Modern and Classic Vinyl LPs - Rock, Pop, Soul-Music, Funk, Jazz and More ...

FEBRUARY 2012 VINYL RECORD RELEASES

2012-02-18T05:51:00.000-08:00

A few select Vinyl Releases For FEBRUARY 2012

Between new albums from Paul McCartney and Of Montreal, this February's vinyl releases come full circle. And there are some excellent reissues and anthologies in the mix. So dig in ...

Paul McCartney – Kisses on the Bottom (Hear Music)
The new solo album from Paul McCartney is an intimate collection of American standards alongside two new McCartney originals. Produced by jazz producer Tommy LiPuma, Kisses on the Bottom features Diana Krall and her band plus guests Eric Clapton and Stevie Wonder performing songs that McCartney grew up with and later drew upon in his songwriting with John Lennon. Available as a 180-gram double gatefold LP with digital download card.

The Grateful Dead – Wake of the Flood (Mobile Fidelity)
180-gram vinyl pressing of the 1973 album that ushered in a new era for the Dead: a new label, a new line-up, and a new sonic palette full of horns and violin. Part of Mobile Fidelity’s Amazing Grateful Dead reissue series (which also includes Live/Dead, Skull and Roses, and In the Dark) the album was half-speed mastered from the original tapes and will let you experience this classic like never before.

The Deftones – Saturday Night Wrist (Maverick)
The fifth album from the alt-metal band, originally released in 2006, is available once again on vinyl. In essence, Saturday Night Wrist could be considered the Deftones’ Rumours as the making of the album was wrought with turmoil, strained relationships, and drug addiction – and the result is one of the band’s most acclaimed and diverse works to date. Produced by Bob Ezrin (Pink Floyd, Jane's Addiction) and former Far guitarist Shaun Lopez.

Rainbow – Bent out of Shape (Plastic Head Distribution)
Limited 180-gram green vinyl reissue of the British hard rock band's more commercial 1983 album featuring “Street of Dreams” and “Can’t Let You Go.” This was the last album released by Rainbow before Ritchie Blackmore and Roger Glover left to reform Deep Purple.

Foghat – Last Train Home (Ingrooves/Foghat Records)
Limited-edition reissue of the classic rock band’s 2010 homage to its blues roots. Pressed on 180-gram blue vinyl.

Gene Ammons – Blue Gene (Original Jazz Classics)
Vinyl reissue of this 1958 “blowing session” studio jam based on various blues forms. In the room are jazz tenor saxophonist Gene Ammons, trumpeter Idrees Sulieman, baritonist Pepper Adams, pianist Mal Waldron, bassist Doug Watkins, drummer Art Taylor, and percussionist Ray Barretto on congas.

Dr. Dog – Be the Void (ANTI-)
The new album from Philadelphia’s Dr. Dog is a cathartic rock and roll record that combines the stellar songcraft of the band's last two albums, Fate (2008) and Shame, Shame (2010), with its explosive live energy. Double LP is packaged with full album on CD.

Cocteau Twins – Stars and Topsoil: A Collection 1982-1990 (4AD)
Available for the first time on vinyl, Stars and Topsoil is the Scottish dream-pop band’s first best-of collection from their 4AD years. And it's exquisite.

Mark Lanegan Band – Blues Funeral (4AD)
After a series of collaborations with Isobel Campbell (Belle & Sebastian), the gravelly voiced, former-Screaming Trees singer Mark Lanegan returns with a new double LP – his first solo release since 2004's Bubblegum. Featuring guest appearances from cohorts Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age), Greg Dulli (Gutter Twins), and Jack Irons, the album brims with his dark, spooky blues-rock and distinctly reflects Lanegan's influences (i.e. The Gun Club's Miami, Joy Division's Closer, and Roxy Music's Country Life.)

Chuck Prophet – Temple Beautiful (Yep Roc Records)
A concept album about San Francisco? It’s about time! Named after the extinct rock club where singer-songwriter Chuck Prophet saw his first shows as a teenager, Temple Beautiful was made in San Francisco, by San Franciscans, about San Francisco. Prophet describes it as “my effort to tap into the history, the weirdness, the energy, and spontaneity that brought me here in the first place.”

Wendy Rene – After Laughter Comes Tears: Complete Stax & Volt Singles + Rarities 1964-1965 (Light in the Attic)
For the first time ever the Memphis soul legend’s music is available together in one collection. This double vinyl LP features Rene's early recordings with the Drapels and well-known singles (like “After Laughter,” which Wu-Tang Clan sampled on their album 36 Chambers), as well as rarities and two unreleased tracks.

Ben Kweller – Go Fly a Kite (The Noise Company)
The fifth studio album from the pop-rock singer-songwriter marks the debut release of his Austin-based label, the Noise Company. Go Fly a Kite is being heralded as career-defining for its ability to showcase Kweller's diversity and many talents. 180-gram vinyl plus free CD.

Of Montreal – Paralytic Stalks (Polyvinyl Records)
You know you’re in for a ride with each of Kevin Barnes’ brainchilds, and his latest, Paralytic Stalks, is a dizzying avant-pop frenzy indeed - but also an intimate and rewarding one. Available on 180-gram vinyl.

