It's hard to know where to start (or stop!) on a page like this. Many other sites have been out there much longer than mine, with many great links. I guess I'll start with a few of my favorites (most of which include thorough lists of additional links) and the reasons why I recommend them.

Since I started this page it's gotten pretty big - I hope the following table will help make it more user-friendly:

Mechanical Music organizations you should consider joining:

AMICA (Automatic Musical Instrument Collectors' Association) AMICA was founded in 1963 and focuses on roll-operated musical instruments - originally the primary interest was the reproducing piano, but topics now include player pianos, nickelodeons, band organs, and all other related roll-operated, self-playing musical instruments. AMICA publishes a bimonthly news bulletin which includes many interesting articles, reprints, social events, and advertisements. Robin Pratt, our editor, also arranges for the regular reprinting of interesting vintage pamphlets with instrument catalogs and player piano instructions which are fun to read and quite educational. These reprints arrive several times a year along with the bimonthly news bulletin. I've been a member since 1978 and I highly recommend joining AMICA both for the bulletin and for the local chapters which hold regular meetings throughout the US.

GSM (Society for Self-playing Musical Instruments) (German AMI society with German and English browsing options). So many fine AMI innovations came out of Germany, so it only makes sense that GSM is able to publish much of that fascinating history for its members. I don't belong personally, but some of my friends do and I've always been very impressed with the quality of their publications. They also reprint interesting vintage roll catalogs and intrument catalogs. Unfortunately for us English-only readers, the printed bulletin is in German only. But the pictures are sure worth a look!

MBSGB (Musical Box Society of Great Britain) I belonged to this in the early 1980's and always enjoyed their bulletin. I found that my interests were more suited to pianos, so I had to let my membership drop. I presume they still have excellent information that is worth your while, especially if your interests are primarily music boxes.

MBSI (Musical Box Society International) MBSI was founded in 1949 around interest in (what else) disc and cylinder music boxes. Other areas regularly covered include virtually all self-playing musical instruments, even including unusual phonographs at times. With a history as long as MBSI's, they have been around long enough to publish some of the best information available on these topics. I would highly recommend anyone become a member and purchase as many of their books as possible! I've been a member since 1978 and while I'm not as active in MBSI as I am in AMICA, I love the organization just the same and have great respect for its goals and accomplishments. Join us!

MMD (Mechanical Music Digest) If you're not familiar with MMD then you're in for a real treat. Since you obviously have web access, you will find that MMD's resources and archives are outstanding. I was fortunate to be included among the first recipients of the daily digest, and I heartily recommend that if you have email and ANY interest in AMI, then you should get on this email list!

PPG (Player Piano Group)
The PPG now have their own web site, referenced here. This British-based organization promotes the pianola with regular meetings and an excellent bulletin, which always has very interesting articles and is worth your time. I've been a member for a couple of years now and I always enjoy seeing what editor Julian Dyer turns up for publication. The PPG link used to take you to Ian McLaughlin's website, and I wanted to keep Ian's link here because he still has lots of other great information there that's well worth your time - you'll be glad you stopped by.

Phonograph:

MAPS (Michigan Antique Phonograph Society)
I haven't even had a chance to peruse this site, but they have a good reputation so I bet it's worth visiting.

Tinfoil
I love this site. Glenn Sage has assembled a great collection of phonograph photos, recordings and links. He specializes in wax record preservation, and I believe in supporting anybody who loves and preserves old sounds!

Phonophan
Although it doesn't jump out and say so, this is the site for Tim Fabrizio and George Paul, co-authors of the outstanding phonograph books The Talking Machine, An Illustrated Compendium 1877 - 1929 and Antique Phonograph Gadgets and Gimmicks. I met George at the Union, IL phonograph show on June 12th (1999) and he gave me his card with this site cited. Pun intended. Do yourself a favor and get a copy of each book - they're really incredible in their wide range of material and the beautiful illustrations. And now they have another nice new book coming out early in 2000!

