Birthdays:
Boston drummer Sib Hashian was born in 1949.
New Kid on the Block Donnie Wahlberg was born in Dorchester, Mass in 1969.
Belinda Carlisle (Go-Go's) was born in 1958.
Born on this day in 1944, John Seiter of Spanky And Our Gang.
History:
In 2004, Jimi Hendrix memorabilia went on display at London`s Marquee Club. Valued at more than $27 million, the massive exhibit included 50 hours of unreleased music, live film footage and Hendrix instruments. The collection later went on the auction block.
Nat King Cole recorded "Unforgettable," which reached #12 in 1951. Forty years later, Natalie Cole overdubs her voice onto the original, creating a father-daughter duet that nearly charted as high.
In 1960, a quartet comprising John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Pete Best (later replaced by Ringo Starr) performs as "the Beatles" for the first time in Hamburg, Germany.
Paul Williams of The Temptations, died of a self inflicted gunshot wound on August 17, 1973 at the age of 34. Williams had left the Temptations in 1971 because of poor health, although he continued to supervise their choreography. At the time of his death, he owed $80,000 in taxes and his celebrity boutique business had failed.
In 1974, Nottingham England's Paper Lace had Billboard's top tune with a song about a gangster shootout called "The Night Chicago Died". After the song became a hit, the band's manager contacted Chicago's mayor Richard Daley, hoping for a civic reception. What they got instead was 'a rather rude letter', ending in ...are you nuts?
In 1995, Microsoft bought the rights to use the Rolling Stones' "Start Me Up" to advertise their Windows 95 software.
Today in 1968, the song "People Got to Be Free" by the Rascals topped the charts and stayed there for 5 weeks.
The Newport Jazz Festival kicked in 1954 with headliners Dizzy Gillespie and Ella Fitzgerald.
In 2004, after thirteen years, General Motors stopped using Bob Seger's "Like A Rock" in their ads for the Chevy Silverado pickup. About time.
1999- Led Zeppelin topped a chart of Britain's most bootlegged musicians, compiled by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), after identifying 384 bootleg titles featuring Led Zeppelin performances. The bootleg chart was complied from the BPI's archive of some 10,000 recordings seized over the past 25 years. The Beatles, came in second with 320 entries, other acts listed included The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and Pink Floyd.
In 1977, the day after the day Elvis died, President Jimmy Carter commemorates the Memphis Flash "Elvis Presley's death deprives our country of a part of itself. He was unique and irreplaceable. More than twenty years ago, he burst upon the scene with an impact that was unprecedented and will probably never be equaled. His music and his personality, fusing the styles of white country and black rhythm and blues, permanently changed the face of American popular culture. His following was immense and he was a symbol to people the world over, of the vitality, rebelliousness and good humor of his country." Florists Transworld Delivery says it had delivered more flowers to Graceland than for any other event in the company's history.
Classic vocalist Pearl Bailey ("Takes Two to Tango") died in 1990 at age 72, from a heart attack.
1979 - The New York post reported that Anita Pallenberg (the wife of Keith Richards) was linked to a witches coven in South Salem, New York where Richards owned a house. A policeman claimed he was attacked by a flock of black-hooded, caped people and a local youth claimed he had been invited by Pallenburg to take part in ‘pot smoking sex orgies’. Locals also claimed they found ‘ritualistic stakes’ and small animals that had been ‘sacrificed’ near the house.
Gladys Knight appears on ABC-TV's "Dating Game" in 1972.
Police in Los Angeles began an investigation into child abuse allegations against Michael Jackson in 1993. The investigation began after the son of a Beverly Hills dentist told his therapist that Jackson sexually abused him. Jackson's security staff claimed the allegations followed a failed attempt to blackmail the singer for 20 million dollars. Although no criminal charges were ever laid, lawyers for the 13 year-old filed a civil suit a month later claiming damages for sexual battery, seduction and other allegations. The suit was settled out of court in January 1994 for somewhere between $5 to $24 million.
Isaac Hayes hits #1 with "Theme From Shaft" in 1971.
Famed artist Rick Griffith died in 1991. He designed album sleeves for Jimi Hendrix and Jefferson Airplane.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Friday, August 15, 2008
Jerry Wexler, famed record producer, dies at 91
By HILLEL ITALIE,
AP National Writer
NEW YORK - Legendary record producer Jerry Wexler, who helped shape R&B music with influential recordings of Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles and other greats, and later made key recordings with the likes of Bob Dylan and Willie Nelson, has died, said his son, Paul.
Paul Wexler said his father died at a hospice in Sarasota, Fla., about 3:45 a.m. Friday of congenital heart disease; the death was first confirmed to The Associated Press by David Ritz, co-author of Wexler's 1993 memoir, "Rhythm and the Blues."
Both his son and daughter Lisa were present at the time of his death. Paul Wexler told the AP his father's death was "a tremendous loss."
"The number of artists that he was involved with and helped significantly or just made great records with, the list is almost unbelievable," Paul Wexler added. "And many of them are gone now."
Wexler earned his reputation as a music industry giant while a partner at Atlantic Records with another legendary music figure, the late Ahmet Ertegun. Atlantic provided an outlet for the groundbreaking work of African-American performers in the 1950s and 1960s. Later, it was a home to rock icons like Led Zeppelin and the Rolling Stones. He later helped Dylan win his first Grammy by producing his 1979"Slow Train Coming" album.
Wexler helped boost the careers of both the "King of Soul," Charles, and the "Queen of Soul," Franklin. Wilson Pickett, Solomon Burke and Percy Sledge were among the other R&B greats who benefited from Wexler's deft recording touch. He also produced Dusty Springfield's classic "Dusty in Memphis," considered a masterpiece of "blue-eyed" soul.
Burke said Wexler was the ultimate music man.
"He loved black music, R&B music and rhythm and blues was his foundation. He had a feeling for it, he had the knack to keep it going in his heart and recognize the talent that he felt was real," Burke told the AP after learning of his death. "Jerry Wexler didn't change the sound of America, he put the sound to the public. He open the doors and windows to the radio stations ... and made everybody listen."
Among the standards produced by Wexler: Franklin's "Respect," a dazzling, feminist reworking of an Otis Redding song; Sledge's deep ballad "When A Man Loves A Woman" and Pickett's "In the Midnight Hour," with a horn vamp inspired by Wexler's admittedly rhythmless dancing.
Wexler was named to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.
"No one really knew how to make a record when I started," he said in a profile on the rock hall's Web site. "You simply went into the studio, turned on the mike and said, `Play.'"
In the studio, Wexler was a hands-on producer. Once, during a session with Charles, the tambourine player was off the beat. Wexler, in his award-winning autobiography, recalled grabbing the instrument and playing it himself.
"Who's that?" asked Charles.
"Me," Wexler told the blind singer.
"You got it, baby!" Charles said.
The son of Polish immigrants and a music buff since his teens, Wexler landed a job writing for Billboard magazine in the late 1940s after serving in World War II and studying journalism in college. There he coined the term "rhythm and blues" for the magazine's black music charts; previously, they were listed under "race records."
While working at Billboard, Wexler befriended Ertegun — a life-altering friendship for both. Ertegun and a partner had started Atlantic, then a small R&B label in New York. In 1953, when Ertegun's partner left for a two-year military hitch, Wexler stepped in as the label's co-director.
He never left.
"In the early sessions, I just sat there watching (Ertegun) while I was cowering in fright," Wexler told The Associated Press in 2001. "But as time went on, we proved to be a very successful team. ... We went on the road together, we hung out together."
He recalled that Ertegun "wrote many of the songs in the early days, and he drew upon his knowledge of jazz and the blues, because songs always have to have a source. ... This is not to say that there is not great originality."
While Ertegun enjoyed the more bohemian aspects of the music business, Wexler was a working partner. Wexler produced 16 albums and numerous hit singles for Franklin, who switched to Atlantic in the mid-1960s and rediscovered her gospel roots after several unhappy years singing show tunes for Columbia. "When it came to the studio, you could say the two of us were joined at the hip," he once said.
