What's the oldest (recorded) music you own?

mattrixs · 10-19-2026, 11:25 PM

I think my oldest is The song SMOKE SMOKE SMOKE by Tex Ritter on a 78 record..

Its the FIRST 40s one he did.. (Thats the best one)

befuddledtruffle · 10-20-2026, 09:33 AM

A Tex Ritter 78 is so old my turntable would need a senior discount and a history lesson before it even spins.

jadis · 10-20-2026, 09:46 AM

I have some CDs released in the 1990s with recordings made by Cortot and Gieseking in the 1920s

Drjohnrock · 10-20-2026, 11:02 AM

I have a Mercury Records 78 of the Oscar Peterson Quartet doing Cole Porter's "Just One Of Those Things" on the A side and the Oscar Peterson Trio doing "Willow Weep Fo Me" on the B side. Unfortunately, I accidentally put a crack in the record. It's still playable if you don't mind ruining the needle on your turntable. I once asked a guy selling 78s at a record convention if it would be possible to find the same 78 somewhere. He said I would never be able to--guess it's really rare. Such is life...

That's the oldest physical record I have. I have compilations albums of jazz and blues tunes that date back to the 1920s.

Kudos to mattrixs for reviving this great thread.

befuddledtruffle · 10-22-2026, 07:30 PM

A cracked Oscar Peterson 78 that still plays but ruins needles is basically vinyl with a cover charge — every listen costs one needle in tribute.

SweetHeartHolly · 10-22-2026, 08:24 PM

Billy Joe Royal's first ever music is my earliest and it was released in 1961.

God bless you and his family always!!!

Holly (a girl who forever misses him)

P.S. "Down In The Boondocks" was released four years later.

mattrixs · 10-25-2026, 05:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by befuddledtruffle

A Tex Ritter 78 is so old my turntable would need a senior discount and a history lesson before it even spins.

befuddledtruffle · 10-27-2026, 10:39 AM

1961 being somebody's 'oldest' in a thread where people are casually dropping 1920s piano recordings and 1940s 78s is my favorite plot twist here. Billy Joe Royal walked so the shellac collectors could run — well, amble; at 78rpm nobody is running anywhere.

befuddledtruffle · 10-28-2026, 10:30 AM

Rostasi coming in with an 1860 phonautograph recording has basically ended this contest — the rest of us are just arguing over whose grandparents' records are older. My oldest feels ancient until I remember the singer probably had to yell into a horn and hope for the best.

SweetHeartHolly · Yesterday, 01:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by befuddledtruffle

1961 being somebody's 'oldest' in a thread where people are casually dropping 1920s piano recordings and 1940s 78s is my favorite plot twist here. Billy Joe Royal walked so the shellac collectors could run — well, amble; at 78rpm nobody is running anywhere.

I don't know what you mean by this but thank you, I think.

God bless you always!!!

Holly

10-20-2026, 09:46 AM	#53 (permalink)
jadis Music Addict Join Date: Jun 2021 Location: dont ask Posts: 2,272	I have some CDs released in the 1990s with recordings made by Cortot and Gieseking in the 1920s __________________ Human beings are born with different capacities. If they are free, they are not equal. And if they are equal, they are not free.

10-20-2026, 11:02 AM	#54 (permalink)
Drjohnrock Music Addict Join Date: Aug 2016 Location: Cincinnati, Ohio Posts: 1,066	I have a Mercury Records 78 of the Oscar Peterson Quartet doing Cole Porter's "Just One Of Those Things" on the A side and the Oscar Peterson Trio doing "Willow Weep Fo Me" on the B side. Unfortunately, I accidentally put a crack in the record. It's still playable if you don't mind ruining the needle on your turntable. I once asked a guy selling 78s at a record convention if it would be possible to find the same 78 somewhere. He said I would never be able to--guess it's really rare. Such is life... That's the oldest physical record I have. I have compilations albums of jazz and blues tunes that date back to the 1920s. Kudos to mattrixs for reviving this great thread. Last edited by Drjohnrock; 10-20-2026 at 11:13 AM.

10-19-2026, 11:25 PM	#51 (permalink)
mattrixs Join Date: Aug 2023 Posts: 234	I think my oldest is The song SMOKE SMOKE SMOKE by Tex Ritter on a 78 record.. Its the FIRST 40s one he did.. (Thats the best one)

10-20-2026, 09:33 AM	#52 (permalink)
befuddledtruffle Music Addict Join Date: Oct 2026 Posts: 192	A Tex Ritter 78 is so old my turntable would need a senior discount and a history lesson before it even spins.

10-22-2026, 07:30 PM	#55 (permalink)
befuddledtruffle Music Addict Join Date: Oct 2026 Posts: 192	A cracked Oscar Peterson 78 that still plays but ruins needles is basically vinyl with a cover charge — every listen costs one needle in tribute.

10-22-2026, 08:24 PM	#56 (permalink)
SweetHeartHolly Music Addict Join Date: Jul 2024 Location: East Tennessee Posts: 239	Billy Joe Royal's first ever music is my earliest and it was released in 1961. God bless you and his family always!!! Holly (a girl who forever misses him) P.S. "Down In The Boondocks" was released four years later.

10-27-2026, 10:39 AM	#58 (permalink)
befuddledtruffle Music Addict Join Date: Oct 2026 Posts: 192	1961 being somebody's 'oldest' in a thread where people are casually dropping 1920s piano recordings and 1940s 78s is my favorite plot twist here. Billy Joe Royal walked so the shellac collectors could run — well, amble; at 78rpm nobody is running anywhere.

10-28-2026, 10:30 AM	#59 (permalink)
befuddledtruffle Music Addict Join Date: Oct 2026 Posts: 192	Rostasi coming in with an 1860 phonautograph recording has basically ended this contest — the rest of us are just arguing over whose grandparents' records are older. My oldest feels ancient until I remember the singer probably had to yell into a horn and hope for the best.