1948 Ravens "White Christmas"Silent Night" 10" 78rpm warehouse National 9062 EX+

$

19

     Legendary Pioneer R&B Record Special !            Up for auction is this original, excellent plus condition, warehouse-stock,  10" , 78rpm  shellac record, "White Christmas"  b/w "Silent Night" by the Ravens featuring Jimmy Ricks on  silver-on-blue National Records #9062 from Phillipsburg, New Jersey in 1948. 

From Uncamarvy.com:  The Ravens - Part 1  By Marv Goldberg.     

Based on interviews with Leonard Puzey, Warren Suttles,  Maithe Marshall, David Bowers, Tommy Evans, Ollie Jones, and Ray Richardson  (Note: the original of this article appeared in Discoveries #93 - 2/96) © 1999, 2009.

….On May 2, the Ravens opened at the Apollo Theater, sharing the stage with superstar Cab Calloway. After that, it was down to Baltimore, where they opened at the Club Astoria, joining the Harlemaires.

The next release, in June 1947, was a natural for Ricks: Oscar Hammerstein and Jerome Kern's 1927 masterpiece, "Ol' Man River" (backed with Maithe's first stunning ballad, "Would You Believe Me"). "Ol' Man River" became the Ravens' first chart hit, rising to #10 (R&B).

July found the Ravens into some antics. Taking advantage of the new "flying saucer" craze (that had started in June), the Ravens were almost arrested for sailing copies of "Ol' Man River" off New York City's George Washington Bridge into the Hudson River. While Leonard confirmed that the event actually took place, the article went on to say that the only thing that saved the Ravens from being hustled off to jail was the timely intervention of Herb Abramson (a&r man for National Records, in one of his last acts before he quit to form Atlantic Records with Ahmet Ertegun) and Ben Bart. Abramson was quick to take the blame, calling it just a publicity stunt. Of course, the Ravens had to sing for the police to establish their identity beyond question. (I don't know about you, but I take great delight in these concocted press agents' releases).

On September 12, the Ravens went into Smalls' Paradise (at 2294 Seventh Avenue in Harlem). It was supposed to be for a week, but they were held over for two more weeks.

A November tour took the Ravens to St. Louis, and Richie Cannon was shifted down to baritone. While in St. Louis, they recorded "Silent Night" and Irving Berlin's 1942 Yuletide classic, "White Christmas."

On December 12, the Ravens began another week at the Apollo Theater in New York City. This time, they shared the boards with Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson and the Jimmie Lunceford Orchestra.

As a publicity stunt, the Ravens purchased 1500 copies* of "Silent Night" and sold them in the lobby of the Apollo Theater as a way of raising money for the Damon Runyon Cancer Fund.

       *JB Note: Possibly this green label National Records:

This record became a perennial seller for the Ravens, issued on various labels throughout the years. In 1948, however, "Silent Night" rose to #8 (R&B), slightly edging out "White Christmas," which peaked at #9. The latter song was a direct influence on Clyde McPhatter and the Drifters' version released on Atlantic Records.

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from spontaneouslunacy.net by Sampson:

Though the 1940’s were the era in which songs, rather than singers, were the focal point of the industry, with dozens of artists tackling the most popular tunes in competing versions, often with multiple acts scoring Top Ten hits simultaneously with the same song, Bing Crosby OWNED “White Christmas” in the public’s mind. Lots of others cut it of course, but only Frank Sinatra and Jo Stafford managed to score big with takes on it between Crosby’s release in 1942 and the moment when a group of rock singers known as The Ravens entered the studio to lay down their own version in 1948.

Right away you sense something is different here. Christmas suddenly got a lot hipper.

…this [record] marks another important first here in the history of rock ‘n’ roll, and another for The Ravens in that regard as well, as this is the very first Christmas record released by a rock artist, something that in the eyes of many meant this unwelcome intruder on the national music scene had now corrupted a sacred holiday in addition to the litany of prior offenses against humanity, moral high standards and common decency.

I agree… all of that IS something to celebrate, isn’t it? So whatever day is on your calendar as we speak… Merry Christmas

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When their version of White Christmas broke into the Top Ten on the race charts it confirmed The Ravens as the pre-eminent vocal group in rock, the ones who had the skill and confidence (not to mention the sheer audacity) to take anything, no matter how sacred to others, and make it distinctly their own. It showed that rock music wasn’t some easily dismissed novelty from the fringes of society but rather it was fast becoming the growing voice of a new era, one that would eventually have to be listened to and taken seriously by everybody.

While others were dreaming of a White Christmas, The Ravens were turning that white Christmas black and doing so with pride and good cheer, which is what Christmas is all about after all.

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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  nil desperandim  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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Some might describe this item as a gem, one-of-a-kind, the holy grail, a first edition, grade A, top quality, 5 star, five star, a museum piece, stone mint, out of print, unavailable, rare, rarely seen, unique, psa 10, investment quality, new to the market, may never be seen again or never before seen, but I won?t.  Not in visible font anyway. Also, this has nothing to do with bitcoins. Thank you.