The vinyl record collecting blog - with news about new vinyl record releases, vinyl record sales, new music releases, album cover art and weekly features
Produced by: Nick Lowe Engineered by: Roger Bechirian Mixed by: Roger Bechirian Mastered by: Shawn R. Britton at Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs
MUSIC
SOUND
Elvis Costello's Soul Album Gets Double 45 Treatment!
by Michael Fremer June 07, 2011
While American soul music— northern urban and southern rural—and UK-via-the-Caribbean-derived Ska course through the veins of the fourth Elvis Costello and the Attractions album, the flesh thankfully remains white limey.
The album may be a one off diversion from the band's natural creative path but it doesn't go off the cliff. The drum-centric arrangements are relatively spare and to the rhythmic point. Guitars accent but don't dominate the landscape.
If you don't listen carefully to "High Fidelity" you might not even notice its Detroit roots. Even the cover of Sam and Dave's "I Can't Stand Up For Falling Down" doesn't outwardly sound like something emanating from Stax/Volt. If you don't pay attention to Elvis's superb overdubbed background singing on the frantic "Love For Tender" you might not recognize the classic soul gestures. Most obvious are the Ska rhythms and echoey guitar production of "B Movie" and "Human Touch" and the Nashville melodrama in "Motel Matches."
Once you latch on to what's going on though, the antecedents of just about every track come sharply into focus but like the vocals, they remain back in the mix.
The album's hard nosed intensity is unlike any of Costello's previous efforts. The worldly political commentary on Armed Forces and on earlier albums is gone, replaced by more personal matters that don't tolerate irony in either the writing or especially the singing.
Elvis sings with an unrelenting ferocity rarely heard from him before or since. When he goes falsetto at the end of "Beaten to the Punch" he expresses exasperation anger and hurt. He rarely lingers on a lengthy vibrato note.
The song line-up is intense, ranging from affirmations like "Clowntime is Over" to the usual male/female struggles "Possession," "Man Called Uncle" and "Riot Act." One of my favorites is "King Horse," a song about the lousy job of being a waitress. There are twenty songs here but even more gems from these sessions had to be cut. Songs like "Girls Talk" (excellently covered by Dave Edmunds), "Getting Mighty Crowded" and the uncharacteristically weep "Losing You," among others.
It was an astonishing burst of creative energy on all sides, including Nick Lowe's production. However, you really need to read the fine print on this one, written by Lowe just below the track listing for the original's side two. He's goofing on you and he knows it.
Lowe writes that he and Elvis "...talked long and hard" about the wisdom of cramming ten loud rock songs onto each side of a single record. We all know what happens when you do that. Levels have to drop, bass gets rolled off, and often the results, already compromised, need to be dynamically compressed.
'We are proud that we can reassure hi-fi enthusiasts and/or people who never bought a record before 1967 that with the inclusion of this extra music time that they would find no loss of sound quality due to groove cramming as the record nears the end of each face. Now get happy."
Come on Nick!
There's a loss of sound quality due to groove cramming on every record to some degree, particularly when you approach the smaller groove radii near the center. Highs roll off.
Despite what Nick Lowe wrote, I knew the record was sonically seriously compromised because I got to hear the very, very, very limited edition double 45rpm white jacket promo edition that went out to a few radio stations and members of Costello's entourage.
Back in 1980 when this was released, I was living in Los Angeles. An acquaintance of mine worked as a tour stage manager for various bands and he got a copy and played it for me. Going back to the single LP edition, American, British and Japanese was like looking through the wrong end of a telescope. Compared to that magical double 45 the single 33 1/3 sounds small and constricted. You can hear a great , spacious and audacious recording looking for and not getting the breathing room it deserved.
I lusted for that promo record. I never forgot it. I lost contact with my L.A. friend but not with that record!
So when Mobile Fidelity announced its Elvis Costello reissue series I told them they had to issue Get Happy!! as a double 45rpm set. They hadn't heard about that promo and they like to reference their work against an original. So what to do?
I got ahold of my old friend in Los Angeles and he still had the record! Would he be willing to lend it to Mobile Fidelity? Yes!
In addition, when the album originally came out in the U.K. the cover artist had playfully painted on the front and back covers "the dreaded ringwear." It's obviously fake, but the clowns at Columbia Records in America worried that consumers would return the record because of the "ring wear." How stupid!
I suggested using the original artwork but I had to prove to Mo-Fi that the original cover had painted "ring wear."
So, when this double 45 finally arrived I could not wait to hear for the first time in thirty one years Get Happy!! unleashed! Was it worth the effort, the time and the expense to produce this as a double 45?
If you've grown up on the original you will be astonished by the width and depth of the picture, by the dynamic thrust, by the cleanly separated instruments, by the weight of the bass, the shimmer of the cymbals and the way the effects Lowe inserts puncture the air. You'll also be able to hear Costello's robust lead singing and his carefully rendered background vocals with greater spatial and textural clarity than you've ever heard them. If you've never heard this album you'll just find it overwhelmingly fantastic in every way. If it doesn't get your body moving, you are paralyzed.
And if you think the CD edition you bought eliminated all of the cramming issues, well, you're in for a big surprise. Mobile Fidelity got everything off the tape and into the grooves in ways the digital edition simply does not.
So no, this is not inexpensive for a pop record, but it's among Elvis's finest in every way and finally, thirty plus years later we finally get to hear what Elvis, Nick and the others heard in the studio.
Will Get Happy!! make you happy? Count on it. Most highly recommended!
Thanks to Michael over at www.musicangle.com for the exclusive rights to reprint this material. Stop by MusicAngle.com for more reviews and features.
Sacramento’s independent music store, The Beat!, is a real gem when it comes to buying great music. The large, one-story location, on the corner of J and 17th , is stocked with videos, cassettes, vinyl, and cds and dvds. The Beat! has six sections for jazz music including new and used vinyl, rare jazz vinyl, new and used cd's, and a jazz cassette section.
The shop has been at its current location for the past eighteen years. When it started in 1982, the store was located around the corner from Sacramento State. Next year, The Beat! will be celebrating its thirtieth year on the scene. The owner, Robert Fauble, his brother Brad, and a staff of 12-13 people keep the store up and running. Mr. Fauble sat down to talk about selling music, the decline of record labels, and some beat history.
Is there a new beginning for record stores after vinyl sales surge?
The UK, as everyone knows, is in the grip of a digital music revolution. Physical media appears to be in its death throes, being rapidly replaced by digital downloads. Indeed, digital files accounted for 99% of the UK singles market in 2010, and it seems that albums are heading the same way. Meanwhile CD sales are plummeting, having fallen by 12.5% in 2009 alone.
To many, this spells the inevitable demise of the record store, once the mainstay of the teenager’s Saturday trip into town – and one of Britain’s best-loved small businesses. This would appear to be illustrated in the struggles of high street giant HMV, which announced the closure of a further 60 stores in January. HMV is increasingly turning to DVD and game sales to try and rescue the brand, with CDs taking up a dwindling amount of real estate on the shelves.
But against this bleak backdrop is the glimmer of a resurgence in the record shop industry, driven by the unlikeliest of formats – the vinyl LP.
this writer wasn't really thrilled with peter gabriel's show, read on
Review: Peter Gabriel plays cover boy at Berkeley show
By Jim Harrington Oakland Tribune
Peter Gabriel has finally run out of new ideas.