Other Music Rolls:

New England Music Rolls
Karl Ellison started this operation in May, 1999 and promptly reissued one of the most outstanding, sought-after yet never-before-found Jelly Roll Morton rolls, "The Pearls". Karl reissues a nice variety of rolls with a different focus than mine, and you will probably find some interesting stuff if you take a look!

Bob & Ginny Billings features Recordo roll recuts on their Rock Soup label. You can contact them at 14010 Rim Rock Drive / Reno, NV 89511 - 7347.

Charlie Kegg has begun offering Aeolian Duo-Art Organ Roll recuts. Start from Mr. Kegg's home page. and find the link to his organ roll page. Don't overlook the interesting pipe organ information while you're there! I had the pleasure to meet Mr. Kegg during the 1997 AMICA convention, and he is a great guy. These rolls (like my A rolls) are the work of my good friend Carl Lambie. I don't have any of these recuts, but I'm told by others that they are excellent.

Terry Hathaway hosts a site which documents rolls issued for the Wurlitzer PianOrchestra and its Philipps cousin.

Piano (software and hardware):

Yamaha Disklavier Software
This site was recently announced and gives you access to the vast library of Yamaha software for the Disklavier and other instruments. Some of their music is excellent...

PianoMania
Richard Riley has been a friend for years, and has exquisite taste in hot blues, ragtime and jass music. His PianoMania label has been an invaluable source for CD's and MIDI files of some of the finest pianists playing this music today. Richard doesn't have a dedicated web site yet, but this is a good place to start. Highly recommended.

PianoDisc
My preferences lean more to the Disklavier than the PianoDisc, but they both have some excellent software that can be made to play on either system. Check out PianoDisc's offerings here.

Bosendorfer
Take a look here for some photos of incredibly beautiful pianos, and interesting historical information. Even if you can't afford them, they're still fun to look at. And good historical information is always interesting to read.

Steinway
Naturally the Steinway web page has plenty of photos of gorgeous pianos, along with interesting technical information, an illustrated factory tour, show room, serial number / date lookup table, and so on.

http://www.piano300.org/start.htm
300 years of piano history are celebrated here.

Reed Organ:

Reed Organ Society
I don't belong to the ROS, but I always liked reed organs and anyone interested in piano rolls seems likely to be interested in reed organs too! Their site appears to have lots of excellent information (including tons of reed organ links, of course).

Roller Organs:

Todd Augsburger's Roller Organ Website
I've always liked roller organs too, so if you do to you'll be glad you stopped here too. It's on the "Crank Organ Ring", so you'll have plenty of places to go from there.

Sheet Music:

Historic America Sheet Music
This is an outstanding on-line catalog of sheet music from the Duke University collection. You'll love the color covers they display, and there is an easy-to-navigate search engine for titles and composers. This site is well worth your time!

Popular Music / Musicians:

http://www.pollstar.com/ - this is a neat on-line search engine for concerts - enter a city or artist and it'll tell you where and when they're playing.

Professor Longhair - the New Orleans piano master. I don't know what catetory he belongs in; he's simply great.

North Mississippi All Stars - I first heard of this group from a free CD sampler they gave out at the 2000 Chicago Blues Festival. I loved it, ordered the CD, and now I'm hooked. These guys are the best new band I've heard in a long, long time. Check out their CD if you get the chance.

Randy Newman I have been a big fan of Randy Newman for 20+ years - check out his web site. I caught an interview with him on the NPR program "Anthem" in June 1999 but missed the beginning. Did anyone else happen to tape be program who might be willing to supply a copy? The interview was excellent.

Contemporary Musicians
Happily I'm finding an abundance of information on contemporary ragtime & early syncopated musicians (mostly pianists) whom I know and/or respect, so I'm trying to help spread the word on them with this link.

