Raise your hand if you’ll be joining 2013 Ambassador Jack White tomorrow to celebrate Record Store Day 2013! Yes, on Saturday, April 20, independent record stores everywhere will offer an eclectic roster of limited edition releases of all kinds – most on vinyl, but some on CD, too. As usual, the labels participating in RSD ’13 have a number of surprises on the way, previewing future releases, revisiting past titles and even curating completely new packages. As is our tradition here, we’re taking the occasion to count down the titles to which we’re most looking forward! I’ll take my turn first, and then after the jump, you’ll find Mike’s picks for some of the finest offerings you might find at your local independent retailer! Around these parts, of course, every day is Record Store Day – so, after you’ve picked up your share of the year’s collectible releases, don’t forget to browse the regular racks, too…you never know what you might find!
You’ll find more information and a link to a downloadable PDF of the complete Record Store Day list here, and please share your RSD 2013 experiences with us below. Happy Hunting!
1. Miles Davis, ‘Round About Midnight / Milestones / Someday My Prince Will Come (Columbia/Legacy)
Last year, the team at Legacy feted the famous trumpeter with Forever Miles, which collected rare sides recorded between 1956 and 1970. This year, Davis is the recipient of three 180-gram mono vinyl reissues from his classic early Columbia Records period. 1956’s ‘Round About Midnight, Davis’ label debut, showcases the artist at the epoch of his hard bop period. His Quintet includes John Coltrane on tenor sax, Red Garland on piano, Philly Joe Jones on drums and Paul Chambers on bass. Davis’ muted horn makes magic on Thelonious Monk’s “’Round Midnight,” which remained in his book for years, and breathes new life into “Bye Bye Blackbird.” For 1958’s Milestones, Davis foreshadowed the modal jazz breakthrough of the following year’s Kind of Blue with his title track as well as with another Monk composition, “Straight, No Chaser.” The sextet recording adds Cannonball Adderley to the lineup on alto saxophone. Milestones marked the final time Jones, Garland and Chambers would play on a Davis album. Lastly, 1961’s Someday My Prince Will Come blended Davis originals (tributes to producer Teo Macero, Columbia President Goddard Lieberson and wife Frances) with standards including a blazingly reworked title tune from Walt Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Though credited to the Miles Davis Sextet, only “Someday” featured all six players – Davis, Chambers, Hank Mobley and John Coltrane on tenor sax, Wynton Kelly on piano, and Jimmy Cobb on drums. Coltrane made a cameo on tenor on “Teo” (dedicated to Macero) with Mobley playing the instrument on the album’s other songs.
These three LPs remain among Davis’ finest accomplishments. With crispness and clarity, they pack quite a punch in their original mono sound. Legacy has lovingly recreated the original artwork for each individually numbered release. There’s still quite a thrill in holding these objets d’art from a master at the top of his game, restlessly conquering each stylistic shift even as he planted the seeds for the next revolution in jazz. These small group records, which alternated with the big-band sessions teaming Davis with arranger Gil Evans, shouldn’t be missed.
2. Van Dyke Parks, Song Cycle (Reprise/Rhino)
Composer, arranger, producer, singer, musician, actor, author, historian, raconteur and bon vivant: Van Dyke Parks has carved out a niche in popular music truly unlike any other. The renaissance man comes to RSD 2013 both with a new release (Super Chief: Music for the Silver Screen) and a 180-gram mono vinyl reissue of his solo LP debut, 1968’s Song Cycle. As produced by the great record man Lenny Waronker, Song Cycle was a natural progression from the modular songwriting of Parks’ storied collaboration with Brian Wilson, SMiLE. Creative, offbeat, and altogether unencumbered by any notions of conventionality, Song Cycle took in Parks’ varied originals along with compositions from Randy Newman and Donovan. The cinematic, orchestral tour de force is played by a stellar cast of musicians including Wrecking Crew pros Hal Blaine, Tommy Tedesco, Lyle Ritz, Earl Palmer, Jim Gordon and Jay Migliori, plus Newman and The Beau Brummels’ Ron Elliott. A kaleidoscopic journey through California pop, Song Cycle retains its power to surprise and enchant, and those hearing it for the first time in mono will be in for a mind-expanding treat.