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Source: vinylrevinyl.com

"LIVE DEAD" Vinyl Record Re-Issue - by GRATEFUL DEAD

2012-02-02T14:54:00.000-08:00

.
.
.
"Ranks #244 on Rolling Stone’s List of the...
"500 GREATEST RECORDS of ALL TIME.""

    "LIVE DEAD"

            by GRATEFUL DEAD

Numbered Limited Edition 180g 2LP Set

Track Listing:

Side 1
1. Dark Star

Side 2
1. St. Stephen
2. The Eleven

Side 3
1. Turn On Your Love Light

Side 4
1. Death Don't Have No Mercy
2. Feedback
3. And We Bid You Goodnight

    NOTATIONS:
Part of Mobile Fidelity’s Amazing Grateful Dead Reissue Series: Skull and Roses, From the Mars Hotel, Wake of the Flood, In the Dark and LIVE DEAD - All Available as 180g LP.

Half-Speed Mastered from the Original Master Tapes

LIVE DEAD  Captures Best of Both Worlds: Band’s Improvisational and R&B Display

LP Ranks #244 on Rolling Stone’s List of the 500 Greatest Records of All-Time

If you want to experience why on any given night the Grateful Dead was the best live band going in 1969, you need to hear Live/Dead. If you want to understand how personal chemistry, symbiotic interplay, and otherworldly energy can lead to a near-extinct onstage combination of soulfulness, surprise, and suspense, you need to hear Live/Dead.

Ranked by Rolling Stone on the magazine’s list of the 500 Greatest Records of All Time. Universally acclaimed by both Deadheads and non-devotees alike. The perfect synthesis of the legendary group’s first-era vital characteristics and cosmic faculties.

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes with the utmost care, and part of Mobile Fidelity’s unprecedented Grateful Dead reissue series, this numbered limited edition 180g 2LP version of Live/Dead raises the iconic album’s lofty prestige even higher. Recorded at three San Francisco concerts in early 1969 with a mobile 16-track studio, the 7-song set has always possessed excellent fidelity in large part because of a mic splitter—specially created for the project—that fed both into the PA system and record inputs, allowing the engineers to capture the shows without any loss in quality.

Seldom have venue dimensions, acoustic properties, spatial characteristics, low-frequency resonances, amplifier tonalities, soundstage balances, and vocal timbres been so faithfully reproduced—or enhanced. Mobile Fidelity’s version elevates Live/Dead into the revered pantheon of the most respected reference audiophile LPs. Close your eyes and you’re dead center, ten rows back in two of the Bay Area’s most beloved halls: Fillmore West and Avalon Ballroom. The degrees of realism are utterly staggering; no, you don’t need any, ahem, chemical assistance to facilitate the transcendent experience.

Renowned for contagious communication between its members, the Dead operates on a interstellar plane throughout Live/Dead. Witnessing the ebb-and-flow manners in which guitarist Jerry Garcia, bassist Phil Lesh, and drummer Billy Kreutzmann respond to one another’s passages and blur the lines between jazz, psychedelia, and rock disciplines. Meandering jamming this is not. Solos burn, rhythms thunder, bass lines roll, melodies twist. “Dark Star” remains the touchstone for what’s possible in epic frameworks, with notes climbing, darting, and skittering amidst a dark canvas seared with mystic vibes and punctuated with blossoming instrumentals. Along with the inseparable pairing of “St. Stephen” and “The Eleven—a sequence that highlights the raw gospel beauty of Garcia, Lesh, and Bob Weir’s harmonies as well as breathtaking tightrope segues—the explorative excursion epitomizes the Dead’s progressive inclination, cohesion, and ability.

Live/Dead isn’t all about the art of the improvisation. R&B-driven electric blues comes courtesy of organist/vocalist Ron “Pigpen” McKernan, still in excellent health, and pianist Tom Constanten, who departed the band shortly after these shows occurred. The latter’s counterpoint playing and spiritual accents shadow the shivering ballad “Death Don’t Have No Mercy” and underscore a rousing, percussive-laden marathon take of “Turn on Your Love Light.” Call-and-response segments, spontaneous exchanges, and joyous merry-making doesn’t come any better. Live/Dead is a landmark in every sense; it remains the first 16-track album released. Its impact is still felt today.

From the illustrative cover art (hint: the word “Dead” subtly spells out “Acid” on the back cover) to the gatefold graphics and the extraordinary sonics, Mobile Fidelity’s 180g 2LP edition ranks among the label’s best releases.