Franklin, in a 1980 interview with Rolling Stone, said their collaborations were "among my favorite sessions. I feel the things we did together were dynamite."
In 1967, Wexler and Ertegun sold Atlantic to Warner Bros. for $17.5 million. Although they stayed on to run the company, the pair began moving in different directions.
Wexler began working with a collection of Southern musicians in the 1970s, including guitar genius Duane Allman, Dr. John, and Delaney & Bonnie. He also produced albums for Willie Nelson.
In the 1980s, Wexler worked with Dire Straits, Carlos Santana and George Michael. In April 1988, Atlantic marked its 40th anniversary with an 11-hour concert at Madison Square Garden, with the stage shared by performers from Crosby, Stills & Nash to the Bee Gees to Ben E. King.
Wexler was the quintessential Jewish street kid who found a home in black music. He was born in 1917 in Manhattan's Washington Heights section, north of Harlem. He didn't take to school, preferring to hang out at places like Artie's Pool Room on 181st Street.
In his teens, he began haunting Harlem's jazz clubs and record stores, developing a lifelong passion for jazz and blues.
When his mother tried to refocus his energies by sending him to Kansas State University in 1936, Wexler instead began taking the 100-mile drive to Kansas City, Mo., to see performers like Count Basie and Joe Turner. His poor grades put him back in New York within two years.
Days after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Wexler was drafted into the Army. He spent the war stationed in Texas and Florida, then returned to college to earn a degree in journalism in 1947.
Paul Wexler said a private service will take place in the coming weeks in Sarasota, and his tombstone will read: "He changed the world."
"I don't think I'm overreaching," he said.
___
AP Music Writer Nekesa Mumbi Moody and Writer Christine Amario contributed to this report.
This Date In Music History- August 15
Birthdays:
Jazz piano giant Oscar Peterson was born in Montreal in 1925.
R&B vocalist Frederick Knight ("I've Been Lonely for So Long") was born in Birmingham, Ala.
Songwriter Jimmy Webb ("Up-Up And Away", "By The Time I Get To Phoenix", "MacArthur Park" and many, many more) turns 61.
Johnny Thunder ("Loop De Loop") is 67
Bobby Caldwell ("What You Won't Do For Love") is 57
Born on this day in 1967, MCA (Adam Yauch) The Beastie Boys
History:
Elvis Presley attended a meeting in Memphis with his manager Bob Neal, Colonel Tom Parker and Vernon Presley, at which a new contract was signed that named Colonel Parker as "special advisor" with control of virtually every aspect of Elvis' career. Parker was not really a Colonel at all, but a Dutch immigrant named Andreas Cornelius van Kujik, whose honorary title was given to him in 1948 by Governor Jimmie Davis of Louisiana. He was a flamboyant promoter whose pre-Elvis experience included shows called The Great Parker Pony Circus and Tom Parker and His Dancing Turkeys and was a veteran of carnivals, medicine shows and various other entertainment enterprises.
Elvis Presley's "It's Now Or Never" sat on top of the Billboard singles chart in 1960, where it would stay for a month. The record would have international sales of over 20 million and became a personal favorite of The King.
Despite the fact that the US record charts are dominated by Rock and Roll, crooner Dean Martin had the number one record with his biggest hit, "Everybody Loves Somebody" in 1964. It made it to #11 in the UK. The song had been around since 1949 and had been previously recorded by several well known artists without success.
In 1962, drummer Pete Best played his last gig with the Beatles at the Cavern in Liverpool, England.
The Beatles' third North American tour kicked off at Shea Stadium in 1965- in front of a record crowd of 55,000 fans and 2,000 security guards. It grossed $304,000 dollars. The Beatles' share was $160,000. Sharing the bill with The Beatles; Brenda Holloway, The King Curtis Band, The Young Rascals and Sounds Incorporated. The Fab four played their usual 30-minute set. Too bad the band was virtually inaudible.
Norman Petty (produced Buddy Holly, Buddy Knox and the Fireballs and recorded with his own trio) died of leukemia in 1984.
The Woodstock Music and Art Festival began on Max Yasgur's 600 acre farm in Bethel, New York on August 15, 1969. The three-day long festival drew a crowd of more than 500,000 people and became one of the most celebrated Rock and Folk concert festivals of all time. The free event featured, Jimi Hendrix, Joe Cocker, Crosby Stills Nash & Young, Santana, The Who, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, The Band, Canned Heat, Joan Baez, Santana, Melanie, Ten Years After, Sly and the Family Stone, Johnny Winter, Jefferson Airplane, Ravi Shanker, Country Joe and the Fish, Blood Sweat and Tears, Arlo Guthrie, and Joe Cocker. During the three days there were three deaths, two births and four miscarriages.
In 2002, a memorial to John Lennon was unveiled in the remote Scottish village of Durness, where Lennon had spent his holidays from age seven to fifteen. The lyrics from "In My Life" were inscribed on three stones.
In 2007, The Osmond Brothers, joined by siblings Donny, Marie and Jimmy, took the stage for the taping of a 50th anniversary reunion show to be aired on PBS. A meeting of no less than seven singing Osmonds onstage hadn't happened in more than 20 years, although no one could remember the exact date of the last full family concert.
George Harrison's autobiography, "I, Me, Mine" was originally published in 1980.
In 1966, Bobby Darin recorded "If I Were a Carpenter." It later goes to No. 8. Darin had seized upon Tim Hardin's song after listening to the songwriter's demos. He later recorded a whole album of Hardin, although the author himself was reportedly incensed at how Darin imitated his vocals note for note.
"The Wizard of Oz" premiered in Hollywood, CA in 1939. Judy Garland became famous for the movie's song "Somewhere Over the Rainbow."
In 1941, Peggy Lee, one of the most important women in rock, recorded her first vocal with Benny Goodman's band.
In 1992,Boyz II Men started a 13 week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'End Of The Road' the groups first US No.1. Taken from the Eddie Murphy film 'Boomerang', it broke the 36-year-old record held by Elvis for the longest run at No.1
Jazz piano giant Oscar Peterson was born in Montreal in 1925.
R&B vocalist Frederick Knight ("I've Been Lonely for So Long") was born in Birmingham, Ala.
Songwriter Jimmy Webb ("Up-Up And Away", "By The Time I Get To Phoenix", "MacArthur Park" and many, many more) turns 61.
Johnny Thunder ("Loop De Loop") is 67
Bobby Caldwell ("What You Won't Do For Love") is 57
Born on this day in 1967, MCA (Adam Yauch) The Beastie Boys
History:
Elvis Presley attended a meeting in Memphis with his manager Bob Neal, Colonel Tom Parker and Vernon Presley, at which a new contract was signed that named Colonel Parker as "special advisor" with control of virtually every aspect of Elvis' career. Parker was not really a Colonel at all, but a Dutch immigrant named Andreas Cornelius van Kujik, whose honorary title was given to him in 1948 by Governor Jimmie Davis of Louisiana. He was a flamboyant promoter whose pre-Elvis experience included shows called The Great Parker Pony Circus and Tom Parker and His Dancing Turkeys and was a veteran of carnivals, medicine shows and various other entertainment enterprises.
Elvis Presley's "It's Now Or Never" sat on top of the Billboard singles chart in 1960, where it would stay for a month. The record would have international sales of over 20 million and became a personal favorite of The King.
Despite the fact that the US record charts are dominated by Rock and Roll, crooner Dean Martin had the number one record with his biggest hit, "Everybody Loves Somebody" in 1964. It made it to #11 in the UK. The song had been around since 1949 and had been previously recorded by several well known artists without success.
In 1962, drummer Pete Best played his last gig with the Beatles at the Cavern in Liverpool, England.
