Ken Robinson's UAW Tapes: 1969-1974

Okay, it's time to get serious about the UAW tapes. I made cassette backups 10 years ago, but now I own the originals. About 6 years ago, I digitized a few clips, but now it's time to get them all digitized and organized. I've just completed an inventory of them--they span 5 years: 1969-1974. There is a potential of 17.5 hours of recorded material here; my memory is that not all tapes are recorded until the end of side b.


The earliest tape has a wonderful speech from Walter Reuther. I am going to digitize these quickly, get them in the same place, and make multiple copies of the digital files.

The rest of the tapes are music (several are labeled "Dinner Music"). It's funny--there's a lot of the same music in Ken's collection, especially Guy Lombardo, as I found in my other grandfather's tapes. About 50% of the collection is work-related union stuff from meetings, rallies, conferences, etc. I really think I should digitize that stuff. I have done bits and pieces before, but this is everything. My guess is that the Reuther Library might like copies. I will start this tonight.

I will update the speadsheet with actual run times. Here's a quick plan:

• digitize tapes one at a time
• assign letters to each in order to distinguish
  
• save "master" copies to a single folder
• edit individual tapes in reasonable track intervals
• populate raw files with descriptions and tags in iTunes
• create a DVD with all files
• create a set of audio CDs of all files
• write a small set of liner notes

Technical details of the digitization:

• digitized in stereo
• mp3 format (128kbps)
• re-mixed to mono (original recordings almost certainly mono)

I want to do a nice job with this so that it might be useful to the Reuther or to a labor historian some day. I am fairly certain these events are not audio archived anywhere--my grandfather was kind of technology freak, and taping things was a hobby of his.

Below is a slideshow of scanned images of the tapes:





Update: I think a key to getting this done properly is to do it in a short period of time. Here's a plan. I have two working cassette decks. I am going to take one to work and digitize during the day as well. The machine really doesn't require any special attention. The fidelity differences between the decks are, I am sure, minimal. I will use the same device to digitize, so the files will all be in one place and the settings will all be the same.

As I write this, I am digitizing the 120 min tape from 1969 with Reuther (he's been speaking for about 45 minutes down in my basement--talking about Black Lake, workers' families, and now he's talking about the UAW members who worked on the Apollo 11 moon mission. He was a fantastic speaker. The speech has interesting points about leadership development.

So I will set a goal of digitizing about 3 hours of audio during the day in my office. I won't edit or anything--that all gets done at home on the computer. In fact, after tomorrow, I can use the digitizing time to do some of the editing on the files that are already digitized. Then I can shoot for about 90 minutes of digitizing per night as I edit. I should be done digitizing before Friday if I keep that pace. Then I can use Friday and the weekend to do editing and formatting. I can set Friday, December 5 as the date to have a finished product--the whole thing digitized, edited, and organized.

Another update: Because I've worked with long mp3 files before, I have made the decision to make each "master" track the length of one side of a tape. This will make the files easier to work with. It would be much easier to put two tapes in the dual well Yamaha and spit out 3 hour mp3s, but that would be a pain. Also, I'd have to split them before I even started editing.

Now I will have a predictable system. There are 11 tapes, which means 22 "master" files, the longest of which will be 1 hour. I will use the letters to organize. This tape I am doing now (the 1969 Reuther tape) will be tracks A1 and A2, each 1 hour long.

I also had another thought: I can get one of these going while I am getting ready in the morning. First thing, I'll go down and start one. I might be able to get an entire 90 minute cassette done before I leave for work. Do two of them at work, and one more at home during the evening. We'll crank this out!

Why am I writing all this down?

The Arrival of Victor Feldman

Back in 1986, my bass teacher introduced me to the work of bassist Scott LaFaro. I remember buying a vinyl copy of Sunday At The Village Vanguard while home for Thanksgiving break. I stared at the record as it spun on my turntable; it's not dramatic to say that the way I listened to music was changed forever.

Later that term, Peter loaned me a cassette copy of the then-out-of-print The Arrival of Victor Feldman. My copy is around here somewhere, but right now I am listening to it on Rhapsody.

Feldman came back to me in a funny way--he plays vibes and organ on some of my favorite Tom Waits records.

Scotty was about 21 when he made this record. Right now I am listening to his solo on "Waltz," and it's just impossible for me to comprehend that kind of genius. Given the timing, this must have been recorded on his old plywood bass--he purchased the Prescott a year later, I think.

Garbage Audio

Literally.