By:
                     FIND VINYL RECORDS

LP -- Barrence Whitfield & THE SAVAGES

2012-02-01T15:10:00.000-08:00

  Savage Kings
          LP Shake 1265
          Shake It Records,
                   Cincinnati, OH

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    Barrence Whitfield &
   THE SAVAGES
The core Savages lineup of Whitfield/Greenberg/Lenker have reunited for a full-bore rhythm & blues fueled, rock n' roll stomp. Savage Kings returns to the Savages' heyday of their debut & Dig Yourself sound of an all-nite party blowout that you will pay severly for the next morning.... and isn't that the way it should be??? Rave-up covers mixed with originals combine to serve up the return of the classic lineup that may very well out deliver the goods than those initial LPs... which says alot

The Shake It Records Label was started by Jess Hirbe & Doc Kalmus in 1978 as a way to issue records from local no-goods - mainly The Customs. It sat dormant for most of the 1980's until it was revived to issue The Mortals "The One" 7' in 1993. Since then, the label's present owners have released (or will soon release) albums, CD's & 7"s from The Ass Ponys, Nomads, Hogscraper, Hasil Adkins, The Cowslingers, Tigerlilies, Long Gones, Thee Shams, Pearlene, Man or Astroman? Dalhart Imperials, Eric Kinsey & His Tip-Top Daddies, Crimson Sweet, Wussy, Dan Melchior, John Doe (1200 Hobos), Viva La Foxx, The Not, Glue, Customs, Mr. Dibbs, Greenhornes & more.

      By:    Shake It Records

        Shake iT RECORDS

Erykah Badu - Vinyl Release circa-21st Century - New Amerykah, Pt. 2: Return Of The Ankh

2012-01-18T05:51:00.000-08:00

Title: New Amerykah,
Pt. 2: Return Of The Ankh [Vinyl Version]
Artist: Erykah Badu

Return of the Ankh was supposed to be issued earlier than March 2010. It's just as well: 2008's stupefying 4th World War provided such a dense concentration of charged lyrics over ceaselessly vein-melting production work that Erykah Badu could have been forgiven for letting five years pass prior to unveiling something else to soak up.

Return of the Ankh is a relief in that Badu does not attempt to trump herself with a set that is even more intense and powerful than its predecessor. Thematically, it's aligned with 4th World War's relatively lighter songs, "Me" and "Honey," more personal than planetary, less challenging sonically and lyrically. Most of it was actually recorded at the same time as 4th World War.

The list of collaborators, featuring Georgia Anne Muldrow, Madlib, Shafiq Husayn, Dilla, James Poyser, Ahmir Thompson, and Karriem Riggins, is similar, yet the makeup is drastically different, designed for instant kicked-back enjoyment. A pause, deep breath, and a "Here we go" is not required prior to putting it on.

Instead, we get Badu playing around, in the best possible way, with sample-rooted songs like "Turn Me Away (Get Munny)" (a twist on Sylvia Striplin's "You Can't Turn Me Away" and the 1995 hip-hop anthem that sampled it, Junior M.A.F.I.A.'s "Get Money"), "Gone Baby, Don't Be Long" (a slightly silly new-love song that reworks Paul McCartney's "Arrow Through Me"), and "Umm Hmm" (its optimism reflected in that of its backbone, Ndugu & the Chocolate Jam Company's Earth, Wind & Fire-like "Take Some Time").

Though the album is so rich with sample-reliant songs that it sometimes resembles a glorified mixtape, a couple standouts were made from scratch. "Window Seat" should appeal to those who have wanted Badu to revisit that lissome sound of Baduizm songs like "On & On" and "Otherside of the Game," and it packs stunning stomp-and-clap breakdowns that sync up with Badu's most halting lines: "I need you to want me/I need you to miss me/I need your attention/I need you next to me."

"Out My Mind, Just in Time" is a ten-minute finale that traces a trajectory of heartache across three movements, beginning innocently enough with a devotional (if pained and humorous) piano ballad that shifts into Muldrow's psychedelic, slow-motion soul-jazz as Badu gets increasingly fragmentary and tripped-out. By the end, she is renewed: "Finally I got a leading role/Introducing Super Dope/Starring in her episode/Hello new world/Out my mind."

Actual next level, as always. [The album was also released on vinyl in 2010.]

~ Andy Kellman, Rovi

SECRET CITIES - Vinyl Record Release - Title: STRANGE HEARTS

2012-01-18T05:32:00.000-08:00

Title:   Strange Hearts
              Vinyl Record Release

Artist: Secret Cities
           Strange Hearts

On its second album (at least under the Secret Cities name), the North Dakota trio works a bit more in the vein with which it first came to greater attention -- intentionally lo-fi/murky sonics crossed with a sprightly late-'60s Beach Boys jones as refracted through winsome indie sensibilities and sonics of the 21st century. A mouthful, perhaps, but it's the best way to describe Strange Hearts, an intentional collage of all sorts of things into the group's own particular shape.

On that front they're one of many bands in recent years who work in generally similar veins -- call it the impact of everything from the legacy of Elephant 6 to the continuing decenteredness of the music industry in general -- but there are plenty of enjoyable songs throughout, even if, as heard straight through, it's a bit repetitive in the end.

But said songs, like "The Park," beginning with quiet vocals and piano before the full arrangement kicks in, and "Brief Encounter," with its stately spaghetti Western horns and flourishes dissolving into a loop of mechanistic rumbles, show that there's a spirit at work amid all the general feeling of collage and homage.

If Strange Hearts isn't per se a major work, it has more going for it than most dull rock-by-numbers out there, a self-contained sonic world.