Vintage Jazz & Ragtime Music / Musicians:

Louis Armstrong
He may not be a pianist, but Louis Armstrong is one of the greatest jazz and blues musicians who ever lived. I found two Satchmo sites I really liked. One is Louis Armstrong House and Archives at Queens College / CUNY. The other is a fantastic on-line Armstrong discography with and excellent layout and lots of interesting details.

Blind Tom
Here is a fascinating pre-ragtime pianist and composer whose music has recently been recorded on a new solo piano CD played by pianist John Davis. You can find an interview with Davis at NPR's "Performances Today" web site, and some good reviews of the new CD at the Amazon.com web site (look for "Blind Tom" under classical music). Tom Riis wrote a nice long article about Blind Tom and this recording in the March 5, 2000 Sunday New York Times newspaper. I couldn't find it on line, but my library had a copy. The article is very interesting and the review is very favorable.

James "Jimmy" Blythe
Blythe is one of my top 10 favorite piano roll artists. There were very few good web sites to search, but you'll find something useful at http://www.redhotjazz.com/Blythe.html, which includes the only known photo of Blythe and much of the little information we have on him. I also have a dedicated BluesTone "James Blythe" page with some basic information.

boogiewoogie.com
I stumbled on this page on my own, and I think you'll enjoy taking a look. You'll find references to boogie-woogie music and artists such as Bob Seely and Carl "Sonny" Leyland. I didn't even know about some of the CD's these two had released! Plus, any web page where you have to click on a Bosendorfer grand piano to enter just has to be good! See for yourself.

Blind Boone
I have listed all my Blind Boone Rolls on a single page, and my "reading" link includes a book on Boone. I haven't found any worthy web-based sites, but will post information here when I find any.

Les Copeland
Copeland is one of my top 10 favorite piano roll artists. I gotta find you some info. because there isn't much on him out there. Keep after me if you don't see any improvement soon. I have some stuff worth sharing, I just have to find it...

Charles "Cow Cow" Davenport
Davenport is also one of my top 10 favorite piano roll artists. I have some neat info. on Cow Cow that needs to be posted, so stay tuned...

Lem Fowler
Fowler is one of my top 10 favorite piano roll artists. There were only a dozen or so links on him the last time I checked. I'll have to see what I can post to spread the word on what a great pianist he was. I also have a dedicated BluesTone "Lem Fowler" page with some basic information.

Earl Hines
I love the early Hines piano solos, both on Armstrong Hot Seven recordings and on his own. I haven't found the information on the web that I'm looking for, so until someone else comes up with I'll offer my own: please link to my BluesTone "Earl Hines" page for some basic information

Clarence Johnson
CJ is one of my top 10 favorite piano roll artists.

James P. Johnson
JPJ is possibly my favorite piano roll artist. There were over 1000 links to JPJ the last time I did a web search. I don't think there is a definitive web site, so you'll have to look on your own. I would start with http://jamespjohnson.org or http://www.redhotjazz.com/jpjohnson.html, which includes a nice photo and information on the best book available on JPJ. I also have a dedicated BluesTone "James P. Johnson" page with some basic information.

Jelly Roll Morton
JRM is also one of my top 10 favorite piano roll artists. There is quite a bit of excellent information available on JRM on the web and in books & CD's. My favorite is Mike Meddings' page, dedicated to Morton research. You won't find a more devoted fan than Mike, nor a more informed souce on-line. Mike's work nicely augments that which has recently been published, and is highly recommended. Don't pass this up!

Another nice site is http://www.redhotjazz.com/jellyroll.html, which includes a nice photo and information on the best 2 books available on JRM. Recently I found a GREAT site with lots of Morton song information, plus details on what tunes are on what CD reissue and so forth. Take a look at http://www2.biglobe.ne.jp/~songbook/index.html. I also have a dedicated BluesTone "Jelly Roll Morton" page with some basic information.

Red Hot Jazz Archive
There is so much information here you won't believe it. A nice article about the history of the Black Swan record label, dozens of artist biographies, lots of great photos ... give this one a good look!

