More Black Friday Treats Coming From Omnivore, Real Gone Music
It’s that time of year — the temperatures are falling, the leaves about to change color. And that can only mean one thing: Record Store Day Black Friday announcements! You’ve seen Rhino, Universal and Craft’s line-ups; now, take a look at what Omnivore Recordings and Real Gone Music have each unveiled for this year’s celebrations. Let’s take a look!
Alex Chilton, My Rival (Omnivore)
Omnivore Recordings invites listeners into an “alternate universe” with their 10″ EP of previously unissued Alex Chilton tracks, engineered by Chris Bell. The pair had worked together in Big Star but by 1975, the band had broken up and each was in search of a solo career. Fans have long thought that “You and Your Sister” (a Chris Bell solo track with an Alex Chilton backing vocal) was their last studio collaboration. But in a move delightfully typical of Omnivore Recordings, the label has uncovered a new chapter in the Big Star timeline for fans to enjoy. This five-song EP is the proof of that unknown 1975 reunion session. A digital EP will follow on December 6.
Peter Holsapple Combo, Christmas Must Be Tonight (Omnivore)
The dBs’ co-founder Peter Holsapple is set to release a 7″ single featuring a cover of The Band’s Christmas classic backed with a new Christmas-themed track, “Felt Like Summer (But It Looked Like Christmas),” written while on tour with Hootie and The Blowfish this summer. A digital single will follow on December 6.
New Riders of The Purple Sage, Thanksgiving In New York City (Omnivore)
Omnivore will also premiere a previously unissued live performance from The New Riders of the Purple Sage, as recorded live at the Academy of Music in New York City on Thanksgiving Day, November 23, 1972. The 3LP set includes the psychedelic cowboys’ complete set – from Marmaduke Dawson’s classics like “Henry,” “Portland Woman,” and “Last Lonely Eagle,” a helping of bluegrass and folk (“She’s No Angel,” “Long Black Veil), classic oldies (“Hello Mary Lou”), R&B (“I Don’t Need No Doctor,” “Willie and The Hand Jive”), and current pop smashes (“Take A Letter, Maria).” The New Riders would return to New York City every Thanksgiving for the next three years, but this is the set that started it all. A 2CD edition and digital configuration will follow on December 6.
Fight, War Of Words (Real Gone Music)
Real Gone Music delivers the first-ever U.S. vinyl issue of Fight’s 1993 debut album – the band led by Judas Priest’s Rob Halford. The album will be pressed on white vinyl with black splatter. (1500 copies)
Various Artists, Desperado: The Soundtrack (Real Gone Music)
Robert Rodriguez’s movies – like those of Tarantino or Scorsese – are inextricably tied to their soundtracks, and few top the one he put together for Desperado, the sequel to the director’s breakthrough, El Mariachi. The 1995 film features a score composed and performed by Los Lobos and Tito & Tarantula, alongside tunes by Dire Straits, Link Wray, Carlos Santana, and the Latin Playboys, among others. For this Record Store Day Black Friday-exclusive pressing, Real Gone enlisted illustrator Matt Ryan Tobin to create one-of-a-kind new artwork, and the gatefold packaging and printed inner sleeves boast production stills from the film. This editon will be pressed on “blood and gunpowder” color vinyl. (2500 copies)
Tony Joe White, That On The Road Look “Live” (Real Gone Music)
Recorded in 1971 while on the road with Creedence Clearwater Revival, That On the Road Look “Live” captures Tony Joe White at his live peak. Though there were plans to release the multitrack-recorded concert in the ’70s, the album was lost to time before being resurrected by Rhino Handmade for a CD release. Now, the album will be released in an RSD Black Friday-exclusive, white vinyl configuration, housed in a gatefold sleeve featuring a die-cut front cover that reveals that classic live image of Tony Joe White. (1000 copies)
I’m a huge fan of the New Riders of the Purple Sage and would love to get this special set, but almost $70 (including sales tax) for a 3-LP set in a regular cover sleeve?? I don’t think so. For that price, I expect an extensive booklet, a CD and/or download card and a box. This seems to be another effort in trying to get a sense of just how far the record companies can push us vinyl collectors in paying an arm and a leg for vinyl…