John Ross wrote:
> Does anybody know anything about a 78 rpm disc made by Guy Carawan at
> the 1957 World Youth Festival in Moscow? It's on a red "CCCP" label,
> with "My Dog Blue" on one side and "Charlie" on the other.
>
> Catalog numbers ÃÎÑÒ 5289-56 / 29246 and ÃÎÑÒ 5289-56 / 2924
>
GOST 5289-56 (which in cyrillic looks like roct) is not a catalog
number and has no discographical significance. It is a governmental
industrial manufacturing standard. 5289 is the category of phonograph
records and -56 is the year of the last modification. I think the Gost
was changed in 50, 56, 60, 64. The record number would be 29246 /
29247 (if that is the second number since one digit was missing in your
post.)
> The main title (in Russian) on both sides is:
> ÏβÎÒ Ó×ÀÑÒÍÈÊÈ V² ÔÅÑÈÂÀËß
>
> (I have no idea if that will make it through e-mail).
It didn't. Are the titles also in English or did you identify the songs
aurally? If the titles are in English, there should be (a) after the
matrix catalog numbers on the label to indicate that it has English
language labels. If there is nothing but Russian on the label it
probably was a pressing meant for domestic sale, not export.

>
> Was this a one-off item, or were there other records made by visitors
> to the Festival? In particular, did Peggy Seeger make any records
> while she was there? A photo-essay about the festival in Life Magazine
> showed Guy and Peggy singing together, but there's nothing in Peggy's
> discography.
>
> John Ross
>
>
Interesting question. This festival is a favorite subject of mine.
There probably were records made by many performers from all over the
world who were at the festival. My favorite Soviet movie, Girl With A
Guitar, is set in a record store during this festival. Part of the
movie is a international talent show, and the American entry is a folk
group that I had not yet identified. I wonder if Guy and Peggy are part
of it. I'll try to pull the movie out and see what they sang and try to
describe them physically.

The Vladimir Troshin recording of Podmoskovniya Verchera, Moscow
Suburban Nights (improperly known as Midnight in Moscow, but the song is
about the rural outskirts, not the inner city) was issued at this time
and became very popular. It was not in the film. There was a special
sleeve for the festival, with the five color flower logo surrounding the
label hole. Did you get that sleeve with your record?

When I recently after many years of looking got a copy of Troshin's
record 27620 / 27621 (and almost immediately got another, with different
labels) I was surprised and disappointed to discover that it is missing
the 45 second instrumental introduction. I'd been complaining that so
many of the reissues were truncated, and now I discover that the
original 78 was issued that way. Some Soviet LPs I have with this song
have the full, longer version and I wonder if that was ever issued
except on long play. I see no evidence that there was a 12-inch 78, but
the full discography of Soviet records that was compiled by my friend,
the late Valari Safoshkin, has not yet been able to be published. It is
good to know about the Carawan record you have, and maybe we might find
out about any of the others.


Mike Biel [log in to unmask]