I have saved three pairs of absolutely awful loudspeakers from the garbage. One was a pair of lowest-grade Sony speakers that Kathy had in her condo when we met (I knew I was comfortable in our relationship when I was able to tell her that they sucked--I waited until she asked, though). Another is a pair of Realistic speakers that, while they were junk to begin with, dropped to the floor and crushed around the cabinet edges. Finally we have a pair of Fisher speakers (similar to Doc's 1963 500B in name only) that our next door neighbor was going to junk after they failed to sell at a garage sale for $25/pr. All these are powered by a JVC integrated amp I bought on eBay for $14 (my JVC cassette deck is hooked up for good measure--it was $9).

I mounted these between the floor joists using available materials: a broken broom handle, hooks and screw eyes, and computer network cable and cable mounts left behind by the Dish Network guy. To hook them all together, I literally grabbed 25 feet of computer networking cable out of the trash and jerryrigged it into speaker wire by stranding two threads together for each terminal: (Brown = Right +, Orange = Right -, etc.). For these crappy speakers, this is just fine.






Truth be told, the speakers sound even worse up in the ceiling. But, it's not a listening room--this is a work room, and you get what you pay for, right? I wouldn't want any decent speakers down there. One caveat: with numerous speakers in the ceiling, the sound is complex, which can be interesting as you move around. That and the fact that the floorboards really shake with bass when you are playing it loud (brings lyrics from "Daft Punk Is Playing At My House" to mind: "I got everybody's PA at my house... ah, my house!").

Doc's Audio

There's no question that my love of audio gear, and probably music itself for that matter, comes from my Grandfather Owen "Doc" Rice. The relationship between my grandfather and me revolved around music--my mother still tells the story that he teared up with joy when he heard me whistle and carry a tune. Over the years, he and I talked about music constantly.

This post will be about his audio gear.

I also remember helping him fix (twice) a really crappy Tascam cassette deck toward the end of his life. It was one of those dual-well decks, bottom grade. A motor kept failing, and the guy at the local repair shop refused to fix it for him (doing him a favor, really). But he insisted that I find the part the guy needed, and so I did.

All the good stuff was left at his Grand Rapids home on Elmwood (or sold). He had a mid-grade Technics receiver in Grand Haven--it was hooked into some old Bozak speakers that were built into the cabinetry (existed in the home when he purchased). They were nice. His receiver on Elmwood was a early 60s vintage Fisher (that thing was sweet).

I can't be certain this was the exact model, but this 500B from an eBay listing is the exact look. I remember that thing! The blue lettering "THE FISHER" would glow behind the radio dial, and I can still see that bird flying with a musical note in its beak (see above).

I can picture the speakers he had in the living room and basement, but I don't know makes or models. His reel to reel deck was a Sony; I was not allowed to touch the old cassette deck (a Sony also, I believe). The turntable was actually on a high shelf, so I can't recall it exactly. I think it had a wooden case; might have been a Dual or BSR.



So a few of the tapes in the burned cases have my handwriting; I took his reel-to-reel deck at one time and fixed it, then transferred things to cassette. I also borrowed a deck to do the same thing later on; a few of the reel-to-reel transfers are things I should really look at: he told the story that some of them were bootleg recordings he copied from the across-the-street neighbor, Glenn Ferry, who shared his love of music. I don't remember Mr. Ferry, but I remember his house, his wife Mrs. Ferry who used to play with me, their Scottie-dog "Corky," and their huge console organ. Playing at Mrs. Ferry's house is what gave me my desire to get a Scottish Terrier.



Looking at this faceplate, I am certain this is the model. I recognize the switches, the split pots, and the green strength meter. I'd know that deck anywhere (and I haven't seen it in 30 years).

As warm as those tubes sound, this must be a pain in the ass piece of audio gear to own today.

Dead Grandfathers

Man, that sounds bad. But dead they are.

My grandfather Owen A. Rice died in 1998 in a fire at his home in Grand Haven, MI. He was 82 years old; I was 30.

I called my Mom's father "Doc," and we were very close. I am also very fortunate that we became even closer before he died. I made a point of visiting him often in Grand Haven; when I became separated from my first wife, my dog Murphy and I would often make trips to see him. My mom saved a bunch of stuff from the fire, including his tapes. I just looked at them. The cases are all smoke and water damaged. I am surprised to see how many of the jackets are in my handwriting--I helped him transfer many reel-to-reel tapes in the late 80s and early 90s.

My grandfather Kenneth W. Robinson died in 1976 of his third heart attack in Naples, FL. He was 54 years old; I was 7.

