie woods are so full of........but if we insist on being literal, cassettes do indeed abound in funky noises not discernible on today's digital test-tube confections. and i remain confounded that the scratchy old carty/tully recording, along with the scratchy old lucy farr recording, seem to be inaccessible while the bins overflow with smooth and un-scratchy "crossover appeal" artists....
# Posted on August 9th 2006 by ceemonster
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
The Carty/Tully recording is supposedly in the process of being re-released as a CD, subject to Conor Tully's satisfaction.
Kevin Krell
# Posted on August 9th 2006 by kkrell
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
Kevin you're not alone! I really only like scratchy old recordings of dead people as well. Can't explain why, but my 11 year old daughter is getting into them as well. Maybe its in the genes.
Kevin you must get the Kimmel, it's absolutely brilliant and in many ways still groundbreaking 80 years on.
Thanks fidkid for the tip about the 'rainstorm'.
Happy listening!
# Posted on August 10th 2006 by The Archivist
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
I spent decades listening to scratchy old 78s at home, a wealth of amazing music, so amazing you forget the scratches. Both Irish and American. Rather than chrome and shiny trim, they are raw power.... it's great when you find a live musician that has that spark and drive.....it doesn't even matter if they make some mistakes or even if the intonation goes a little off at times. The guts and passion behind the music are what count the most.
I grew up with a Mexican born father, whose mother, my grandmother was Breton/Spanish , in fact Breton was her last name too, so, whew... some Celtic roots... but anyway he played old Spanish language 78s almost every night and wailed along to them with total abandon, he was a great singer... a trait I did NOT inherit, LOL! So the scratches in a strange way are very nostalgic.
# Posted on August 13th 2006 by irisnevins
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
Sure, it's a fine topic that will get Bat, Sharon, and Iris to respond!
# Posted on August 13th 2006 by oldstrings
Re: Am I the only one who likes nothing but scratchy old recordings of dead people?
Anyone know any stories of the old dead accordion player Peter Conlon? I know someone in Dublin trying to put a history project on his together. There were a bunch of 78s which he has all of I think, but any stories. He lived in Brooklyn and died in the 60's, forget when he came over here. Aside from history, his playing is super. There's not much known about him. Any anecdotes or tidbits would be appreciated for sure.
# Posted on August 13th 2006 by irisnevins