The Great Big Digital Archive Project – 2013
“Going Forward With Our Past”
From January 2013, the venerable and redoubtable Topic Records (now 74 years old) will be making available another of its ‘gifts to the nation’, in the form of The Great Big Digital Archive Project. Thereafter, a programme of 6 – 10 additional titles will be released every month throughout the year. With the possible exception of Smithsonian Records in the US, this will probably constitute the largest digital project of its kind undertaken by an independent record company anywhere in the world.
Topic has always had the underlying philosophy of making traditional based music as widely available as possible. The ambition of the label is now to make as much of its vast historical catalogue available using the current format – digital. What makes this project distinctive is that at the moment, digital delivery all too often divorces the audio recording from all artwork, documentation and sleeve-notes. The plan at Topic is to restore and include all of the information that accompanied the original releases of the past.
In January 2013, 84 of these albums will be available to download complete with digital booklets. The digital booklets will be available from the Topic website as well as iTunes. There will also be a short YouTube film explaining the project in detail and the content of specific digital booklets.
The first tranche of 84 digital releases will include albums originally released on vinyl LP in the late 1950s, the 60s, 70s and 80s. Many have been out of print for twenty years or more and include titles which were championed by John Peel and other influential broadcasters.
Much of the repertoire on the field recordings included in the Topic archive has fed into the latest British folk revival, whilst many recordings of Irish traditional music are of cultural and political significance and date from a period when there were few domestic labels in Ireland releasing such music.
Example:
TSDL070
The original recording of Davy Graham’s ‘Angi’ was made in Bill Leader’s Camden Town basement flat in 1962 and released on the seminal Topic 7″ vinyl EP – 3/4 AD. The vinyl release appeared in three different sleeves during the early 60s and with slightly different sleeve notes by Alexis Korner. The digital booklet will incorporate all the sleeve notes and illustrate the variant sleeve designs.
‘Angi’ is widely regarded as one of the cornerstone compositions of the sixties’ acoustic guitar movement, famously recorded by Bert Jansch, Paul Simon, Ralph McTell, etc.
And – looking a little further ahead – leading up to Topic’s 75th birthday in 2014, the label also plans to make available digital booklets for all current Topic releases, artist by artist, as well as new “themed” digital collections.
The first 84 TOPIC archive digital releases for January 2013
TSDL035 DOMINIC BEHAN Down By The Liffeyside (Irish Street Songs)
TSDL051 A L LLOYD Outback Ballads
TSDL070 DAVY GRAHAM 3/4 AD
TSDL084 THE WILLETT FAMILY The Roving Journeyman
TSDL093 RAMBLING JACK ELLIOTT Talking Woody Guthrie
TSDL110 VARIOUS ARTISTS Sea Songs & Shanties
TSDL113 PEGGY SEEGER & TOM PALEY Who’s Going To Shoe You’re Pretty Little Foot?
TSDL117 HEDY WEST Old Times and Hard Times
TSDL118 A L LLOYD First Person
TSDL120 THE CAMPBELL FAMILY The Singing Campbells
TSDL125 VARIOUS ARTISTS New Voices
TSDL130 EWAN MacCOLL Bundook Ballads
