Howlett & Son record sleeve

[records78]

I have a 78rpm record sleeve with the following information printed on it: "Howlett & Son, Piano Saloon" -- "Market Place, Norwich" As well as other information on recordings and gramophones. Someone has written "DB899" in ink on the sleeve. The ink notation could refer to the Chaliapine & Austral duet of songs from the Church Scene of Gounod's "Faust" (H.M.V DB899), although that HMV recording is 12" and the Howlett sleeve is for a 10" recording. (I use it for one of my 78rpm American vaudeville recordings.) Chaliapine & Austral recorded their duets, with Robert Coates conducting the symphony orchestra (HMV DB899), on Oct. 26, 1925 -- and I am assuming the record sleeve dates from that time, give or take a year. The sleeve is in remarkably good condition. It is made of a grey, heavy-weight paper that is machine-stitched (with thread) on three sides. If someone associated with the Howlett family would enjoy having the sleeve, I would be happy to post it to them for the cost of the post. I live in Louisville, Kentucky, USA.

[Bill Kibby]

Thanks for telling us. I am not far from Norwich, Howlett used to be the biggest name in pianos around East Anglia, and claimed (wrongly) to be the only piano maker in Norfolk. Record sleeves are the commonest form of piano advertising to survive, so although it might be interesting, it is not worth anything to me, I spend a lot of my time trying to find much older paperwork.

[records78]

Interesting. Thanks for letting me know, and good luck with the research.

[WilliamSr]

Put a piece of cardboard the size of the sleeve behind the sleeve and then put the poly sleeve on. Comic book collectors do this.