~ Ned Raggett, Rovi

Pharaoh - POWER METAL - Be Gone [Vinyl/Bonus Single]

2012-01-03T12:26:00.000-08:00

Title: Be Gone [Vinyl/Bonus Single]
Artist: Pharaoh

The power metal revival movement has been a predominantly European phenomenon; in the 1990s and 2000s, countless power metal bands were formed in Sweden, Germany, Norway, and other European countries. But predominantly European doesn't mean exclusively European, and one of the American power metal revival bands that emerged in the late '90s (although their first album didn't come out until 2003) was Pharaoh. Be Gone, which is Pharaoh's third album, won't be accused of being groundbreaking; this is a 2008 release that, stylistically, could have been recorded in 1982 or 1983.

Melodic but hard-driving tracks such as "Buried at Sea," "Dark New Life," "Rats and Rope," and "Cover Your Eyes and Pray" get their inspiration from old-school headbangers who emerged in the 1970s and 1980s, and lead singer Tim Aymar favors a gruff vocal style that owes a lot to Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson. Maiden, in fact, is the most prominent power metal influence on Be Gone, although Judas Priest and Ronnie James Dio are obvious influences as well.

This 47-minute import CD is defiantly oblivious to post-'80s developments in metal, and there is nothing wrong with that. There is a place for retro artists as long as they are good at what they do -- and while Be Gone isn't remarkable, it is decent and well executed. There is never any doubt that guitarist Matt Johnsen, bassist Chris Kerns, and drummer Chris Black can play their instruments well -- they aren't lacking in the chops department -- and Be Gone is a likable, if derivative, reminder of the fact that headbangers don't have to be from Europe to contribute to the power metal revival movement.

Performers: Chris Black - Drums; Chris Kerns - Bass; Matt Johnsen - Guitar; Tim Aymar - Vocals

[This vinyl edition included a bonus single.]

BY ~ Alex Henderson, Rovi

LADY GAGA- The Fame Monster [Picture Vinyl]

2012-01-03T12:14:00.000-08:00

Title: The Fame Monster [Picture Vinyl]
Artist: Lady Gaga

Initially planned solely as a standard double-disc reissue in the wake of the blockbuster success of The Fame, Lady Gaga decided to release the new material as a separate EP called The Fame Monster in addition to the standard two-CD set, where it's tacked onto a now standardized version of her debut. It's a nice move for fans, plus it helps emphasize the new material, which does act as a bridge from the debut to a forthcoming full-length.

Everything on The Fame Monster bears a galvanized Eurotrash finish, as evident on the heavy steel synths of “Bad Romance” and the updated ABBA revision “Alejandro” as it is on the rock & roll ballad “Speechless” -- its big guitars lifted from Noel Gallagher -- and the wonderful, perverse march “Teeth.”

Even the stuttering splices on “Telephone,” a duet with Beyoncé, leans to the other side of the Atlantic, which just emphasizes the otherness that's become Gaga's calling card.

And even as she's becoming omnipresent, with her songs mingling with those who co-opt her on the radio, she is still slightly skewed, willing to go so far over the top that she goes beyond camp, yet still channeling it through songs that are written, not just hooks. The Fame Monster builds upon those strengths exhibited on The Fame, offering a credible expansion of the debut and suggesting she's not just a fleeting pop phenomenon.

BY~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi

NEW - Illinois Vinyl Record Retailer Entries - For SPRING 2012 EDITION

2012-01-03T12:03:00.000-08:00

New Additions To "VINYL RECORD BUYERS GUIDE"

ILLINOIS

Revolution Records56 N Central Park Plaza, Jacksonville IL

Record Room641 W Golf Road, Des Plaines IL

Angelsing Records818 S Seminary Avenue, Park Ridge IL

Fabsound Records LLC2113 W Walton Street, Chicago IL

Record Swap114 E University Avenue, Champaign IL

Record Emporium3057 N Rockwell Street, Chicago IL

Thisit Records Inc10133 S Halsted Street, Chicago IL

Mac's Records5425 W Madison Street, Chicago IL

Permanent Records LLC1914 W Chicago Avenue, Chicago IL

Joyce Records Inc1717 Tonne Road, Elk Grove Village IL

606 Records Inc1065 Aster Lane, West Chicago IL

2011-11-16T01:40:00.001-08:00

NEW LISTINGS - Vinyl Record BUYERS GUIDE

* New Issue Out Soon

Nf Records, Inc10925 Nw 59th Street, Doral FL

The Records Reviewer Inc243 Wimbledon Lake Drive, Plantation FL

Ego Records LLC12864 Biscayne Boulevard, North Miami FL

Guajiro Records, Inc2575 Collins Avenue # B1, Miami Beach FL

Rix Records, LLC5711 Willow Creek Lane, Delray Beach FL

Vida Records, LLC9767 Nw 49th Terrace, Doral FL

Andres Records6240 Contessa Drive Apartment 204, Orlando FL

Cluster Records2915 Prairie Avenue, Miami Beach FL

Smuggler Records4941 Nw 86th Terrace, Lauderhill FL

Streetteam Records7667 N 56th Street, Tampa FL

2011-11-16T01:36:00.001-08:00

NEW VINYL RECORD RETAILER LISTINGS
Added to new edition

V 54 RecordsLakewood CO

Doe John Records LLCColorado Springs CO

Diggin Dog Records, LLCLoveland CO

Aural Fixation RecordsBoulder CO

Beat Culture Records, IncDenver CO

Bohemia Beat RecordsDenver CO

2011-10-30T05:44:00.000-07:00

RETAIL DIRECTORY

of Vinyl-Record Sources

………..