3. Paul McCartney and Wings, Maybe I’m Amazed (Hear Music)
Last year, Macca used the annual Record Store Day campaign to preview his deluxe Archive Collection release of 1971’s Ram with a vinyl replica single of “Another Day” b/w “Oh Woman, Oh Why.” This year, the RSD reissue of the 12” “Maybe I’m Amazed” live EP previews this year’s Archive presentation of Wings Over America. As on the original 12” release, Side One includes “Maybe” in full and edited versions in mono, and Side Two presents the full and edited versions in stereo. When “Maybe I’m Amazed” first appeared on 1970’s McCartney, a lush standout on a rather spare collection of homemade songs, it quickly gained popularity, but McCartney declined to officially release it as a single. It wasn’t until the 1976 live version from Wings Over America came along that McCartney relented. His ode to the lovely Linda then scaled the charts to No. 10 in the United States and No. 28 in the United Kingdom.
And Hear Music’s replica “Maybe I’m Amazed” isn’t the only offering this year to excite Beatlefans. Universal Music is collecting three vintage Ringo Starr singles in a lift-top box. Ringo’s Singles Collection includes 7-inch editions of “Photograph” b/w “Down and Out,” “It Don’t Come Easy” b/w “Early 1970,” and “(It’s All Down To) Goodnight Vienna” b/w “Oo-Wee.” All singles are packaged in replicas of their original artwork!
4. Old 97’s with Waylon Jennings (Omnivore)
Omnivore’s 2012 reissue of 1997’s Too Far To Care from Old 97’s added more than a disc’s worth of bonus tracks from the Rhett Miller-fronted alt-country band, and now the group returns to Omnivore with more previously unreleased goodies. And they’ve brought along a guest: the late, great Waylon Jennings. Way back in 1996, Jennings joined Ken Bethea, Murry Hammond, Rhett Miller and Philip Peeples in Nashville to cut two tracks. Yet “Iron Road” and “The Other Shoe,” the two songs completed by Jennings and the 97’s, never saw the light of day…until now. This RSD-exclusive release offers the Jennings/97’s collaborations plus the band’s demos of “Visiting Hours” (a live version of which appeared on 2011’s The Grand Theater Vol. 2) and “Fireflies” (re-recorded by Rhett Miller for his 2006 album The Believer). All four songs will be available as a double yellow vinyl 7-inch release, housed in a gatefold sleeve with art from Jon Langford and even liner notes from Rhett Miller! The package also includes a download card, offering digital files of the four tracks. For an opportunity to hear an iconic talent paired with some of his most authentic heirs, Old 97’s with Waylon Jennings is a rare pleasure, indeed.
5. Jimi Hendrix, Hey Joe b/w Stone Free (Experience Hendrix/Legacy)
Jimi Hendrix isn’t one to be left out – so he’s joined the “back to mono” revolution, as well, with Legacy’s individually numbered reissue of The Jimi Hendrix Experience’s debut U.K. single! This 45 features the explosive trio of Hendrix, Noel Redding and Mitch Mitchell, backed by the trio of British songbirds The Breakaways. Originally released in December 1966, “Hey Joe” rose to No. 6 on the U.K. chart; the U.S. release failed to chart, replacing “Stone Free” with B-side “51st Anniversary.” This single represents the ground floor of Hendrix’s blazing, all-too-short career, and makes a fine companion to Legacy’s recent mono LP reissues of the U.S. and U.K. editions of the 1967 debut LP Are You Experienced.
Honorable Mentions: Frank Zappa's "I'm the Slime/Montana" 7-inch (Zappa Records/Universal) is newly remastered from the original 1973 analog source. "I'm the Slime" is presented in a single edit, and "Montana" is a 2013 edit with 25 additional seconds. Grateful Dead's Rare Cuts and Oddities 1966 compiles, well, rare cuts and oddities from that year in early Dead history! Originally released on CD in 2005, it's making its vinyl debut on two 180-gram platters for RSD!
After the jump: Mike has another five titles for ya!
Unlike previous years, there are actually quite a few titles I wouldn't mind making my own this weekend at Record Store Day. Blame it on my turntable, which I didn't have up and running this time last year - or credit the sheer amount of good stuff that's coming out this year. Here are five I'm excited to listen to.
