Columbia 12" Release Series

Columbia Master Book, Volume IV, Brian Rust and Tim Brooks, eds.


Following are the principal Columbia 12” double-face release series used during the period covered by Volume IV of the Columbia Master Book. Single-face issues used the matrix number as the release number. Dating charts for some of these series will be found in Volume I.

Table 6c:

Columbia 12” Release Series

Return to Columbia Tables

See also: Columbia Acoustic Matrix Series; General U.S. Matrix Series Recording Dates and Release Dates

DatesCatalog #sSeries
1908–1923  A5000 to A6233  General 
 " A 7500 to A 7579  Educational (originally prefixed “S”) 
 " C1000 to C1300s  Spanish (Central & South America) 
 " E5000 to E5283  Ethnic H1000 to H1100s: Spanish--Symphonic (Export)
 " S5000 to S5100s  Spanish--Concertos/Opera (Export) 
1924–1934  50000-D to 50385-D  General (1924–1939) 
 " 53000-D to 53008-D  Educational (1924–1929?) 
 " 54000-D to ?  Race (not used?) 
 " 60000-D to 60007-D  Classical (1924)*
 " 65000-D to 65034-D  Classical (1924)*
 " 67000-D to 73284-D  Classical/Masterworks (1924–1952) 
 " 68000-D to 68088-D  Classical (1924)*
 " 71000-D to 71003-D  Classical (1924)*
 " 74000-D  Classical (1924) 
 " 5000-M to 5138-M  Celebrity (Black label; 1925–1934) 
 " 6900-Ms  Celebrity (South America) 
 " 7000-M to 7784-M  Celebrity (Blue label; 1925–1953) 
 " 8900-Ms  Celebrity (South America) 
 " 9000-M to 9171-M  Celebrity (Purple label; 1925–1947) 
 " 9900-Ms  Celebrity (South America) 
 " 50000-F to 82000-F’s  Ethnic (blocks within for different languages) 
 " 50000-X to 57000-X’s  Ethnic export (blocks within) 

*These early series, denoting different price categories, were discontinued ca.1925; records remaining in the catalog were renumbered into other series. Subsequent classical releases were numbered in the 67000-D series or the new “M” series. When 67999-D was reached in late 1931 that series continued into the 68000-D’s, reusing some previously used numbers. The series continued for many years, eventually reaching 73284-D in 1952. 

 


Back to Volume IV Introduction (U.S. Twelve-inch Matrix Series, 1906–1931) | Forward to Appendix A: Matrix and Catalog Number Dating Charts

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The Columbia Master Book Discography, 4 Volumes, Complied by Brian Rust and Tim Brooks. Reprinted by permission.