NEW ADDITIONS

TO OUR DIRECTORY OF OVER 1000 VR LISTING ENTRIES

New VR BUYERS GUIDE issue arrives before end of this year, with 100's of fresh regional and local vinyl-record retailer and web-based supplier with new and classic LP and 45rpm releases. Here are a few those ...

Indiana Record Stores

Luna Music
1315 86th St
Indianapolis Indiana

Kentucky Record Stores

CD Central
377 South Limestone St
Lexington Kentucky

Ear X-Tacy
1534 Bardstown Road
Louisville Kentucky

Maryland Record Stores

Record and Tape Traders
736 Dulaney Valley Center
Towson, Maryland

Record and Tape Traders
1409B Merritt Blvd
Dundalk, Maryland

Record & Tape Traders

Bel Air Town Center
558 Baltimore National Pike
Bel Air, Maryland

Tips to Properly Maintain Your Vinyl Record Collection

2011-10-15T13:47:00.000-07:00

A few tricks that can prevent damage ... if you can take care of a pet rock, you can take care of your vinyl collection. It shouldn’t be a challenge, and most of this advice is a no-brainer.

Here are the basics:

1. Don’t stack records: records are made of a polyvinyl chloride that is soft and malleable. The weight of stacked records and other weighted objects can deform the circular shape and distort the sound producing grooves that guide the needle, a problem that cannot be fixed. The best way is to sort them vertically, but be careful not to pack them too tight, as this will have the same effect you are trying to prevent.

2. Don’t leave you records next to a heat source: Like most plastics, vinyl has a low heat capacity and will begin to melt at temperatures rising from 70 degrees F. This means that heaters, ovens, microwaves, fireplaces, and other places that receive direct sunlight are poor places to shelve your records. I would suggest a bookshelf in a room with a moderate temperature.

3. Moisture is a vinyl serial killer: Once your record covers and sleeves get wet, they will start to mildew, and aside from smelling terrible, they will be worthless. If you are storing them in a garage, don’t store them on the ground or next to a water supply.

4. Don’t Leave your records out of the sleeve: The sleeve is like the force field on the Millennium Falcon, once the shields are down, all the knicks and scratches will add up and eventually render the record unplayable. Would you participate in a fencing match naked? Hopefully, you get my point.

5. Don’t play your records with a dull needle: Although cartridges can last several years, it is important that the needle remains sharp. Otherwise, as the needle dulls it will increase in surface area, and the effect is kind of like trying to jam something large into a small hole. As I explained earlier, once the grooves are compromised there is very little you can do to salvage them.

6. Be careful to whom you lend your records: Just as you wouldn’t lend your car to a random person you met in Compton, you should take similar precautions when lending records. Make sure that the lendee will care for your precious collection with the same meticulous care that you would. Small children, drunk friends, and crazy ex-girlfriends are a few examples of people you might want to think twice about lending to.

General Maintenance:

When it comes to vinyl a little tender love and care every now and then can go a long way. Serious damage is typically the result of long-time neglect.

For example, if you handle your records frequently, it doesn’t hurt to wipe them down with a fiber-less clothe (the type of cloth you would wipe your glasses with) and some gentle ivory soap; stay away from alcohol, sticky substances, and corrosives.

This will eliminate residue build up and dust particles that get trapped in the sound grooves. It’s particles as such that are responsible for those snaps and pops that most vinyl lovers live for; however, if not washed occasionally, your vinyl will sound like a bowl of Rice Crispies. This is also bad for your needle as the dust will collect on the tip.

With this being said, if you plan to store your records away for a long period of time, consider putting them in airtight boxes or purchasing poly-sleeves. Also, keep in mind that record covers are equally if not more valuable than records themselves so bent corners, wrinkles, scratches, and tears can seriously impact a records total value.

The best way to protect covers is to rack them vertically and to purchase poly-bags (European style record jackets). Finally, the best way to prevent damage to records is to take care when playing them. Be careful when changing tracks, try to handle them by the edges, return them to their sleeves when done, etc.

Alright, now that you know the ins and outs of record maintenance, you can sit back, relax, and get groovy.

BY: By Joseph Gregory, courtesy of RecordPressing.com

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THE DOORS - "Strange Days" Vinyl Record

2011-10-05T10:54:00.000-07:00

Title: Strange Days
Artist: The Doors
Many of the songs on Strange Days had been written around the same time as the ones that appeared on The Doors, and with hindsight one has the sense that the best of the batch had already been cherry picked for the debut album.

For that reason, the band's second effort isn't as consistently stunning as their debut, though overall it's a very successful continuation of the themes of their classic album.

Besides the hit "Strange Days," highlights included the funky "Moonlight Drive," the eerie "You're Lost Little Girl," and the jerkily rhythmic "Love Me Two Times," which gave the band a small chart single.

"My Eyes Have Seen You" and "I Can't See Your Face in My Mind" are minor but pleasing entries in the group's repertoire that share a subdued Eastern psychedelic air. The 11-minute "When the Music's Over" would often be featured as a live showstopper, yet it also illustrated their tendency to occasionally slip into drawn-out bombast.

