Some interesting releases for Record Store Day 2018
It’s that time of year again, when all the hardcore music lovers worldwide celebrate the beauty of vinyl on the holiday known as Record Store Day. Locally, independent record stores Vinyl Revival in Lansdowne, Goodies Disc Exchange in Holmes and Repo Records downtown are just a few of the participating locations — ones that have also signed the “Record Store Day Pledge” to not price gouge customers nor hold back the special releases.
The 11th installment of the day — which, as Nigel Tufnel from ‘Spinal Tap would surely be a fan — is chock full of vinyl goodness. Here are 11 releases for which to keep any eye out, from Jimi Hendrix to Led Zeppelin to Soundgarden.
LED ZEPPELIN “ROCK AND ROLL/ FRIENDS” 7-INCH
Leave it to Led Zeppelin to be one of the longest holdouts in the game. For the band’s 50th anniversary though, they’ve decided to put their toes into the shallow end with a 7-inch, a yellow vinyl single featuring the ‘Sunset Sound Mix’ of “Rock and Roll” and the ‘Olympic Studio Mix’ of “Friends,” both chosen by band guitarist Jimmy Page just for Record Store Day.
JOHNNY CASH, ‘AT FOLSOM PRISON: LEGACY EDITION’
“Hello… I’m Johnny Cash.” With those four words, The Man in Black solidified his legend as outlaw country pioneer with two spirited sets recorded at Folsom State Prison in 1968 and released as ‘At Folsom Prison,’ one of the most acclaimed live albums of all time. This special box set includes both full concerts available for the first time on vinyl, including performances by June Carter, Carl Perkins and The Statler Brothers. As an individually numbered deluxe package, it features the LP jackets packaged in a deluxe hard-shell slipcase with an eight-page, 12-inch x 12-inch booklet, also including a bonus 12inch single featuring previously unreleased audio of Cash and friends rehearsing at the El Rancho Motel in Sacramento, California, the night before the concerts took place.
ELVIS PRESLEY ‘THE KING IN THE RING’
Elvis Presley re-established himself as The King of Rock and Roll with ‘ELVIS,’ the widely-seen comeback special broadcast on NBC at the end of 1968. The show’s many highlights included laid-back live performances recorded in the round before a small audience and featuring a powerful ensemble, including guitarist Scotty Moore and drummer D.J. Fontana, both part of Elvis’ original, classic backing band. To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the show, both electrifying, intimate “sitdown” sets are now released on vinyl for the first time in an individually numbered 2 LP package with a newly created gatefold sleeve, pressed on red vinyl.
DAVID BOWIE ‘DAVID BOWIE’
While it sounds little like the music which would make him an icon in the future, David Bowie’s debut album available is something to behold, available for first time on heavyweight red and blue colored vinyl. This two-LP set features the mono version of the album on disc one and the stereo version on disc two.
JIMI HENDRIX “MANNISH BOY” B/W “TRASH MAN” 7-INCH
Recorded at New York City’s Record Plant on April 22, 1969, this up-tempo reworking of Muddy Waters’ “Mannish Boy” marks Jimi Hendrix’s first recording session with bassist Billy Cox and drummer Buddy Miles, the trio who became known as Band of Gypsys, whose work with Hendrix had a significant impact on the guitarist’s remarkable legacy. First released on ‘Both Sides of The Sky,’ a new studio album of rare and unissued Hendrix recordings, “Mannish Boy” is issued here as a 45 RPM single backed with “Trash Man,” an April 3, 1969 studio recording made by the original Jimi Hendrix Experience. “Trash Man” is drawn from ‘Hear My Music,’ a Dagger Records “official bootleg” album not sold in stores and otherwise only available to fans via the official website of the iconic Hendrix.
SOUNDGARDEN ‘A-SIDES’
‘A-Sides’ is a compilation album spanning the legendary grunge band’s 13-year career. First released November 4, 1997 through A&M Records, it was the last official release for the group until 2010’s ‘Telephantasm’ collection. It contains one song absent from previous albums (“Bleed Together”) which appeared on import copies of the “Burden in My Hand” single. This is the first time A-Sides has been available on vinyl.
JEFF BUCKLEY ‘LIVE AT SIN-É: LEGACY EDITION’
In a cramped club on the lower east side of Manhattan, armed with only an electric guitar, Jeff Buckley stunned audiences with his mysterious, emotionally uncompromising live sets, packed with eclectic covers and his own originals. The four-track ‘Live at Sin-é EP,’ released in 1993, was his debut release for Columbia Records. Here, it’s expanded as a numbered, limited edition in a deluxe hard-shell slipcase housing four individually designed LP jackets and an eight-page, fullcolor booklet of photos and liner notes. Live versions of favorites like “Grace,” “Last Goodbye” and Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” appear here on vinyl for the first time.
PINK FLOYD ‘THE PIPER AT THE GATES OF DAWN’ MONO LP
The psychedelic debut album by Pink Floyd was their sole record completed with original vocalist/guitarist Syd Barrett and features the early classic “Interstellar Overdrive.” The original mono version of this LP, named one of Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, is available on vinyl for the first time in more than 50 years.
JOHN COLTRANE ‘MY FAVORITE THINGS’ 7-INCH
Only previously available in the Coltrane Mono vinyl box, this is replica of the original ‘My Favorite Things Part I & II’ 7-inch, a hit single for the legendary jazz giant in 1961. This standalone 7-inch is onetime availability of the single, restricted to the US-only and limited to 1000 copies worldwide. “My Favorite Things Part I & II” comes in a reproduction of the original 1961 Atlantic Records stock sleeve, with remastered mono audio from the label’s vaults.
RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION 2000
Less than a year after the release of the album ‘The Battle of Los Angeles,’ Rage Against The Machine performed a concert in protest of the American political party system across from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, Calif. while the Democratic National Convention was held inside. Now, that combustible show is available for the first time on vinyl.
DOGFISH HEAD BREWERY ‘MUSIC TO DRINK BEER AND MAKE LOVE TO’
Dogfish Head Brewery and Legacy Recordings’ ongoing “Music To Drink Beer To” series is a Record Store Day tradition, and this year’s entry offers a perfect playlist for refreshment as well as romance. Get in the mood with tracks from local legend Teddy Pendergrass, Jeff Buckley, Bill Withers, A Tribe Called Quest, Nina Simone and more.