When did Stereo take over?

[medjuck]

I noticed in the 2 new Trane box sets from Concord that some Prestige records from as late as 1958 were Mono only. I've alwasy thought of '57 as the transition year. (ie very few stereo recordings from '55, some in '56, lots by the end of '57 and almost everything in stereo by '58. Do I just have it wrong?

[marcello]

I found this:

The small record company Audio Fidelity released the first commercial stereophonic disc in November 1957. Sidney Frey, founder and president, had Westrex cut a disk for release before any of the major record labels. Side 1 was the Dukes of Dixieland, Side 2 was railroad sound effects. On December 16, Frey advertised in the trade magazine Billboard that he would send a free copy to anyone in the industry who wrote to him on company letterhead.

That move generated a great deal of publicity. Frey promptly released four additional stereo disks. The equipment dealers had no choice but to demonstrate on Audio Fidelity Records. The company never achieved widespread success, however, and ceased operations by the early 1960s.

[alocispepraluger102]

I noticed in the 2 new Trane box sets from Concord that some Prestige records from as late as 1958 were Mono only. I've alwasy thought of '57 as the transition year. (ie very few stereo recordings from '55, some in '56, lots by the end of '57 and almost everything in stereo by '58. Do I just have it wrong?

as i recall, both stereo and mono versions of vinyls were available for a couple years into the 60's. stereo cost a buck more.

[Teasing the Korean]

The answer to your question depends on the label, the genre, and the country, and the format, among other things.

An album for an independent US jazz label in 1958 would typically be recorded in mono.

[Teasing the Korean]

Incidentally, while stereo was around since the mid 50s (originally on reel to reel tape), it didn't "take over" until the late 60s. Mono was the dominant format for much of that time.

[Christiern]

When I came to Riverside, in 1960, all sessions were recorded in stereo and issued in that format as well as in mono. As most of you probably know, Riverside also issued several ping-pong-type albums that demonstrated the stereo effect, most notably the Sounds of Sebring discs. Bill Grauer wanted to record a stereo bullfight in Yankee Stadium and he actually had lawyers looking for a loophole that would make it possible. They did not find one.

[Stereojack]

The equipment dealers had no choice but to demonstrate on Audio Fidelity Records. The company never achieved widespread success, however, and ceased operations by the early 1960s.

Not entirely true. The company existed well into the 70's. Their most successful acts were the Dukes of Dixieland, Al Hirt, and they had a big hit with a middle Eastern album entitled "Port Said".

[alocispepraluger102]

werent some audiophiles into beta recording for a short time?

[Steve Gray]

I remember my father had the Louis Armstrong album with the Dukes of Dixieland that was on Audio Fidelity (I now have it on a Spanish label CD).

He also had a Peter Appleyard album that featured lots of percussive effects. (listen to the shaker gourd on the left channel)

The earliest stereo Jazz recording that I am aware of is the Lennie Tristano quartet with Lee Konitz recorded at the Confucious Restaurant in June 1955

[mikeweil]

Fantasy recorded a number of Cal Tjader tracks in genuine stereo as early as 1954! But as there was no playback equipment available for the public there was not yet a market, and they weren't released in stereo until 1960. I can post details if someone's interested.

I also have some experimental Ellington recordings in the complete RCA Victor box that could be called stereo - would have to look up details

[Claude]

The earliest stereo Jazz recording that I am aware of is the Lennie Tristano quartet with Lee Konitz recorded at the Confucious Restaurant in June 1955

That's also the earliest I know.

As has been said, one should distinguish between the recording and the release format. Some sessions were already recorded in stereo before stereo LPs were made. But when stereo pressings were finally available commercially, stereo recording really took off, at least in jazz.

What surprises me is how late some european labels switched to stereo. Many early to mid 60's sessions reissued on CD in the "Jazz in Paris" series are mono (sessions produced for LP release, not radio sessions which would be mono until much later).

[Daniel A]

What surprises me is how late some european labels switched to stereo.

Europe was also almost two decades behind the US in adopting colour TV.

[Bluerein]

yes but that's because we (yuropeans) didn't like the colors at that time.....

[John L]

Albums were issued in both mono and stereo well into the 60s. My family had a mono player that could not handle stereo records. So we only bought mono. It wasn't until the late 60s that albums started coming out only in stereo. Then we had to persuade my father to bite the bullet and get a stereo player.

[Christiern]

After Riverside went belly up and Orrin started his own label, he shared offices with Audio-Fidelity--if memory serves me right. I also vaguely recall that Herman Gimbel--who worked at and helped to fund Riverside--became involved in Audio-Fidelity. Anyway, the label was definitely not as short-lived as suggested earlier in this thread.

[marcello]

Fantasy recorded a number of Cal Tjader tracks in genuine stereo as early as 1954! But as there was no playback equipment available for the public there was not yet a market, and they weren't released in stereo until 1960. I can post details if someone's interested.