Performers: Doug Lubahn - Bass; Douglas Lubahn - Bass; Jim Morrison - Vocals; John Densmore - Drums; Ray Manzarek - Marimba, Vocals, Keyboards; Robby Krieger - Guitar

BY: Richie Unterberger

Keywords: vinyl records, vinyl album, doors album, rock albums

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Early MILES DAVIS Vinyl-Record - "Sketches Of Spain"

2011-09-27T09:30:00.000-07:00

Title: "Sketches Of Spain"

Recorded between November 1959 and March 1960 -- after Coltrane and Cannonball Adderley had left the band -- Davis teamed with Canadian arranger Gil Evans for the third time. Davis brought Evans the album's signature piece, "Concierto de Aranjuez," after hearing a classical version of it at bassist Joe Mondragon's house. Evans was as taken with it as Davis was, and set about to create an entire album of material around it.

Artist: Miles Davis Along with Kind of Blue, In a Silent Way, and Round About Midnight, Sketches of Spain is one of Miles Davis' most enduring and innovative achievements.

The result is a masterpiece of modern art. On the "Concierto," Evans' arrangement provided an orchestra and jazz band -- Paul Chambers, Jimmy Cobb, and Elvin Jones -- the opportunity to record a classical work as it was. The piece, with its stunning colors and intricate yet transcendent adagio, played by Davis on a flügelhorn with a Harmon mute, is one of the most memorable works to come from popular culture in the 20th century. Davis' control over his instrument is singular, and Evans' conducting is flawless.

Also notable are "Saeta," with one of the most amazing technical solos of Davis' career, and the album's closer, "Solea," which is conceptually a narrative piece, based on an Andalusian folk song, about a woman who encounters the procession taking Christ to Calvary. She sings the narrative of his passion and the procession -- or parade -- with full brass accompaniment moving along. Cobb and Jones, with flamenco-flavored percussion, are particularly wonderful here, as they allow the orchestra to indulge in the lushly passionate arrangement Evans provided to accompany Davis, who was clearly at his most challenged here, though he delivers with grace and verve. Sketches of Spain is the most luxuriant and stridently romantic recording Davis ever made.

To listen to it in the 21st century is still a spine-tingling experience, as one encounters a multitude of timbres, tonalities, and harmonic structures seldom found in the music called jazz.

Performers: Miles Davis - Flageolet, Flugelhorn, Trumpet; Jack Knitzer - Bassoon; Billy Barber - Tuba; Earl Chapin - French Horn; Eddie Caine - Flugelhorn, Flute; James Buffington - Horn, French Horn, Fender Rhodes; Janet Putnam - Harp; Jimmy McAllister - Tuba; Joe Singer - French Horn

By: Thom Jurek, Rovi

The Pretty Things - "S.F. Sorrow"

2011-09-27T09:21:00.000-07:00

Title: "S.F. Sorrow"Artist: The Pretty Things
Who could ever have thought, going back to the Pretty Things' first recording session in 1965 -- which started out so disastrously that their original producer quit in frustration -- that it would come to this?

The Pretty Things' early history in the studio featured the band with its amps seemingly turned up to 11, but for much of S.F. Sorrow the band is turned down to seven or four, or even two, or not amplified at all (except for Wally Allen's bass -- natch), and they're doing all kinds of folkish things here that are still bluesy enough so you never forget who they are, amid weird little digressions on percussion and chorus; harmony vocals that are spooky, trippy, strange, and delightful; sitars included in the array of stringed instruments; and an organ trying hard to sound like a Mellotron.

Sometimes one gets an echo of Pink Floyd's Piper at the Gates of Dawn or A Saucerful of Secrets, and it all straddles the worlds of British blues and British psychedelia better than almost any record you can name.

The album, for those unfamiliar, tells the story of "S.F. Sorrow," a sort of British Everyman -- think of a working-class, luckless equivalent to the Kinks' Arthur, from cradle to grave. The tale and the songs are a bit downbeat and no amount of scrutiny can disguise the fact that the rock opera S.F. Sorrow is ultimately a bit of a confusing effort -- these boys were musicians, not authors or dramatists.

Although it may have helped inspire Tommy, it is, simply, not nearly as good. That said, it was first and has quite a few nifty ideas and production touches. And it does show a pathway between blues and psychedelia that the Rolling Stones, somewhere between Satanic Majesties, "We Love You," "Child of the Moon," and Beggars Banquet, missed entirely.

The CD reissue on Snapper adds four valuable songs from their 1967-1968 singles ("Defecting Grey," "Mr. Evasion," "Talkin' About the Good Times," and "Walking Through My Dreams"). This version of "Defecting Grey" is the original, long, uncut five-minute rendition, and not of trivial importance; it's superior to the shorter one used on the official single.

