ABOUT THE RECORDINGS

These unissued recordings were produced by the Edison Company between the years of 1914-1929. The repertoire includes Vaudeville Sketches, Popular Vocal Songs of the era, Opera/Classical, Jazz, Dance Bands of the 1920's, speeches by popular orators and political figures, and the voice of Mr. Edison himself!

Approximately 90% of these ten-inch records were made prior to the introduction of electrical recording methods. Edison records were nearly 1/4 inch thick, with the recording surface being bonded to an inner wooden "core" which made them more durable than the other phonograph records issued at that time. These discs were also cut in a special way utilizing a highly polished diamond stylus, so that only an Edison Phonograph could successfully reproduce the recording the way it was intended to sound. These records, now commonly referred to as "Edison Diamond Discs" are prized by collectors for their remarkable clarity and tone.

OUR MISSION

Our National Recorded Heritage is in danger of being lost:
Early recordings that have deteriorated or been misused over time may be lost forever if they are not preserved now. This is true even of the recorded output from the studios of Thomas Edison; the most significant innovator in the early phonograph industry. Luckily, our contemporary digital revolution has made preservation and restoration possible when public interest in re-evaluating our cultural industry is at a fever pitch. By extraordinary fortune, the late collector and archivist Merritt Malvern has left to us hundreds of hours of selections from unreleased disc recordings at the Edison National Historical Site.

The mission of American Sound Archives and The Edison Historical Recordings Restoration Project is to archive, preserve, and restore early sound recordings from the Studios of the Thomas Edison Company and others that have deteriorated or been mis-used over time.

We will vigorously pursue this mission by:

1. Restoration of Historic Unissued Recordings and Test Pressings.

2. Preservation of Such.

3. Issuing these recordings in High-Quality CD Format.

4. Gathering, Researching and Archiving Documents and information pertaining to these recordings.

5. Repositing a copy of all our work with The Edison National Historic Site - West Orange, New Jersey.

The mission of our project is also the
extension of Mr. Malvern’s original vision:
To see these recordings saved and issued for all to
experience and enjoy.

Click here to read more about the life of Merritt Malvern