Rare Book Monthly
Book Catalogue Reviews - March - 2003 Issue
Goldband Records Plays on in UNC Exhibition
The Cajun Valentino.Courtesy of and copyright by Goldband Records.
The sixth section is “Resources” and contains three links to sites and a bibliography of the printed material used to research the exhibition. The first link is to the home page of Goldband records, which is well worth a visit. In addition to some company history, one is also treated to music at the site. The second link is to the finding aid for the company’s archives, which came into the collection by purchase in 1995. This document is worth perusing. The company is recorded in considerable detail and the information in the archives is significant for several types of research. In addition to documentation of the existence of hundreds of photographs, one finds, for example, evidence that the company distributed its products overseas to such countries as Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.
The final section is “About the Project.” This small section acknowledges the support of Eddie Shuler and Magnolia Music, the current owners of the Goldband label. It also lists eight names. Those are the names of the people involved in developing this exhibition. The skills and abilities necessary to build such a site are revealed in those names, and each person listed deserves great credit for presenting a fascinating exhibition on an important piece of Americana that might otherwise be obscured. This exhibition is well conceived and nicely executed. It is a delight to visit.
One word of warning is in order: to take full advantage of the exhibition one will need a broadband Internet connection and a media player. This is not an exhibition for the slow of bandwidth, although many portions of it, especially the text parts, may be enjoyed by dial-up. The exhibition may be found at http://docsouth.unc.edu/sfc/goldband
