Download "Play a record with a toothpick!"

This is Sammy Fain, from around 1927. More famous for his songwriting than for his recording. He’s probably most famous for his song “I’ll Be Seeing You” of which he himself never made a recording, sadly. This is one of the few songs (and he didn’t even write this song) that he ever actually recorded. Link to the particular toothpicks that I use: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KJN84TW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1 I cut them in half so that I'm left with two ... maybe 3/4 in. long. Sharpened after each use with the nail file on my pocket knife. Humidity can be an issue. I make a bunch and keep them in a little jar with some silica gel packets. This is, of course, for use on shellac 78rpm records only. Demonstrated on a 1945 HMV 102 suitcase gramophone. Your phonograph/gramophone needs to be "compliant" and on a perfectly level surface ... it needs to have a clean soundbox (reproducer) with good diaphragms and soft, pliable gaskets ... preferably one that's been professionally serviced in recent years. Your machine needs to have a strong spring, preferably a ball-bearing tonearm that's non-binding, be well oiled and greased, and have an airtight passage of sound from soundbox to horn. I'd recommend the record is no later than early 30s, not only in excellent/mint condition, but also a fine-quality shellac to begin with. In the US, to me, that means black-label Columbias, scroll-label or batwing Victors, early Okey (not the pink-label ones). Anything else is a crap shoot. I don't, for instance, play ANY Deccas. The quality was initially so poor, and it's worsening exponentially with time ... they can immediately turn to dust (for me) on any phonograph/gramophone, with any needle. From there, I choose recordings that don't have particularly crazy-loud passages, to guarantee success. When your record has an exceptionally loud passage (think the climax of Jesse Bjorling’s Nessun Dorma, or the instrumental intro of Leo Reisman’s Night and Day), the primitive acoustic reproduction system often just can’t comply and the needle and the shellac will fight to the death. If you’re using steel, the steel will win, and your shellac will grind down. If you’re using bamboo or other fibers, the shellac will win, and your needle will immediately dull, and good-sounding passage through the remainder of the record will be compromised. Not to say you WON'T have other successes. I have Oscar Natzke records with very challenging dynamics, but the British early-30s shellac is gorgeous and I play them all the time without issue. Red-label Columbias, the most ubiquitous label in the US after Decca ... the quality is "a little" better than Decca, but the dynamics are really high. Your toothpick will likely not make it through one side, but there could be exceptions. I have a fairly worn-out set of Bessie Smith represses that sound pretty good, and are really fun to play in this manner. The bamboo lends a beautiful warmth to Bessie's voice. The record in this demonstration is actually a bit lacking (25 cents at a thrift store) condition-wise, but it's dynamically perfect, and a good-quality Okey Electric label. I've probably played it close to 50 times so far, with no discernible loss of quality. Not to say that I know everything about all of this. There’s some stuff I know, and a lot that I don’t, and I’m trying to learn more every day.