Sunday, February 26, 2012

Not A Victrola


This old photo is my double-great-grandmother Lovilla, and my great-aunt Bessie, around 1917 or 1918.   Bessie married a photographer, so we have several photos from their courtship and early marriage.  Carl bought a Stroud Aeolian Duo-Art player piano for Bessie, and she kept it all of her life.  Back in 1970, I visited her in Burlington, Iowa, and made a few repairs to the player action so she could play it again.  One of her favorite songs was Sidewalks of New York, which is played in the video.  This song has always been a favorite of mine, too.  Funny thing; Aunt Bessie didn't like the song, Bye Bye Blackbird, and I find that every time it comes around on my MP3 player, I bump it to the next song.



Uploaded by mechanicmusic45 on Jun 16, 2010

An old standard on Vocalstyle roll #13391 as played by Osgood and Black in 1925. Written in 1894 by James W. Blake and Charles B. Lawlor.

Take a tour of a Duo Art player piano courtesy of Pianosyncrazy

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