What other reasonable conclusion is there to be made given all his recent activities? His current album consists of all cover songs. He's doing shows with a symphony orchestra. And he'll soon release a 25th-anniversary special-edition version of one of his most cherished records ("So").
Those are all gimmicks used by over-the-hill artists on the hunt for one more payday. It's not what we expect from Gabriel, a man rightfully championed for his ability to stretch the boundaries of pop music.
I guess even a rock 'n' roll visionary needs to step back and rest on his laurels occasionally. And Gabriel is doing it in way that many of his fans should find quite enjoyable -- with a symphonic tour in support of 2010's all-covers work, "Scratch My Back."
The one thing that we learned on opening night of this North American tour -- Friday at UC Berkeley's Greek Theatre -- was that Gabriel has great taste in music.
Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Bernie Worrell has announced the release of a new digital and limited vinyl album of jazz standards on June 7, 2011 on Scufflin' Records.
The album, titled 'Bernie Worrell: Standards', features Worrell alongside an all star line up of renowned musicians including Smokey Hormel on guitar, Melvin Gibbs on bass, JT Lewis on drums and Darryl Dixon on saxophone in addition to others.
This is the eighth solo album for Worrell, who was a founding member and musical director of original Parliament-Funkadelic (P-Funk) and has collaborated extensively with Talking Heads.
Gary Scotti operates a record store. His gift is an inventive method to attract customers. Great idea, I hope it makes him a ton of money!
Gary Scotti is giving away vintage vinyl LP’s, new and used, on South Street and also at his Summit store. No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited.
“Play it, poster it, or re-use it,” he says.
Here is his official rationale:
Vinyl continues as an integral part of the music business. Founded in 1956 Scotti’s Record Shops are the oldest independent music store in the country. Over fifty years ago Scotti’s Record Shops sold only vinyl records. The current state of recorded music is experiencing a renewed interest in this vintage medium. From classical to rock and jazz up through to pop and modern music. Small independents and major label artists continue to utilize the versatile Long-playing (LP) Record. The Vinyl record is the only format of growth in the recorded music industry. Vinyl continues to surge with double digit increases in unit sales over the last several years. Most newly recorded albums come with a compact disc or digital download included with the vinyl purchase.
Saturday June 11th, 2011 is Free Record Day at Scotti’s Records Shops in both Morristown and Summit locations. Participants will receive one free record of their choice for visiting the store on that day.
The purpose is to distribute this tangible form of music to as many as possible. The customers in turn may use the LP in whatever manner they see fit. Play it, poster it or re-use it.
The Coppertone – Hymns for the Hollow Limited Vinyl
Dine Alone Records recently signed The Coppertone and they have released a limited edition vinyl for their album, “Hymns For The Hollow“. It is pressed on 550 copies of clear blue and is available now through Dine Alone’s new online store.
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and in music history for today:
Hank Williams debuted on the Grand Ole Opry in 1949.
The Spaniels debuted at the Apollo Theater in 1954.
In 1960, drummer Tommy Moore makes the fateful decision to quit The Beatles and return to his job of driving a forklift at Garston bottle works. He would briefly be replaced by Norman Chapman, who was called into National Service after just three gigs. After going drummerless and mostly jobless for a few weeks, the band would hire Pete Best on August 12th, only one day before they were to go to Hamburg to play a string of club dates.
In 1964, the Rolling Stones have a press conference in the middle of Michigan Avenue in Chicago. The police eventually show up to disperse the crowd.
The triple album "Woodstock" soundtrack was released on Cotillion Records in 1970.
Steely Dan's "Rikki, Don't Lose That Number" was released in 1974.
"Play That Funky Music," by Wild Cherry was released in 1976.
In 1977, KC and The Sunshine Band scored their fourth US number one hit with "I'm Your Boogie Man", a song that was written about a DJ at a Miami, Florida radio station named Robert W. Walker, who was the first to give their hit single "Get Down Tonight" airplay.
Some Girls by the Rolling Stones was released in 1978.
In 1988 - The concert celebrating the 70's birthday of Nelson Mandella was held at Wembley Stadium in London. Performing were Whitney Houston, Phil Collins, Stevie Wonder, Dire Straits, George Michael, Eric Clapton, Tracy Chapman, UB40, Eurythmics and Simple Minds.
In 1995, Jimmy Vaughn, Eric Clapton, B.B. King, Buddy Guy and Robert Cray reunited for a tribute to Stevie Ray Vaughn. All five had played with Vaughan at his last show on August 26, 1990, before he was killed in a helicopter crash.
birthdays wishes to Joey Dee (Joey Dee & the Starliters) (71), Frank Beard (ZZ Top) (62), and Donnie Van Zandt (.38 Special) (59), just to name a few
Gotta Groove Records means big business in Cleveland
The vinyl LP is far from extinction
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Heartsounds Drifts Toward 2nd Album
Jermy Leeuwis
It was just in 2010 that punk rock group Heartsounds released their debut album. One year later their second album "Drifter" is set to be released on July 26th via Epitaph Records. Don't be afraid that the band has evolved into something horrible because they did not.
Progressing on their sophomore follow-up album to their 2010 Epitaph debut Until We Surrender, Heartsounds reach a new level of maturity and diversity without holding back a single ounce of what fans have loved from the start, and that is pure punk rock heart. Drifter embraces their same fast, melodic, technical punk rock style that we have come to love, while reaching new heights vocally and in overall songwriting.
Just a month ago TV on The Radio dropped their fifth album 'Nine Types of Light'. To make it easy for you here is nice little summary what the band has planned for this summer. Naturally the band will start their tour at the Pitchfork Music Festival on July 17th.
As the hot weather approaches, so does news from TV on The Radio. Given that it's a scientific fact (more or less) that you’re going to be a lot lazier in the summertime, we are making it easy breezy to stay on top of what the band will be doing and where they'll be going. Take a look below for what you’ve already missed (but don't worry, you can still get the retroactive experience) and what's coming up that you shouldn't miss!
A while back, prolific alt-country stars Wilco announced they were starting up their own record label, dBpm Records and, with it, a new seven-inch, to be released this summer. We already knew the vinyl single would feature new tune "I Might" on one side and a cover of Nick Lowe's "I Love My Label" as the flip, but we now finally know when we can get our hands on the release.
As previously reported, the limited-edition "I Might" single will be pressed on clear vinyl and sold at the group's Solid Sound Festival, which takes place in North Adams, MA from June 24 to 26. Following that, two more versions of the release will be issued on July 19.
A limited press on blue vinyl will be available through the group's online store and via the Anti- shop, while the standard black vinyl version will be loosed upon traditional retailers. All copies come with a digital download and you can pre-order copies now. That's the newly revealed cover above.
A press release also confirms that "I Might" will appear on the as-of-yet untitled follow-up to 2009's Wilco (The Album). The new record will drop sometime this fall, and while a tracklisting has yet to appear, band leader Jeff Tweedy recently dished some dirt on the other songs on the set.
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Top 10 London Album Covers
By Londonist
A whistlestop tour through rock and pop history through the artwork of our Top 10 London album covers. Agree with our selection? What did we miss? Let us know in the comments.
1. The Beatles ‘Abbey Road’: Abbey Road, NW8.
Let’s be honest, as soon as you saw this post you thought of this album. It was nearly left off the list for fear of it being too obvious, but that would have been silly so let’s get it out the way first.
