David Glasser and Anna Frick worked to restore and master a unique catalog of music — The Rise and Fall of Paramount Records 1917-1932, Volumes One and Two. Each volume holds 800 tracks. Volume One, covering the years 1917- 1927, was released in fall 2013 to great critical acclaim, and we collected some of the notable reviews here.
In fall 2014, Third Man Records and Revenant Records released Volume Two, for the intensely productive period from 1928 to 1932, when Paramount failed in the Depression. We’ve updated this blog post to include some of the Volume Two reviews.
Read Dave’s blog post about how the project came to be and the processes used to restore the music.
Third Man and Revenant introduced the first—quarter-sawn oak—”cabinet of wonder” through a video view of the box, discs, books, USB drive and ephemera. The streamlined Machine Age case housing the second volume is similarly intriguing, with laser-etched LPs and books of comparable scholarship and detail.
While not a review, we had to include a link to an interview on the Billy Reid website. Billy Reid is a chain of 11 boutiques in the US. For SXSW, it mounted an exhibit called Blueprint next to its Austin store, exploring the Paramount project and its esthetic, and posted an interview with the always-stylish Dean Blackwood on its blog
The most recent reviews are found at the top of this list.
NPR – The two news stories linked here include a handful of audio clips from Volume Two:
All Things Considered, Feb 24, 2015
Fresh Air: The Furniture Company that Sang the Blues, Feb 16, 2015
Pitchfork:
Best New Reissue – The Rise and Fall of Paramount Records Volume Two 1928-1932
CBS This Morning, Nov 29, 2014:
Lost treasures: Jack White rescues the Paramount Records archive
Rolling Stone:
Jack White’s Third Man Records to Issue Second Paramount Records Box
Stereophile:
Recording of January 2014: The Rise & Fall of Paramount Records 1917–1927, Volume One
Mix:
‘The Rise and Fall of Paramount Records’ Remastering American Voices, In Mass Quantities
The New York Times:
A Menagerie of Music Lives in a Box, Jack White Explores History of Paramount Records
NPR Weekend Edition:
Paramount Records: The Label Inadvertently Crucial To The Blues
NPR.org:
Holding Music History In Your Hands: Why Archives Matter
Rolling Stone:
Jack White’s Third Man Records to Co-Release Paramount Records Set
Jack White on His Paramount Records Connection
Paste:
Third Man Announces Release of Paramount Records Collection
The Wall Street Journal:
SPIN:
Jack White Builds a ‘Cabinet of Wonder’ Full of Classic Jazz, Blues
Jack White Excavates Paramount Records at Reverential New York Public Library Event
NME:
Jack White’s Third Man Records to release 800-song compilation from Paramount Records archives
Jambands.com:
Third Man Records to Release 800-Song Paramount Records Collection
CMT Edge:
Americana Fest: Shovels & Rope, Third Man Records and More
Nashville Scene:
Pitchfork:
Review: The Rise & Fall of Paramount Records, Volume One (1917-1932)
Brooklyn Vegan:
Fretboard Journal:
The Rise and Fall of Paramount 1917-1932, Volume 1: The Unboxing
Consequence of Sound:
A Holiday Gift Guide For Music Fans
Pitchfork:
Considering an historical project you’d like us to help restore?
Prospective Restoration Center clients are welcome to contact Ann Blonston in Boulder to discuss their project: 303-247-9035.