21,669 shellac records · mostly British pressings, 1900s–1950s
21,669 records · page 136 of 452
Dame Ellen Terry was the foremost Shakespearean actress of the Victorian and Edwardian stage, and this HMV pressing captures her reciting Portia's 'Quality of Mercy' speech from The Merchant of Venice. HMV 2-3535 is a single-sided pressing from the early acoustic period, around 1911. Terry's recordings are historically significant documents of Victorian acting style and are keenly sought by theatre and literary collectors. This is one of the most interesting spoken-word items a British collection of this era can hold.AI summary
His Master's Voice 2-3535 Personalities (Prs)
Duke Ellington and his orchestra recorded 'Ain't Misbehavin'' and 'Hyde Park' for Decca M439, likely mid-1930s. These recordings represent one of the greatest jazz bandleaders of the 20th century.AI summary
Decca M439 Jazz
Duke Ellington on Brunswick 80000, the classic early Ellington sides 'East St Louis Toodle-oo' and 'Birmingham Breakdown', from his 1927–28 recordings for Brunswick.AI summary
Brunswick 80000 Jazz
Duke Ellington's orchestra performing 'Rockin' in Rhythm' and 'Twelfth Street Rag' on Brunswick, recorded in 1931 — a significant early Ellington recording.AI summary
Brunswick 80001 Jazz
Duke Ellington's iconic 'Mood Indigo' (matrix 30) and 'Wall Street Wail' (matrix 29), recorded for Brunswick's prestigious 80000 series. These are landmark early Ellington sides from the late 1920s or early 1930s, representing some of the most collected jazz recordings of the acoustic and early electrical eras.AI summary
Brunswick 80003 Jazz
Duke Ellington recorded 'Echoes of the Jungle' and 'Limehouse Blues' for His Master's Voice B6066; Ellington was the supreme jazz composer and bandleader, and these pieces exemplify his early 1930s style.AI summary
His Master's Voice B6066 Jazz
Duke Ellington's orchestra recorded these two sides—dated 1929 and 1930 in the titles—for HMV's B-series, capturing the early swing style that defined his band at the Cotton Club.AI summary
His Master's Voice B6106 Jazz
Duke Ellington's orchestra on 'Double check Stomp' and 'Sweet Dreams of Love', issued by His Master's Voice B6277. This is an early Ellington coupling from the late 1920s; UK copies of Ellington's most sought-after recordings from this period are uncommon and highly collectable among jazz enthusiasts.AI summary
His Master's Voice B6277 Jazz
Duke Ellington recorded 'Blues I Love to Sing' and 'Hot Feet' for His Master's Voice, catalogue B6343, likely early 1930s.AI summary
His Master's Voice B6343 Jazz
Duke Ellington recorded 'Memories of you' and 'You're lucky to me' for His Master's Voice (HMV B5954). These are early ballad recordings from Ellington's orchestra in the late 1920s, representing a different side of his work from the hot jazz material for which he is most famous.AI summary
His Master's Voice B5954 Jazz
Duke Ellington on His Master's Voice B4842, performing 'When a Black Man's blue' and the composition 'Mood Indigo'. This is a British pressing of a major jazz composer and orchestra leader.AI summary
His Master's Voice B4842 Jazz
His Master's Voice B4869 Jazz
Duke Ellington and his orchestra on His Master's Voice B4929, recording 'Saratoga Swing' and 'Washington Wobble' (1927). Two classic sides from Ellington's early creative period on an established British HMV pressing.AI summary
His Master's Voice B4929 Jazz
Ellington (likely Duke Ellington or an Ellington orchestra) recorded 'Saturday Night Function' and 'High Life' for His Master's Voice B4956, a mid-1920s-1930s dance recording.AI summary
His Master's Voice B4956 Dance
Duke Ellington's orchestra, recorded circa 1928, with two sides issued on His Master's Voice; the catalogue number suggests a dance-era pressing.AI summary
His Master's Voice B4957 Jazz
Duke Ellington's Savoy Ballroom orchestra on His Master's Voice, featuring 'East Saint Louis Toodle-O' and 'Got Everything but You' — two significant sides from his breakthrough years, likely recorded in 1927 or shortly after.AI summary
His Master's Voice B4958 Jazz
Duke Ellington, the American jazz composer and bandleader, on His Master's Voice with 'Haunted Nights' and 'Duke Steps Out'; Ellington's recordings are among the most sought-after and valuable in jazz.AI summary
His Master's Voice B4960 Jazz
Duke Ellington on His Master's Voice B4992 performing 'Stompy Jones' and 'Blue Feeling'. Ellington was the leading figure in jazz; HMV B-series pressings of his sides are commonly held and relatively affordable.AI summary
His Master's Voice B4992 Jazz
Duke Ellington, the American jazz composer and bandleader, recorded 'Moon Over Cuba' and 'Just a-settin' and a-rockin'' for His Master's Voice. Ellington was one of the greatest jazz composers and orchestral leaders of the 20th century, and his recordings remain highly valued by collectors.AI summary
His Master's Voice B9268 Jazz
A His Master's Voice pressing credited to Ellington, featuring 'Troubled Waters' and a take on 'Stardust'; this is likely Duke Ellington's orchestra, recorded mid-1930s or later.AI summary
His Master's Voice X4593 Jazz
Duke Ellington, the American jazz composer, bandleader and pianist, recorded these jazz standards for Victor, a major American label. Ellington was the pre-eminent figure in jazz and twentieth-century American music, known for his vast compositional output and innovative orchestrations.AI summary
Victor 22603 Jazz
