First up, I want to share something based on a couple of specific requests. I have, from time to time, sold reel tapes on eBay, tapes that I did not want to keep (rarely if ever anything I've shared here, almost entirely tapes whose contents do not excite me). I have never promoted these sales before, but when I mentioned that I have a history of selling tapes, I had a few people post that they'd like to be alerted to these sales, the next time.
And so, with that in mind, I will let you know that I have three auctions of tapes at this time. 25 seven inch reels are here, another 27 seven inch reels are here, and 16 five inch reels are here. The auctions end on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of this week, respectively.
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I have been very slow to continue the "Scotch Tape Box History" series, having gone a few months without a further post, and that's because this is the entry that I've been dreading. Scotch used a series of creative tape boxes throughout the late '40's, all of the '50's and the early '60's, with the exception, I suppose, of the most commonly found box, the black design. But that one is so iconic to me, it still is something special. The rest, though, whether the busy Scotch plaid patterns, or the one with the clock, or the one with the studio rehearsal or the crazy art deco arrangement, are all so nice.
And then, just as the world was exploding in a symphony of color - and just as the art world was exploding with Pop Art and other wonderfully creative moves towards using color and images in new and startling, fun and exciting ways, the folks at Scotch went precisely in the other direction, and from perhaps 1964 or so through the end of the decade, THIS - with a few variations of product numbers and specifics as to each product - was your standard Scotch Tape Box:
Ugh.
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Okay, first up today is a tape I find utterly charming, except for those few moments that are ear-piercing. The primary speaker is a child named Paul, heard first at age 5, then at age 7. Paul and his father are recording, and he is singing and babbling the way a five year old is likely to do. Early on, a toddler, also in the room, becomes upset and shrieks extremely loudly, but if you can get past those moments, I think this is a lot of fun.
For those of you in my age demographic, you will probably get a kick out of the song Paul sings after asking if he can sing the "Huckleberry Song". He also makes up a few songs, and makes mention in song and speaking that he wishes mommy would be home soon with the brand new baby.
Then there is a break, and we indeed hear mommy, announcing that we've been listening to 1960, and now it's 1962, and all three children will speak. They do, but just barely - Paul is the star of our show again. For any more details, I'd prefer that you experience this tape yourself, and I hope you enjoy it as I do.
Download: Paul and His Family - 1960 and 1962 Recordings by Paul (age 5 in 1960) and His Family
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Next up, a rather peculiar and fascinating recording I found on a VERY old Scotch reel. Luckily, there was enough writing on the box for me to decipher what was going on, because otherwise, I would have thought this was a pair of guys pretending to be on the radio, and wishing that they were Bob and Ray.
But no, as the box made clear, this is a pair of would-be humorists by the names of Don Anderson and Leo McKay, working under the names of "Bunky and Dufoe", at station KWRO, Coquille, Oregon on 2/27/57, with either their entire show for that day, or an excerpt thereof. Your mileage may, of course, vary, but boy do I find this to be a big old dumpster fire of unfunny. And as someone who reveres the early, improvised work of Bob and Ray (from when they were on in Boston), this just grates on me.
On the other hand, it may well be the only known recording of this duo (I certainly couldn't find any mention of them online), so that certainly makes it worth hearing. And certainly, tastes in humor vary widely, so you may enjoy it not just as an obscure piece of radio history, but as comedy.
Download: Bunky and Dufoe (Don Anderson and Leo McKay) - KWRO, Coquille, Oregon, 2-27-57
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The next tape I'm sharing as an example of something I come across from time to time - this one being more interesting than most others, and that is the type of tape I label a "Hodgepodge". These are typically tapes of anywhere from 20 minutes to over an hour, which, within their length, contain a fairly ridiculously varied number and group of recordings, often with no clear link between the segments. My own family's tapes would have a ton of this sort of thing, or at least if a stranger went through them, that person would think they were a hodgepodge. Having been there, I would know the relationship between the items of the tape and of the people heard.
And there's little doubt that's true of this tape, too. But I don't have that background information, so here's what I heard. Someone playing blues chords and licks, fairly badly (and very badly recorded), on an electric guitar, with some vocals here and there. Someone (who was probably trying to be funny) expressing himself with extremely crude language, most likely just for his own entertainment and for the entertainment of those in the room, while the guitar playing continues - THIS SECTION IS NOT SAFE FOR WORK - and is followed by more guitar, then a Brook Benton song recorded off the radio, and even more blues.
This is interrupted by someone singing standards, a capella and then with a record. Then there is a segment which seems to be capturing mostly the ambient noise around someone's home - a radio is on and there is a bit of conversation for around three minutes. Some VERY badly recorded radio follows (Warning, this is extremely shrill, and begins at 20:40), and that segues right back into the blues guitar and vocal, recorded just as loudly and badly.
Again, I include this mostly as an example of a type of tape I come across fairly often, and that I haven't shared before. Plus there are some curious things here. I may try to do this with other genres that I have categorized tapes into, in the future, or other "hodgepodge" tapes that seem interesting.
Download: A Hodgepodge - Bluesy Guitar, Rude Talk, Singing, Conversations at Home
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Finally, this week's "Very Short Reel". And it's an "Extremely Short Reel", just 24 seconds (it says 21 plus 2 on the box....). This is one tape from a whole batch of tapes which I bought at least 15 years ago, all of which came from a station in Astoria, Oregon, which is, like Coquille, above, right on the Pacific Ocean, but at the other end of the state's coastline from Coquille.
Most of the tapes from this station were episodes of a half-hour story-telling program, with the stories read by the same female announcer heard here - I believe she was named "Aunt Polly" on the story program. The stories were mostly science fiction and horror, and nothing in the series was all that interesting to me, and I sold them all after listening, again, many years ago.
But here's one from the collection that stayed with me. As you'll hear, it's an ad for a dance, to be held at the Clatsop County Historical Society, which is still there (although the phone number for the the heritage center has since changed. It was in February of 1990. Maybe someone out there reading this was there!!!!
Download: Clatsop County Historical Society USO Dance Ad - 2-4-90
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