Thomas "Fats" Waller
Waller is one of my top 10 favorite piano roll artists. There lots of web sites and good books available on Waller. One excellent site has a vast discography of Waller: check out http://pastperfect.com/fats/index.html. I would also check out http://www.redhotjazz.com/fats.html, which includes a nice photo and a good list of Waller piano rolls. I also have a dedicated BluesTone "Fats Waller" page with some basic information.

Pete Wendling
Wendling is one of my top 10 favorite piano roll artists. As I said about a few others, there's not much info. out there on Pete. If anyone knows of any links to recommend please let me know. Otherwise I'll try to assemble some worthwhile info. on my own and post it here, when I get a little spare time.

Modern Jazz Music / Musicians:

I don't expect many of you who visit my site to have an interest in modern jazz piano, but I do and I want to share some of the names with you that I think are among my favorites. This is just getting started, there are plenty more worth mention. Stay tuned (or turned off, as the case may be!).

Henry Butler

Chick Corea

Benny Green

Herbie Hancock

Ahmad Jamal

Thelonious Monk
Take a look at http://www2.biglobe.ne.jp/~songbook/monk/index.html

Oscar Peterson

Marcus Roberts
I think Roberts is one of the finest jazz pianists playing today. What he did with Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue is so new and refreshing, it's hard to believe. All his CD's are worth hearing. I haven't found a definitive web site for Marcus, but you'll find a bunch of sites if you do a search on him. Marcus now records for Sony, and his Sony artist page has some good information. This site reviews Marcus' "Among Giants" CD and offers some additional links. This one also has good basic biographical information. Don't forget to check the reviews at Allmusic.com, which I always find useful. Of course their books are good too, if you want to continue searching off-line.

Chucho Valdez
This Cuban pianist is amazing and has recently released a great, new CD on Blue Note.

Classical Music / Musicians:
Chopin on original instruments: recently I picked up an Emanuel Ax CD recorded on an 1851 London Erard piano which I really enjoyed (1853, according to the web page). You should be able to dig for information on it at www.sonyclassical.com or go directly to http://www.sonyclassical.com/artists/ax/index.html for something on Ax. Unfortunately there isn't much (any?) detail about this recording. In my limited digging I found a decent bio on Ax at http://www.juilliard.edu/faculty/fac.htm but that was about it.

Classical Record Fan Site
Here is an homage to 1950's vintage stereo classical LP's. It's nicely done and you'll find some very interesting material here.

Another Classical Record Fan Site
Here is another homage to 1950's vintage stereo classical LP's.

Musicians I'd like to know more about but haven't found much on (HELP!):

Wendell Hall

Frank Hutchison

Riley Puckett

Carson Robison

"Gid" Tanner & The Skillet Lickers

(If you know anything about these folks, please let me know! If you know someone who collects their records or somewhere I can get recordings from, I'd love to know about that too.)

Record (CD) Labels:

Biograph Records
I have taken the liberty of including the artwork from several Biograph CD's throughout my web site. Biograph issued the first comprehensive series of piano roll reissues in teh 1970's with excellent liner notes by Mike Montgomery, and this was part of what got me so interested in hot piano rolls in the first place. They now offer CD's with updated, digital recordings of some of the best piano rolls ever made, along with quite a few other outstanding recordings of some of the greatest blues and jazz musicians from earlier days.

Jazzology Records
The George Buck foundation has been issuing great recordings of trad. jazz and many great artists for longer than I know. They have several great labels including Solo Art (specializing in solo pianists, and featuring many familiar names. Please take a look here! They do great stuff and deserve your patronage.