Anyone who loves music and lives in London has made / has plans to make / has been too-cool-for-school-and-deliberately-avoided-making a pilgrimage to the most famous road crossing in the world. Go there on any day of the week and you’ll see the traffic being held up as Beatles fans from around the world re-create the cover.
At the time of recording The Beatles were on the verge of splitting up after the death of Brian Epstein in 1967, triggering their downward spiral toward law suits and slanging matches in the press. They got together for what was pretty much acknowledged beforehand by all as their last album. They put aside their differences and pulled a blinder with the album which contains not one single bad tune (we’ll settle with fisticuffs anyone who says that the macabre ‘Maxwell’s Silver Hammer’ is a dud, even if Lennon referred to it as ‘More of Paul’s granny music’!)
Photographer Ian Macmillan was given ten minutes to climb a stepladder while a policeman stopped traffic and at approximately 11:30 am on 8 August 1969 music history was made.
Anthrax to release new album 'Worship Music' on September 12
'Music is something worth worshipping' say the band
Anthrax have completed work on their new album 'Worship Music' and have revealed a UK release date of September 12, 2011.
The long-awaited album marks the return of vocalist Joey Belladonna and features 11 tracks produced by Anthrax, guitarist Rob Caggiano and Jay Ruston. The record is Anthrax's first studio release in eight years.
“I get goosebumps listening to the new music,” drummer Charlie Benante says in an official press release.
It's mid-afternoon in New York City, and Neil Peart is unwinding. And how exactly does Rush's world-famous drummer and lyricist kick back in the Big Apple? By solving a math problem, of course. But this particular equation has a very specific purpose, and it's one that will soon be played out in front of TV cameras, a studio audience and millions of home viewers, for Peart is one of the stars - in fact, he's the closing act - of Drums Solos Week on The Late Show With David Letterman.
There's just one little hitch: The show's producers have asked the renowned sticksman, who this Thursday (9 June) will follow performances by The Late Show's own Anton Fig, along with Sheila E and drum legend Roy Haynes, to keep the razzle-dazzle down to "three, maybe four minutes," says Peart. Hence, the numbers crunching.
Just back from a morning rehearsal, Peart admits that when he was approached to be part of Drum Solos Week, his initial reaction was, "I don't know…it's not really my thing. But then I thought, Hey, a drum solo on TV - sounds great! I'd be very honored to be the ambassador to drum solos."
Read the rest of this indepth interview at musicradar.com
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Juliana Hatfield Announce Eleventh Album Speeches
Jermy Leeuwis
Juliana Hatfield is set to release her eleventh album 'Speeches Delivered To Animals and Plants' on August 30th on her own Ye Olde Records. Her last album was released last year and her debut in 1992. This is a very special album because it is a fan-funded release.
Hatfield says, "I really think that PledgeMusic and similar sites are the future of music, especially for people like me who have devoted cultish fanbases but who have never sold a ton of records and don't really fit in anywhere at major labels. Working with this new model, you go straight to the fans, who become your patrons, in a very direct and vital way. They have a special kind of access to you in a way that makes them happy - they see the progress of the album-making in real time with the video and audio updates I post at the PledgeMusic site. And I have total ownership of the music at all stages, present and future. I love working like this."
CD 18 – 1990
“Painkiller”
“United”
“Better by You, Better than Me”
CD 19 -1991
“A Touch of Evil”
“Between the Hammer and the Anvil”
“You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’” (Live)
CD 20 – 1992
“Night Crawler”
“Breaking the Law”
“Living After Midnight”
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DYLAN LYRICS UP FOR AUCTION
Drafts of BOB DYLAN's original lyrics are expected to fetch thousands of pounds when they hit the auction block later this month (Jun11).
The newly-discovered papers, which are heavily edited and even feature notes in crayon, date from the mid-1960s, when Dylan hit a productive peak.
Some of the documents are handwritten and others typed, and they include the lyrics to some of the folk star's most famous tracks, such as Subterranean Homesick Blues, Queen Jane Approximately and Visions of Johanna.
The original draft of Maggie's Farm is estimated to sell for £44,000 to £56,000.
Chris Coover of Christie's auction house says, "The mid-60s, especially 1964-1966, were a true watershed for Dylan. In that period his lyrics became deeper and more personal, while his songs moved away from the acoustic, folk-inflected style, and he forged a unique personal style as poet and songwriter."
Collectors will have a chance to bid on the pages at Christie's auction of fine printed books and manuscripts in New York on 23 June (11), reports Reuters.
Dylan's handwritten lyrics to his 1964 anthem The Times They Are a-Changin' pulled in a staggering £264,000 at Sotheby's in December (10).
Los Angeles Times Magazine Picks the Fifty Greatest L.A. Bands
The Los Angeles Times Magazine has put together their list of the fifty best L.A. bands.
In making the selections, a few were left out, such as Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers and No Doubt, who have been associated with Los Angeles but did not form in the city or county area.
The bands at the top of the ranking are really no big surprise with the Doors, the Beach Boys, the Byrds and the Buffalo Springfield, but the big discussion rankings start in the next three spots.
1. Doors
2. Beach Boys
3. Byrds
4. Buffalo Springfield
5. Los Lobos
In 1964, the Rolling Stones recorded “It's All Over Now” during their first session at historic Chess Studios in Chicago.
Also in 1964, 'A Hard Days Night' by the Beatles (single and album) was released.
In 1966, Big Brother & the Holding Company make their first live appearance with new lead singer Janis Joplin.
The cut "Rain," by the Beatles (first use of reverse tapes) was recorded in 1966.
In 1967, the Beatles' "Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band" started a 23 week run at #1 on the UK album chart. The LP also topped the Billboard Hot 200 chart for 15 weeks, won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year and would eventually sell over 30 million copies world wide. Ringo Starr would later comment: "a bunch of songs and you stick two bits of 'Pepper' on it and it's a concept album. It worked because we said it worked."
In 1967, Jimi Hendrix is denied entry to London's Botanical Gardens because "people in fancy dress aren't allowed."
In 1967, after selling over 356,000 copies in the first three weeks after its release, "A Whiter Shade Of Pale" by Procol Harum tops the UK chart. The song would peak at #5 in the US near the end of July. In 2004, the United Kingdom performing rights group Phonographic Performance Limited recognized it as the most-played record by British broadcasting of the past 70 years. The same year, Rolling Stone placed "A Whiter Shade of Pale" #57 on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
In 1971, police tear gas the crowd at a Jethro Tull concert in Denver, CO. The band plays on, even though keyboardist John Evans can't see his piano through the gas.
In 1973, Sammy Davis Jr. enjoyed the biggest hit of his career when "Candy Man", taken from the musical Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, went to number one in the US.
Joe Walsh's "Life's Been Good" was released in 1978.
Asia was formed in 1981 by Steve Howe, Geoff Downes, John Wetton and Carl Palmer.
In 1982, Addie Harris from The Shirelles died of a heart attack after a show in Atlanta. The group had a 1961 U.S. #1 and U.K. #4 single with “Will You Love Me Tomorrow,” becoming the first all-girl group to have a #1 single on the Billboard Hot 100.
In 1993, Irish singer Sinead O'Connor took out a full-page ad in the Irish Times asking the public to "stop hurting me please." She blamed her troubles on abuse she suffered as a child. O'Connor was still being criticized for ripping up a picture of the Pope during an appearance on Saturday Night Live the previous October. oh, go shave your melon and shut up!
