EXTRA ARTICLES

Pelican Records
were introduced on to the British market in the autumn of 1913 as part of the cut price record war. The Universal Record Company (Blum and Co) marketed them using old record stock that had appeared on Blum Company labels like Diploma, plus some bargain old stock from items that had appeared on the Nicole label and American Odeon label.
"One Bob" records they were called, It (B)eats All, as in this nice advertising limerick:
A wonderful Disc is the Pelican,
It swallows both Deutscher and 'Merican,
A Bob did you say?
Why, it'll win all the way!
And I now know why it's a 'Pelican.'
Here is a list of the records issued, all were 10 inch purple label, catalogue numbers began with the letter P. After the catalogue number are the artist, then the two titles on each disc.

P1 Royal Guards Band: William Tell Overture (2 sides)

P2 Royal Guards Band: Faust selection (2 sides)

P3 Royal Guards Band: Zampa (2 sides)

P4 Royal Guards Band: Teddy Bears' Picnic
Grizzly Bear

P5 Royal Guards Band: Imperial Edward March
Crusader March

P6 Royal Guards Band: Manhattan Beach
Washington Post March

P7 Royal Guards Band: Stars and Stripes March
Loyal Legion

P8 Royal Guards Band: The Thunderer March
The Gladiator March

P9 Royal Guards Band: Carmen selections (2 sides)

P10 Royal Guards Band: The Gaby Glidy
Grizzly Bear

P11 Royal Guards Band: Old Comrades
Light Cavalry Overture

P12 Royal Guards Band: Coronation Bells
Bells of St Malo

P13 Royal Guards Band: Gipsy Love waltz
Gold and Silver waltz

P14 Royal Guards Band: The Gondoliers selection (2 sides)

P15 Royal Guards Band: Oh Oh Delphine selections (2 sides)

P16 Royal Guards Band: Wedding Glide
Mysterious Rag

P17 Royal Guards Band: Ragtime Violin
Teddy bears' Picnic

P18 Vess L'Osman: Bill Simmons
St Louis Tickle

P19 Olly Oakley: Camptown Carnival
Queen of the Burlesque

P20 Percy Honri: The Bohemian Girl
Hornpipes

P21 C Penner (xylophone): The Centaur
Charles Lenton (bell solo): Silver Bells

P22 Vess L'Osman: Any Rags, medley
St Louis Ragtime

P23 Steve Bartle: Under Freedom's Flag
Gladiator's Farewell

P24 Sergeant Charles Leggett: The Flight of Ages
I'll Sing Thee Songs of Araby

P25 Schumann Quartette: I Hear You Calling Me
Lo! Here the Gentle Lark

P26 Vess L'Osman: A Gay Gossoon
Bright Eyes, Medley

P27 Sergeant Charles Leggett: Queen of the Earth
The Trumpeter

P28 Schumann Quartette: Ave Maria (Gounod)
Overture William Tell

P29 Jack Glover (cornet): The Rosary
Mary

P30 Joe Belmont (whistling): The Birds and the Brook
The Birds of Armenon

P31 Charles Capper and Albert Whelan (whistling duet): Il Bacio
Carmina

P32 Peter Dawson: Blow blow thou Winter Wind
The Bedouin's Love Song

P33 Peter Dawson: Loch lomond
The Pride of the Earth

P34 Peter Dawson: At the Bottom of the Deep Blue Sea
F Arthur: The Vicar of Bray

P35 Peter Dawson: The Piper of Pan
Unless

P36 Peter Dawson: Eileen Alannah
Somebody's Sailor Boy

P37 Stanley Kirkby: The Rustic Bridge
The Vacant Chair

P38 Stanley Kirkby: When We went to School Together
Don't Go Down in the Mine Dad

P39 Stanley Kirkby: The Miner's Dream of Home
I wonder if you Miss me Sometimes

P40 Phillip Ritte: Come into the Garden Maud
The Song that Reached

P41 Gwilym Wigley: Sleep and Forget
Thora

P42 Jessie Broughton: In Sweet September
Sympathy

P43 Alan Turner: Your Eyes have told me so
Until

P44 TF Kinniburgh: Out on the Deep
Rocked in the Cradle of the Deep

P45 Robert Carr: Somewhere a Voice is Calling
I Shall never Cease to love you

P46 Jessie Broughton: The Magic of your Voice
When all was Young

P47 Alan Turner: O Star of Eve
In Happy Moments

P48 Robert Carr: That's What the Rose said to me
My Heart is with you Tonight

P49 Zara Deane: Tosti's Goodbye
Annie Laurie

P50 Percy Jerome: What A Friend we have in Jesus
When I Survey the Wondrous Cross

P51 Percy Jerome: Sun of my Soul
How Firm a Foundation

P52 Cambridge Minstrels: Minstrel Records A and B (2 sides)

P53 Cambridge Minstrels: My Old Kentucky Home
The Piccaninni Lullaby

P54 Billy Williams: Tickle me Timothy
Put a Bit of Powder on it Father

P55 Billy Williams: My Girl from London Town
Jean from Aberdeen

P56 Billy Williams: I Must Go Home Tonght
The Old Grey Coat

P57 Billy Williams: Save a Little One for Me
I'll meet you One Dark Night

P58 Harry Champion: I'm Henry the Eighth I am
Cover it up Quick Matilda

P59 Harry Champion: Let's Have a Basin of Soup
Ginger, you're Balmy

P60 Harry Fay: I want to go to Idaho
I used to saigh for the Silvery Moon

P61 Billy Whitlock: Billy Whitlock's Aeroplane
Billy Whitlock's Wedding

P62 Collins and Harlan: Paddle your own Canoe
Take a Car

P63 Collins and Harlan: In Timbuctoo
Making Eyes

P64 Ada Jones and Len Spencer: The Golden Wedding
Peaches and Cream

P65 Len Spencer and Company: Hans Krousmeyer and His Dog Schneider
Rheumatism Cure at Jayville City

