What was the first recorded song to use a fade out instead of just ending?

Question

Also, why do songs fade out instead of end? This never happens at concerts... the songs have to end! Is it because they would all end on a C note if they didn't fade?

daver, that was Thomas Edison, not Einstein.

Answer 1

Neat question! The historic "first" depends on what counts as "fading out."

If you just mean a recording in which the music "fades away" to nothing at the end, the earliest I've heard is an 1894 Berliner disc recording of "The Spirit of '76" by a fife and drum corps playing "Yankee Doodle." The performers presumably just moved away from the recording equipment -- it was supposed to sound like the fife and drum corps was marching past the listener in parade.

If you mean a recording in which the recording level is artificially turned down at the end (a "board fade"), it might have been "Beyond the Blue Horizon" by George Olsen (1930) -- but the effect was meant to simulate the sound of the performer departing on a train, so again, there was a real-world "explanation" for the sound. In any case, a board fade wouldn't have been possible as such before the commercial introduction of electric recording in the mid-1920s. So even though we don't have the original Thomas Edison "Mary Had a Little Lamb" recording, he wouldn't have had the technology for a "board fade." :)

The earliest cases I know of in which a board fade was used in the modern way, as a mere "musical effect," were "Old Man Harlem" and "Shim Sham Shimmy" by the Dorsey Brothers (both 1933) -- you can hear them at http://www.redhotjazz.com/dorseybros.html. "Shim Sham Shimmy" fades in at the beginning and out at the end; "Old Man Harlem" just fades out at the end.

I've seen both Peggy Lee's "Manana" (1948) and Joni James' "Why Don't You Believe Me" (1952) cited as the first example of a board fade. As you can hear, they weren't -- but board fades were still rare enough then for people to believe such statements after the fact. By the 1960s they were very common.

Generally, board fades are a handy way to let performers off the hook when they don't otherwise have a clear-cut ending to a song. I've also seen it suggested that they foster an illusion that the song keeps going on forever... but not sure I buy that.

Answer 2

Albert Einsteins version of "Marry had a Little Lamb"...I imagine that the very first recording on the sternograph (or whatever it was called) it probibly faded out a bit...either by accedent or delibrately...

CHALLENGE: Now, go ahead and prove me wrong...I dare ya...you'll need to hear the actual recording of that first ever recording and post a link here to show that I am wrong...

Answer 3

the earilist song i got is 1975 not sure what it's called but it's is a japanesse song the reason most traks Fade out and not just ends is because thay got the Tech to do it and never stoped or it just most songs have a repeated Patten that goes on and on

Answer 4

Smart question.
In my opinion it happens mostly when the chorus starts to repeat endlessly toward the end, so they want to let you off gently without breaking your vibe abruptly. Funny because when I'm in a car and a good song is playing I usually turn down the volume slowly so I can get out without listening to the rest of it! But hey !That's the usual weird me. lol

Answer 5

I learned it years ago in a highschool music class but I have forgotten it over time.

Answer 6

very good question some one answer what he said