In 1993, Jimmy Weston, lead singer of The Danleers, passed away. The Brooklyn, New York doo-wop group is most often remembered for their 1958 hit "One Summer Night".
In 2004, singer-songwriter and soul legend Ray Charles died at the age of 73. Glaucoma rendered Charles blind when he was six years old. Charles had the 1962 U.K. and U.S. #1 single, “I Can't Stop Loving You." During his 45 year career, Ray appeared on the US Pop charts 77 times, with 33 of those songs making the Top 40. He became the first artist to have an album on Billboard's Hot 200 for six decades in a row.
In 2004, Peter Garrett of Midnight Oil announced he was running for the Australian Parliament.
birthday's today include Shirley Alston from The Shirelles (1941), Kim Deal (Pixies, Breeders) (50) and Kelley Deal (Breeders) (50) and Jimmy Chamberlin (Smashing Pumpkins) (47)
our friends over at Gibson.com have a wonderful write-up about one of the most innovative guitar legends (Born in 1915, Les Paul, guitarist, inventor, died August 12, 2009) of our time, check it out:
Happy Birthday Les Paul: Celebrating the Artistry of a Gibson Genius
Ted Drozdowski
Les Paul had one of the most colorful and diverse careers in the history of the entertainment industry. During his 80 years on stage and screen and in the studio, Paul was a solo performer, jazz bandleader, big band guitar chair, virtuoso sideman, pop tunesmith, radio personality, TV star, engineer producer, six-string eminence and inventor. In the latter role, the solid body guitar model that bears his name, multi-track recording and the harmonica holder are among his best-known creations.
But Paul, who was born Lester Polfuss on June 9, 1915, was also a master of evolution as a guitarist. Many players start in one style and stay there for their entire career. Paul’s arc of technique runs from kid-with-a-cowboy-guitar to country picker to jazzman to pop player to textural genius and, ultimately, a distillation of all of the above.
our friends at www.sundazed.com are at it again, this time with a reissue of some great Hollies tracks, you can buy the set at Hollies
The Hollies
Lost Recordings and Beat Rarities 10x7" Box Set
7" (vinyl) | $49.98 S 7004
7” vinyl box set with 20 lost tracks and hard-to-find gems!
This highly resonant set acts as a guidebook to many of the missing links behind the one British beat group who, more than any other, stayed neck-and-neck with the Beatles throughout the ‘60s. In terms of quality single releases with irresistible chart appeal (15 Top Ten 45s in the UK) and pure musical evolution, there is no doubt the Hollies breathed the same rarified air as the Fab Four.
The Hollies Lost Recordings and Beat Rarities collects 20 long-buried tracks and hard-to-find gems, ranging from rare U.S. and British singles to EP rarities and unissued songs, all perfectly ripe for release as an original Hollies 45, whether that happened or not. Follow the group from their first single (released in May of 1963), the savage “Ain’t That Just Like Me” b/w “Hey What’s Wrong With Me,” through their discotheque dance floor raves: “Come On Back,” “What Kind of Love” and “She Said Yeah.” Swoon to their swingin’ ballad “Yes I Will,” groove with their jazzy “Honey and Wine” and float to outer space with “All The World is Love.” Discover an impossible-to-find, spy-style double-sider the Hollies did for a 1967 Italian movie, and groove to unreleased tracks cut while on tour in New York City in 1965, then marvel at an extremely scarce cover of the Beatles’ “If I Needed Someone,” tracked at Abbey Road, revered recording home to both groups.
Sundazed has collected a pirate’s ransom of tracks here, nearly all unavailable on any original English or American Hollies album. Delivered now via the supremely cool format of 45 r.p.m. vinyl, each single is loaded with guaranteed Disk Jockey dance-floor magic that only further cements the Hollies’ reputation as the coolest Manchester band, ever!!!
BOX SET CONTENTS:
TRACK LIST:
Single One
(Ain't That) Just Like Me
Hey What's Wrong With Me
Single Two
Whole World Over
Now's the Time
Single Three
What Kind of Love
When I'm Not There
Single Four
Come on Back
She Said Yeah
Single Five
Nobody
Yes I Will
Single Six
Honey and Wine
Bring Back Your Love to Me
Single Seven
She Gives Me Everything I Want
I Can't Get Nowhere With You
Single Eight
If I Needed Someone
I've Got a Way of My Own
Single Nine
You in My Arms
All the World Is Love
Single Ten
Kill Me Quick
We're Alive
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3 Doors Down Reveal 'Time of My Life' Album Cover -- Exclusive Premiere
Multi-platinum rockers 3 Doors Down will be releasing their highly anticipated 5th studio album, 'Time of My Life,' on July 19th. Recorded in Los Angeles with studio wizard Howard Benson (Creed, Flyleaf), the record promises to deliver more of the arena-sized hooks on which the Mississippi group has built its reputation. "We are excited for the fans to hear these songs and think they'll love them as much as we do. It's a record we're proud of and we can't wait to play the songs for y'all live." vocalist Brad Arnold told Noisecreep.
Bayonet, a new hardcore group featuring Buddy Neilsen (Senses Fail) on vocals, Jeremy Comitas (The Banner) on guitar, Paul Klein (Suburban Scum) on drums, and Will Putney (Fit For An Autopsy) on bass, has announced that they will release their debut self-titled EP on July 26 on Mightier Than Sword Records.
The first pressing is limited to 500 one-sided 12″ records. The color breakdown will be 100 on black 180gram vinyl, 200 on clear-yellow-brown swirl, and 200 on clear-grey-black marble swirl.
ShopRadioCast now has a few copies of previously out of print Alkaline Trio – Good Mourning on white vinyl and the Dashboard Confessional – The Shade of Poison Trees on Red and Yellow. These have both been out of print for some time now. All three colors were limited to ONLY 300 copies!
TESTAMENT: First Four Albums To Be Re-Released On Deluxe Limited-Edition180-Gram Vinyl
Back On Black, which specializes in vinyl editions of classic metal albums and is dedicated to providing top-quality releases for record collectors and metal fans worldwide, will re-release TESTAMENT's first four albums — "The Legacy", "The New Order", "Practice What You Preach" and "Souls Of Black" — on June 27 on deluxe limited-edition180-gram vinyl:
* "The Legacy" (originally released in 1987) (purple vinyl)
* "The New Order" (originally released in 1988) (clear vinyl)
* "Practice What You Preach" (originally released in 1989) (white vinyl)
* "Souls Of Black" (originally released in 1990) (blue vinyl)
took a look at backonblack.com and here is what they say about themselves:
Established in 2004, Back On Black specialises in vinyl editions of classic Metal albums and is dedicated to providing top quality releases for record collectors and Metal fans worldwide.
Our releases are pressed on exquisite, heavy weight vinyl to produce the very best in sound quality with a mesmerizing tactile feel that makes them a pleasure to handle. Beautiful vinyl colours are carefully chosen to complement the artwork, with some releases available in a variety of colours for the dedicated collector. Many releases are double, or even triple, LPs!
The artwork itself is re-worked to faithfully interpret the original album, and reproduced on superior quality gatefold sleeves in heavy weight card with a superb and un-rivalled finish.
As well as all our re-mastered LPs of classic albums from throughout Metal’s history, Back On Black also issues many exclusive vinyl editions of contemporary Metal releases. Far from being dead, our beloved vinyl format is going from strength to strength – and Back On Black is proud to serve the needs of the Metal vinyl connoisseur!
great place to find vinyl!!!