I also have some experimental Ellington recordings in the complete RCA Victor box that could be called stereo - would have to look up details

"Duke Ellington and His Orchestra made some accidental stereo recordings on February 3, 1932 for RCA Victor. It was a fairly standard practice in that era to record using more than one microphone and disc cutter. The various versions could be compared, to see which had the best microphone positioning. It also allowed for safety masters in case something happened to the original. Although the records are fairly rare, a collector had both versions and noticed that while they appeared to be the same performance, the sound mix was different on each. When the two recordings were synchronized, it became stereo."

[brownie]

What surprises me is how late some european labels switched to stereo.

Not sure about other European countries but French labels issued most of the new stereo albums as 'Gravure Universelle' hroughout te '60s.

You could play those Gravure Universelle on mono or stereo systems.

[mikeweil]

I also have some experimental Ellington recordings in the complete RCA Victor box that could be called stereo - would have to look up details

"Duke Ellington and His Orchestra made some accidental stereo recordings on February 3, 1932 for RCA Victor. It was a fairly standard practice in that era to record using more than one microphone and disc cutter. The various versions could be compared, to see which had the best microphone positioning. It also allowed for safety masters in case something happened to the original. Although the records are fairly rare, a collector had both versions and noticed that while they appeared to be the same performance, the sound mix was different on each. When the two recordings were synchronized, it became stereo."

Thanks - these are the ones I was talking about!

[Teasing the Korean]

Audio Fidelity was also one of the first US labels to issue Brazilian recordings during th early days of Bossa Nova.

[paul secor]

Clark Terry's Duke with a Difference was recorded in stereo for Riverside in July and September, 1957. I used to have a mono copy of that record - one of the first jazz records I bought - and wore it out on a bad turntable in college. I picked up a stereo copy years later, and, interestingly, the stereo version omits one track - Marian Bruce's version of "Come Sunday".

[brownie]

Another early stereo recording is the Bud Shank 'Live at the Haig' album recorded in January 1956 (but not released until 1985):

Excerpt from the liner notes to the original Concept Records LP:

A Note from the Producer

Stereo in 1956? Though stereo was not commercially available in 1956, it did exist. Some motion picture soundtracks had already used the technique and development labs of a few manufacturers of tape recorders were experimenting with the process...

[Christiern]

And let us not forget Cook labs' binaural recordings, which used parallel grooves and a two-headed tone arm. As I recall, Cook placed the two microphones on the sides of a dummy head to give the channels the same separation that our ears give us. I also recall that it worked rather well.

[medjuck]

Fantasy recorded a number of Cal Tjader tracks in genuine stereo as early as 1954! But as there was no playback equipment available for the public there was not yet a market, and they weren't released in stereo until 1960. I can post details if someone's interested.

I also have some experimental Ellington recordings in the complete RCA Victor box that could be called stereo - would have to look up details

"Duke Ellington and His Orchestra made some accidental stereo recordings on February 3, 1932 for RCA Victor. It was a fairly standard practice in that era to record using more than one microphone and disc cutter. The various versions could be compared, to see which had the best microphone positioning. It also allowed for safety masters in case something happened to the original. Although the records are fairly rare, a collector had both versions and noticed that while they appeared to be the same performance, the sound mix was different on each. When the two recordings were synchronized, it became stereo."

Various sources claim these recordings were meant to be in stereo. They were part of an experimental series (mainly classical recordings I believe) that were recorded at 33 1/3 rpm. However I think (with no real knowlege) that it was just a question of using 2 microphones-- though they were

very well placed if they had wanted stereo.

And the answer to my original question is: I had it very wrong.

Edited November 2, 2007 by medjuck

[JPF]

Recently released on the Dynaflow label: "Stan Kenton in True '52 Stereo," recorded at the Blue Note in Chicago in September, 1952. The sound is quite acceptable and the music is excellent. The liner notes have 3 pages on how the recording was made, and the history of early stereo recording. The stereo portion of the CD is only about half an hour long; the rest is filled with unreleased airchecks which are in mono.

Edited November 2, 2007 by JPF

[Claude]

What surprises me is how late some european labels switched to stereo.

Not sure about other European countries but French labels issued most of the new stereo albums as 'Gravure Universelle' hroughout te '60s.

You could play those Gravure Universelle on mono or stereo systems.

Yes, but I meant the recordings themselves.

Albums such as Jean-Luc Ponty's "Jazz long playing" (recorded in 1964 for Philips and reissued in the "Jazz in Paris" CD series) or Chet Baker "Chet is back" (recorded in Rome for RCA in 1962), are mono.

At that time, all the US labels were recording in stereo. Already in 1958, mono recordings (such as "Burrell/Coltrane") were unusual.

Edited November 2, 2007 by Claude