Kerouac Jack

Jack Kerouac's Spoken Word: Personally Owned Portable Voice Recorder

A Voice of Music Solid State Portable 782 battery-operated portable voice recorder personally owned and used by Jack Kerouac (1922-1969), the famous mid-century American writer who brought us On The Road (1957). The model number dates the voice recorder to 1968-69. Provenance: The piece will be accompanied by an estate certification signed by John Shen-Sampas, executer of the Kerouac Estate by descent. John Shen-Sampas is the son of John Sampas, who was the brother-in-law of Jack Kerouac, and the brother of Stella Kerouac, Jack's wife.

The portable voice recorder accommodated two 5" diameter open-reel tape decks, an empty holder of which is included bearing a handwritten label "SHORT SONG / MOTHER'S SONG". The device comes with a hand-held microphone and extension cord, though the machine's handle at top and its massive battery holder near bottom testify to its portability.  Expected wear consistent with use. A cavity at bottom is missing its lid. Else very good to near fine. 11.875" x 11.75" x 3.5".

Period sales catalogs, like the 1969 Consumers Guide to Tape Recording, Volume 16, No. 3 (a photocopy of which is included) described the Voice of Music Model 782 as an upgrade of the previous model, 781. Its enhanced features (automatic volume level regulation and rechargeable alkaline batteries) justified a nearly 33% price increase to $89.95. This latter sum is the equivalent of over $650 in 2020 currency--quite a serious expenditure for a bar bum like Jack Kerouac.

Jack Kerouac, in addition to his written compositions, produced three albums of spoken word poetry: Poetry for the Beat Generation (1959), 14 tracks accompanied by piano; Blues and Haikus (1959), 4 tracks accompanied by jazz saxophone; and Readings by Jack Kerouac on the Beat Generation (1960), 6 tracks with solo voice. What other mood experiments could Kerouac have conducted using this voice recording machine?

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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