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Folkways question (pressings/labels)

karlophonekarlophone 1,697 Posts
edited November 2011 in Strut Central
Anyone here know some Folkways records pressing info? Ive got some doubles and have been having a mighty hard time on the web determining if the blue label predates the black label or vice versa. Anyone here have the basic rundown or know of a site that helps ID what pressing or edition of a given record one may have?

i know that this is a huge and complex story, hard to sum up.. so thanks..

  Comments

  • hcrinkhcrink 8,729 Posts
    It gets complicated because there wasn't really any discernible logic to why certain colors of labels or covers were used. There are white labels from the 50's and there are white labels from the 80's, and so on. You kind of have to take it on a case by case basis. Asch had a special deal worked out to where he could press tiny quantities of each title so mini-pressings of certain titles exist from various eras. I find it's easiest to just go by the look and feel to date them. The earlist pressings from the 50's & early 60's are pretty easy to date. The divider is built into the pocket & the sleeves and discs are SUPER thick. All of the ethnic titles from the 50's have the generic drawing of the little dude with the Lyre. Almost all other titles from this era will have illustrations rather than photos. When Ronald Clyne started doing design for them in the 60's most titles were updated with more contemporary artwork, usually a photo. The mid to late-60's pressings are still pretty heavyweight but the divider is a separate piece. It can be kind of tricky telling the later 60's and earlier 70's apart but at some point the black sleeve stock they were using started to have a varnished finish. 60's are matte. I remember someone in a similar thread several years back mentioning that they thought the addresses were an indication but I kinda feel like I have some definite later pressings with an early address so I'm not sure these were always even updated from pressing to pressing. Though I'm not 100%. Hope that helps some.
  • karlophonekarlophone 1,697 Posts
    hey thanks crinky! yeah, im going by instinct, but man its hard in some cases! they are all cool, so its not like you can really keep the "wrong one"....
  • hcrinkhcrink 8,729 Posts
    It only seems to really matter value-wise on the crustier early folk/blues titles and stuff like the Mushroom Ceremony. No one seems to ever pay a premium for different pressings of the more esoteric stuff. I tend to just keep what's cleanest.
  • LaserWolfLaserWolf Portland Oregon 11,517 Posts
    Address appears on both the label, booklet and sometimes the cover.
    It is common for them not to match.
    Typically the booklet will contain the oldest address.
    I did this many, many years ago. Just from trying to id what I found:
    Folkways Labelography
    Since Folkways kept their catalog in print (according to legend more than fact) for decades I have been working on attempting to date pressings. Many people think that a 10" Leadbelly or Sonny Terry is a rare collectable record, but they were available into the 80's and they were among the labels best sellers.

    This is what it looks like to me:
    W 46th St Asch Records 30's
    Disc Records 44
    Folkways 47
    117 W 46th St 57-61
    121w 47th St NYC 62
    165 W 46th St 63-66
    701 Seventh Ave NYC 66-75
    17 W 60th St NYC 74
    43 W 61st NYC 10023 75-86
    632 Broadway NYC 10012 NY 83-85

    Address appears on label and booklet and sometimes covers. It is common to find 3 different address on one issue.

    I quit working on it when the internet made finding info easier. Note some dates overlap because I hadn't yet nailed down the changes.
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