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You've mentioned a bunch of songs from the '20s and '30s. Do you collect 78s? I'm a big fan of the Comedian Harmonists from that era; do you know the group?

I have well over 1,000 78's and probably about as many 45's. I don't have any by the Comedian Harmonists, but I do have their 1930 recording Wochenend und Sonnenschein (Weekend and Sunshine)--the German version of Happy Days Are Here Again--on CD (I have at least nine versions of Happy Days Are Here Again).

I'll take a flying guess that there may be as many as fifty Comedian Harmonist songs still around -- available on CD, mostly German and Brit. I have a couple of books on them and German news video (interview) with them. They made twelve movies, were very popular, and by the standards of the day, made buckets of money. Sang occasionally in French and even English, with bits of Russian, Italian and who knows what :-) A recent movie about them took liberties with their story but had the sense to use their originals for the songs and not try to reproduce their unique sound.

Three were Jews, three were not. Hitler broke up the group, I forget when, 1934 or 1935. All six survived the war but they never got together again, and never really got friendly again. The last died only a few years ago, in Palm Springs, CA.

The Harmonist were inspired to get together in the first place by an American group of the 1920s, I think called The Revellers -- a sophisticated group described as barbershop with a college degree. I have a couple of things they did on Retro CDs, "My Blue Heaven" and one other I can't think of.