The Beatles' third North American tour kicked off at Shea Stadium in 1965- in front of a record crowd of 55,000 fans and 2,000 security guards. It grossed $304,000 dollars. The Beatles' share was $160,000. Sharing the bill with The Beatles; Brenda Holloway, The King Curtis Band, The Young Rascals and Sounds Incorporated. The Fab four played their usual 30-minute set. Too bad the band was virtually inaudible.
Norman Petty (produced Buddy Holly, Buddy Knox and the Fireballs and recorded with his own trio) died of leukemia in 1984.
The Woodstock Music and Art Festival began on Max Yasgur's 600 acre farm in Bethel, New York on August 15, 1969. The three-day long festival drew a crowd of more than 500,000 people and became one of the most celebrated Rock and Folk concert festivals of all time. The free event featured, Jimi Hendrix, Joe Cocker, Crosby Stills Nash & Young, Santana, The Who, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, The Band, Canned Heat, Joan Baez, Santana, Melanie, Ten Years After, Sly and the Family Stone, Johnny Winter, Jefferson Airplane, Ravi Shanker, Country Joe and the Fish, Blood Sweat and Tears, Arlo Guthrie, and Joe Cocker. During the three days there were three deaths, two births and four miscarriages.
In 2002, a memorial to John Lennon was unveiled in the remote Scottish village of Durness, where Lennon had spent his holidays from age seven to fifteen. The lyrics from "In My Life" were inscribed on three stones.
In 2007, The Osmond Brothers, joined by siblings Donny, Marie and Jimmy, took the stage for the taping of a 50th anniversary reunion show to be aired on PBS. A meeting of no less than seven singing Osmonds onstage hadn't happened in more than 20 years, although no one could remember the exact date of the last full family concert.
George Harrison's autobiography, "I, Me, Mine" was originally published in 1980.
In 1966, Bobby Darin recorded "If I Were a Carpenter." It later goes to No. 8. Darin had seized upon Tim Hardin's song after listening to the songwriter's demos. He later recorded a whole album of Hardin, although the author himself was reportedly incensed at how Darin imitated his vocals note for note.
"The Wizard of Oz" premiered in Hollywood, CA in 1939. Judy Garland became famous for the movie's song "Somewhere Over the Rainbow."
In 1941, Peggy Lee, one of the most important women in rock, recorded her first vocal with Benny Goodman's band.
In 1992,Boyz II Men started a 13 week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'End Of The Road' the groups first US No.1. Taken from the Eddie Murphy film 'Boomerang', it broke the 36-year-old record held by Elvis for the longest run at No.1
Thursday, August 14, 2008
More Elvis News
Presley Photos From 50's Becoming Available, Elvis & Priscilla Barbie Dolls Unveiled
Behind the scenes photos of Elvis Presley from his October 26, 1956 appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show will soon be made available at VintageKingPictures.com (look for the site after August 18). The photos were taken by Richard Weede who was at the show and backstage because his father, Robert Weede was also appearing to promote his Broadway show The Most Happy Fella.
The photos have been in the younger Weedes garage and were only found in February 2007 by his own son. Included are shots of Presley talking with Sullivan who was instructing the singer not to do any of the hip shaking he had done during his previous performance on the show.
Meanwhile, here's a sneak peak at the upcoming Elvis and Priscilla Presley Barbie Dolls from Mattel. The couple is dressed in replicas of their wedding ware from 1967. Only 5,000 will be made available worldwide.
In My Neck Of The Woods
Just saw this, I will certainly make a point to visit!
A rare exhibition of John Lennon's art will be on display starting this Saturday through September 1 at the Waukesha County Historical Society Museum in suburban Milwaukee.
Yoko Ono is very protective of the pieces, which include 27 pen and pencil drawings and five lithographs and seriographs, as they are very fragile and valuable. She will not allow them to be photographed in full for fears that the photos will be diseminated on the Internet and counterfitted.
A rare exhibition of John Lennon's art will be on display starting this Saturday through September 1 at the Waukesha County Historical Society Museum in suburban Milwaukee.
Yoko Ono is very protective of the pieces, which include 27 pen and pencil drawings and five lithographs and seriographs, as they are very fragile and valuable. She will not allow them to be photographed in full for fears that the photos will be diseminated on the Internet and counterfitted.
Police Vinyl Set
Best Buy Presents The Police Encore Performance from Madison Square Garden Live on Best Buy.com on August 7, 2008
Announces the Release and Presale of the Live Double DVD/CD Collectors Set, "The Police: Certifiable"
Available Only At Best Buy
By BusinessWire
MINNEAPOLIS, BUSINESS WIRE -- Thirty years after their first American tour, one of the biggest bands in rock history, The Police will play their final show at Madison Square Garden in New York City on August 7. Fans unable to obtain coveted final performance tickets will now have the opportunity to be a part of this historic evening thanks to an exclusive webcast presented by Best Buy. Fans are invited to share the band's final moments on stage, live from the comfort of their own homes.
After fifteen months of touring, The Police will take to the stage one last time in New York on August 7, 2008 as a benefit for New York Public Television. Best Buy will be on-site to document the band's historic final moments on stage and will exclusively stream live footage of their final encore on BestBuy.com hosted by pop culture correspondent Lauren Scala. To view the live footage, fans should log on to www.BestBuy.com/ThePolice at 10:45 PM EST.
"At Best Buy we understand how passionate our consumers are about music and we are thrilled to be able to share these once in a lifetime moments with those who do not have the opportunity to be at the concert in-person" said Gary Arnold, senior entertainment officer for Best Buy.
In addition to the live webcast, which includes three of the last four songs in the encore, Best Buy will begin the presale of an exclusive DVD/CD set, "The Police: Certifiable". The set features the band's entire concert from Buenos Aires as well as bonus footage, available in a 2 DVD/2CD standard format or a 1 DVD/2CD Blu-ray format. Also available is a three LP premium vinyl set with an MP3 file key (a one-time free download of entire album).
Announces the Release and Presale of the Live Double DVD/CD Collectors Set, "The Police: Certifiable"
Available Only At Best Buy
By BusinessWire
MINNEAPOLIS, BUSINESS WIRE -- Thirty years after their first American tour, one of the biggest bands in rock history, The Police will play their final show at Madison Square Garden in New York City on August 7. Fans unable to obtain coveted final performance tickets will now have the opportunity to be a part of this historic evening thanks to an exclusive webcast presented by Best Buy. Fans are invited to share the band's final moments on stage, live from the comfort of their own homes.
After fifteen months of touring, The Police will take to the stage one last time in New York on August 7, 2008 as a benefit for New York Public Television. Best Buy will be on-site to document the band's historic final moments on stage and will exclusively stream live footage of their final encore on BestBuy.com hosted by pop culture correspondent Lauren Scala. To view the live footage, fans should log on to www.BestBuy.com/ThePolice at 10:45 PM EST.
"At Best Buy we understand how passionate our consumers are about music and we are thrilled to be able to share these once in a lifetime moments with those who do not have the opportunity to be at the concert in-person" said Gary Arnold, senior entertainment officer for Best Buy.
In addition to the live webcast, which includes three of the last four songs in the encore, Best Buy will begin the presale of an exclusive DVD/CD set, "The Police: Certifiable". The set features the band's entire concert from Buenos Aires as well as bonus footage, available in a 2 DVD/2CD standard format or a 1 DVD/2CD Blu-ray format. Also available is a three LP premium vinyl set with an MP3 file key (a one-time free download of entire album).
New Oasis Single
Oasis’ new single, the first taster of seventh album ‘Dig Out Your Own Soul’, is to be played for the first time on Xfm tomorrow at 8.15am. Released on 29th September, the single comes packaged with b-side ‘Falling Down’, a Chemical Brothers remix of another of the album’s tracks.
According to Oasis mainman Noel Gallagher, the track is one of Oasis’s most accessible yet.
“It was written dead fast. And recorded dead fast. ‘The Shock of The Lightning’, basically, is the demo. It has retained its energy and there’s a lot to be said for that, I think. The first time you record something is always the best.”
