A loving barbershop quartet rendition following a Bioshock 3 arrangement made for my wifey!

Crock-a-pella

God Only Knows

Back around 1945 a 19 year old girl, Joan "Jo" Demarest(later Davey, or Noni as we all called her), recorded some demos along with a piano player (don't know his name) backing her up. The how, where, and why are still a bit of a mystery to me but I believe she was dabbling with a singing career. That girl was my grandmother on my dad's side. 

I first heard them because my step-grandpa had recorded them to a tape. By listening to the tape I was able to learn a song and eventually, in my early 20's at a family reunion, perform "You Turned the Tables on Me" with her and my brother. That was a real treat.

Eventually the physical records made their way to me. I've now had them for longer than I care to admit (along with briefly misplacing them) with the intention of cleaning them up and archiving them. Well I finally did and just in time for the holidays! 

The first four are on a "Studio & Artist" brand record. These are certainly the cleanest and highest quality. I figure all the other records were basically for learning, while these were to be the finished product. They were probably more expensive to boot.

The second set is a record brand labeled "Rainbo". These are a little rougher quality. There was also a lot of solo piano, I assume for her to rehearse to. There's some preamp/microphone blowouts when they get a little too loud. Not too much I could do about it, though I tried.

The last set is "Recordisc". These are rougher still. There's more solo piano and, what sounds like, experimentation. You can hear mic feedback and speed issues on a handful of them.

There's about 6 more records of solo piano. Due to the time it takes to gussy these up I elected to not process them. If there's a demand, well. We can talk.

You'll find a link below to a viewable Google sheet that talks about the conditions of each record as well as Wikipedia links to the original composers.

Though this little project was initially intended for the Davey Clan, both young and old, I'm making it publicly available to friends. Anyone who knows me knows that I love this kind of music and have spent many an hour hunting records like this in the past. The best part is that they are, quite literally, one of a kind. I had intended to just record them and clean them up, keeping them safe, and in my possession but a cousin suggested that they live at our family cabin. I think this is a great idea! That way, when visiting we can all hear our grandma Noni's lovely voice fill the hills of Buffalo Creek. 

In the meantime, enjoy these high quality renditions of a truly special peek into the past.

Happy holidays!

~Joe



The aforementioned Google Sheet link.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1qREXoOoM0jvg_dyvlIip5kGduY9AvlYC_rju9f23jQ4/edit?usp=sharing

Demos

Slow Boat To China - Rainbo

Them There Eyes - Rainbo 1

You Turned The Tables On Me - Rainbo

I'm In The Mood For Love - Rainbo

Exactly Like You - S&A

You Turned The Tables On Me - S&A

Am I Blue -S&A

Someone To Watch Over Me - S&A

Just learning Logic whole using my new telecaster. Made fun little drop after the style of my favorite podcast.

FFB Style Drop

Crockett Sound Labs