Railway books - left-field ones, we admit, but railway books nonetheless!
For those books that are available as print-on-demand, the links below take you to the Lulu website product page. For those early few produced as physical books, these link to a page where payment can be made via PayPal (you do not need a PayPal account).
Updated and expanded 2nd edition with additional images and previously black and white images in colour.

This updated and expanded 2nd edition of the original 2011 publication continues the Transacord story, which restarted trading in 2015, adds further details surfaced thanks to original publication, and adds new images, plus replacing b&w images from the first edition with full colour images.
Transacord released its first railway recordings in 1955 and, in its 1960s heyday, the company's records chalked up sales of 40,000 records per year. 'Transacord: Sounds of Steam' celebrates one of Britain's best-loved record labels and was written with the full cooperation of Transacord and the National Railway Museum, York (which holds the Peter Handford Collection).
Enthusiasts were quick to recognise the exceptional quality of both the recordings and of Peter Handford’s skilful editing. Handford had a dual career as a British film industry sound recordist and was at the forefront of location recording (he won an Oscar for the soundtrack to 'Out of Africa') and the techniques learned as part of his trade ensured that every Transacord record included more than just ‘railway noises’.
He brought an artist's ear and the enthusiast's knowledge to his recordings and each record presented a compelling series of soundscapes, in which steam locomotives were the undisputed stars (and occasional prima–donnas), backed by a full supporting cast of birds, dogs and church bells (if in the country) or the clanking of signal levers and station announcements (if in a station or yard). Minute attention to detail and to atmosphere – the product of his pioneering work in the film industry – ensures that Transacord records continue to provide the listener with such a transport of delight.
A limited number of supporting CDs, complete with two tracks not previously available on CD, are available separately for £5 + p&p. Use the Contact form for further information.
Transacord released its first railway recordings in 1955 and, in its 1960s heyday, the company's records chalked up sales of 40,000 records per year. 'Transacord: Sounds of Steam' celebrates one of Britain's best-loved record labels and was written with the full cooperation of Transacord and the National Railway Museum, York (which holds the Peter Handford Collection).
Enthusiasts were quick to recognise the exceptional quality of both the recordings and of Peter Handford’s skilful editing. Handford had a dual career as a British film industry sound recordist and was at the forefront of location recording (he won an Oscar for the soundtrack to 'Out of Africa') and the techniques learned as part of his trade ensured that every Transacord record included more than just ‘railway noises’.
He brought an artist's ear and the enthusiast's knowledge to his recordings and each record presented a compelling series of soundscapes, in which steam locomotives were the undisputed stars (and occasional prima–donnas), backed by a full supporting cast of birds, dogs and church bells (if in the country) or the clanking of signal levers and station announcements (if in a station or yard). Minute attention to detail and to atmosphere – the product of his pioneering work in the film industry – ensures that Transacord records continue to provide the listener with such a transport of delight.
A limited number of supporting CDs, complete with two tracks not previously available on CD, are available separately for £5 + p&p. Use the Contact form for further information.
Limited edition of 500 copies with a free CD, including 2 tracks not previously available in digital format.

Transacord first released railway recordings in 1955 and, in its 1960s heyday, chalked up sales of 40,000 records per year. Transacord: Sounds of Steam celebrates one of Britain's best-loved record labels and was written with the full cooperation of Transacord and the National Railway Museum, York (which holds the Peter Handford Collection).
Enthusiasts were quick to recognise the exceptional quality of both the recordings and of Peter Handford’s skilful editing. Handford had a dual career as a British film industry sound recordist and was at the forefront of location recording (he won an Oscar for the soundtrack to Out of Africa) and the techniques learned as part of his trade ensured that every Transacord record included more than just ‘railway noises’.
He brought an artist's ear and the enthusiast's knowledge to his recordings and each record presented a compelling series of soundscapes, in which steam locomotives were the undisputed stars (and occasional prima–donnas), backed by a full supporting cast of birds, dogs and church bells (if in the country) or the clanking of signal levers and station announcements (if in a station or yard). Minute attention to detail and to atmosphere – the product of his pioneering work in the film industry – ensures that Transacord records continue to provide the listener with such a transport of delight.
Enthusiasts were quick to recognise the exceptional quality of both the recordings and of Peter Handford’s skilful editing. Handford had a dual career as a British film industry sound recordist and was at the forefront of location recording (he won an Oscar for the soundtrack to Out of Africa) and the techniques learned as part of his trade ensured that every Transacord record included more than just ‘railway noises’.
He brought an artist's ear and the enthusiast's knowledge to his recordings and each record presented a compelling series of soundscapes, in which steam locomotives were the undisputed stars (and occasional prima–donnas), backed by a full supporting cast of birds, dogs and church bells (if in the country) or the clanking of signal levers and station announcements (if in a station or yard). Minute attention to detail and to atmosphere – the product of his pioneering work in the film industry – ensures that Transacord records continue to provide the listener with such a transport of delight.
A limited number of CDs are available separately for £5 + p&p. Use the Contact form for further information.
The first 200 copies are in a jacket design resplendent in British Railways passenger livery green (or hexadecimal equivalent) with orange and black lining on rear. Once these have gone, the book will only be available in mixed traffic black.