Fans buying the single via iTunes or the band’s website will have the option of buying the video for the single. A strictly limited edition 7" vinyl collector’s box will also be made available separately for fans from both oasisinet.com and select retailers to enable fans to collect all the 7" singles from the forthcoming album campaign.
According to Oasis mainman Noel Gallagher, the track is one of Oasis’s most accessible yet.
“It was written dead fast. And recorded dead fast. ‘The Shock of The Lightning’, basically, is the demo. It has retained its energy and there’s a lot to be said for that, I think. The first time you record something is always the best.”
Fans buying the single via iTunes or the band’s website will have the option of buying the video for the single. A strictly limited edition 7" vinyl collector’s box will also be made available separately for fans from both oasisinet.com and select retailers to enable fans to collect all the 7" singles from the forthcoming album campaign.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Let Him Rot
Mark David Chapman, the man who killed John Lennon, has been denied parole for the fifth time. I am all for rehabilitation, but there is none for this idiot.
New Glen Campbell Vinyl LP
"Meet Glen Campbell" is now avaliable on vinyl from Capitol Records. Not available on CD until next week, this marks the former Beach Boy's return to Capitol Records.
This special limited edition LP includes all ten tracks which will be on the CD, including Glen's cover of John Lennon's "Grow Old With Me", and a bonus track, Glen's original version of his hit song "Galveston". The vinyl edition also includes a digital card for the entire album.
This special limited edition LP includes all ten tracks which will be on the CD, including Glen's cover of John Lennon's "Grow Old With Me", and a bonus track, Glen's original version of his hit song "Galveston". The vinyl edition also includes a digital card for the entire album.
This Date In Music History- August 13
Birthdays:
Dave "Baby" Cortez ("Happy Organ") is 70.
Danny Bonaduce of the Partridge Family (though he never actually sang) turns 49.
Jimmy McCracklin ("The Walk") is 87.
History:
In 1924, "The Prisoner's Song" by Vernon Dalhart, became the first country music record to sell one million copies.
Anti-Beatlemania followed Lennon's remark that the group is "more popular than Jesus" in 1966. A Cleveland reverend says he will demand excommunication for any parishioner caught listening to the Fab Four.
Two days after John Lennon's apology for saying the Beatles were more popular than Jesus Christ, radio station KLUE in Longview, Texas organizes a Beatles Bonfire, where the group's records and memorabilia were destroyed. The next morning, the station's transmission tower was struck by lightning, halting all broadcasting.
In 1952, Big Mama Thornton recorded the first version of "Hound Dog," which becomes an R&B No. 1. It's the first composition by the young rock 'n' roll songwriting team of Leiber & Stoller to make an impact on the charts.
In 1938, Robert Johnson died three days after he was poisoned by the jealous husband of a woman he began seeing during a stint at the Three Forks juke joint in Greenwood, Mississippi.
The Matrix, a pizza parlor turned rock club, featured Jefferson Airplane as its opening act in 1965. Vocalist Marty Balin is a co-owner, and the still-legal hallucinogen LSD is sold at the bar.
In 1966, "Summer in the City" topped the charts for three weeks, displacing "Wild Thing," by the Troggs. The song started out as a poem written by John Sebastian's brother, Mark, before the band changed some words and then set it to music by the Lovin’ Spoonful.
The Jackson 5 won an amateur-night competition at Harlem's famed Apollo Theatre in 1967.
In 1971, King Curtis was stabbed to death outside his apartment on New York's Upper West Side.
Curtis Mayfield was paralyzed from the neck down after high winds cause a lighting rig to fall on him at a concert in Brooklyn, New York in 1990. Mayfield passed away on December 26, 1999.
Crosby, Stills & Nash returned to the scene of an early triumph, performing at the Woodstock '94 festival. This year was the 25th anniversary of both Crosby, Stills and Nash's formation and the original Woodstock festival.
Bobby Darin signed a six-picture deal with Paramount Studios worth $1 million in 1959.
In 1972, John Lennon and Stevie Wonder performed at New York's "One-To-One Concert" to aid the retarded.
Todd Rundgren, best remembered for his 1978 hit, "Hello, It's Me", was held hostage while his house is robbed by four masked men in 1980. Rundgren, his girlfriend and three houseguests were bound and gagged during the theft. It was reported that one of the intruders had been humming Todd's hit "I Saw The Light" during the robbery.
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band played the first of five sold-out nights at the Bottom Line in New York City in 1975. The shows received rave reviews and created a buzz in the music industry.
Tubes release their self-titled debut album in 1975, featuring the band's anthem "White Punks On Dope.”
Legendary Stax soul singer Joe Tex ("The Love You Save [May Be Your Own]") died of a heart attack in Navasota, Texas in 1982. He was 44.
Dave "Baby" Cortez ("Happy Organ") is 70.
Danny Bonaduce of the Partridge Family (though he never actually sang) turns 49.
Jimmy McCracklin ("The Walk") is 87.
History:
In 1924, "The Prisoner's Song" by Vernon Dalhart, became the first country music record to sell one million copies.
Anti-Beatlemania followed Lennon's remark that the group is "more popular than Jesus" in 1966. A Cleveland reverend says he will demand excommunication for any parishioner caught listening to the Fab Four.
Two days after John Lennon's apology for saying the Beatles were more popular than Jesus Christ, radio station KLUE in Longview, Texas organizes a Beatles Bonfire, where the group's records and memorabilia were destroyed. The next morning, the station's transmission tower was struck by lightning, halting all broadcasting.
In 1952, Big Mama Thornton recorded the first version of "Hound Dog," which becomes an R&B No. 1. It's the first composition by the young rock 'n' roll songwriting team of Leiber & Stoller to make an impact on the charts.
In 1938, Robert Johnson died three days after he was poisoned by the jealous husband of a woman he began seeing during a stint at the Three Forks juke joint in Greenwood, Mississippi.
The Matrix, a pizza parlor turned rock club, featured Jefferson Airplane as its opening act in 1965. Vocalist Marty Balin is a co-owner, and the still-legal hallucinogen LSD is sold at the bar.
In 1966, "Summer in the City" topped the charts for three weeks, displacing "Wild Thing," by the Troggs. The song started out as a poem written by John Sebastian's brother, Mark, before the band changed some words and then set it to music by the Lovin’ Spoonful.
The Jackson 5 won an amateur-night competition at Harlem's famed Apollo Theatre in 1967.
In 1971, King Curtis was stabbed to death outside his apartment on New York's Upper West Side.
Curtis Mayfield was paralyzed from the neck down after high winds cause a lighting rig to fall on him at a concert in Brooklyn, New York in 1990. Mayfield passed away on December 26, 1999.
Crosby, Stills & Nash returned to the scene of an early triumph, performing at the Woodstock '94 festival. This year was the 25th anniversary of both Crosby, Stills and Nash's formation and the original Woodstock festival.
Bobby Darin signed a six-picture deal with Paramount Studios worth $1 million in 1959.
In 1972, John Lennon and Stevie Wonder performed at New York's "One-To-One Concert" to aid the retarded.
Todd Rundgren, best remembered for his 1978 hit, "Hello, It's Me", was held hostage while his house is robbed by four masked men in 1980. Rundgren, his girlfriend and three houseguests were bound and gagged during the theft. It was reported that one of the intruders had been humming Todd's hit "I Saw The Light" during the robbery.
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band played the first of five sold-out nights at the Bottom Line in New York City in 1975. The shows received rave reviews and created a buzz in the music industry.
Tubes release their self-titled debut album in 1975, featuring the band's anthem "White Punks On Dope.”
Legendary Stax soul singer Joe Tex ("The Love You Save [May Be Your Own]") died of a heart attack in Navasota, Texas in 1982. He was 44.
Monday, August 11, 2008
Vinyl Record Day- Aug 12
Tommorow is Vinyl Record Day, a day to celebrate this historical audio medium with friends and family. To celebrate this day, please take time out of your hectic life and place a couple of records on the turntable and appreciate the sound quality, the social importance of records and most of all, whatever you listen to; please enjoy the music.