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love the cover art!
Svartsot Reveals Artwork For New Album "Maledictus Eris"
Svartsot has recently issued the an announcement about 'Maledictus Eris,' the band's upcoming album:
"We're proud to be able to release the cover artwork and track list for the third Svartsot album; Maledictus Eris. As previously announced, the album recounts the tale of the Black Death's incursion into Danish history from 1349 to 1350. The album begins the tale from just prior to the plague's arrival through to when the first bout relinquished its grasp, and focuses on the way the epidemic affected the population – from victim to survivor. We have taken more inspiration from medieval music than on previous albums, and the feel of the album in general has taken a darker and more emotive turn on this recording.
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more album cover art, however, this list is a must see for heavy metal fans!
Eternal Summer: The Hottest Heavy-Metal Album Covers of All Time
1. My Morning Jacket - Circuital
2. Death Cab For Cutie - Codes & Keys
3. Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
4. Iron & Wine / The Low Anthem - Daytrotter Sessions LP
5. David Bazan - Strange Negotiations
6. Thurston Moore - Demolished Thoughts
7. Bake Sale - As Predicted 7"
8. Jacuzzi Boys - Island Avenue 7"
9. Brian Eno - Before And After Science
10. The Black Keys - Brothers
11. Mumford & Sons - Sigh No More
12. Natural Child - White Man's Burden 7"
13. Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago
14. White Denim - D
15. Queens Of The Stone Age - Queens Of The Stone Age
16. Explosions In The Sky - Take Care, Take Care, Take Care
17. Frank Fairfield - Out On The Open West
18. KORT - Invariable Heartache
19. The Coolin' System - The Coolin' System
20. Radiohead - OK Computer
19. Jeff Buckley - Grace
20. The Zombies - Odyssey & Oracle
21. Jeff The Brotherhood - Heavy Days
22. R Stevie Moore - Phonography
23. Thao & Mirah - Thao & Mirah
24. Bob Dylan - Bringing It All Back Home
25. The Black Keys - Thickfreakness
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and in austin, texas, here are the best selling vinyl records at waterloorecords.com for the week ending June 4th, 2011
Vinyl Top Sellers
1. My Morning Jacket
2. Fleet Foxes
3. Mumford & Sons
4. Death Cab for Cutie
5. Okkervil River
6. Explosions in the Sky
7. Thurston Moore
8. Adele
9. The Cars
10. Sarah Jarosz
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Two Disc, 36 Song Runaways Tribute Album Announced
On June 28th, Main Man Records will release a two-disc, thirty-six song Runaways tribute album 'Take It or Leave It.'
Some of the participants include The Donnas, Shonen Knife, The Adolescents, The Dandy Warhols, Richard Barone (of The Bongos), Derwood Andrews (of Generation X), Toilet Boys, Care Bears On Fire (with Earl Slick of David Bowie/New York Dolls), Kittie, Starz, David Johansen (of New York Dolls) and Kathleen Hanna (of Bikini Kill/Le Tigre) and Peaches, (whose collaboration was produced by Ad Rock of the Beastie Boys).
Take It Or Leave It also includes two performances by original Runaways band members: lead vocalist Cherie Currie recorded a cover of fan-favorite “American Nights” with the band Frakenstein 3000 and “Dirty Magazines”, the last recording made by drummer Sandy West with her band Blue Fox.
Mixed in with the music are interview clips with the members of The Runaways, mock radio ads by broadcast legends Rodney Bingenheimer, Carol Miller and ”Mr. Marty” Martinez, candid comments from Johnny Ramone and a recollection of the band’s appearance at CBGB’s by noted radio personality Meg Griffin.
In Sandy West’s name, a donation from the proceeds of the album will be made to the American Institute for Cancer Research. Since 1982, the AICR’s mission has been to fund, support and promote research as well as expand public knowledge through educational programs to bring its message of cancer prevention to millions of Americans. To that end, the AICR has committed more than $82 million, and was the first organization in the nation to support research into the role of diet and exercise as it related to cancer prevention.
The track listing is below.
Disc One:
THE DONNAS – Queens Of Noise
SHONEN KNIFE – Black Leather
THE BINGES – I Love Playin’ With Fire
BEBE BUELL BAND – Heartbeat
DEENA & THE LAUGHING BOYS – Lovers
FRANKENSTEIN 3000 – California Paradise
DELIRIUM TREMENS – Wasted
RICHIE SCARLET – Wild Thing
BLUE FOX – Neon Angels On The Road To Ruin
THE EASY OUTS featuring GAR FRANCIS – Is It Day Or Night
LAURA WARSHAUER – Little Lost Girls
WHITE FLAG – C’mon
CALI GIRAFFES – You’re Too Possessive
TARA ELLIOTT & THE RED VELVETS – You Drive Me Wild
PLANET SORROW – Thunder
ROBBIE RIST – Yesterday’s Kids
SERPENTEENS – Little Sister
ADOLESCENTS – School Days
BLUE FOX featuring SANDY WEST – Dirty Magazines
Disc Two:
THE DANDY WARHOLS – Cherry Bomb
RICHARD BARONE – Hollywood
CARE BEARS ON FIRE with EARL SLICK – Saturday Night Special
DERWOOD ANDREWS – Gotta Get Out Tonight
DAVID JOHANSEN – Blackmail
THE RIBEYE BROTHERS – Trash Can Murders
DIGGER PHELPS – Rock & Roll
TOILET BOYS – Born To Be Bad
THE SWALES – Midnight Music
FRANKENSTEIN 3000 featuring CHERIE CURRIE – American Nights
F-13 – I Wanna Be Where The Boys Are
THE STAY AT HOMES – Getting’ Hot
KITTIE – Fantasies
STARZ – Waitin’ For The Night
JACK BRAG – Secrets
CLINICAL TRIALS – Don’t Go Away
KATHLEEN HANNA & PEACHES – Dead End Justice (produced by Ad Rock)
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and in music history for today:
In 1958, Sheb Wooley hit the top of the Billboard chart with a novelty song called "The Purple People Eater". When he first sang the tune for MGM executives, Sheb said he was scraping "the bottom of the barrel", but the brass loved the song and wanted to release it. Three weeks after it hit store shelves it was the number one record in the US and would start a merchandising craze that included hats, T-shirts and even ice cream.
In 1958, the Elegants released the immortal cut Little Star.
In 1962, the Beatles, on the last night of their tour with Roy Orbison, performed at King George’s Hall, Blackburn, Lancashire. It was during this tour that The Beatles’ fans started throwing jelly babies (or beans as we call them here in the great US) at them while they were on stage, after an off-the-cuff remark on television that George Harrison enjoyed eating them. depending on how far they were thrown from, i bet them suckers hurt!
In 1964, during an evening session, Bob Dylan recorded “Mr. Tambourine Man” at Columbia Recording Studios in New York City.
In 1967, the Monkees kicked off their summer tour at the Hollywood Bowl in California, where they performed in front of a large and hysterical crowd.
Brian Jones announced he was leaving The Rolling Stones in 1969 because he didn't agree with the band's musical direction.
In 1971, Paul McCartney's "Ram" LP goes Gold in the US, where it would reach #2 and spend over five months in the Top Ten, eventually going Platinum. The album reached #1 in the UK.
In 1972, Elvis Presley made entertainment history by performing four sold-out shows at New York’s Madison Square Garden. George Harrison, John Lennon, David Bowie, Bob Dylan and Art Garfunkel were among the music stars attending the shows, which were recorded and became the album Elvis as Recorded at Madison Square Garden.