1. Shuggie Otis, Introducing Shuggie Otis (Epic/Legacy)
We're not even a third through the calendar year, but there's little question that Legacy's Inspiration Information/Wings of Love - a deluxe set that combines the mysterious soul brother's last studio album from 1974 with an entire disc-plus worth of unreleased bonus content - will be very much toward the top of the reissue pile for 2013. Admittedly, the double-disc set was my first real exposure to Shuggie Otis, and I'm eager to dive in further. Enter this new greatest hits package, featuring cuts from all three of Otis' Epic LPs, including 1969's Here Comes Shuggie Otis and 1971's Freedom Flight. May it be the continuation of my appreciation of this beautiful discography.
2. R.E.M., Live in Greensboro (Warner Bros./Rhino)
UMe and EMI's 25th anniversary reissue campaign for all of R.E.M.'s I.R.S.-era albums between 1983 and 1987 definitely did its job of convincing me that the Athens, Georgia band's run from Murmur to Document was pretty much undeterred greatness. It's time for a closer read of the band's Warner-era catalogue, and this CD is actually a good look at how these new reissues are going to be well-curated. The bonus disc of Green couldn't fit the whole show, so this set completes the puzzle - and hey, a free vintage patch, too!
3. Big Star, Nothing Can Hurt Me (Omnivore)
Who'd have thought that the delectable Big Star box from Rhino wasn't the final word on what may have been the greatest power-pop outfit ever? This double-vinyl set of new (and newly-heard) mixes looks as much of a treat as the forthcoming documentary of which this set serves as a soundtrack.
4. Sly & The Family Stone, I Want to Take You Higher (10") (Epic/Legacy)
It's hard to believe it's taken this long for a career-spanning Sly & The Family Stone box set to materialize. But this summer, it looks like that might finally happen. And if this disc, with an unreleased live track, a rare mono single mix of "Higher" and an instrumental "TV medley" of the band's biggest hits, is any indication, we should expect some hot fun in the summertime, indeed.
5. Various Artists, Cotillion Records: Soul 45s 1968-1970 (Rhino)
I'm a firm believer that RSD exclusives play a part in mapping out what the rest of the year might look like for a catalogue label. To that end, if the hopefully-revitalized Rhino's attention to the oft-overlooked Cotillion label on ten 45s is any indication of where they might be looking for archival material in the future, you can color me very, very intrigued.
Honorable mentions go to two title I wish was readily available here - a single featuring two unreleased Donny Hathaway tracks, "Never My Love" b/w "Memories of Love" (Rhino U.K.) (again, may this be a taste of things to come!), and a blue-vinyl reissue of Duran Duran's "Is There Something I Should Know?" (Capitol/EMI) - as well as a double-vinyl reissue of The Notorious B.I.G.'s Ready to Die (Rhino), if only because it's something a bit apart from the traditional rock/soul offerings of Record Store Day, and (hopefully) the kind of thing to get new fans out to indie stores, which is just the kind of thing we want to see!
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I say this every year, and I'm gonna say it again: Record Store Day is a well-intentioned, but misguided idea. Yes, it's fun for collectors and record store employees(and their collector friends/ business partners),or those with a vinyl 45 and picture sleeve fetish,but in this era of downloading and streaming, with the compact disc itself becoming an endangered species, it makes little sense to put so much effort into getting consumers (the aforementioned collectors) into an independent record store on a single Saturday in spring. They need to attract what's left of the compact disc buying public with great prices and special releases EVERY WEEK. Some of the releases are cool, but let's face it, they'll be sold out ( and posted on eBay) by the time most normal people are waking up. They should be made available on CD and produced in sufficient numbers to satisfy demand. At the very least, the releases should be staggered and put on sale over several Saturdays, to get people into the habit of visiting their local independent store with regularity. But, I'm afraid it's too late. I don't like downloading--I want a physical copy of my favorite music, and outside of a trip to Target to pick up a copy of the bonus edition of the latest Hendrix release, I buy all of it online.
