"When you're buying 78s on eBay, unless somebody has really strong feedback, you're taking a chance, because I can't tell you how many times I've looked at a 78 on auction and they say, "Well I have no way of playing it but it looks nice. It's got surface scratches but it looks nice, I have no way of playing it." And that's usually the person that basically mails you the record in a shopping bag. So I wouldn't take a chance."


Yowza, Yowza, Yowza. This is Brian Marcus Decker, for the Jolson and Friends blog located on the web at www.JolsonBlog.com , which is the first tech-nostalgic blog dedicated to the musical influences of Al Jolson and Friends.

Well folks, we now continue with Part IV of my interview with Rich Conaty from WFUV. He has been the host of the Big Broadcast radio program for over 30 years. This spectacular Sunday night radio show features only classic songs from the '20s and '30s. He will be sharing his thoughts on Al Jolson, Cab Calloway, Connee Boswell, tips on buying 78's, the new DVD release of the Jazz Singer, the Ziegfeld Follies, Vince Giordano's Nighthawks and more.

Free Jolson and Friends Podcasts

After collecting audio assets for five Jolson related interviews, in the last few months I launched the First Jolson Podcast and you can listen to the entire series of interviews including my current seven-part interview with the Rich Conaty of the Big Broadcast radio show, Asa, the Magnificent Minstrel, the Vaudeville series with author Trav S.D. and Sybil Jason.

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Jolson and Friends Blog Podcast: Jolson and The Big Broadcast Part IV

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"The Jazz Singer premiered at Warner's Strand in New York City on October (23), 1927, a date enshrined in film history, with all the dread decisiveness of Waterloo, Sarajevo, and Pearl Harbor. On this date the death knell of the silent movies was sounded, and the talkies were born. It had died one night in a theater when people were mesmerized by a Mammy singer. According to film historians, however, it was not Jolson the singer who shook the medium to its foundations, but Jolson the talker." - Andrew Sarris (Great quote, wrong date) 

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Original photograph of a Victrola taken in Alexandria, Egypt, Copyright © 2007 Brian Marcus Decker

"Well I happen to own a beautiful 1904 upright Victrola, but I do feel guilty every time I play a 78 on it. Even using a new needle I feel like I'm actually destroying the record every single time I play it. In fact, somebody told me to go out and use cactus needles.  It took me quite a while to find the right type of cactus needles to use, but it actually did work."

Brian Marcus Decker: Well it does seem very obvious that you are an avid record collector. Can you tell us about your collection and share with us some tips of where to buy old 78's or Edison cylinders, how to buy them, how do you assess the value of these kinds of recordings?

Rich Conaty: Well most of the records nowadays seem to go from collector to collector. You don't necessarily stumble across stashes at Thrift Shops or Salvation Army. A lot of the good records seem to already be in the hands of collectors. So there are a number of publications, Joslin's Jazz Journal, VJM, which I get, VJM Jazz, and Blues Mart has quarterly auctions that they run. There are online auction people like Alan Cooperman and a fellow in Connecticut, I can't think of his name. And Kurt Nauck is one of the big ones; Michael Stewart has a big online auction, and on eBay of course.

Now eBay is a different matter, when you're dealing with a professional record dealer, like Alan Cooperman or Kurt Nauck, you can trust the descriptions, and you can trust the grading. When you're buying 78s on eBay, unless somebody has really strong feedback, you're taking a chance, because I can't tell you how many times I've looked at a 78 on auction and they say, "Well I have no way of playing it but it looks nice. It's got surface scratches but it looks nice, I have no way of playing it." And that's usually the person that basically mails you the record in a shopping bag. So I wouldn't take a chance.

As far as prices of most 78's, like most coins, have no value at all. There is a fellow named Les Docks, who did publish a price guide, it's been updated a few times but I think the last edition is 2001, but you can still pick it up on Amazon. And it at least gives you a sense of relativity as to the value of records, so you're not paying too much for something. And then I really think it's a wonderful hobby and it's a fun thing to get into and you can still pick up a lot of bargains.

Brian Marcus Decker: So if you're ordering anything from the Internet or through catalogues make sure you take the insurance?

Rich Conaty: Yes. Although, you know it's funny, I sell records on eBay and people will pay extra for insurance but I'm figuring if the record breaks I'm going to have to pay for it. So it always seems funny that I'm making them pay for something that I'm basically responsible for if something goes wrong. Most people don't go for the insurance because if you're dealing with a seller who knows what they're doing, which means a lot of cardboard and a lot of those Styrofoam peanuts, you're not taking that much of a chance.

Brian Marcus Decker: Well I happen to own a beautiful 1904 upright Victrola, but I do feel guilty every time I play a 78 on it. Even using a new needle I feel like I'm actually destroying the record every single time I play it. In fact, somebody told me to go out and use cactus needles.  It took me quite a while to find the right type of cactus needles to use, but it actually did work.Supposedly they actually put no wear and tear on the records whatsoever. But where do you find an unlimited supply of cactus needles? What is your advice on how to take care of these old 78's and listen to them?

