Edison Records

Edison Records
1903 advertisement
Parent company	Thomas A. Edison, Inc.
Founded	1888 (1888)
Founder	Thomas Edison Jesse H. Lippincott
Defunct	1929 (1929)
Status	Defunct
Distributor(s)	Independent
Genre	Various
Country of origin	U.S.
Location	West Orange, New Jersey

Edison Records was one of the earliest record labels which pioneered sound recording and reproduction and was an important player in the early recording industry.

The first phonograph cylinders were manufactured in 1888. The recorded wax cylinders, later replaced by Blue Amberol cylinders, and vertical-cut Diamond Discs, were manufactured by Edison's National Phonograph Company from 1896, reorganized as Thomas A. Edison, Inc. in 1911. Until 1910 the recordings did not carry the names of the artists. The company began to lag behind its rivals in the 1920s, both technically and in the popularity of its artists, and halted production of recordings in 1929.

Thomas A. Edison invented the phonograph, the first device for recording and playing back sound, in 1877. After inventing and patenting the invention, Edison and his laboratory turned their attention to the commercial development of electric lighting, playing no further role in the development of the phonograph for a decade. The earliest phonograph was something of a crude curiosity, although it was one that fascinated much of the public. Early machines were sold to entrepreneurs who made a living out of traveling around the country giving "phonograph concerts" and demonstrating the device for a fee at fairs. "Talking dolls" and "Talking clocks" were manufactured as expensive novelties using the early phonograph.

In 1887, Edison turned his attention back to improving the phonograph and the phonograph cylinder. The following year, the Edison company debuted the Perfected Phonograph. Edison introduced wax cylinders approximately 4 ¹⁄₄ inches (11 cm) long and 2 ¹⁄₄ inches (5.7 cm) in external diameter, which became the industry standard. They had a maximum playing time of about 3 minutes at 120 RPM, but around the turn of the century the standard speed was increased to 160 RPM to improve clarity and volume, reducing the maximum to about 2 minutes and 15 seconds. Several experimental wax cylinder recordings of music and speech made in 1888 still exist.