Also in 1972, Bruce Springsteen signed with Columbia Records and started assembling the E Street Band from various Asbury Park ex-bandmates.
In 1989, exactly 25 years to the day after Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys reached number one with "Help Me Rhonda", his daughters Carnie and Wendy, along with John Phillips' daughter Chynna, had the top song in the US with "Hold On".
In 1990, M.C. Hammer’s debut album started a record-breaking 21-week stay at the top of the U.S. album charts, making it the longest uninterrupted stay at the top since the album charts started.
In 1993 - The U.S. Postal Service debuted its Legends of American Music, Rock and Roll-Rhythm and Blues stamp collection. The set featured Bill Haley, Buddy Holly, Clyde McPhatter, Otis Redding, Ritchie Valens, Dinah Washington, and Elvis Presley.
In 1993, What's Love Got to Do With It?, a film about singer Tina Turner and how she rose to Rock stardom with her husband Ike Turner, opened in US theatres. The film was well received and the stars, Angela Bassett and Laurence Fishburne, were both nominated for Oscars. Bassett won a Best Actress Golden Globe for her performance as Tina.
Also in 1993, Arthur Alexander, a Rhythm and Blues singer-songwriter who reached #24 on the Billboard Pop chart in 1962 with "You Better Move On", died of a heart attack at the age of 53. Alexander had his tunes recorded by The Beatles ("Anna"), The Rolling Stones ("You Better Move On"), Steve Alaimo ("Every Day I Have To Cry") and Bob Dylan ("Sally Sue Brown").
Lisa "Left-Eye" Lopes (TLC) set fire to her boyfriend's house in 1994. Her boyfriend was Andre Rison of the Atlanta Falcons.
In 1998, the Ronettes finally got their day in court, as a judge in the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York heard arguments in their lawsuit against Phil Spector. The Ronettes, whose hits included "Be My Baby" and "Walking In The Rain", charged that the producer breached the group's 34-year-old contract by paying the members no royalties since 1963. The suit asked for $12 million in damages, rescission of the contract, the return of the masters and recoupment of all monies received by the defendants from the sale of Ronettes masters. Although The Ronettes would win this case, a five-judge panel of the New York State Court of Appeals would overturn the decision in October, 2002, saying that the contract the Ronettes signed with Spector in 1963 was still binding.
In 2009, the Librarian of Congress announced that twenty-five culturally significant recordings, including "Tom Dooley" by The Kingston Trio, "Rumble" by Link Wray and "My Generation" by The Who, will be preserved in a special sound archive in the National Recording Registry.
celebrating birthdays today include Jon Lord of Deep Purple fame (1941), Ed Simmons (Chemical Brothers) (41) and Trevor Bolder of Uriah Heep (1950), just to name a few
New Jersey Independent Artist, Mike Montrey Band has released its highly anticipated live double studio album, Weaving The Basket, inspired by the literary classic, "Walden" by Henry David Thoreau.
NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J.—A stifling, infectious infirmity is running rampant under pop culture’s slate gray clouds. A society – and modern music industry – that pretends to nurture the creative spirit actually forces an ideal: that to produce products and sell the results is the only acceptable form of creative exchange. For its upcoming double album, Mike Montrey Band (The MMB) reach back to an older literary classic for the inspiration to burst through the veil of robotic capitalism and its stranglehold on recording, and let music drip with all the passion with which it was intended.
In Henry David Thoreau’s “Walden” (1854), Thoreau tells of a Native American who approaches a wealthy lawyer, intending to sell his woven baskets. Denied, he feels snubbed and cheated. Thoreau writes: “I too had woven a kind of basket of a delicate texture, but I had not made it worth anyone's while to buy them. Yet not the less, in my case, did I think it worth my while to weave them, and instead of studying how to make it worth men's while to buy my baskets, I studied rather how to avoid the necessity of selling them. The life which men praise and regard as successful is but one kind. Why should we exaggerate any one kind at the expense of the others?”
For Weaving the Basket, The MMB’s first studio album since 2008’s “A Perfect Reality,” the band decided to innovate by getting back to the source – art for art’s sake and the visceral experience of live music performed in front of an audience. On January 29, The MMB offered the public an opportunity to hear Weaving the Basket recorded live, in two two-hour sessions at the intimate Retromedia Studios in Red Bank, N.J. With the live show presented in a recording studio rather than a club, in front a silent audience who influenced the players’ spontaneity and showmanship through their presence, a special musical ambience was created, one trumping the isolated production atmosphere of typical recording and overlays. Enigmatic frontman Mike Montrey explained, “We chose this route because we felt it was the best way to convey the feeling of these songs, and while we are not opposed to studio albums in the true sense, we do feel that playing as one emits an irreplaceable feel.”
The album contains two discs: the tender and emotive “Acoustic Side,” and the raucous zouk- inspired “Electric Side.” MMB members Rob Smith (drums), Anthony “Duke” Duca (bass), Karl Dietel (keyboards), Hayden Wright (tenor sax) and Adam Garnys (alto sax) spin their collective mastery, while central New Jersey favorite James Dalton on harmonica and Juggling Suns vocalist Jen Nay make spine-tingling guest appearances. Lead guitarist and vocalist Mike Montrey has been weaving his baskets, so to speak, since his early days of commanding northern New Jersey’s live music scene as the frontman of cult-following roots-rock quintet ...water... in 2001.
Montrey was invited to tour as a member of heavy-hitting rock band The Samples, who’d been touring for 19 years and had shared stages with Dave Matthews Band, Sting and Phish. Montrey continues to play with The Samples across North America. In 2008, Montrey formed the nexus of what would become The MMB, and it’s been a nonstop ride ever since. “A Perfect Reality” enjoyed a nomination for Top Release of 2008 by the prestigious Asbury Music Awards, debuted at #29 on the Jambands.com radio charts, and the single “Tin Can” was a Relix Magazine Jam Off! selection. For more information on live dates and to buy the new album visit: www.mikemontrey.com
UnCovered Interview - Guster - Easy Wonderful - a 2010 release on Universal Records, with cover artwork by Jon Sarkin
During the 4-year break between releasing albums, the members of indie-pop band Guster took a break from their strenuous touring schedules to pursue other projects of great interest to them, including having children, contributing music to films, building home studios and, in the case of Adam Gardner, promoting the works of his environmentally-oriented not-for-profit organization (called Reverb, which is "dedicated to greening musicians' tours and engaging their fans to take action to protect the planet"). When they re-grouped in late 2008 to begin work on their next release, they'd hoped to be able to record some new songs rather quickly, but a variety of roadblocks - including having to fire their original producer and leaving their long-time record label (Warner Brothers) for a new one (Universal) - forced the band mates to do an in-depth appraisal of their future together.
A meeting in a Brooklyn bar made them realize that they all wanted to move ahead and, rather than focus on pressures from the record label and on "making hits", what they really wanted was just to pour their souls into making a record they could be proud of. The result was their well-received 2010 release titled Easy Wonderful.
Once the record was done, though, they were eager to get it out to the public and, with a shortened production schedule, it was time to find an artist and create the designs for the packaging. Guster drummer Brian Rosenworcel then showed his good sense of timing when he asked an artist whose work he'd recently added to his own art collection to produce something wonderful for the cover.