I recieved an email from the founder of Vinyl Record Day, Gary Freiberg, and there is some news to report:
"To celebrate the 2008 Vinyl Record Day, we are announcing submission has been made to the US Postal Citizen Stamp Advisory Committee to encourage the preservation of America's audio history on the vinyl record by issuing a stamp series based on the cultural influences of vinyl over the past sixty years."
"Many music artists have been honored with stamps but never has the medium that brought theirs and many other artists performances to the world been commemorated and recognized. Vinyl Record Day is looking to the near future when this culturally important recording medium will be honored and preservation of recordings on vinyl will be encouraged through the US post system."
Let's hope that this becomes a reality. If you would like to support Vinyl Record Day, stop by the site and make a donation, it is that important. And remember, it is always about the music.
www.VinylRecordDay.org
I recieved an email from the founder of Vinyl Record Day, Gary Freiberg, and there is some news to report:
"To celebrate the 2008 Vinyl Record Day, we are announcing submission has been made to the US Postal Citizen Stamp Advisory Committee to encourage the preservation of America's audio history on the vinyl record by issuing a stamp series based on the cultural influences of vinyl over the past sixty years."
"Many music artists have been honored with stamps but never has the medium that brought theirs and many other artists performances to the world been commemorated and recognized. Vinyl Record Day is looking to the near future when this culturally important recording medium will be honored and preservation of recordings on vinyl will be encouraged through the US post system."
Let's hope that this becomes a reality. If you would like to support Vinyl Record Day, stop by the site and make a donation, it is that important. And remember, it is always about the music.
www.VinylRecordDay.org
This Date In Music History- August 11
Birthdays:
Eric Carmen ("All By Myself" and the Raspberries) turns 59.
Joe Jackson ("Is She Really Going Out With Him") is 53.
Producer Kenny Gamble, who with Leon Huff perfected the Philly soul sound turns 65.
Benjamin Gibbard, vocalist for Death Cab For Cutie, was born in Bremerton, WA in 1976.
History:
In 1956, Elvis Presley released "Don't Be Cruel." The single became a No. 1 pop, country, and R&B hit.
Elvis Presley earned his first gold record in 1958 for "Hard Headed Woman.” By 2002, he will have sold over 100 million records.
In 1966, The Beatles held a press conference at the Astor Towers Hotel in Chicago where John Lennon apologized for his remarks that The Beatles were "more popular than Jesus now." The US media mis-quoted Lennon and rallies were held all over the country to smash and burn Beatle records. Lennon said later that he was trying to say, "the way they (some fans) carry on, it's like we're more popular than Jesus Christ." Meanwhile, the city of Memphis asks the Beatles not to play any concerts there and the price of Capitol Records' stock drops.
Apple Records was formed in 1968.
In 1968, the Beatles released "Hey Jude," their first single to bear the Apple imprint. The single, backed with "Revolution," went to No. 1. In England, today marks the start of National Apple Week, named in honor of the Beatles' fledgling record label.
The Beatles' "Help!" film opened in New York in 1965 (nearly two weeks after its London premiere).
In 1973, Bill Aucoin approached Kiss after seeing them play in New York to offer his services as manager. He also promised them a record deal, which they later made with Casablanca. The rest is Rock & Roll history.
In 2005, Mariah Carey sat atop the U.S. singles chart for a staggering 11th week with "We Belong Together."
In 1962, a flood of new releases hit the Billboard Hot 100 chart- that will go on to be hit records. Mary Wells' "You Beat Me to the Punch,” Ray Stevens' "Ahab the Arab,” Johnny Tillotson's "Send Me the Pillow That You Dream On,” The Marvelettes' "Beechwood 4-5789,” The Contours' "Do You Love Me,” The Beach Boys' "Surfin' Safari,” Booker T and the MGs' classic instrumental "Green Onions" and crooner Tony Bennett's "I Left My Heart in San Francisco.”
After eight previous songs landed in the Billboard Top 40, Neil Sedaka scored his first US number one hit in 1962 with "Breaking Up Is Hard To Do". It reached #7 on the UK chart.
In 1984, Ray Parker Jr. had Billboard's number one song with "Ghostbusters.” Huey Lewis would later launch a successful plagiarism suit, claiming the song was a rip-off of his "I Want a New Drug".
Although they were nearly 20 years old, six Monkees albums that had been re-released, re-entered Billboard's Hot 200 LP chart in 1986.
In 1987, The Beatles' album "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" was named 'the best album made during the last 20 years' by Rolling Stone magazine.
The Kingston Trio were the mystery guests on TV's "What's My Line" in 1963.
The Edgar Winter Group's "Free Ride" was released in 1973.
Aerosmith goes gold with their “Toys In The Attic” LP in 1975.
Eric Carmen ("All By Myself" and the Raspberries) turns 59.
Joe Jackson ("Is She Really Going Out With Him") is 53.
Producer Kenny Gamble, who with Leon Huff perfected the Philly soul sound turns 65.
Benjamin Gibbard, vocalist for Death Cab For Cutie, was born in Bremerton, WA in 1976.
History:
In 1956, Elvis Presley released "Don't Be Cruel." The single became a No. 1 pop, country, and R&B hit.
Elvis Presley earned his first gold record in 1958 for "Hard Headed Woman.” By 2002, he will have sold over 100 million records.
In 1966, The Beatles held a press conference at the Astor Towers Hotel in Chicago where John Lennon apologized for his remarks that The Beatles were "more popular than Jesus now." The US media mis-quoted Lennon and rallies were held all over the country to smash and burn Beatle records. Lennon said later that he was trying to say, "the way they (some fans) carry on, it's like we're more popular than Jesus Christ." Meanwhile, the city of Memphis asks the Beatles not to play any concerts there and the price of Capitol Records' stock drops.
Apple Records was formed in 1968.
In 1968, the Beatles released "Hey Jude," their first single to bear the Apple imprint. The single, backed with "Revolution," went to No. 1. In England, today marks the start of National Apple Week, named in honor of the Beatles' fledgling record label.
The Beatles' "Help!" film opened in New York in 1965 (nearly two weeks after its London premiere).
In 1973, Bill Aucoin approached Kiss after seeing them play in New York to offer his services as manager. He also promised them a record deal, which they later made with Casablanca. The rest is Rock & Roll history.
In 2005, Mariah Carey sat atop the U.S. singles chart for a staggering 11th week with "We Belong Together."
In 1962, a flood of new releases hit the Billboard Hot 100 chart- that will go on to be hit records. Mary Wells' "You Beat Me to the Punch,” Ray Stevens' "Ahab the Arab,” Johnny Tillotson's "Send Me the Pillow That You Dream On,” The Marvelettes' "Beechwood 4-5789,” The Contours' "Do You Love Me,” The Beach Boys' "Surfin' Safari,” Booker T and the MGs' classic instrumental "Green Onions" and crooner Tony Bennett's "I Left My Heart in San Francisco.”
After eight previous songs landed in the Billboard Top 40, Neil Sedaka scored his first US number one hit in 1962 with "Breaking Up Is Hard To Do". It reached #7 on the UK chart.
In 1984, Ray Parker Jr. had Billboard's number one song with "Ghostbusters.” Huey Lewis would later launch a successful plagiarism suit, claiming the song was a rip-off of his "I Want a New Drug".
Although they were nearly 20 years old, six Monkees albums that had been re-released, re-entered Billboard's Hot 200 LP chart in 1986.
In 1987, The Beatles' album "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" was named 'the best album made during the last 20 years' by Rolling Stone magazine.
The Kingston Trio were the mystery guests on TV's "What's My Line" in 1963.
The Edgar Winter Group's "Free Ride" was released in 1973.
Aerosmith goes gold with their “Toys In The Attic” LP in 1975.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Got Vinyl?
