Little Wonder Records
Henry Waterson's Little Wonders were sold at Woolworth's in North America and other 5 &10¢ Stores. The 10¢ discs were single-sided and played at 80 rpm, giing one minute's sound. The grooves had to be tightly packed to fit on the tiny records, meaning the sound quality was modest. They were sold without sleeves to keep the price low, and introduced ordinary people to recorded sound for the first time.
The era's big name labels, including Columbia, Victor and Edison sold ten or twelve inch records for around one dollar each, which had kept them outside the price-bracket of most households. That all changed with Little Wonder. The records have a special link with Woolworth's; many were recorded in Columbia's studios at the foot of the Woolworth Building in New York. Please listen and enjoy.
Little Wonder 818: Au Revoir but not Good-bye (Soldier Boy)
Little Wonder 912: Hail the Blest Morn & Hark the Herald Angels
Little Wonder 721: Over There (Evocative tenor solo from World War I)
Little Wonder 739: The Missouri Waltz (Hawaiian Guitar Duet)
Little Wonder 846: Ten Little Indians (Vocal Quartet).
For a great website about Little Wonder Records please take a look at littlewonderrecords.com.
Shortcuts to related content in the Woolworths Museum
1920s Gallery
1920s overview In praise of the Property Department Visit a 1920s store An opening every 17 days
Supplier partnerships and product development Woolies' first gramophone records Woolworths in the community
Alice White stars in "The Girl from Woolworths" Sixpenny pops "We will have a Woolworth Wedding"
50th birthday of the American Woolworth The sincerest form of flattery FWW GmbH
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