What Brian hadn't bargained for was that, once this particular artist gets started on a project, prodigious amounts of artwork would be created and that this effort would produce imagery that would be used in nearly every aspect of the band's visuals. What was it about this artist that so engrossed the band and would provide them with the inspiration to use his frenzied process and output as the bases for the record cover, their merchandise and the highly-praised music video for the record's first single? Read on - hope you can keep up... :-)
Interview with artist Jon Sarkin about his work for Guster's Easy Wonderful - conducted in March, 2011 by Mike Goldstein, RockPoP Gallery
"My wife's ex-step-mother has a niece who was Chad Carlberg's boyfriend. I met Chad at a family gathering and he told me that his sister went to med school with Brian Rosenworcel's wife and that the two of them became friends after that. Chad liked my work and asked me to work with him on a couple of projects. I did a TV commercial that I was the star of and also did some art that he animated for a music video.
About a year ago, Chad introduced me to Brian, who was a fan of my work, and they asked me to work on the album cover art for their new record. Since Brian was familiar with my work, he was able to sell me to the other band members. They all thought that my kind of art would go along well with the vibe of what they were doing musically. The band gave me an advanced copy of the CD, so I knew what their stuff was like. The music had a very "feel good" vibe - very "pop-py". I knew that this would be an ongoing collaboration, and so by listening to the songs on the album, I hoped to portray visually what each song and the whole album was about.” I decided to go with a circle because CDs are circular. Also, I like bright colors, and since Guster is a sunny, optimistic band, I designed my art to reflect this feeling.
I just listened to the music and riffed a lot on my own and, once the band saw my stuff, they gave me some feedback. I talked to Brian a lot while I was doing the art - I kept feeding him ideas and he kept giving me feedback. They didn't come up with ideas for specific images; I would show them something and they would let me know if it worked and then I'd give them others with the same feel. I kept giving them new things to look at and, eventually, they were happy. They were incredibly easy and fun to work with, so I never minded doing dozens of images and then re-working them to their satisfaction. It's a lot like advertising, really.
Most of my contact was with the band itself - that is, I didn't really hear anything from the label people. Everyone was pretty cool during the time I was given (the money was fine, too!), even Chad gave me some feedback (Editor's note - in a recorded interview in February, 2011 at New York's Metropolitan Museum on the subject - you'll find a link to this at the end of this article - the band members said that Jon basically works based on his own inspirations, so any suggestions are typically discarded quickly. 'John creates, then discards - he doesn't touch anything up'). Ryan Miller told me that I was the only artist that he knew of that just makes art and that he'd never seen a purer expression of art.
Anyway, the whole job probably took 3 months or so. I didn't use any special materials. I know that I submitted dozens of images and they were all scanned and given to the A.D. at the label. The artwork that I thought I had done originally for the CD label wound up as the main image on the cover. After the scanning, the A.D. then PhotoShopped together 3 or 4 images from different art pieces to arrive at the final image for the cover. I’m really happy with what he did. He really got my sense and didn’t have a heavy hand at all.
I also did all of the lettering and the lyric sheets, the inside illustrations, the back cover, the liner notes, and designs for the labels on the CD and vinyl LP. Many of the other images are used on their stage props and their merchandise. Other ones were used on their singles, T-shirts, sweatshirts, water bottles, scarves, knapsacks, Brian's bass drum head and then all of the painting during the music video for "Do You Love Me?"
The band told me that this was the first time that they used their album art beyond just the cover - it's on the video and their website and their merchandise, too. To sum it up is simple. The band and their management and the label were - I mean are - great. They were very communicative about what they wanted, and they created an environment in which I really wanted to satisfy them."
Guster hired film director Chad Carlberg to produce the music video for the album's first single, "Do You Love Me?" (in fact, the band produced music videos for every cut on the album). Knowing Jon and how he works, Chad decided that the best way to harness all of Sarkin's kinetic energy would be to feature it (and him) in the video. Using a technique where he recorded the band members playing as if they were doing it in slow motion, Jon then painted everything in eyeshot - the set, the band-members, I mean EVERYTHING - in real time, so when the edit was sped up to normal speed, it appears that the band is playing in regular time and that Jon is running around frenetically - a very cool and effective approach to representing both the players and the artist as you might imagine them.
To watch a short video created by director Chad Carlberg about his collaboration with Jon to produce the music video for the "Do You Love Me?" single, please visit - http://www.productionblue.com/guster
About the artist, Jon Sarkin (includes excerpts from his web site) -
As a youngster in New Jersey, Jon Sarkin liked to draw and enjoyed visits to the art museums in New York City where he could see works that inspired him. He particularly liked Pop art - Warhol, Rauchenberg - and the Dadaists as well. Later on, he discovered the wild and crazy art styles of R. Crumb and Ralph Steadman, with these inspirations highlighted in his sketches and in the posters he would create for the dances at his school.
While not all that athletically inclined, he did discover a liking for golf, a game which he'd take up again later on in life. A lover of the outdoors, the shy young chiropractor would often try to steal away from the office on a beautiful day to get in 9 holes of golf with his friends. It was during a round in 1988 that Jon suffered a sudden brain hemorrhage, followed by a post-surgery stroke that nearly killed him. While the stroke left him partially blind, deaf in one ear and with his sense of balance permanently affected, some unexplained force re-awakened his artistic talents. As author Amy Ellis Nutt states so elegantly in her article on Jon (see below), "the once-shy, ambitious chiropractor awoke with an effusive, unfocused need to create... He didn't approach the world anymore, the world absorbed him - overwhelming his senses, swamping the filters that protect the rest of us from the minor details of existence. Colors, sounds, smells, words and images produced a cacophony of sensations."
Today, he lives and works in Gloucester, Massachusetts - in a studio based in an old converted fish factory - with his wife and his two daughters . As he puts it, "I mean, after all, my life has not sucked totally, and the whole art thing is pretty cool, don’t you think? And my kids are great. And my wife Kim, well, she ROCKS!"
Sarkin has work in the private collections of Tom Cruise, Robert DeNiro, Annie Leibovitz, Meryl Streep and Diane Von Furstenberg. He has shown at Diane von Furstenberg, The DeCordova and Revolving Museums in MA, The Museum of Modern Art in NY and others (please visit his web site at http://www.jsarkin.com for more information). Jon has been featured in three BBC documentary films, an episode of ABC's "Medical Mysteries" and in articles in GQ, Vanity Fair, and Readers Digest, etc.
As an actor, Sarkin has appeared in film and on stage ("I enjoy the work, but I really don't consider myself an actor"). Jon has also written many volumes of poetry and, in addition to a long list of art commissions, he is currently writing/illustrating both a novel and his own autobiography.
His artwork is in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art in NY, the Decordova and Revolving Museums in MA, and private collectors including Tom Cruise, Annie Leibovitz, Diane Von Furstenburg/Barry Diller and many others.
The rights to Jon's life story have been purchased by United Artists for a film to be developed by Tom Cruise’s production company. A script has been written and a director has been chosen. More details will be available on his site as they are released.
To read author Amy Ellis Nutt's Pulitzer Prize-nominated article on Jon Sarkin titled "The Accidental Artist", please visit - http://www.nj.com/starledger/sarkin/
To watch a video on YouTube of a live interview/concert/spontaneous art performance featuring Jon, Guster and director Chad Carlberg recorded at a "Spectrum Presents" concert at NY's Metropolitan Museum, click on the following link - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7g837CY9xN4
At about 37:30 into the video, you can watch Jon produce a new version of the "color wheel" artwork while Guster plays cuts from the new record.