British Railways on Vinyl is the culmination of years of painstaking research and provides an unique historical record of all known recordings of British railway locomotives issued on UK-pressed vinyl records, from the earliest discovered - a 10" 78 rpm HMV recording issued in 1931 - to the last known - issued in 1989 by ASV Transacord.
The first section summarises records by record company, whilst the following section lists each record by catalogue number and provides full details of every locomotive heard. The next section is listed by locomotive number or class and includes location and recording date, where these are documented: sub-sections cover the Big Four followed by British Railways standard class locomotives, then diesels and, finally, miscellaneous British railway recordings, such as industrial, narrow-gauge railways and London Underground.
Organising the book in this way precludes needless data duplication, whilst making it easy to find on which record, and by which record company, recordings of either specific locomotives or locomotive class are included. It also lays bare the extent of reuse of many recordings on, often, multiple records.
The book also solves a long-standing mystery from the mid-1970s - Diesel Hydraulic enthusiasts can at last discover the identities of certain Class 52 locomotives from the Argo LP, Westerns, which have long been unknown.
In short, this book is a must for all railway enthusiasts, from the casual modeller, who wants to create an authentic soundtrack for their hobby, to the serious historical researcher of British railway recordings from the 'classic' era, when steam was still King. It will also be of great interest to those vinyl record collectors that enjoy more esoteric tastes. Never mind Black Sabbath, this is the real sound of heavy metal!
The first section summarises records by record company, whilst the following section lists each record by catalogue number and provides full details of every locomotive heard. The next section is listed by locomotive number or class and includes location and recording date, where these are documented: sub-sections cover the Big Four followed by British Railways standard class locomotives, then diesels and, finally, miscellaneous British railway recordings, such as industrial, narrow-gauge railways and London Underground.
Organising the book in this way precludes needless data duplication, whilst making it easy to find on which record, and by which record company, recordings of either specific locomotives or locomotive class are included. It also lays bare the extent of reuse of many recordings on, often, multiple records.
The book also solves a long-standing mystery from the mid-1970s - Diesel Hydraulic enthusiasts can at last discover the identities of certain Class 52 locomotives from the Argo LP, Westerns, which have long been unknown.
In short, this book is a must for all railway enthusiasts, from the casual modeller, who wants to create an authentic soundtrack for their hobby, to the serious historical researcher of British railway recordings from the 'classic' era, when steam was still King. It will also be of great interest to those vinyl record collectors that enjoy more esoteric tastes. Never mind Black Sabbath, this is the real sound of heavy metal!
Not published by Bristol Folk Publications but available privately from the author.

Note that Ian has several more publications to his name. His current and lavishly illustrated book, The Life & Times of 'Flying Scotsman', is available directly from Ian.
Click the icon below to open the PDF (or choose 'Download File') to find out how to buy the book.
Click the icon below to open the PDF (or choose 'Download File') to find out how to buy the book.

How to order.pdf |
See also The Saydisc & Village Thing Discography, which includes details of the various railway LPs that Saydisc issued in the 1970s and early 1980s.
See the author's Spotlight page at Lulu.com to view all books that are printed on demand, or otherwise available as eBooks.
© 2009 - 2022, M. C. Jones, trading as Bristol Folk Publications. The Record Press, Diogenes Academic Press and Burnham Priory are imprints of Bristol Folk Publications.