Rolling Stone published a piece in its June 12, 2008 issue noting a resurgence in vinyl sales -- a smart follow-up to the magazine’s piece a few months before on the decline in recording quality and mastering. As more music fans become dissatisfied with digital formats, especially MP3s, they’re turning to vinyl for better sound. The numbers the article quoted won’t keep Apple’s Steve Jobs awake at night -- the biggest seller was Sundazed Records’ reissue of Bob Dylan’s Blonde on Blonde, at 25,000 copies since its release in 2004 -- but they’re enough to help ensure that LPs will keep a healthy enough following to keep them alive.
The analog advocates quoted in the piece, including mastering engineer Bob Ludwig, defend LPs for the reasons most of us remain loyal to a format that’s been repeatedly pronounced dead. Records sound warmer and give you a better sense of the way the music actually feels -- you can hear the attack of the bass, and drums often have a more visceral punch. I was reminded of vinyl’s power to connect me to music in ways that CDs don’t a few months ago while listening to Frank Zappa’s music in both formats. I preferred the vinyl by far. The soundstage was deeper, and the music sounded more natural. The kickdrums on the close of "Holiday in Berlin, Full-Blown," from Burnt Weeny Sandwich, moved more air via vinyl than they did via CD. They hit me harder.
But I’m not such a diehard record lover that I avoid CDs altogether. CD players have improved vastly in the last few years, and, in theory, digital mastering technology is better (it’s what some engineers do with that technology that’s disturbing). I won’t even argue that a recording on vinyl always sounds better than its CD counterpart. Verve’s 1960s pressings, made after the company became a subsidiary of MGM, are often noisy, and the CDs released under the Verve moniker are usually well mastered. I do enjoy listening to CDs, and a lot of the music in my collection isn’t easily or affordably available on LP. On the other hand, some titles aren’t available on CD at all. As far as I can tell, Dizzy Gillespie’s A Portrait of Duke Ellington has been released on CD only in Japan. I was able to pick it up on vinyl, along with a number of other hard-to-find titles, from a friend of mine whose uncle was a jazz collector.
Another gem I picked up from that collection was Dale’s Wail, a two-LP reissue of Roy Eldridge’s mid-’50s Verve sessions. The music is available as part of a Mosaic set, but otherwise, you won’t find it on CD. Same for mono versions of the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and Magical Mystery Tour, and Blonde on Blonde. If you love those recordings, or Miles Ahead, Miles Davis’s first collaboration with Gil Evans for Columbia Records, you owe it to yourself to hear them in mono. As much as I enjoy Phil Schapp’s work on the CD version of Miles Ahead, I like the mono LP better -- the tape splices are less jarring, and the music flows more easily.
If you’ve heard Van Morrison’s Astral Weeks only on the edgy CD that’s been around since 1988, then you really must hear it on LP -- it’s so much richer and more enveloping on vinyl. You can find a copy of Astral Weeks on eBay, but be careful. One seller currently lists two copies of the LP and is asking $45 for each. He tells you the condition of the record and cover, but doesn’t describe the label or list the matrix numbers from the deadwax. A seller asking $45 for an LP is pitching to collectors and should know that they’re looking for such arcana. A seller who isn’t aware of that fact doesn’t know what he’s doing, and can’t be counted on to accurately describe a record’s condition.
Here are a few more tips I’ve gained from 10 years’ experience of shopping on eBay:
1) Try to learn some history of the LP. An olive-green Warner/7Arts-label Astral Weeks is collectible; an olive-green WB label is less so but still sonically good and may command a few bucks. Check the "Completed Items" listings on eBay for an idea of what each pressing might be going for. Later pressings may sound OK, but they’re not worth more than $10 even in mint condition.
2) Look at the seller’s history. Buy only from one with a long history of sales and a high rating.
3) Read the product description carefully. The seller may think his copy of Revolver is rare, but if he hasn’t played it, and/or doesn’t list the condition of the record and the label, and/or doesn’t include a photo, he doesn’t know what he’s talking about.
4) Buy from sellers who use PayPal, unless they have an extensive history (for me, it’s at least 100 transactions with a 98% or higher rating). I’ve been stung only once by an eBay seller, and it was because I didn’t follow these guidelines.
Because vinyl shops are now unheard of outside urban areas or college towns, the Web has been a boon to vinyl collectors. Music Direct, Acoustic Sounds, and Elusive Disc are great sources for vinyl on the Web, and while they carry many of the same titles, each has unique selections. True Blue Music, a subsidiary of Mosaic Records, sells mostly jazz vinyl; you can pick up Original Jazz Classics pressings from them for about $10 each. (The other three retailers mentioned also sell OJCs, so check them all if you’re looking for a particular title.) True Blue also sells jazz on some other labels, such as VSOP and obscure Japanese record companies. In many cases, I haven’t seen these LPs anywhere else. Finally, check out the vinyl site of Amazon.com, which carries a wide variety of LPs and offers free shipping for orders over $25. I've had mixed results with Amazon.com's shipping, but the rest of these retailers take great care in packaging LPs. A little Web searching ("online LP retailers" should do it) can help you find other online sellers. Start with www.buyvinylrecords.net.
Buying records via the Web won’t ever take the place of rifling through a stack of LPs and finding something you really want. I often stop by flea markets to look for record dealers, or I’ll swing by a Goodwill or Salvation Army thrift shop. There’s nothing like finding an old Blue Note or other gem for a buck. I also like to find out if there’s a record shop in a town I’m visiting. When, a few months ago, my wife and I visited Albany, she did a Web search and found three record stores there. She also knew we’d be stopping for lunch on the way and found a shop in Scranton, PA. Sometimes, I think vinyl collectors develop a sixth sense. On the way to a concert in Washington, DC, I stopped in Silver Springs, MD for a cup of coffee. Wandering around, I ran into a record shop and found three great jazz LPs, two of which are not in print on CD.
Cleaning is a must for LPs. Again, the Web is a good source of information, but articles on record cleaning read like case studies in obsessive compulsive disorder. In this instance, the sufferers are on to something. The cleaner the record, the better it will sound. Whatever’s in the grooves is picked up by the stylus and magnified. For years, I used a solution of one part isopropyl alcohol to four parts distilled water, which I then wiped off and followed with a rinse of distilled water. I tried other cleaning products and noticed no difference -- until I bought Audio Intelligent’s vinyl-cleaning fluids, after reading Marc Mickelson’s review in SoundStage!. Every word he wrote is true. I noticed a significant difference in the sound of LPs I cleaned using Audio Intelligent, which removed nearly all the background noise on the Verve pressings I referred to earlier. Even new records benefit from cleaning, which can remove the mold-release compounds that remain from the manufacturing process.
Record-cleaning machines are great, but they’re expensive, starting at about $300. Until you can save up for one, try Spin Clean, originally manufactured for sale by Record Rama in Pittsburgh. Record Rama should be returning to business this month, but you can pick up a Spin Clean from Garage-A-Records -- at $65, a cheap and viable alternative. The Spin Clean consists of a water reservoir, two rollers adjustable for record size, and two cleaning brushes that grip the record as you spin it through the unit. By the time I use the Spin Clean on my own LPs, I’ve already cleaned them with Audio Intelligent; the machine merely provides a final rinse to make sure any residue is gone. The cleaning solution provided (you add it to the water) is good if you want to do a quick clean and dry, but in most cases I use distilled water alone.
And if you just want to put an LP on the platter and spin it, pick up a Mobile Fidelity record brush for a quick clean.
But obviously, while LPs can be more work than CDs, I think there are advantages to the effort required by vinyl. Cleaning and carefully preparing an LP for play helps you focus -- you’re telling your brain you’re going to concentrate on listening to music. In addition, you’ll learn more about the music. It’s not only because I have weak, middle-aged eyes that I know less about who produced or mastered many of my CDs -- I’ve had trouble reading the print on CD cases since the beginning. And even the most ingeniously designed CD case lacks the impact and visual flair of a foot-square LP cover.
In the end, though, what matters is the sound. Even after 25 years, analog still beats digital.
