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Recordings by the Olson Sisters

by: Ethel Olson; Ethel C. Olson; Eleanora Olson; Eleonora Olson

Topics: 78rpm, Norwegian songs, Olson Sisters, Scandinavian female singers, Scandinavian dialect humor, Snoose Boulevard

Click on the above Olson Sisters "topic" for other related pages.

Recordings from the 1910s and 1920s by Eleonora and Ethel Olson, who were known as the Olson Sisters. Victor, Edison, Brunswick and Columbia Records. In Norwegian and English.

FIND A GRAVE
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/70848515/ethel-christine-pederson
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/70852064/eleonora-mathilda-olson

ARTICLES
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eleonora_and_Ethel_Olson
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vilhelm_Krag
http://www.columbia.edu/cu/cjas/byron1.html

NOTES
All the titles were recorded by the Olson Sisters other than the two by Cal Stewart, which were the flip sides of Ethel Olson releases. The Olson Sisters recorded all of their songs in Norwegian with the exception of "Praise To The Lord The Almighty". The cover version of " Engang Min Livstraad Briste Skal" (Min Hjärtesträng Snart Brista Skall) is sung in Swedish. The cover version of "Nu Hviler Mark Og Enge' is sung in Danish. There are two songs with lyrics by the poet Vilhelm Krag: "O Herre" and "Og Jeg Vil Ha Mig En Hjertenskjær".

PLAYLIST
— Please see JPEG and PDF files for additional information —
Tracks 01-21: Eleonora and Ethel Olson monologues
Tracks 22-23: Cal Stewart monologues
Tracks 24-30: Eleonora and Ethel Olson songs - Victor

Tracks 31-32: Eleonora and Ethel Olson songs - Edison

Tracks 33-46: Cover versions of songs recorded by the Olson Sisters

RELEASED BY VICTOR RECORDS
Bissam, Bissam Baadne / Killebukken, Lammet Mitt
Bliv Hos Mig, Mester
Byssan Lu, Byssan
O Herre
I Kveld Er Eg Glad
Mot Kveld
Syng Kun I Din Ungdoms Vaar

RELEASED BY EDISON, BRUNSWICK OR COLUMBIA RECORDS
E - Længsel

E - Syng Kun I Din Ungdoms Vaar
B - Aa Ola Ola Min Eigen Onge
B - Og Jeg Vil Ha Mig En Hjertenskjær
C - Når Solen Ganger Til Hvile
C - Vuggevise For Lillegut

REJECTED BY VICTOR RECORDS
Engang Min Livstraad Briste Skal
Et Er Nødigt, Dette Ene
Herre, Mitt Hjerte
Jeg Trænger Dig Hver Stund
Nu Hviler Mark Og Enge
Praise To The Lord The Almighty

"THE OLD SOGNING WOMAN" IN NORWEGIAN AND ENGLISH
Sogne Kjaering 01-02
Gurie on the Farm
Gurie in Town

MEDLEY
Bissam, Bissam Baadne / Killebukken, Lammet Mitt

ALTERNATE TITLES
Abide With Me (Bliv Hos Mig, Mester)
I Need Thee Every Hour (Jeg Trænger Dig Hver Stund)
Last Night (Længsel)
Some Day The Silver Cord Will Break (Engang Min Livstraad Briste Skal)
Some Day The Silver Cord Will Break (Min Hjärtesträng Snart Brista Skall)

PDF FILE 05
1917 Concordia hymnal from which the Olson Sisters recorded "Bliv hos mig Mester", "Engang min livstraad briste skal", "Herre mitt hjerte" and "Jeg trænger dig hver stund".

ENGLISH ACQUISITION BY IMMIGRANTS (1880-1940)
— The Confrontation as Reflected in Early Sound Recordings by Eric Byron, p. 4 —
Even when one thought that one finally had some kind of handle on English, suddenly words no longer meant what they were supposed to mean. This change in meaning is exactly what occurs in the 1923 Victor recording, catalogue number 77251, "The Baseball Game." Performed by Ethel Olson primarily in English with a Norwegian accent, along with some Norwegian words, Ethel becomes frustrated when she cannot understand what is happening, even though she knows the meaning of the words.

"Do you know vere I vas yesterday, Mary? I bet you can't guess. I vas on a ballgame. Dat's de craziest ting I ever vas to. I remember vun time ven before, ven before me and Ole vas married. You know, ve vas yust venting togeder. He asked me on de telephone if I vant to go and see de Tigers play de Cubs. I said sure, and I vent. And I vas vaiting all afternoon in front of de zoo at Lincoln Park, and Ole never come at all.

My, men [but] der vas many people on dat ballgame. Goodness, saa mange folk har jeg aldri sett i mitt liv [I have not seen so many people in my life]. Ve vas sitting der real nice, and pretty soon, you know, der vas an awful screaming. And I said, 'Ole, vat's de matter now?' And vat do you tink he said, Mary? Dat somevun had struck a fowl. Dat means a chicken, don't it? Yust tink, so mean as to hit a poor little chicken."