AMEN! Joe, you are spot on. I have been saying exactly this same thing for the past several years. What good does it do to have one Black Saturday per year? This one day cannot sustain the brick and mortar record retailers. The record labels need to have record store exclusives (vinyl and CD) throughout the year to keep customers coming into the stores. Also, by their increasingly limited quantities (and on top of that, they drastically cut the allocations on most every title) they only drive the secondary market dealers to swarm the record stores to grab the hot titles only to immediately flip them on eBay. If artists and record labels really want to help the brick and mortar stores, they need to have more exclusives year round, and not be such damned tight wads on the quantities ( I am talking to you Dave Matthews!)
I used to be very enthusiastic about Record Store Day because I wanted to support the brick and mortar retailers. However, it has gotten so ugly and unpleasant with all the pushing, shoving and grabbing that I no longer participate. I have also witnessed gang grabs in action. They are the first in line, usually 6 to 8 of them. As soon as the doors open they run to the vinyl. One person will grab, say the stack of Nirvana, one will grab the stack of Springsteen etc. Whatever is deemed hot. Then they will disperse one each amongst the gang. Not only that, but they block others from being able to browse the bins. So in the first few seconds, the stock is gone on some titles. It is really disgusting. The only way I see to avoid this is for the record stores to impose a lottery system in the line outside. This would break up those gangs. Until something changes, my policy is "stay away on Record Store Day".
You got that right, Joe... I've never gone to a RSD, because there's nothing there for me. I said this in a rant about the upcoming Wings Over America reissue a few weeks ago but what is with the pandering to the vinyl crowd? Yes, vinyl's made a bit of a comeback. But it's still a very niche market and it's never going to go back to the way it was in the 60s/70s. For the diehard collectors and hipsters, it's great. But the rest of us?
I'm still a CD buyer, and while I don't really need to rush out to get a CD with songs I already have (like "Maybe I'm Amazed" or "Hey Joe"/"Stone Free") I don't understand why the labels and retailers aren't doing anything for those of us who still buy CDs. That Grateful Dead RSD release is a great example. I missed it when it was available on CD a number of years ago and now it's out of print. I'd like to have it now, so along with the vinyl release why not a CD reissue?
And, yes, how about doing this sort of thing throughout the year, not just one day per year? How about offering some of those bonus releases (like the extra Hendrix disc from Target) to independents too? Keep prices fair (CDs are still very cheap to produce) and offer more incentives to come out and buy from brick and mortar retailers.
More worthwhile "vault" releases from classic artists, while there's still an audience for them, would certainly be a step in the right direction too. Make those a part of these special days/promotions. Maybe do them a quarterly basis?
Having never gone to a RSD, I don't what goes on terms of ugly behavior by people only interested in grabbing the good stuff in order to flip them on eBay, but I'm sure it happens. I remember the days of standing in line for concert tickets, and seeing people who had either clearly bribed the people operating the Ticketmaster machine ahead of time, OR organized scalpers placing groups of people in the line to buy the max. per person, walk away with the best tickets, so I'm sure the same kinds of things happen at RSD, only with the added insanity and boorish behavior of "Black Friday" store openings. Who the hell needs any of that?
Of course, I don't expect the record industry to do anything smart, or helpful to consumers, anymore. It's their funeral, and they'll take the independent retailers down with them.
I saw the same thing yesterday-a mob of people, 6 or 7 deep all squeezed into the back of Newbury Comics in Manchester, CT, a very small store as it is. Individuals at the front who had their records and could have squirmed out and let others in simply stayed there and handed out records to others in the back (including myself-I had no choice) who were calling out requests.
I felt that the store was to blame-they actually were letting 10 people in every 30 seconds which was pointless.
Never again, it simply wasn't worth it.
Shit on someone's parade cuz you don't agree with it?! Pooh, pooh! I was at a SIGNIFICANT independent store in Denver on Saturday and it was filled to capacity with happy, nutty, crazy MUSIC LOVERS. It reminded me of one of those "Beatle Release Parties" from years back. Why was it fun? Cuz everyone was having a GOOD TIME showing off their love of music and the (albeit) dying record industry! Vinyl? Yeah, so what?! Some of us love the warmer, organic sound of vinyl. But, so what?! Those that don't dig it (like you guys) shouldn't be there. You won't be missed, believe me. And I'd say that the vast majority of those buying "official" Record Store Day product yesterday were also buying CDs, magazines, clothing, DVDs, etc. It was a healthy day for independent dealers. Hey, give them their due. They are well aware that they are paddling up stream by just being INDEPENDENT! I say give us more of these fun days. BTW, they have TWO a year now, LOL. If you don't like us, leave us alone. For me, bring on the next one! And as John Lennon would say, "piss off!"
