[Boatanchors] Tuning Your BCB Radio in the Late 1930s

[David Stinson]

Some of you may remember that I refurbished a Webster Chicago
81-1 Wire Recorder awhile back.
At a recent estate sale, I find some very old recording wire spools.
One of them contained a 30-minute jewel.
The person making the recording didn't mention the date,
but did say he was at "2028 20th Street, Kenosha, Wisconsin."
Then he begins listening to music on his home radio and records
as he is tuning around.

The only station ID one hears is at the beginning of the recording:
CBL from Toronto, Canada.   You can hear the many stations in
the back ground, static crashes, fades and a band surprisingly crowded.
He's looking for music he likes, so he doesn't dwell on "talking,"
and he seems to prefer "Glenn-Miller-ish" "BIg Band" music.
But it's the sounds of tuning-around I find interesting.

This recording is about 90 years old.  The quality is not good,
both from the effects of time in an external storage shed
in the Texas heat and from a poor level control causing
the recorder to being over-driven and "microphone
next to the speaker" coupling.  The quality is not good.
But the material is worth preserving, IMHO.
I have not edited the recording.  If someone would like
to work with it and trim the excess, perhaps improve the
quality with processing, I'd enjoy hearing your efforts.

I've uploaded 30 minutes of the recording to Google Drive:
A High-Def .FLAC file of 611 MB at:
https://tinyurl.com/y7bhnwhl

and a smaller .MP3 file, 59 MB at:
https://tinyurl.com/yby5utd7

I'll also be uploading it to a couple of Facebook radio
groups for streaming.
Please share the links to whomever you think might enjoy.

GL OM ES 73 DE Dave AB5S


-- 
This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
https://www.avast.com/antivirus