PianoMania
Richard Riley's PianoMania label features excellent digital recordings of many of today's best pianists, recorded at a beautiful 7' Disklavier grand piano and recorded onto DAT tape. You'll find great performances by Frank French, John Gill, Jim Hession, Tamas Ittzes, Morten Gunnar Larsen, Max Morath, David Thomas Roberts, Jack Rummel, Trebor Tichenor, Virginia Tichenor, Tex Wyndham, and Richard Zimmerman - AMONG OTHERS!! Take a look at what's available. You can also hear the original recordings of some of the performances that went into my BluesTone Front Porch live piano rolls.

Stomp Off
Several of our pianist friends have appeared on Stomp Off now, in addition to all the fine trad. jazz bands. They have always issued recordings with llent You'll find many, many great recordings by such favorite bands and pianists as Elliot Adams, Tony Caramia, Matthew Davidson, Neville Dickie, The Elite Syncopators, Frank French, Vince Giordano's Nighthawks, Dan Grinstead, Alex Hassan, Scott Kirby, David Thomas Roberts, St. Louis Ragtimers, South Frisco Jazz Band, Trebor Tichenor, and Terry Waldo (WHEW!).

Other sites (not necessarily music-related, but of interest to me and hopefully to you):

Humor:
Don't forget to get a good laugh every day. We all need to make sure we aren't taking ourselves too seriously.

Aardman Animation
I discovered Wallace & Gromit shorts a few years ago, and I love them. Now W&G have their own site, and there's even a Wallace & Gromit web Ring! Nick Park is the animator behind them, and these shows have won Academy Awards. My kids recently got the "Prince of Egypt" video, and the previews featured the new Nick Park movie, "Chicken Run". This is very funny, entertaining stuff that is worth your time!

Car Talk
This NPR radio show is a scream. Give it a listen. I tune in just to hear these guys laugh - it's contagious!

Dilbert
I assume you know what Dilbert is all about. This is just a reminder to go have a laugh. BTW, this site (United Media) also has DOZENS of other cartoons and I bet you're a fan of at least one of them. Go take a look.

Fox Cartoons I really enjoy:
Futurama (bizarre but great humor from the creator of The Simpsons. I just hope my kids don't start asking me what some of the jokes are about.)
The Simpsons (this site features a "virtual Springfield"! Take a look - it's fun)
King Of The Hill (this has some of the best dry humor around - I tell you what)
Malcolm In The Middle (this show is outstanding. I've not seen humor this twisted in a sitcom before! It's been described as a live-action Simpsons, and they deserve all the accolades they've received.)

The Straight Dope
The Straight Dope started as a column by Cecil Adams in the free weekly newpaper "The Chicago Reader". It features irreverent answers to all kinds of strange questions, and it's hilarious. Just look at Cecil's motto on the opening page: "Fighting ignorance since 1973 (it's taking longer than we thought)." Several "Straight Dope" books have been issued from these columns. Ever wonder how they got that horse Mr. Ed's lips to move for the TV show? Ever wonder why they put quinine in tonic water? Check it out. I promise you'll get a good laugh, at least if your sense of humor is as warped as mine.

Carousels:

Como Park - St. Paul, MN
2000 is the premier year for "Cafesjian's Carousel". This newly-restored beauty, a 1914 Philadelphia Toboggan Company opus (PTC #33) features 68 stunning horses.

Eden Palais - Barrington, IL
Here's a nice tour of the largest, finest pre-1900 French carousel in the world. It has been beautifully restored and defies description.

Media (broadcast):

Austin City Limits
I'm not the biggest fan of country music (my wife is), but I enjoy watching talented musicians making good music and taking great solos, and there's lots of that here. You can't watch this show without realizing these people have a lot of talent.

National Public Radio (NPR)
My favorite source of world news and an incredible variety of music programs. If I don't get my daily dose of NPR news, I feel in the dark. Find out where NPR stations are around the US, and follow their links to find out your local programming schedule.

