The Cleavage: Joe Bussard

Joe Bussard (born Joseph E. Bussard, Jr. in Frederick, Maryland, July 11, 1936) is an American collector of 78-rpm records.

Based in Frederick, Maryland, Bussard maintains a collection of more than 25,000 records, primarily of American folk, gospel, and blues from the 1920s and 1930s, which is believed to be the largest such collection in the world.

He was the subject of a documentary film, Desperate Man Blues, and his collection was mined for a compilation CD, Down in the Basement. He has gleefully shared his collection, which includes many only-known-copies of records (not to mention best-known-copies) with numerous reissue labels as well as with individuals for whom he has taped recordings from his collection for a nominal sum for decades.

From 1956 until 1970, he ran the last 78 rpm record label, Fonotone, which was dedicated to the release of new recordings of old-time music. Among these were the first-ever recordings by guitarist John Fahey, as well as hundreds of other performers. A five-CD anthology of Fonotone releases was issued in 2005 by Dust-to-Digital.

Bussard currently produces a weekly music program titled Country Classics for Georgia Tech's radio station, WREK Atlanta. In addition, he has radio programs on three other stations, including WPAQ-AM 740 in Mount Airy, NC, WELD-AM 690 in Fisher, WV, and WTHU-AM 1450 in Thurmont, MD.

Joe Bussard has always had the collecting bug: in his teens, he and his cousin collected everything from rare coins to beehives to birds' nests. His dislike for modern music, especially hip hop and rock and roll, has been well documented. ^[1]