Source: http://soundstageav.com/onmusic.html
written by Joseph Taylor
The analog advocates quoted in the piece, including mastering engineer Bob Ludwig, defend LPs for the reasons most of us remain loyal to a format that’s been repeatedly pronounced dead. Records sound warmer and give you a better sense of the way the music actually feels -- you can hear the attack of the bass, and drums often have a more visceral punch. I was reminded of vinyl’s power to connect me to music in ways that CDs don’t a few months ago while listening to Frank Zappa’s music in both formats. I preferred the vinyl by far. The soundstage was deeper, and the music sounded more natural. The kickdrums on the close of "Holiday in Berlin, Full-Blown," from Burnt Weeny Sandwich, moved more air via vinyl than they did via CD. They hit me harder.
But I’m not such a diehard record lover that I avoid CDs altogether. CD players have improved vastly in the last few years, and, in theory, digital mastering technology is better (it’s what some engineers do with that technology that’s disturbing). I won’t even argue that a recording on vinyl always sounds better than its CD counterpart. Verve’s 1960s pressings, made after the company became a subsidiary of MGM, are often noisy, and the CDs released under the Verve moniker are usually well mastered. I do enjoy listening to CDs, and a lot of the music in my collection isn’t easily or affordably available on LP. On the other hand, some titles aren’t available on CD at all. As far as I can tell, Dizzy Gillespie’s A Portrait of Duke Ellington has been released on CD only in Japan. I was able to pick it up on vinyl, along with a number of other hard-to-find titles, from a friend of mine whose uncle was a jazz collector.
Another gem I picked up from that collection was Dale’s Wail, a two-LP reissue of Roy Eldridge’s mid-’50s Verve sessions. The music is available as part of a Mosaic set, but otherwise, you won’t find it on CD. Same for mono versions of the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and Magical Mystery Tour, and Blonde on Blonde. If you love those recordings, or Miles Ahead, Miles Davis’s first collaboration with Gil Evans for Columbia Records, you owe it to yourself to hear them in mono. As much as I enjoy Phil Schapp’s work on the CD version of Miles Ahead, I like the mono LP better -- the tape splices are less jarring, and the music flows more easily.
If you’ve heard Van Morrison’s Astral Weeks only on the edgy CD that’s been around since 1988, then you really must hear it on LP -- it’s so much richer and more enveloping on vinyl. You can find a copy of Astral Weeks on eBay, but be careful. One seller currently lists two copies of the LP and is asking $45 for each. He tells you the condition of the record and cover, but doesn’t describe the label or list the matrix numbers from the deadwax. A seller asking $45 for an LP is pitching to collectors and should know that they’re looking for such arcana. A seller who isn’t aware of that fact doesn’t know what he’s doing, and can’t be counted on to accurately describe a record’s condition.
Here are a few more tips I’ve gained from 10 years’ experience of shopping on eBay:
1) Try to learn some history of the LP. An olive-green Warner/7Arts-label Astral Weeks is collectible; an olive-green WB label is less so but still sonically good and may command a few bucks. Check the "Completed Items" listings on eBay for an idea of what each pressing might be going for. Later pressings may sound OK, but they’re not worth more than $10 even in mint condition.
2) Look at the seller’s history. Buy only from one with a long history of sales and a high rating.
3) Read the product description carefully. The seller may think his copy of Revolver is rare, but if he hasn’t played it, and/or doesn’t list the condition of the record and the label, and/or doesn’t include a photo, he doesn’t know what he’s talking about.
4) Buy from sellers who use PayPal, unless they have an extensive history (for me, it’s at least 100 transactions with a 98% or higher rating). I’ve been stung only once by an eBay seller, and it was because I didn’t follow these guidelines.
Because vinyl shops are now unheard of outside urban areas or college towns, the Web has been a boon to vinyl collectors. Music Direct, Acoustic Sounds, and Elusive Disc are great sources for vinyl on the Web, and while they carry many of the same titles, each has unique selections. True Blue Music, a subsidiary of Mosaic Records, sells mostly jazz vinyl; you can pick up Original Jazz Classics pressings from them for about $10 each. (The other three retailers mentioned also sell OJCs, so check them all if you’re looking for a particular title.) True Blue also sells jazz on some other labels, such as VSOP and obscure Japanese record companies. In many cases, I haven’t seen these LPs anywhere else. Finally, check out the vinyl site of Amazon.com, which carries a wide variety of LPs and offers free shipping for orders over $25. I've had mixed results with Amazon.com's shipping, but the rest of these retailers take great care in packaging LPs. A little Web searching ("online LP retailers" should do it) can help you find other online sellers. Start with www.buyvinylrecords.net.
Buying records via the Web won’t ever take the place of rifling through a stack of LPs and finding something you really want. I often stop by flea markets to look for record dealers, or I’ll swing by a Goodwill or Salvation Army thrift shop. There’s nothing like finding an old Blue Note or other gem for a buck. I also like to find out if there’s a record shop in a town I’m visiting. When, a few months ago, my wife and I visited Albany, she did a Web search and found three record stores there. She also knew we’d be stopping for lunch on the way and found a shop in Scranton, PA. Sometimes, I think vinyl collectors develop a sixth sense. On the way to a concert in Washington, DC, I stopped in Silver Springs, MD for a cup of coffee. Wandering around, I ran into a record shop and found three great jazz LPs, two of which are not in print on CD.
Cleaning is a must for LPs. Again, the Web is a good source of information, but articles on record cleaning read like case studies in obsessive compulsive disorder. In this instance, the sufferers are on to something. The cleaner the record, the better it will sound. Whatever’s in the grooves is picked up by the stylus and magnified. For years, I used a solution of one part isopropyl alcohol to four parts distilled water, which I then wiped off and followed with a rinse of distilled water. I tried other cleaning products and noticed no difference -- until I bought Audio Intelligent’s vinyl-cleaning fluids, after reading Marc Mickelson’s review in SoundStage!. Every word he wrote is true. I noticed a significant difference in the sound of LPs I cleaned using Audio Intelligent, which removed nearly all the background noise on the Verve pressings I referred to earlier. Even new records benefit from cleaning, which can remove the mold-release compounds that remain from the manufacturing process.
Record-cleaning machines are great, but they’re expensive, starting at about $300. Until you can save up for one, try Spin Clean, originally manufactured for sale by Record Rama in Pittsburgh. Record Rama should be returning to business this month, but you can pick up a Spin Clean from Garage-A-Records -- at $65, a cheap and viable alternative. The Spin Clean consists of a water reservoir, two rollers adjustable for record size, and two cleaning brushes that grip the record as you spin it through the unit. By the time I use the Spin Clean on my own LPs, I’ve already cleaned them with Audio Intelligent; the machine merely provides a final rinse to make sure any residue is gone. The cleaning solution provided (you add it to the water) is good if you want to do a quick clean and dry, but in most cases I use distilled water alone.
And if you just want to put an LP on the platter and spin it, pick up a Mobile Fidelity record brush for a quick clean.
But obviously, while LPs can be more work than CDs, I think there are advantages to the effort required by vinyl. Cleaning and carefully preparing an LP for play helps you focus -- you’re telling your brain you’re going to concentrate on listening to music. In addition, you’ll learn more about the music. It’s not only because I have weak, middle-aged eyes that I know less about who produced or mastered many of my CDs -- I’ve had trouble reading the print on CD cases since the beginning. And even the most ingeniously designed CD case lacks the impact and visual flair of a foot-square LP cover.
In the end, though, what matters is the sound. Even after 25 years, analog still beats digital.
