Welcome to the only online site which exclusively offers historic 78-rpm discs recorded by young soloists, boy-choirs and traditional British cathedral and church man/boy choirs.
In the lists of 78-rpm discs for sale are recordings by boy-trebles who were well-known as young soloists in Britain during the first half of the 20th-century. However, we also offer discs from other countries.
This is the 78-rpm HOME PAGE so click below on the required section to go to the list that you want to see. These lists of available 78-rpm discs are divided into the following sections:
01. BRITISH & NORTH AMERICAN MALE TREBLE SOLOISTS
02. BRITISH & NORTH AMERICAN YOUNG FEMALE SOLOISTS
03. YOUNG BRITISH INSTRUMENTALISTS
04. BRITISH ABBEY, CATHEDRAL & COLLEGE CHOIRS
05. BRITISH CHURCH, SCHOOL AND OTHER CHOIRS/GROUPS
06. OVERSEAS (Non-English speaking) SOLOISTS
07. OVERSEAS (Non-English speaking) CHOIRS & GROUPS
08. OTHER & MISCELLANEOUS RELEASES
When you have searching a list of interest to you, just click on the 78-rpm Discs button (at the top, on the far left) to bring you back to this page and the list of sections. Then click below on the next section you wish to explore.
GRADING OF RECORDS
Discs were recorded by British-born soloists and choirs, and were made in Britain unless another country of origin is shown. All are double-sided 10-inch diameter 78-rpm discs, unless stated otherwise.
The gradings used in the following list indicates the condition of the disc and how it will play. Recordings made in the 1950s and later often play well even though the surface has small scratches and scuffs, because better technology allowed deeper grooves to be made in harder material, so that surface imperfections do not always result in noticeable loss of musical quality. Having said that, all collectors of 78s have to learn to “listen through“ the surface hiss and crackle so often associated with these discs.
+ / - Indicates condition is slightly better or worse than grading shown
M Almost mint condition, with no obvious sign of disc being played.
EX Excellent condition, with no (or very few but tiny) audible imperfections.
OK Some wear, with surface scuffs or imperfection(s), but plays well.
JA Just acceptable, with some damaged grooves. High surface noise.
PC Poor condition, with visually obvious and audible wear on one or both sides.
UN Unplayable due to damaged rim or surface(s). Offered for Matrix/Label info.
Who were the soloists?
During the final years of the 19th-century, and throughout the first half of the 20th-century, recordings were made of boy treble soloists – first on circular cylinders and then, when they were invented, on 78-rpm discs. Some of these young soloists became well-known and made a number of recordings. Their songs included both sacred and secular compositions.
Treble soloists who specialised in classical music:
Derek Barsham
John Bonner
Teddy James
Ernest Lough
Kenneth Purves
Treble soloists who sang popular songs and ballads of the time:
Thomas Criddle
Leslie Day
Jimmy Fletcher
Treble soloists who performed pop music:
Jackie Dennis
Laurie London
Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers
A few treble soloists were recorded in North America and had their discs made available in Britain:
Jimmy Boyd
Bobby Breen
Although the vast majority of young people who made recordings in Britain were boy trebles, there were also a very few young girl soprano singers, the best known being Ann Stephens.
British cathedrals with their famous traditional man/boy choirs also recorded discs in the 78-rpm era, although few are found today:
King’s College Chapel Choir (Cambridge)
Salisbury Cathedral
Westminster Abbey
Westminster Cathedral
Local church, chapel and secular choirs flourished in Britain for much of the 20th century, and we offer discs from:
The Kirkintilloch Junior Choir
Luton Girls' Choir
St. George’s Chapel Choir (Windsor)
St. Nicolas College Choristers
The Scout Gang Shows
Temple Church Choir, etc.
Recordings by young soloists and choirs were not only released in Britain and the USA. Many countries in Europe also recorded their own soloists and choirs. The Petits Chanteurs à la Croix de Bois (in France) and the Obernkirchen Children’s Choir (from Germany) are two of the best known examples.
About 78s
For the first half of the last century, if a vocalist wanted to reach their audience, they either had to perform live on stage or in a church or other choir setting, or they had record a 78-rpm disc that was sold in shops. These 78-rpm records played for longer and could hold more material than the circular cylinders which they replaced, so they quickly became very popular. Over the years more than 500 companies were set up in Britain to record, produce or sell these discs.
Unfortunately, 78-rpm discs are very fragile. They are very easy to scuff, scratch, gouge and break (especially the 12-inch discs), and many were worn down by the needles used to play them. In addition, when stocks of raw materials ran low in Britain during World War II, the record companies asked the public to trade in any unwanted records so that they could be recycled into new releases. It must be assumed that many discs by young vocalists -- and especially those whose names were not widely known -- were almost certainly turned in and thereby lost to posterity. Given the fact that few of these recordings were ever produced in great quantities, it is remarkable that any can still be found nowadays.
The demise of the 78-rpm disc came in the 1960s, when they were replaced by lighter and much more durable 45-rpm Singles and then by the LP album. In the years since then, many remaining 78s have been damaged by poor storage or by careless handling, so it is very rare to find any in near-mint condition. Our gradings, shown above, have to be somewhat subjective because as the technology improved, so records that appear to suffer from surface scratches and imperfections actually play very well.
Sending discs to customers
One major disadvantage of 78-rpm discs is that not only are they very fragile, but they are also exceedingly heavy to ship, and especially so when packed for sending to customers. The prices for individual discs may be low, but the postage costs are extremely high, and particularly because we strongly recommend that customers who are purchasing a number of discs request a competent shipping service (such as UPS) is used, rather than almost guarantee damage in transit by relying on the normal mail services.
Alternatively, customers within or passing through the Greater London area may be able to make arrangements to collect their shipments from our representatives, where convenient, at a central London rail terminus.
Special discounts for volume purchases may apply when a customer orders more than 20 discs. In addition, we are always interested in exchanging discs we have for those we are seeking to add to our own archival collection of soloists and choirs – or in purchasing individual discs or collections which may be of interest to us.
More information about 78s
For more information about collecting 78-rpm discs (and, before they were invented, circular cylinders), and about the many machines designed to play discs and cylinders, visit the website of The City of London Phonograph & Gramophone Society Ltd, This organisation was founded in 1919, and arranges meetings and events around Britain for its members, all of whom are collectors of cylinders or of 78-rpm discs, or are interested in some facet of early recording history. The Society also publishes a journal, and offers books by mail order. Website: www.clpgs.org.uk