There are some fine radio programs on many types of music that should be of interest to piano roll buyers (especially jazz enthusiasts and ) - just go to the "programs" page and see for yourself. My favorites include Anthem, which often includes features and interviews of a wide variety of talented musicians such as Marcus Roberts and Randy Newman; Fresh Air, Billy Taylor's Jazz at Kennedy Center, Car Talk, Jazz from Lincoln Center, Latino USA, Marion McPartland's Piano Jazz , Selected Shorts, This American Life (with Ira Glass), and Thistle and Shamrock.

A Prairie Home Companion
This is the show I stay home to hear, broadcasting in Chicago on Saturday evenings from 5 - 7 PM. I love the music, the tales from Lake Wobegon, the jokes, the ketchup commercials, Guy Noir, and everything else. The PHC theme song is based on Tishomingo Blues, which is available on a BluesTone recut piano roll.

Sessions At West 54th
This is another great live music show which usually runs very late on Saturday nights here in the Chicago area. They feature all types of jazz and popular musicians, and each hour-long show gives two different artists a half hour to spread out and play like they want to play. The web site has lots of interesting information as well.

The World (heard on NPR)
I listen to NPR all the time, and I really enjoy this show which is produced in London. It covers such a wide variety of topics, and is relevant to any human being who cares to pay attention to what is going on around him. Give it a listen, and give this site a look!

Media (print):

The Rag Times
This is the magazine you get when you join the Maple Leaf Club. They don't currently have a web link, but this is an important "rag" for ragtime enthusiasts and you'll want to be aware of it if you're not already! It contains many features articles that are worth your time. Subscriptions are $17 new and $12 renewal in US/Can and $24 new and $19 renewal for overseas. Bi-monthly newsletter containing historical articles, calendars of events, music and book reviews. Checks payable to:The Maple Leaf Club / 15522 Ricky Ct. / Grass Valley, CA 95949

The Mississippi Rag
I've subscribed for years, but never thought to take a look at their web page. Any page with photos of Louis Armstrong and Jelly Roll Morton on the home page can't be all bad! Lots of great musician & music society links you don't normally see.

The Ragtime Ephemeralist
This is an unusual and very interesting publication which reprints dozens of vintage references to cakewalks and all sorts of other early ragtime references. It's hard to describe, but please don't miss it - it's fascinating. I highly recommend the publication, and you can tell by the graphics on their web page that they have located lots of very interesting materials that will appeal to any ragtime fan. The latest issue includes a detailed biography on Harry P. Guy and complete transcription of Trebor Tichenor's interview with Arthur Marshall from 1959.

78 Quarterly
This is a rather strange but absolutely terrific magazine which comes out once every year or so and contains some of the best stories you'll ever find about early blues artists and recordings. Each issue is over 100 pages full of excellent articles and photos. There is no fluff or wasted space. The web page is as unconventional as the magazine, and I hope you won't let that deter you. If you love early blues then you'll love 78 Quarterly. Order a copy and see for yourself! It's up to us fans to support the efforts of people like this who know so much and want to share it.

Music Festivals & Special Events
This section is new, and plan to use it to keep track of the various great musical events around the world. You and I may not be able to attend them all, but at least we can see what's going on out there.

Chicago Blues Festival
This festival is the first weekend of June each year. The link I've chosen here was for the 2000 festival, and you may have to navigate a bit to find updates once this one is pulled.

Concert Schedules
This site lets you look up any well-known artist you can think of, and it will tell you their current concert schedule. You can also look up concerts by city, venue, etc. Very useful!

Pollstar: More Concert Schedules
Here's another site for current concert schedules of various artists. Between this and the other one here, you'll find what you're looking for.

Misc.:

The Library of Congress
There's lots of neat stuff to see here. I didn't find the Jelly Roll Morton sessions pictured here, but I found some great jazz photos by clicking on the "AMERICAN MEMORY" icon, then on "enter", then scroll to the bottom and do a search on something like "Alan Lomax" or "Art Tatum" or "Billie Holiday" (or just go directly to the Photographs from the Golden Age of Jazz gallery! The photo quality is awesome).