P66 Ragtime Knuts: Hitchy Koo
The Ragtime Goblin Man

P67 Ragtime Knuts: How do you do Miss Ragtime?
The Burglar Rag

P68 Ragtime Knuts: Ragtime Cowboy Joe
Waiting for the Robert E Lee

P69 Ragtime Knuts: There's a Girl in Havana
Ragging the Baby to Sleep

P70 Ragtime Knuts: Way Down South
Down in Dear Old New Orleans

P71 Ragtime Knuts: The Wedding Glide
How do you do Miss Ragtime?

P72 Harry Cove: Hello Hello London Town
You're a Great Big Blue Eyed Baby

P73 Jack Charman: When I Get You Alone Tongiht
Harry Cove: Those Ever Loving Wonderful Beautiful Eyes

P74 Ragtime Knuts: Ring Out Those Bells
That Mellow Melody

P75 Ragtime Knuts: Way Down South
Harry Cove: Hello Little Miss USA

P76 Ragtime Knuts: On the Mississippi
Goodnight Mr Moon

P77 Sandy McDougall: Roaming in the Gloaming
The Messenger Boy

P78 Sandy McDougall: The Same as His Father did Before Him
Stop Yer Tickling Jock

P79 Rose Hayes: Mary Told the Story to the Soldier
Mary used to Love a Sailor

P80 Rose Hayes: Keep on Swinging Me Charlie
There you are again Mr Rainbow

P81 Ben Lawes: She Makes Me Walk in Ragtime
Up from the Country

P82 Harry Cove: Have You Seen Our John?
My Boy

P83 Robert Carr: On the Trail of the Lonesome Pine
My heart has Learned to Love You

P85 Ragtime Knuts: Take me in Your Arms and Say You Love Me
When the Midnight Choo Choo

P86 Ragtime Knuts: On the Mississippi
Jack Charman: Snookey Ookums

P90 The Pelican Party: Christmas in Camp

P93 GH Chirgwin: The Blind Boy
My Fiddle is My Sweetheart

P94 Jack Charman: You Made Me Love You
Two Quids: On the Mississippi

Issues continued in 1914, up to the last I have noted:
P95 Jack Charman: You made me Love You
It's a Long Way to Tipperary

P99 Robert Carr: Holy holy holy
Tom Kinniburgh: Nearer my God to Thee

P111
Jack Charman: Goodbye Summer
Because I loved you so

Tall Tales (fantasy, not fact)
Marvin Records
The date: January 19th 1953. The place: Solihull. The legend: George Marvin (1936-1966), who bought the dilapidated premises of 16 Tin Pot Lane and converted the ex abattoir into a splendid recording studio, replete with the acme of recording equipment, bought in an auction of HMV's surplus, including their antiquated acoustic recording equipment that had lain unused for almost 30 years.
This horrific building, George singlehandedly transformed into the epitome of latest technology, producing a sound that has been unequalled in the post war history of 78s. His first artist to record, made two test pressings, matrices TP1- take 8 and TP2- take 14, of his great uncle the legendary American Johnny Marvin, but these were sadly never issued, and sit today in the Marvin archive, relatives of the late George Marvin refusing to release them on cd as apparently some four letter words were used on all the takes, when things went a bit wrong.
But then came the fireworks. Thru his connections with Ozzie Nelson, George recorded the young Ricky Nelson who sang two songs that were issued to coincide with the Queen's Coronation, God Save the King was the A side, and this was the now legendary blunder that saw the disc immediately recalled, the few that sold in Harrods and Woolworths are now worth a Queen's Ransom. For legal reasons, we cannot reveal the exact nature of the faux pas, ma'am.
This blundered coup was followed up by Marvin securing the exclusive rights to Jerry Lee Lewis' songs, but a row developed between the artist and Marvin's sales manager when it was insisted that Lewis record dated numbers like Come Into The Garden Maud, and Watchman What of the Night? Lewis had to agree to make these recordings as it was in his contract, and certainly a number of old grannies did purchase the recording (matrices TP 5-1 and TP 6-1) but Marvin was inundated with three or four complaints from the four purchasers, who disliked Lewis' country and western-type interpretation of these ballads. Lewis weren't too pleased either and smashed Marvin's equipment and suddenly the multi million project was declared bankrupt, George allegedly pocketing a million pounds in salary before jetting off to Brazil.
Rumours have long abounded that he had planned to not only issue recordings of the coronation, in direct and cheap opposition to HMV, but also that he had secured the right to one royal record per annum of her majesty's 'Address to Loyal Subjects.'
Marvin died penniless in the rainforests in the mid Sixties, the legend is that he died attempting to record the mating cries of a wild herd of buffalo
Discography of Marvin Records
TP1 and TP2 Johnny Marvin: titles not known, one copy known to exist
TP3 and TP4 Ricky Nelson: two records sold, value of each £4000+
TP5 and TP6 Jerry Lee Lewis: four records sold, value of each £8000+
TP7 Queen Elizabeth Talks from Her Royal Bath: one test record known to exist, "priceless," according to Marvin's relatives

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