Duke Ellington, the towering figure of jazz composition and bandleading, recorded 'Black and Tan Fantasy' on AJ (AJ8), a very obscure British label. This is an important early Ellington composition from the mid-1920s.AI summary
AJ 8 Jazz
Duke Ellington on Brunswick 01616, performing 'In the Shade of the Old Apple Tree' and 'Awful Sad', likely mid-1930s.AI summary
Brunswick 01616 Jazz
Duke Ellington's orchestra recorded 'Sweet Jazz of mine' (1930) and 'Stevedore Stomp' (1929) for His Master's Voice. These represent Ellington's early work for HMV, when his orchestra was at the height of its early 1930s form.AI summary
His Master's Voice B6106 Jazz
Elliot Shaw sings Love's Rosary and, with A. Burns, Honor and Love on Vocalion 14056.AI summary
Vocalion 14056 Voice
The Elliotts on the Westport label, a minor British imprint, with 'Margie', a popular dance standard of the 1920s.AI summary
Westport 314 Dance
The Elliotts on Winner 2608, likely a vocal family act or variety duo, with 'Kentucky Days' and 'You've got your Mother's big blue Eyes'.AI summary
Winner 2608 Music Hall
Ellis and Bill with Stony Fork and Blue Valley on RCA Victor 20-5087.AI summary
RCA Victor 20-5087 Country
His Master's Voice 08056 Instrumental
The Elman String Quartette performing a Quartet in G Minor on His Master's Voice 08056, an early chamber recording.AI summary
His Master's Voice 08056 Classical
Elmer Schoebel's jazz ensemble on Brunswick 03309, performing 'Copenhagen' and 'Prince of Wails'. Schoebel was a pianist and composer active in Chicago jazz in the 1920s; these are early dance-band sides from the jazz age.AI summary
Brunswick 03309 Jazz
Elmer Schoebel, an American jazz pianist and composer, recorded 'Copenhagen' and 'Prince of Wails' for Brunswick in the late 1920s. Both are hot jazz standards; Schoebel was an important figure in early Chicago and New Orleans jazz.AI summary
Brunswick 03309 Jazz
Elrick, credited on Columbia FB1954, recorded "I Love to Whistle" and "Tis Better to Have Loved and Lost", popular ballad material of the mid-catalogue era.AI summary
Columbia FB1954 Voice
George Elrick, a Scottish comedian and broadcaster, recorded 'George Elrick Successes' for Columbia FB1746. Elrick was popular in British light entertainment and radio from the 1930s onward.AI summary
Columbia FB1746 Dance
Elsa Alsen, a mezzo-soprano, recorded Wagner's "Isolde's Liebestod" (Isolde's love-death) from *Tristan und Isolde* for Parlophone's E-series, a major British label of the 1920s–1930s. This is one of the great mezzo-soprano arias and a cornerstone of the operatic canon.AI summary
Parlophone E10453 Opera
Elsa Brunelleschi performing 'Rhapsody Valenciana' on Tey-Tone, a minor British imprint; Tey-Tone catalogue 127 places this in the 1920s–1930s.AI summary
TeyTone 127 Instrumental
Elsa Lanchester, later famous as a film actress, recorded these comic and novelty songs for Columbia. She was active in British music-hall and revue in the 1920s and 1930s before her Hollywood career.AI summary
Columbia 4125 Music Hall
Elsa Lanchester, the British actress and entertainer, recorded comic material ('The Ladies' Bar', 'Don't Tell My Mother I'm Living in Sin') for Columbia in the early 1930s. Lanchester later became famous in films, and her early recordings are uncommon.AI summary
Columbia DB81 Comic
Columbia 7230 Opera
The Elshuco Trio performing 'Extase' and a Spanish dance on Brunswick, likely from the late 1920s or 1930s.AI summary
Brunswick 13056 Instrumental
Elsie and Doris Waters, music hall comedians, on Parlophone. The Waters sisters were well-known British entertainers of the 1920s-30s, recorded frequently for variety material and comic songs.AI summary
Parlophone R1091 Music Hall
Elsie and Doris Waters, the famous British sister singing-and-comedy duo, recorded 'Cuckoo in the Nest' and 'Seaside Band' on Parlophone R1243, likely late 1920s or early 1930s. The Waters sisters were prolific entertainers and recording artists.AI summary
Parlophone R1243 Music Hall
Elsie and Doris Waters on Parlophone R667 with 'Washing Dishes with My Sweetie' and 'You're in Love'. The Waters sisters recorded widely for major labels including Parlophone; this is among their earlier recordings for the label.AI summary
Parlophone R667 Music Hall
Elsie & Doris Waters, a British comedy and singing duo popular on stage and radio, on Columbia, performing 'Making a Christmas Pudding' in two parts, festive comedy material.AI summary
Columbia FB1186 Music Hall
Elsie and Doris Waters—the famous British comedy duo known as Gert and Daisy—recorded this Columbia side, catalogue FB1559, with music-hall material from the 1940s–50s.AI summary
Columbia FB1559 Music Hall
Elsie and Doris Waters performing 'Washing on the Siegfried Line' and 'Gert Daisy & the Blackout' on Decca F7281. Two British sisters recorded during the early World War II era when novelty songs about the war effort were highly popular.AI summary
Decca F7281 Music Hall
Elsie and Doris Waters on Decca F7503 with 'Won't We 'Ave a Party When It's Over' and 'Brother Jack a Message from Mum'. The Waters sisters were popular British musical-comedy entertainers and singers, especially in the 1930s and 1940s; they recorded widely and became best known for their novelty and comedy songs.AI summary
Decca F7503 Music Hall
Elsie and Doris Waters, the celebrated British comedy duo, performing two comic sketches on Columbia—'Gert & Daisy & the Tandem' and 'Huntin''. The Waters Sisters were major music-hall stars and their recordings remain popular.AI summary
Columbia FB1559 Music Hall