After revealing its Halloween slate of titles, Real Gone Music has announced two more vinyl reissues due in late October and early November.
The first, due on October 27, is the 3-LP set The Meters - A Message from The Meters: The Complete Josie, Reprise and Warner Brothers Singles 1968-1977. Funk pioneers The Meters are one of those bands who are greatly influential to a great many musicians. They have worked with artists ranging from Dr. John to Paul McCartney, but have not had great mainstream success of their own. Formed in New Orleans in 1965, the initial line-up consisted of Art Neville (vocals and keyboards), Leo Nocentelli (guitars), Joseph "Zigaboo" Modeliste (drums) and George Porter Jr. (bass). They were soon joined by Art's brother Cyril on vocals and percussion and became the house band for Allen Toussaint and his Sansu Enterprises label. They would release their own recordings for Josie in 1969, before moving to Reprise in 1972 and Warner Brothers in 1977.
A Message from The Meters--The Complete Josie, Reprise & Warner Bros. Singles 1968-1977 collects their singles for these three labels together on vinyl for the first time. Their biggest hit would come early when 1969's "Cissy Strut" climbed to #23 on the pop charts and #4 on the R & B chart. Art and Cyril left the band in 1977 with David Batiste Sr. and Willie West joining. The group broke up permanently in 1980. Various incarnations and line-ups of the group have reformed over the ensuing years going by their original name and as The Funky Meters and The Metermen. The initial four-person line-up got back together in 2000 and have gone to on to bill themselves as The Original Meters as to avoid confusion with the Funky Meters who also currently tour the country. The package features liner notes from Bill Dahl with quotes from Nocentelli, Neville and Porter, and has been remastered by Mike Milchner at SonicVision. This collection was first issued by Real Gone as a 2-CD set in September 2016 and on limited edition multi-colored vinyl for Record Store Day in April. This is the first time that a vinyl edition will be available at general retail.
The next week, on November 3, Real Gone is reissuing Desmond Dekker's You Can Get It If You Really Want on LP. Dekker is one of the earliest artists in the reggae and ska genre to hit it big internationally. Hailing from Jamaica, the singer-songwriter got his start in the early 1960s in the Jamaican music scene. He would become popular with "rude boy" street subculture with songs such as "007 (Shanty Town)." In 1968, his song "Israelites" would become a hit in the United Kingdom. You Can Get It If You Really Want was released in 1970 and was Dekker's first original album on the Trojan label. (His first album, 1969's This Is Desmond Dekker, was a compilation of earlier material.) The title song, a cover of the Jimmy Cliff tune, would go to #2 on the British charts. Dekker's version utilized the same backing track as Cliff's version. Both artists also shared a producer in Leslie Kong. The album produced another hit with "Pickney Gal." Two years later, in 1972, Dekker would gain even more exposure when his "007 (Shanty Town)" was featured on the soundtrack to the film The Harder They Come. The film and soundtrack really broke open reggae on an international scale. Dekker would sign with Stiff Records in the 1980s before returning to Trojan. He passed away in 2006. Real Gone's new vinyl reissue comes in "black and blue marble" and is limited to 1,000 copies.
If you'd like to give either of these titles a try, we've got the preorder links below along with the rest of Real Gone's October and November slate!
OCTOBER 6, 2017 RELEASES FROM REAL GONE MUSIC
Charles Bernstein, Cujo Original Soundtrack Album (Limited Black and Brown "St. Bernard" Vinyl Edition) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)
John Zacherle, Zacherle's Monster Gallery (Limited Green and Orange "Pumpkin" Vinyl Edition) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)
Carol Burnett, Carol Burnett Sings: Expanded Edition (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)
OCTOBER 13, 2017 RELEASES FROM REAL GONE MUSIC
Various Artists, The Return of the Living Dead Original Soundtrack Album (Limited Black and Brown "Tarman" Vinyl Edition) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)
OCTOBER 27, 2017 RELEASES FROM REAL GONE MUSIC
The Meters, A Message from The Meters--The Complete Josie, Reprise & Warner Bros. Singles 1968-1977 (3-LP Set) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada TBD)
45 Grave, Sleep In Safety: Expanded Edition (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada TBD)
NOVEMBER 3, 2017 RELEASES FROM REAL GONE MUSIC
Desmond Dekker, You Can Get It If You Really Want (Limited Black and Blue "Marble" Vinyl Edition) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)
Zubb says
When is RGM going to announce their Christmas releases for 2017?
Joe Marchese says
Very soon, Zubb! Stay tuned! 🙂
Stephen Talia says
I'd buy the Desmond Dekker if they released it on CD. In fact, I'd love it if Real Gone did a full comp on Dekker.
Michael Sperling says
"Israelites," in addition to being a #1 hit in England, peaked at #9 on Billboard's U.S. singles chart in 1969. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israelites_(song) for more info about it.