TSDL134 JESSE FULLER Move On Down The Line
TSDL137 THE FISHER FAMILY Traditional & New Songs From Scotland
TSDL139 PADDY TUNNEY A Wild Bees’ Nest
TSDL147 EWAN MacCOLL The Manchester Angel
TSDL163 HEDY WEST Ballads
TSDL175 WILLIE CLANCY The Minstrel From Clare
TSDL182 MRS. SARAH MAKEM Ulster Ballad Singer
TSDL183 WILLIE SCOTT The Shepherd’s Song
TSDL185 LIZZIE HIGGINS Princess Of The Thistle
TSDL186 THE HIGH LEVEL RANTERS Northumberland Forever
TSDL190 DAVE & TONI ARTHUR The Lark In The Morning
TSDL193 PHOEBE SMITH Once I Had A True Love
TSDL200 PETER BELLAMY The Fox Jumps Over The Parson’s Gate
TSDL203 A L LLOYD The Great Australian Legend
TSDL206 THE OLDHAM TINKERS Oldham’s Burning Sands
TSDL212 OAK Welcome To Our Fair
TSDL214 THE CHEVIOT RANTERS The Sound Of The Cheviots
TSDL216 FRANKIE ARMSTRONG Lovely On The Water
TSDL222 THE CHEVIOT RANTERS The Cheviot Hills
TSDL229 VARIOUS ARTISTS English Country Music From East Anglia
TSDL230 VARIOUS ARTISTS The Lark In The Clear Air
TSDL237 THE OLDHAM TINKERS Best O’ T’ Bunch
TSDL240 VARIOUS ARTISTS Boscastle Breakdown
TSDL247 JOHN KIRKPATRICK & SUE HARRIS The Rose Of Britain’s Isle
TSDL250 SEAMUS ENNIS The Wandering Minstrel
TSDL251 THE RUSSELL FAMILY Of Doolin, County Clare
TSDL253 VARIOUS ARTISTS Songs Of The Open Road
TSDL256 ROY HARRIS Champions Of Folly
TSDL274 BOB DAVENPORT Down The Long Road
TSDL275 BOB CANN West Country Melodeon
TSDL276 THE OLDHAM TINKERS For Old Time’s Sake
TSDL277 ARCHIE FISHER Will Ye Gang, Love
TSDL286 GEORGE MAYNARD Ye Subjects Of England
TSDL295 JOHN KIRKPATRICK & SUE HARRIS Among The Many Attractions At The Show…
TSDL297 THE HIGH LEVEL RANTERS Ranting Lads
TSDL305 THE O’HALLORAN BROTHERS The Men Of The Island
TSDL306 JIMMY POWER Irish Fiddle Player
TSDL307 BELLE STEWART Queen Among The Heather
TSDL315 DICK GAUGHAN Coppers & Brass
TSDL316 ROSE MURPHY Milltown Lass
TSDL318 BOB DAVENPORT Postcards Home
TSDL319 BOB SMITH’S IDEAL BAND Ideal Music
TSDL323 THE OLDHAM TINKERS Sit Thee Down
TSDL335 TOMMY HEALY & JOHN DUFFY Memories Of Sligo
TSDL337 JACK & CHARLIE COEN The Branch Line
TSDL350 BOB DAVENPORT & THE RAKES 1977
TSDL355 JOHN KIRKPATRICK & SUE HARRIS Shreds & Patches
TSDL361 BOB ROBERTS Songs From The Sailing Barges
TSDL362 MARY-ANN CAROLAN Songs From The Irish Tradition
TSDL366 DAN SULLIVAN’S SHAMROCK BAND
TSDL371 ALISTAIR ANDERSON Corby Crag
TSDL378 VIN GARBUTT Eston California
TSDL380 SHIRLEY & DOLLY COLLINS For As Many As Will
TSDL382 NEW VICTORY BAND One More Dance & Then
TSDL385 VIN GARBUTT Tossin A Wobbler
TSDL388 THE HIGH LEVEL RANTERS Four In A Bar
TSDL392 WALTER PARDON A Country Life
TSDL398 JOHN DOHERTY Bundle And Go
TSDL399 THE OLDHAM TINKERS That Lancashire Band
TSDL403 ALISON McMORLAND & PETA WEBB
TSDL405 CILLA FISHER & ARTIE TREZISE Cilla And Artie
TSDL408 JOHN KIRKPATRICK & SUE HARRIS Facing The Music
TSDL416 UMPS AND DUMPS The Moon’s In A Fit
TSDL430 MARTIN SIMPSON Grinning In Your Face
TSDL435 CURLEW Fiddle Music From Shetland & Beyond
TSDL438 MARTIN SIMPSON Sad Or High Kicking!
TSDL441 BILL CADDICK The Wild West Show
TSDL446 MARTIN & JESSICA SIMPSON True Dare Or Promise
TSDL447 ANDREW CRONSHAW Till The Beast’s Returning
TSDL453 JOHN KIRKPATRICK & SUE HARRIS Stolen Ground
TSDL502 EWAN MacCOLL Chorus From The Gallows
TSDL1050 ANDREW CRONSHAW The Language Of Snakes
Further information: http://www.topicrecords.co.uk/category/archive-digital-catalogue/
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