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78 RPM Record

Artist: Original Excentric Band Label:   Homokord Country: Germany Catalogue: 15984 Date: 1920 Format: 10" Genre: Jazz, Instrumental Collection:   I Own It     I Want It  Community:  1 Wants Price Guide: Valuation Page » Search eBay #AD  » Search Amazon #AD This site contains affiliate links for which we may be compensated.

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Track	Artist	Title	Composer	Rating
A	Original Excentric Band	Tiger Rag		Rate
B	Original Excentric Band	Indianola	S. R. Henry, D. Onivas	Rate

Notes

Both sides rec. Dec 19, 1919 in Berlin, Germany
The imprint on the label "Recorded in London" is incorrect.
The performers were 8 musicians (trumpet, trombone, alto sax, tenor sax, piano, banjo, tuba, drums) from the variety and circus scene from Germany and presumably also from the Netherlands.
The orchestra leader was Frank Douglas Groundsell (misprinted as F. Groundzell), a.k.a. Mr. Mazzeltopp, from England.
The record is named in all sources with the label number B-557, but this is not written on the label.
A) Uncredited composer: Nick La Rocca

Images

Number: 3455847  THUMBNAIL Uploaded By: melle51 Description: Label A

Number: 3455877  Uploaded By: han enderman Description: Homokord 15983

Number: 3456079  Uploaded By: han enderman Description: Homokord 15984 #2

Comments and Reviews

han enderman 4th Jan 2024		Homokord 15983-84 - (low-quality) image of 15984, later printing without 'Recorded in London', added. This is evidently the rarer variant of this label, as I have seen 3 good images of the London variant. - Rainer Lotz' copy of the 'London' variant shows the date 18-11-21 (see image).
han enderman 4th Jan 2024		Homokord 15983-84 - image of A-side (15983) added (images and tracks have to be reversed). This image was taken from a copy with the other label type (stating Recorded in London) on its reverse. The Homokord 14000 series is probably a continuation of the 12000 series, and it reaches at least the 16500s (based on a set of images). The sides are numbered individually, and these numbers are in large font on the labels (at 6) and in the wax (at 12). Dates and other numbers may be also impressed. I assume that at some time the records got an order nr, as I see such types of numbers stamped on some labels/records, usually with a D-prefix. The shield-shaped label is the later label type. Indianola has date 11-9-20 in wax, Tiger Rag prob. 16-11-20. More info about this label and those numbers can be found in the large German grammophon-platten website. Surprisingly I have a very bad image of 15984 (early type) without the Recorded in London line. And an image of 15993 by the same band also omits the reference to London, so possibly this was an error on early label printings. - Note that the label here is Homokord, but the B- series is on Homocord (and thus there is an error in the Dutch Jazz Discography), and Homokord 557 is the Radetzky-Marsch, coupled with 540.
cyeaman SUBS 4th Jan 2024		From the biography of Frank Douglas Groundsell (an Englishman using an American alias (Mr. Mazzeltop) and passport to work in Germany & Holland), it lists the following recordings made in Berlin (probably) in December 1919: 15983 Indianola 15984 Tiger Rag 15985 Maseltop Rag (J. Grit) 15986 Raggin the scale 15987 The dilemma of the regiment 15988 Harmony Rag ? ? 15991 Chicken Reel 15992 Hungarian rag 15993 O you drummer (with drumsolo) 15994 All abroad from dixie land He wrote an autobiography ("The Lunatic Spy") detailing his work in the British secret service and as an orchestra leader, but this doesn't describe his 1919 recording session. https://grammophon-platten.de/page.php?477
melle51 4th Jan 2024
melle51 4th Jan 2024		I would be very happy if someone could contribute some information about this record, especially about the missing label number (instead it says 15984 on the label) or with a picture of the B-side. The record is considered to be the first produced in Germany that has the word "Jazz" on the label. But this is not certain. As you can hear from the recording, the musicians' playing style doesn't have much to do with jazz. Hence the legend that an American military band was playing here, which was stationed in Germany after the First World War.

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