In the early 90s Rice’s book store in Newcastle had an off-limits room out the back full of 78rpm discs. On finding out I had a working gramophone and had collected a few discs Rice’s proprietor, Lee, let me in to dig through the pile one day. I was familiar with Casals later works, and knew Dvorak’s cello concerto from another LP I owned. On finding this (complete with liner notes, and fully intact) I was gobsmacked. This is widely considered one of the greatest cello performances of all time. I also love that the origin of the word album can be seen here, as this is literally an ALBUM (like a photo album) of discs. This is also His Master’s Voice album #306, a very low number from such a legendary label. I acquired the same recording on CD years later, but honestly, the 78s still sound better.