If all these people on RSD were so happy showing their love of music, why aren't they in the store the other 363 days of the year? Most of the people are there simply because the quantities are limited and they want to get their instant collectables. They are one of 500 or a thousand (or whatever the quantity might be) in the world who have these releases. That's the only reason they are filling the store on Record Store day. If they just loved the music they would be frequenting the store much more, well, frequently. Not just RSD and Black Friday RSD.
You are missing the point of most of the people who are not happy with Record Store Day. The people who frequent sites like the Second Disc are people who buy music all the time. I get music virtually every day, on LP and CD. I love it. But the Record Store Day event, which is supposed to be an outreach program to remind people of the existence of record stores, excludes many people from getting what they would like. If I support the industry daily, why should I have such difficulty in obtaining the few titles I would like on RSD? The quantities are far too small. The stores have no control over what they receive. Why don't the companies solicit the titles with sufficient leadtime that the stores could order what they want, and then press what is ordered? The set-in-stone-in-advance limited quantities are just stupid. They are leaving money on the table. If the individual store didn't order enough, they would suffer the backlash through loss of sales, not the event. Keep the "no returns to manufacturer" policy in effect so the stores aren't tempted to preorder too much as they will be stuck with it.
Some people such as Shaun aren't happy with the dominance of vinyl over CD, and I understand his frustration, but most of the stuff that comes out on RSD is already available on CD. I agree with his point that if you are rereleasing an out-of-print item, why not press some CDs as well as LPs? Again, if you are pressing to preorders, there is little to lose. He seems to be pointing out flaws in the record companies overall vault release strategy more than just RSD.He doesn't seem to be against RSD per se.
And didn't Lennon say "All You Need Is Love" and "Give Peace a Chance"? I don't remember the one where he said "Piss off" (not that he was always a pleasant fellow)!
If you had fun, good for you. And while-as a small business owner myself--I like to see mom and pop, brick and mortar, independent record shops surviving in the downloading age (and a still-poor economy), I want choice and competitive prices and stress-free shopping. No one can deny that a warm, well-stocked and comprehensive record store would be a good place to hang around, browse, and spend money, but I think your experience is isolated. Maybe the demographics of Significant's location suit it's purpose. Perhaps the area has more than it's share of well-heeled (and well-behaved) vinyl aficionados and hipsters. But I can assure you that in most places, the ambiance of Record Store Day is closer to Black Friday at a big-box retailer in an urban environment. And while we're on the subject, one of the many, many reasons small record stores have closed is that they're a one-way street. If they have something hard to find that you want-you will pay dearly. But if you want to sell something rare, they will offer you chump change, as I found out recently when i tried to sell my copy of David Bowie's Golden Collection, an 8-disc box set of the Rykodisc remasters that came out through BMG-Direct in the nineties. My unfriendly, un-neighborly, independent local brick and mortar record store offered me fifteen bucks for the whole set-. this is a place that sells used cassettes for like 5 bucks a pop. I ended up selling it for many times that amount on eBay (the same place where the vast majority of RSD "exclusives" will dwell for a spell) and have regretted it ever since!
By the way, Sean--you said you were at SIGNIFICANT on Record Store Day? Were you there as a buyer, or were you working there?
I don't get why the vast majority of RSD releases are on vinyl either. It is fun to see the stores filled up one day a year tho.
All back to black friday RSD did for us is bring out the scalpers. I went to go get a copy of Kind of Blue and they had sold out by 9:15 AM. Meanwhile I just fired up Ebay and sorted by distance and the same records are being offered for sale for 3x the price. All RSD does from what I can see is make people act like big d!@ks. Congratulations Vinyl just became like a tickle me elmo phenomenon. If I'm gonna have to pay a scalpers premimum I'll just by an original copy of the record.