Performers: Dick Taylor - Guitar, Vocals; John Povey - Sitar, Percussion, Organ, Vocals; Phil May - Vocals; Twink - Drums, Vocals; Wally Allen - Wind Instruments, Piano, Vocals, Guitar, Bass; Wally Allen Waller - Woodwind, Piano, Guitar, Guitar (Bass), Vocals

By: Bruce Eder & Richie Unterberger, Rovi

Jerry Lee Lewis - Original Sun Singles '56-'60

2011-09-27T09:12:00.000-07:00

Title: "Original Sun Singles '56-'60"Artist: Jerry Lee Lewis
Collections of Jerry Lee Lewis' Sun singles are a common occurrence: sometimes it seems as if Sun licenses out the hits to any label that comes calling, so there's a surplus of comps that cover the same territory, some in more detail than others, some providing a better experience -- both as listening and history -- than others.

As the music itself sounds good no matter how it's heard, all that matters is the quality of the presentation, and Sundazed's 2009 set Sun Singles Collection ranks among the best comps of this material presented.

Arguably, it may be the best, as it serves up the 24 A-sides the Killer released at Sun, running through them all in chronological order, giving the consumer all sorts of bang for their buck. Naturally, this doesn't have all the great music Jerry Lee recorded at Sun, and some may miss "Drinkin' Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee" that appeared on the previous Sun standard-bearer, Rhino's 1984 18 Original Sun Greatest Hits, but Sun Singles Collection is six tracks longer, adding such killer rock & roll as "Let's Talk About Us," "Break-Up," and "Hang Up My Rock & Roll Shoes," plus country sides like "I Could Never Be Ashamed of You" and "Old Black Joe" that hint at Lewis' range.

Much of this can be heard elsewhere, either in truncated or complete form, or in editions that go further into his Mercury work (whether it's Universal's Definitive Collection and Gold or Bear Family's Rocks) but this serves up the best and biggest dose of Jerry Lee at his prime. ~

By: Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi

New Vinyl-Record Listings

2011-09-27T09:04:00.000-07:00

DIRECTORY

of Vinyl-Record Sources

………..

NEW ADDITIONS

Generation Records 210 Thompson Street New York, NY 10012-484

Vinyl Road Rage
Chicago to San Antonio

Recycled Records, Springfield, Illinois

Vintage Vinyl St. Louis Missouri

Record Exchange St. Louis, Missouri

Stick It In Your Ear, Springfield Missouri

Forever Young, Grand Prairie, Texas

Waterloo Records, Austin, Texas

The Clash - "London Calling" - CLASSIC CLASH

2011-09-27T08:47:00.000-07:00

Title: "London Calling" Artist: The Clash

Give 'Em Enough Rope, for all of its many attributes, was essentially a holding pattern for the Clash, but the double-album London Calling is a remarkable leap forward, incorporating the punk aesthetic into rock & roll mythology and roots music.

Before, the Clash had experimented with reggae, but that was no preparation for the dizzying array of styles on London Calling. There's punk and reggae, but there's also rockabilly, ska, New Orleans R&B, pop, lounge jazz, and hard rock; and while the record isn't tied together by a specific theme, its eclecticism and anthemic punk function as a rallying call.

While many of the songs -- particularly "London Calling," "Spanish Bombs," and "The Guns of Brixton" -- are explicitly political, by acknowledging no boundaries the music itself is political and revolutionary.

But it is also invigorating, rocking harder and with more purpose than most albums, let alone double albums. Over the course of the record, Joe Strummer and Mick Jones (and Paul Simonon, who wrote "The Guns of Brixton") explore their familiar themes of working-class rebellion and antiestablishment rants, but they also tie them in to old rock & roll traditions and myths, whether it's rockabilly greasers or "Stagger Lee," as well as mavericks like doomed actor Montgomery Clift. The result is a stunning statement of purpose and one of the greatest rock & roll albums ever recorded. [In 2000 Columbia/Legacy reissued and remastered London Calling.]

Performers: Irish Horns - Brass; Varren Steadman - Voices; Joe Strummer - Guitar (Rhythm), Guitar, Vocals; M. Jones - Piano; Mick Gallagher - Organ; Mick Jones - Guitar, Piano, Vocals; Paul Simonon - Vocals, Bass; Topper Headon - Drums (Snare), Percussion, Drums

By: Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi

View More Details About This Classic Vinyl-Record:

Blues Magoos - "Psychedelic Lollipop" Album

2011-09-27T08:34:00.000-07:00

Title: "Psychedelic Lollipop" Artist: Blues Magoos

The Blues Magoos sound less like psychedelic visionaries than a solid garage band with a taste for the blues on their debut album, Psychedelic Lollipop, though the lysergic reference of the title certainly put them ahead of the curve in 1966, when LSD was still obscure enough to be legal in much of the United States.

The album leads off with the group's first and only major hit single, "(We Ain't Got) Nothin' Yet," and unlike most albums released by one-hit wonders of the mid-'60s, the single isn't the most exciting song here. That honor goes to the Magoos' cover of J.D. Loudermilk's "Tobacco Road" (which Lenny Kaye selected for his iconic garage rock compilation Nuggets), featuring some gutsy guitar work from Mike Esposito and Emil "Peppy" Thielhelm and impressive organ swells from Ralph Scala as the tune leans into a major rave-up midway through.

Outside of that, Psychedelic Lollipop rarely sounds like a classic, but it's solid stuff -- the covers are chosen and played well (including a committed take on James Brown's "I'll Go Crazy"), the originals show the band knew their way around rock & roll, R&B, and blues with no small aplomb, and the band could stretch out on numbers like "Sometimes I Think About," "Worried Life Blues," and "Tobacco Road", while generating excitement and not losing the plot.