About UnCovered -
Our ongoing series of interviews will give you, the music and art fan, a look at "The Making Of" the illustrations, photographs and designs of many of the most-recognized and influential images that have served to package and promote your all-time-favorite recordings.
In each UnCovered feature, we'll meet the artists, designers and photographers who produced these works of art and learn what motivated them, what processes they used, how they collaborated (or fought) with the musical acts, their management, their labels, etc. - all of the things that influenced the final product you saw then and still see today.
We hope that you enjoy these looks behind the scenes of the music-related art business and that you'll share your stories with us and fellow fans about what role these works of art - and the music they covered - played in your lives.
All images featured in this UnCovered story are Copyright 2010 Jon Sarkin and Guster - All rights reserved. Except as noted, all other text Copyright 2011 - Mike Goldstein & RockPoP Gallery (www.rockpopgallery.com) - All rights reserved.
DEAR JERRY:Who are the 10 artists of the past century with the greatest number of pop albums on the charts? How does that group compare to those folks with the most chart singles?
Lastly, how many acts reached No. 1 with a single, but then did not get the opportunity to make an LP?
—Matt Morrison, York, Pa.
DEAR MATT: The all-time Top 10, with their total number of charted albums, are: 1. Elvis Presley (105); 2. Frank Sinatra (78); 3. Johnny Mathis (72); 4. Ray Conniff (53); 5. James Brown (51); 6. Barbra Streisand (48); 7. Temptations (48); 8. Beach Boys (47); 9. Willie Nelson (46); 10. Beatles (45).
As for pop singles, only 40% of the names on the previous list are carried over: 1. Elvis Presley (163); 2. James Brown (107); 3. Ray Charles (91); 4. Aretha Franklin (88); 5. Fats Domino (77); 6. Beatles (75); 7. Frank Sinatra (75); 8. Elton John (69); 9. Connie Francis (67); 10. Nat King Cole (66).
James Brown once sang “It's a Man's Man's Man's World,” and so it goes with these two lists. Of the 16 total names, the only ladies are Barbra, Aretha, and Connie.
The vinyl long-play format debuted in 1948, but the album Nazi (“No LP for you!”) appeared only during four years. By 1959 this strange and short-lived predicament came to an end.
With each of their No. 1 singles noted, we know of no vinyl LPs for these five hit-makers:
1952: Johnny Standley (“It's in the Book”).
1955: Joan Weber (“Let Me Go Lover”).
1957: Charlie Gracie (“Butterfly”).
1958: Danny and the Juniors (“At the Hop”); Elegants (“Little Star”).
Two on this short list eventually had an LP of their own, but those came 20 or more years after their original success. Both 1958 groups, Danny and the Juniors and the Elegants, finally made it to long-play vinyl in the early 1980s.
Johnny Standley; Joan Weber; and Danny and the Juniors did at least have seven-inch, four-track, extended play 45s, which are sometimes described as mini-LPs.
DEAR JERRY:Until recently, I didn't know Patsy Cline's “Sweet Dreams (Of You)” was written by Don Gibson.
I see he is also the composer of “I Can't Stop Loving You,” recorded by Ray Charles, Elvis, Roy Orbison, and many others.
Did Mr. Gibson write these songs just for others, or did he release his own versions?
—Betsy Gibbs, Orem, Utah
DEAR BETSY: Yes, Don recorded his own versions of both of those tunes. However, in neither case did Gibson have the best selling record.
Don's and Faron Young's “Sweet Dreams (Of You)” both came out in the summer of 1956, but Faron's became a far bigger hit. It didn't hurt that Young was an established star with a dozen Top 10 records to his credit, and Gibson had yet to have his first hit as a singer.
Patsy Cline's classic version of “Sweet Dreams (Of You)” was her first posthumous hit, issued just a few weeks after the plane crash that took her life (March 5, 1963).
Don's second hit, “Oh Lonesome Me,” didn't come along until 1958. It would, however, be worth the wait. It became his biggest ever, a smash in both the C&W and Top 40 fields.
Not a lot of attention was paid to the B-side, a terrific ballad titled “I Can't Stop Lovin' You” (no 'g').
Roy Orbison took note of the tune and put it on the flip side of his 1960 hit, “I'm Hurtin'.”
Four years later, Ray Charles' “I Can't Stop Loving You,” backed with “Born to Lose,” sold over a million copies — elevating writer Don Gibson to a higher tax bracket. Elvis, Conway Twitty, and others who recorded “I Can't Stop Loving You,” kept him there.
IZ ZAT SO? Of all the versions of “Sweet Dreams (Of You),” the only one to reach No. 1 is by Emmylou Harris. That was on the C&W charts.
Her 1976 treatment of the Gibson classic remains one of the biggest hits of her 42-year career.
Two other significant waxings are by Tommy McLain, who had the biggest pop version (1966), and Reba McEntire (1979).
Jerry Osborne answers as many questions as possible through this column. Write Jerry at: Box 255, Port Townsend, WA 98368 E-mail: jpo@olympus.net Visit his Web site: www.jerryosborne.com
All values quoted in this column are for near-mint condition.
Copyright 2011 Osborne Enterprises- Reprinted By Exclusive Permission
FRANKLIN, TN - During the month of June, Naxos of America will launch distribution for three labels in the U.S. and Canada, with genres ranging from classical to audiophile recordings and UK roots and folk music. The labels included in this month's launch will be Navigator Records, Yarlung Records and K&K Verlagsanstalt.
Navigator Records (navigatorrecords.co.uk) is the home to many ground-breaking artists on the UK roots and folks scene today. Since the label's inception in 2008, Navigator releases have received awards and nominations from the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards and the Irish Music Awards. The regular and glowing reviews in the majority of UK music press (Q, Mojo, fRoots, Word, The Guardian, The Independent and many more) have made it obvious why Navigator is one of the most acclaimed new labels in the UK. The Roster of artists includes Bellowhead, Jon Boden, Boo Hewerdine, Faustus, Bella Hardy, Spiers & Boden, Chris Wood and many others.
Grammy® Award-winning Yarlung Records (www.yarlungrecords.com) brings fresh musicians to the classical music world using minimalist audiophile recording techniques to deliver sound as close to live performance as possible. Rather than using recording studios, engineer Bob Attiyeh produces these albums in concert halls famous for their acoustics, including Walt Disney Concert Hall and Ambassador Hall in Los Angeles. Yarlung uses both analog tape and high resolutions digital media for CDs made with special alloys, high resolution digital downloads, and 180 Gram vinyl LPs, all mastered by Steve Hoffman. With repertoire ranging from the 11th century through the Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and 21st Century, Yarlung highlights performances of top soloists as well as superstar young musicians at the beginnings of their international careers.
K&K Verlagsanstalt (www.kuk-verlagsanstalt.com), founded in 1995, is the publishing house of the German producers and artists Josef-Stefan Kindler and Andreas Otto Grimminger. Specializing in acoustic music, concert recordings and visual art, the label records outstanding performances and concerts for posterity. Through its recordings, K&K creates an atmosphere where the performers, audience, opus and room enter into an intimate dialogue that in its form and expression is unique and unrepeatable. This goes hand-in-hand with the label's philosophy of enabling the listener to acutely experience every facet of this symbiosis, the intensity of the performance.
Get Happy!!