Ken's cassettes are in two brown albums--they are mostly work-related union tapes of Fall School sessions, speeches, and conventions. There is a little music. These all date from the early 1970s; until recently they were at my grandmother's cottage on Lake Michigan. I've had duplicates of many of the union tapes for about 10 years--I made duplicates in 1998 during a visit to Punta Gorda (I was actually writing the prospectus for my dissertation; it was my first post-divorce Christmas; Renee and I visited Gram in her new home; I sat by the pool and wrote while the tapes duplicated). Now I have the originals. I should make digital copies of all of them.

Cleaning The Basement With My Dead Grandfather

Okay, it's not as weird as it sounds. I was crazy nuts about both my grandfathers, and both of them were into stereo equipment and making cassette tapes. I've got a bunch of tapes from both of them, and today I was cleaning the basement. I patched together a little rig to listen to the cassettes as I organized the basement; I also digitized a couple.

I started an 8tracks channel called "granddad" so I can post stuff there. That way I can share with my extended family.

I will code the mixes with their first names: Owen & Ken. The first mix is a funny one called "Variety Records & Radio." I'll post it tonight.

Update: Well, I ditched the old-school "hiss" of analog tape and switched to iPod. Just for fun, I ran the iPod through the old cassette deck. Sad discovery: the deck only records on the left channel (but it plays back on both and the meters work--which was the main reason I bought the thing.). So it's not a 100% functioning deck; what do you want for $9.95?

The thing is still useful to me: I can digitize old cassettes (could do that with my trusty Yamaha), and I can go down memory lane with the old LCD VU meters.

Been listening to Eno and Unholy Modal Rounders as I clean.

Black Postcards

You can listen to this mix as you read about it. Try it--you'll like it!

The Story of My First Mix CD

Almost exactly 4 years ago, I found myself at a crossroads. I had just poured my whole entire self into an 8-month campaign for the State Legislature. I knocked on 19,000 doors, raised $140,000, put my family through a whole bunch of crap and lost big. I had put together a campaign staff of five wonderful people, two of whom had relocated from other parts of the country to work on my race. I wasn't the only person who had gone all out... they worked--sometimes harder than I did--to get me elected. And we lost.

As I reflected on my life, I realized that one thing I had left behind me was my zealous passion for discovering new pop music. Jay, our field director, and Jon, our consultant, shared my love of great bands. But they had stayed involved. They played me bands I'd never heard of before. They inspired me to challenge myself to make a mix--something I hadn't done in years. The last time I had made a mix was with my cassette deck. For me, 2004 was pre-iPod, and I didn't even know how to burn a music CD. My challenge rules were simple: make a mix CD for the campaign staff with bands I had never heard before. I tried to keep all tracks newer than the year 2000, but ended up making exceptions for Simply Saucer and Guided By Voices. The result was my Black Postcards mix. Even Kathy likes this mix.

I've uploaded Black Postcards to 8tracks, and it's embedded below. I love every song on this mix. It always takes me back to that very confusing time when I got back up after a resounding defeat.

Jon and Christina had me over to the house after the loss; Luna was playing on the stereo. That's what made me start. The first song I found was "Black Postcards" from Romantica. I love this song for the lyrical ambiguity that so perfectly matched my psyche after the campaign:

If I had to do it all again, I wouldn't / Throw it all away.

This line is exquisite. You can hear it as a statement in the positive or negative. "If I had it all to do again, I wouldn't throw it all away," or "If I had to do it all again, I wouldn't. Throw it all away." This was absolutely perfect for me. More lyrics, such as "I'm tired of having no future / I'm tired of pushing my luck / I'm tired of waiting for the endgame / Watching the stars turn black." Jon, Greg (who also worked on the campaign) and I actually caught their second-to-last show in Detroit in 2005. The end of something.

I also love the two Pinback songs here; I broke my self-imposed rule by putting two songs by them on here. There's something magical about the refrain "Anything I say to you is gonna come out wrong anyway" on "Concrete Seconds." Simply Saucer is another wonderful find.

I learned about most of these bands on epitonic. A month or so later, I found even more bands and made a second mix called Pillow Mix. Maybe I'll upload that one next.

~G-Fab

P.S. I'm actually kind of proud of the cover art I created for the 8tracks mix here. I searched online for a 2004 postmark and found one; I used Photoshop to alter the image, change the background and the angle, and give it that mother of pearl kind of look. There is no significance to the postmark "Santa Clara CA." If anything, I should have found a San Diego postmark in honor of Pinback, the band that ties the mix together (although the CA bit could be an oblique reference to the Luna song "California All The Way").