Source: http://soundstageav.com/onmusic.html
written by Joseph Taylor
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Miles Davis - Kind of Blue: 50th Anniversary Collectors Edition Coming in September
MILES DAVIS - Kind of Blue: 50th Anniversary Collectors Edition 2-CD + DVD + LP + book + poster (Columbia/Legacy)
Originally released by Columbia Records on August 17, 1959, Kind of Blue heralded the arrival of a revolutionary new American music, a post-bebop modal jazz structured around simple scales and melodic improvisation. Trumpeter/band leader/composer Miles Davis assembled a sextet of legendary players -- Cannonball Adderley (alto sax), Paul Chambers (bass), Jimmy Cobb (drums), John Coltrane (tenor sax), Bill Evans (piano) (Wynton Kelly plays piano on “Freddie Freeloader") -- to create a sublime atmospheric masterpiece. Fifty years after its release, Kind of Blue continues to transport listeners to a realm all its own while inspiring musicians to create to new sounds -- from acoustic jazz to post-modern ambient -- in every genre imaginable.
Disc 1 of Kind of Blue: 50th Anniversary Collectors Edition will feature the original album in its entirety with the “Flamenco Sketches" alternate take, the rare “Freddie Freeloader" false start, and a selection of in-the-studio dialog from the Kind of Blue sessions. Disc 2 is a CD of rare musical material circa the Kind of Blue recordings including the very first session by the classic Miles Davis sextet (May 26, 1958 -- Davis's 32nd birthday -- with Adderley, Coltrane, Evans, Chambers and Cobb), more than a half hour's worth of studio material -- “On Green Dolphin Street," “Fran-Dance," “Stella By Starlight," “Love For Sale" -- previously available only on the two-time Grammy award winning Miles Davis & John Coltrane boxed set ("The Complete Columbia Recordings 1955-1961); and the first authorized release of two extended live performances: “So What" from the April 9, 1960 Den Haag Concert featuring Miles, Coltrane, Kelly, Chambers and Cobb; and “All Blues" from the April 8, 1960 Zurich Concert (featuring the same band). The final disc, Disc 3, is a DVD including an in-depth documentary illuminating the story behind Kind of Blue; and the historic April 2, 1959 television program “Robert Herridge Theater: The Sound of Miles Davis" starring Miles Davis and John Coltrane.
This deluxe Collector's Edition will also include a vinyl LP copy of Kind of Blue, a poster, and an LP-sized 60-page hardbound book.
Sub Pop Records’ 20th Anniversary
Happy Birthday, Sub Pop
Most of you are probably scratching your heads right about now and saying “Who?” “What?” “Huh?”
2008 is Sub Pop Records’ 20th anniversary, and if you’re one of those who believes good music isn’t sponsored by Ford Trucks or a by-product of the American Idol scrap heap, then you need to celebrate this one. They’re the guys who signed Mudhoney
, Nirvana, and Soundgarden - and instead of becoming some shack-house relic to grunge, they’ve managed to profit from actually fostering bands the major labels wouldn’t event touch. Thus, enabling the rest of us to shoulder a feeling of superiority to have even heard of these groups years later. In other words, they’re always ahead of the curve.
Want proof? How about acts like The Shins, Sleater-Kinney, Afghan Whigs, L7, Band of Horses, Iron & Wine, The Postal Service…ah sweet Jesus, I could go on forever. Take a look at the following…and folks, this ain’t even their entire catalogue… Just a taste of the Sub Pop musicians:
10 Minute Warning, 5ive Style, A Frames, Afghan Whigs, The Album Leaf, All Night Radio, Band of Horses, The Baptist Generals, Beachwood Sparks, Steven Jesse Bernstein, Big Chief, The Black Halos, Blitzen Trapper, The Blue Rags, Broken Girl, The Brunettes, Sera Cahoone, The Catheters, Chappaquiddick Skyline, Billy Childish, Chixdiggit, Chris and Carla, Codeine, Combustible Edison, Comets on Fire, Constantines, Cosmic Psychos, David Cross, CSS, Damon and Naomi Davis, Dead Moon, Death Vessel, Dntel, Julie Doiron, Heather Duby, Dwarves, Earth, The Elected, Elevator Through, Elevator to Hell, Jeremy Enigk, Eric’s Trip, The Evil Tambourines, Fastbacks, Steve Fisk, Fleet Foxes, Flight of The Conchords, Fluid Fruit Bats, Gardener, Gluecifer, Go! Team, The Go, godheadSilo, Grand Archives, Green Magnet School, Green River, The Grifters, The Gutter Twins, Handsome Furs, The Helio Sequence, The Hellacopters, Holopaw, Hot Hot Heat, Mike Ireland, Iron and Wine, Jale, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Damien Jurado, Mark Lanegan, Les Thugs, Jason Loewenstein, Loney, Dear Looper, Love as Laughter, Love Battery, Nebula, Nirvana, No Age, Patton Oswalt, Oxford Collapse, Pernice Brothers, Pigeonhed, The Postal Service, Radio Birdman, The Rapture, Red House Painters, Red Red Meat, Rein Sanction, The Reverend Horton Heat, Rogue Wave, The Ruby Suns, Sebadoh, The Shins, Six Finger Satellite, Sleater-Kinney, Soundgarden, The Spinanes, Rosie Thomas, The Vaselines, The Walkabouts, Wipers, Wolf Parade, The Yo-Yo’s, Michael Yonkers, Zen Guerrilla, Zumpano
Source: http://mixtapetherapy.wordpress.com/
Most of you are probably scratching your heads right about now and saying “Who?” “What?” “Huh?”
2008 is Sub Pop Records’ 20th anniversary, and if you’re one of those who believes good music isn’t sponsored by Ford Trucks or a by-product of the American Idol scrap heap, then you need to celebrate this one. They’re the guys who signed Mudhoney
, Nirvana, and Soundgarden - and instead of becoming some shack-house relic to grunge, they’ve managed to profit from actually fostering bands the major labels wouldn’t event touch. Thus, enabling the rest of us to shoulder a feeling of superiority to have even heard of these groups years later. In other words, they’re always ahead of the curve.Want proof? How about acts like The Shins
, Sleater-Kinney, Afghan Whigs, L7, Band of Horses, Iron & Wine, The Postal Service…ah sweet Jesus, I could go on forever. Take a look at the following…and folks, this ain’t even their entire catalogue… Just a taste of the Sub Pop musicians:10 Minute Warning, 5ive Style, A Frames, Afghan Whigs, The Album Leaf, All Night Radio, Band of Horses, The Baptist Generals, Beachwood Sparks, Steven Jesse Bernstein, Big Chief, The Black Halos, Blitzen Trapper, The Blue Rags, Broken Girl, The Brunettes, Sera Cahoone, The Catheters, Chappaquiddick Skyline, Billy Childish, Chixdiggit, Chris and Carla, Codeine, Combustible Edison, Comets on Fire, Constantines, Cosmic Psychos, David Cross, CSS, Damon and Naomi Davis, Dead Moon, Death Vessel, Dntel, Julie Doiron, Heather Duby, Dwarves, Earth, The Elected, Elevator Through, Elevator to Hell, Jeremy Enigk, Eric’s Trip, The Evil Tambourines, Fastbacks, Steve Fisk, Fleet Foxes, Flight of The Conchords, Fluid Fruit Bats, Gardener, Gluecifer, Go! Team, The Go, godheadSilo, Grand Archives, Green Magnet School, Green River, The Grifters, The Gutter Twins, Handsome Furs, The Helio Sequence, The Hellacopters, Holopaw, Hot Hot Heat, Mike Ireland, Iron and Wine, Jale, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Damien Jurado, Mark Lanegan, Les Thugs, Jason Loewenstein, Loney, Dear Looper, Love as Laughter, Love Battery, Nebula, Nirvana, No Age, Patton Oswalt, Oxford Collapse, Pernice Brothers, Pigeonhed, The Postal Service, Radio Birdman, The Rapture, Red House Painters, Red Red Meat, Rein Sanction, The Reverend Horton Heat, Rogue Wave, The Ruby Suns, Sebadoh, The Shins, Six Finger Satellite, Sleater-Kinney, Soundgarden, The Spinanes, Rosie Thomas, The Vaselines, The Walkabouts, Wipers, Wolf Parade, The Yo-Yo’s, Michael Yonkers, Zen Guerrilla, Zumpano
Source: http://mixtapetherapy.wordpress.com/
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