RARE RAY BOURBON IMPERIAL ALBUM NO. 2 THREE 78 RPM SET SCRANTON PRESSING

$

372

This is an album set that contains three 78 RPM.

 Imperial Records issued two 78 RPM sets in the early 1940’s. These discs were pressed on both coasts: Hollywood and Scranton, with the latter credited to the Novelty Record Company.The Scranton pressings were very rare.

 There seem to be three distinct groupings. First are a series of discs in the 100-118 range. Bart Howard is credited on the first two of these; since it is known that Bourbon and Howard parted ways in 193X, it may be assumed that the first four of these recordings were done before that time. Thereupon follows several different accompanists: Joey Melbourne, George Kent, Forrest and Wright (whose contribution was advertised but which has yet to surface). Label data suggests there were at least two multiple record sets. in these 100 range releases.  

Check http://www.blakstone.com/Bourbon%20Disc/Imperial.html for details on these Imperial recordings.

This particular album set  contains the following:

 Gland Opera (Imperial 107 A)

To Hell With the Range (Imperial 107 B)

-Label indicates this was in the set "Ray Bourbon Imperial Album No. 2"; Joey Melbourne, piano

Hollywood Appendicitis (Imperial 108 A)

Hollywood Drive-In Storehouse (Imperial 108 B)

-Joey Melbourne, piano

Orchids To Alice (Imperial 112 A)

Queen of the Navy/Queen of the May (Imperial 112 B)

-East coast pressings read "May" and indicate that this disc was part of the set "Ray Bourbon Imperial Album No. 2" . West coast pressings read "Navy" and credit George Kent on the piano.

All 3 discs are a very glossy VG++ with some minro scuff marks and a few superficial hairline scratches.

Album No. 1 sold on auction for $1200 years ago.
To my knowledge this is the first time that album No. 2 has come up for auction in the last few years.

Buyer pays $25 shipping to the US . I will only ship this overseas by expresspost with tracking #. cost will be $75.00

Bio:
In 1932, Ray Bourbon was working full-time as a female impersonator at such clubs as Jimmy's Back Yard in Hollywood and Tait's in San Francisco. (At this last club, in May 1933, his "Boys Will Be Girls" review was raided by police during a live radio broadcast.) In the later 30's and early 40's he headlined at the Rendezvous in Los Angeles and starred in his own revue, "Don't Call Me Madam."
Throughout the 50's and 60's Bourbon entertained at hundreds of clubs throughout the US and released dozens of albums, certainly the most prolific female impersonator to have done the latter. Despite his knack for publicity (such as faking a sex change in 1956), by the late 1960's Bourbon had fallen on hard times. In 1968 while traveling through Texas with trailer containing over 70 dogs, his car burst into flames and he was forced to lodge the animals with kennel keeper A. D. Blount. He eventually found work at the Jewel Box Revue in Kansas City, but by then Blount had sold the dogs to a research facility since Bourbon was unable to pay for their keep. Bourbon hired two young men¬ Bobby Eugene Chrisco and Randall Crane¬to work Blount over, but they panicked and killed the kennel-keeper. Chrisco, Crane and Bourbon were all convicted as murder conspirators; as the mastermind, the 78 year old Bourbon was given a 99 year sentence. He died a short time later, on January 19, 1971 in the Howard County Texas prison.