Psychedelic Lollipop doesn't sound like the work of a great band, but certainly like one who were better than average, and considering how many bands who cranked out a single like "(We Ain't Got) Nothin' Yet" ended up making albums clogged with filler, it says a lot that even the weakest tracks here show this group had talent, ideas, and the know-how to make them work in the studio.

Performers: Emil Thielhelm - Guitar (Rhythm); Geoff Daking - Drums; Mike Esposito - Guitar; Ralph Scala - Vocals, Organ; Ronnie Gilbert - Bass

By: Mark Deming, Rovi

FOR MORE DETAILS ON THIS ALBUM -
Visit This Classic Rock Web Site

Vinyl Record Retailers - Few New Additions To Directory

2011-09-23T05:13:00.000-07:00

DIRECTORY

of Vinyl-Record Sources

………..

FEW OF OUR LATEST NEW ADDITIONS

Michiana Used Music & Media

4609 Grape Road

Mishawaka, IN 46545-8257

( 574) 247-1188

Record Revolution

1828 Coventry Road

Cleveland

Hts, OH 44118-1692

(216) 321-7661

New West Coast Pop & Indy Artists, Funk & Soul, Blues

Music Saves

15801 Waterloo Rd Cleveland, OH 44110

Bent Crayon

11600 Detroit Avenue Cleveland, OH 44102-2320

(216) 221-9200

Jerry’s Records 2136 Murray Ave Pittsburgh, PA 15217

Mr. Mike’s

27 S 3rd St Harrisburg, PA 17101

Double Decker Records

808 St John St Allentown, PA 18103

How Colored Vinyl Records Drive LP Prices

2011-09-23T04:59:00.000-07:00

As reported by "The Daily Weekly"

Jack White Challenges
eBay Flippers

Jack White’s Third Man Records produces a large number of standard all-black vinyl records for every album it releases—but those LPs and 45s aren’t the ones that drive fans wild. No, what the fans go crazy for are the limited-edition versions, made in two- and three-colored vinyl.

The trouble is, scalpers or “flippers” have been profiteering off of the fans’ insatiable appetite for these rare multicolored records, snatching them up and selling them on eBay for hundreds of dollars. Recently, according to Antiquiet, White decided to take matters into his own hands when Third Man Records put five copies of an extremely limited double-colored reissue of The White Stripes’ first album on eBay directly. One has already sold for $510, and odds are it will never see a turntable.
Fans, many of whom pay for special access to Third Man Records through The Vault fan club, expressed outrage. White responded: “We sell a Wanda Jackson split record for 10 bucks, the eBay flipper turns around and sells it for $300. If $300 is what it’s worth, then why doesn’t Third Man Records sell it for $300? If we sell them for more, the artist gets more, the flipper gets nothing. We’re not in the business of making flippers a living. We’re in the business of giving fans what they want.”

Who can argue with the fabulous Wanda Jackson getting paid (not to mention her hard-working engineers, mixers, and producers), over the opportunist guy lingering outside Third Man Records in his black SUV? Still the move has raised a lot of questions about who’s exploiting the collectors market, and how.
In our interview with Ben Blackwell, the head of vinyl production at the label, he explained, “The idea is to make music accessible. We do a limited run of these tricolor or split-color records to cater to the collectors, the people who crave that stuff. But if you’re a music fan, we’re also the place for you. [The music] will always be available.
“People sometimes complain, saying, ‘I couldn’t get your 8-inch records in Texas or your 13-inch records,’ or ‘I couldn’t get the glow-in-the-dark records in London.’ Those records were made to celebrate an event. The point is that you had to actually be there.

We also get a little bit of a flack for not making this stuff available online to the worldwide market. To those critics, we just have to respond by saying that they are totally missing the point. One of the ideas behind Third Man is that not everything is just available with the click of a mouse. A lot of what we try to do is meant to be a part of a tangible, real experience.

The White Stripes reissue in question.

“When we started out pressing the tricolor vinyl, we were pressing 100 copies of tricolor 7-inchers, and they were only available at our storefront. People were pissed—some of them are still pissed about it. Seeing how well it went over, but trying to respond to the complaints, we’ve tweaked it a bit. We still make 100 available in our storefront. People line up and wait overnight outside of our store to get them; some will get proxies in there, and people will flip them on eBay, all that stuff. But we also press 50 copies that we insert randomly into mail orders for that title. So you never know.”

DEEP PURPLE - Made In Japan - Vinyl Album

2011-09-12T18:26:00.000-07:00

Metal LPs RULE

New York City – From notable artists like Metallica and Van Halen are hard to find limited release vinyl records meant to document live shows.

The record cover below has regular wear for its age. Vinyl plays well, expressing

the high energy generated by DEEP PURPLE in the shows performed

during their Japanese tour.

LIVE Deep Purple LP FOUND IN NYC

Select Vinyl Albums / LPs & Vinyl 45s

2011-09-12T17:38:00.000-07:00

Vinyl Record Suppliers
HARD TO FIND COLLECTIBLE LPs & 45rpm RECORDS

Search through the inventory, see if you find some of your own favorites.