“The Birth and Rise of the Recording Industry in Canada – from Berliner to RCA Victor” – 28 examples, from a 1903 recorded ad for Berliner Gramophone to a 1959 “45” of Yakety Yak – Gala Records GAL 112 **** [Distrib. by Albany]:
This small Canadian label specializes in recorded anthologies, and this one tells the story of the recording industry in Canada by focusing on Emile Berliner and his family there, since his company pressed the first phonograph records in Canada in 1900, and were very involved in the business to the present day. Berliner shares with Edison the invention of the phonograph; he also invented the microphone, the flat disc, carried out the first electrical recording in 1920, and later even came up with a working helicopter and the first acoustic tiles. He founded three major record companies: EMI, Deutsche Grammophon, and Victor. The history of Berliner’s companies in Canada, the evolving sound technologies, and the social situations in which it all happened are covered in the 80-page booklet (half in French of course) and with the 28 varied tracks on the CD.
Frankly, only the tracks by Oscar Peterson and Hank Snow were familiar to me, but I’m sure any Canadian will find plenty of nostalgia here, eh? Berliner saw a demonstration of the first Edison cylinder phonograph and quickly realized it had problems of the discs wearing out quickly and at the time mass production of them not being possible. He began production of flat discs played with a steel needle at a small factory in Washington D.C. In l899 he opened a factory in Montreal and left his eldest son Herbert Samuel to run it. Most of the recordings were made in the U.S. or Europe – few Canadian artists recorded before 1910. There were tensions between father Emile and son Herbert, as well as many changes in record labels and pressing plants due partly to Berliner’s original patent on lateral cut records running out in 1917.
After 1915 a number of strictly Canadian artists began to appear on what were now Victor records. They included pop, light music and folk, with many titles in French. One of the tracks is a male vocal on When It’s Springtime in the Rockies, sung in French. Oscar’s Boogie from 1948 is one of the first recordings of child prodigy jazz artist Oscar Peterson. Country singer Hank Snow’s manager made an effort to get him into the Nashville music scene, and he became a top performer in the U.S. as well. The well-written booklet goes into the effects on the record industry of the 1929 crash, the radio years, cabarets, digitization, etc. There are photos of some of the performers and actual disc labels. Altogether a fine anthology that should have at least some appeal to collectors and historians in the U.S., where we know so little about our neighbors to the north.
TrackList:
1. the new voice of berliner (oliver berliner)
2. it talks, it sings. recorded advertisement (robert price
3. les montagnards (e loiseau)
4. the maple leaf forever (robert price)
5. le long du st-laurent (hector pellerin)
6. when you and i were young, maggie (henry burr & peerless quartet)
7. hello bobby, i’m going to sing for you (emile berliner)
8. on est canayen ou ben on l’est pas (conrad gauthier)
9. the devil’s dream (george wade and his cornhuskers)
10. my swiss moonlight lullaby (wilf carter)
11. vous qui passez sans me voir (jean lalonde)
12. darling, je vous aime beaucoup (lucille dumont)
13. the west, a nest and you, dear (mart kenney & his western gentlemen)
14. pie jesu (wilfrid pelletier et l’orchestre des festivals de montreal)
15. v’la l’bon vent (le quatuor alouette)
16. tico-tico (alys robi)
17. je croyais (fernand robidoux)
18. mon enfant je te pardonne (paul brunelle)
19. la bonne chanson (albert viau et francois brunet)
20. je chante a cheval (willie lamothe)
21. oscar’s boogie (oscar peterson)
22. si vois l’aviez compris (raoul jobin)
23. les fraises et les framboises (Le trio Soucy)
24. les nuits de Montreal (jacqus normand)
25. I’m movin’ on – (hank snow)
26. toi ma richesse – (jen roger)
27. n’oublie jamais (raymond berthiaume and les three bars)
28. Yaekty Yak (les jerolas)
– John Sunier