Rich Conaty: Well, given the technology of those days it really is amazing that there are so many records that have survived in nice condition. Except for company, I don't play records on my Victrola. I have a nice, entry level, orthophonic Victrola, I had company over last week and I put a couple of things on and I change needles between records. Valuable records, I wouldn't play them on a windup machine especially because of modern turntables, there are still three speed turntables being made, there's a really fine outfit, Kevin Barrett, www.kabusa.com  sells contemporary turntables. But really, I don't want to say it's the least of it, but the single most important thing, you talk about the cactus needles, is the size of the stylus. And a typical modern LP, stereo record, would have a point or a needle point of less than one mil, 78 could be two or three times that. So you can have a three speed turntable, but if you don't have the right sized stylus the records are going to sound pretty bad.

Brian Marcus Decker: Good advice. I read somewhere that you constantly transfer all of your 78's to CD's for your weekly show. I've made several attempts myself to actually transfer LP's as well as some of my 78's. I've had somewhat limited success. What advice can you give to the Jolson and Friends blog community on how we can successfully transfer our old recordings to CD's or even just to digital files.

Rich Conaty: See, I own a computer; I'm not a real computer head so I still have my audio system set up like a hi-fi. I've got a turntable, I've got a cassette deck, I've got my receiver, a couple of speakers, and I have a Phillips CDR, a dual deck CDR recorder, which they don't make anymore but I keep picking them up on eBay. I have about three of them now that don't work, I have the one that's installed and I think I have another two to three still in boxes in the hallway. So I use equipment that I picked up from KAB with a modern three speed turntable, a range of needles that typically, you'll go from a 2.3 mil to a 2.6 to a 3.3., that range is good for most of the records that I play, and a signal processor, which has a certain amount of filtering but also the equalization which can make a lot of the difference in the sound of the records.

I will typically burn anywhere from 16 to 22 78's onto a CDR, which I'll bring into work and then the rest of the show or a couple of LP's and commercial CD's. And then that CD is, after it's used on the air, actually there's someone in Chicago who I send them out to. So I don't archive the 78's that I put onto CDR because the 78's are still in my living room.

Jolson Blog: The Big Broadcast Interview with Rich Conaty Part V: December 30, 2007

• Can you tell us what are some of your favorite Al Jolson songs and even movies and what significance they have to you?
• Now I've read somewhere that you did have an opportunity to interview Cab Calloway before his death untimely in 1994. Can you share with us some of the highlights of that experience?

Jolson and Friends Blog Required Reading List

No Applause--Just Throw Money: The Book That Made Vaudeville Famous (Paperback) by Trav S.D.

Click here to shop and buy this book from Amazon

My Fifteen Minutes: An Autobiography of a Child Star of the Golden Era of Hollywood (Paperback) by Sybil Jason

Click here to shop and buy this book from Amazon

When Jolson Was King: (Paperback) by Richard Grudens

Richard Grudens has written an entertaining and informative (must read) book for anyone interested in the legendary, Al Jolson "The World's Greatest Entertainer".

"The book contains many facets of Jolson' career including those around him, his competition, employers, and comments from those he inspired enough to form their own careers, the issue of minstrel, blackface performers, fabled stories of the famed Friar's Club, a chapter of the infamous Shubert Brothers, and chapters covering Jolson's experiences in film, radio and his extensive USO travels. Covered too are vignettes of the theatres in which Jolson performed, and of those great theatrical competitors like the Barrymore's and where they were voicing their talents while Jolson was pulling them in at the Winter Garden, and a full feature on Jolson's films from the first talkie, The Jazz Singer to his famed bio-pics The Jolson Story and Jolson Sings Again." - Richard Grudens

Click here to shop and buy this book from Amazon

Changes to Jolson and Friends Blog

In the upcoming months I am looking to continue to evolve the Jolson and Friends Blog and wanted preview some upcoming changes. I am continuing to promote the sale of Al Jolson, Eddie Cantor, Houdini, History of Baseball and several other unique Limited Edition T-shirt designs (featured above) and matching gift cards (all with free U.S. shipping). The sales from these items help offset the cost of maintaining this blog. Your continued support is greatly appreciated and besides they are great T-shirts.

Due to the time intensive nature of ongoing research, content development, production and maintaining and the Blog, the next blog update will happen on December 30, 2007.

I am starting to work on several future Jolson and Friends projects including:

• Jolson and Friends Recommended Reading and Viewer Lists including cost-saving shopping links to find unique books, videos and more.

• Expanded global coverage of local events.

• Future podcasts of upcoming interviews and special performance-based content.

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