The first edition of this Discography was published in 1986 and the main labour of its compilation was undertaken by the late Dr. Terence Rees, assisted by Stephen Turnbull. Terence also drew on information from the National Sound Archive (now the British Library Sound Archive), the late Frank Andrews, the late David Eden, David Jacobs, Alan Kelly, the late Len Watts, Roger Wild and many others. Since then information has continued to accumulate as further records and catalogues have been turned up by the small number of people who are still active collectors. Contributors include Dennis Foreman, the late Peter Parker, Chris Webster and the late Michael Walters.
This listing is confined to what is generically known as the 78 rpm disc, though there was little uniformity of recording speeds throughout the industry until around 1926. Among the records included here are some which play as fast as 120 rpm and an early attempt at long play made in the 1930s for use in the cinema and playing at 331/3 rpm. The various complete and abridged sets of the Gilbert and Sullivan operas issued by HMV and Columbia from 1918 onwards have been omitted but it is hope to add that is due course.
Explanatory notes on the order of the discography and abbreviation used can be found here.
All known cylinder recordings of Sullivan’s music were listed in A Sullivan Cylinderography by Roger Wild, given to Sullivan Society members as a supplement to Society Magazine 66, Winter 2007. We hope to add the information to these pages in due course.
In cases where there is insufficient information to establish whether an item is by Sullivan, we have erred on the side of caution and omitted it. This frequently occurs with the hymns ‘Nearer, my God to Thee’ and ‘Lead, kindly light’, both of which have a tune by Sullivan, but also have other, perhaps more popular, tunes. ‘Nearer, my God, to Thee’ is more often sung to the tunes HORBURY or BETHANY; ‘Lead, kindly light’ to LUX BENIGNA. If and when information confirms any of these as being by Sullivan, they will of course be added.
When the original Discography was published, the internet was a thing of the future, and nothing could be done with the information until it was all collected and published between covers, a process which took some five years. Nowadays, however, pages can be posted online as and when they are ready. For this reason pages will be added ad lib as and when they are updated. However, none of this would be possible without the painstaking work of Christopher O’Brien, who digitised the entire original Discography. At a later date an appendix will be added listing items known to have been reissued on compact disc.
It is inevitable that a work of this scope will contain errors and omissions, and any information which tends to make the listings fuller and more precise will be welcome. It would be appreciated if anyone sending details, especially of unlisted recordings, would use the format adopted in this Discography. Please contact Stephen Turnbull at secretary@sullivansociety.org.uk.