Fifty-one years ago this past weekend, a crowd of half a million converged at Max Yasgur's Farm in Bethel, New York for the Woodstock Music and Art Fair. The four-day event became a cultural touchstone and mythical ideal, strengthened even more by the Woodstock film and soundtracks that proliferated the marketplace during the early '70s and beyond. While performers, fans, and countless supposed attendees participated in even more myth-building, a small group of historians and researchers worked
Bandcamp Bonanza: Top Picks For Indie Music Makers' Sixth Monthly Event
On March 20, as the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic was just starting to be understood, indie music retailer Bandcamp made the bold choice of waiving their share of revenue for artists and labels who were cancelling shows and delaying album releases left and right. The result was more music bought by more fans than any day on the site, a record broken on the first Friday of May. Bandcamp Fridays have since taken place in June and July - plus the first of an annual occurrence when the service
I'm Dreamin' A Dream: Real Gone Music Revisits Out-Of-Print Titles From Norma Tanega, Tom Tom Club, Horace Tapscott, and Charles Bukowski
Real Gone Music has announced the re-release of four albums from the label's vault which are being brought back in print on new vinyl colorways: Charles Bukowski Reads His Poetry, Norma Tanega's Walking My Cat Named Dog, Horace Tapscott Quintet's The Giant Is Awakened, and Tom Tom Club's self-titled album. All these sought-after titles will return to shops on August 21, so whether you like free jazz, profane poetry, singer-songwriters, or funky dance grooves, Real Gone has you covered once
Pick Up The Pieces: Edsel Releases Multi-Disc Average White Band Anthology
In selecting a name, the Average White Band certainly was modest. Over a career spanning nearly 50 years, the Scottish band recorded thirteen studio albums and seven live sets; charted nine hits in the U.K. and U.S. and a further 15 songs on the U.S. R&B survey; scored a million-seller with "Pick Up the Pieces;" and had so many songs sampled that the group was ranked the fifteenth most sampled artist in history as of around a decade ago. The AWB is still active today under the auspices of
Awakening: Real Gone Music Announces Reissues of Rare and Sought-After Titles from Black Jazz Records
Today, Real Gone Music announced the reissue of a batch of extremely hard-to-find albums from the legendary Black Jazz Records catalogue, due for release on August 28 on CD and LP. The legendary Black Jazz Records was founded in 1969 in Oakland, California by pianist Gene Russell and percussionist Dick Schory and released its first records in summer of 1971. From then on, it became a home for many emerging African-American jazz performers across a range of styles, including free jazz,
Dancing Again: What To Expect for Record Store Day's RSD Drops Day 1, August 29
As the COVID 19 outbreak continues to impact our lives, it's heartening to know that some things are returning to some semblance of "normal," or as close as we can get to it during this unpredictable impasse. As we previously reported, Record Store Day has been split into three standalone "RSD Drop" days, occurring on August 29, September 26, and October 24. That's not the only thing changing this time around. It's been reported by Georgia-based shop Comeback Vinyl that the organization is
Summer Blessings: Super Picks for July's Bandcamp Friday
The Bandcamp Friday train keeps rolling - a light in the darkness for music lovers if ever there was one! On March 20, as the COVID-19 pandemic was putting the world on pause, the indie music service waived their revenue share on all music and merch sold, allowing indie artists and labels a chance for some steadier income as concert tours began to halt. The event was a resounding success, and has been repeated on the first Fridays of May and June, with another on June 19 (a planned annual
Chase Down That Crown: A Special Bandcamp Friday Shopping List
Bandcamp Friday is fast becoming as exciting a time as any other music street date. On March 20, as the COVID-19 pandemic was putting the world on pause, the indie music service waived their revenue share on all music and merch sold, allowing indie artists and labels a chance for some steadier income as concert tours began to halt. The event was a resounding success, and has been repeated on the first Fridays of May and June, with another to follow on July 3. This Friday, June 19, in
Never Want It Badly Enough: The Second Disc's Top Tracks For Bandcamp Friday
Despite the challenges facing the music business amid the COVID-19 pandemic, there are some bright spots. On March 20, indie music service Bandcamp waived their share of revenue on all sales for 24 hours, allowing artists and labels to support themselves even more robustly. Thanks to impressive results ($4.3 million spent on music and merch, 15 times an average Friday's revenue), Bandcamp repeated the strategy not once, but thrice: the first Fridays of each month (May 1, which raised $7.1
Go For It: Real Gone Music Set to Reissues Cult Classics From the '70s and '80s in June
Real Gone Music is winding back the clock a few decades with reissues that are sure to please crate-diggers. First, on June 12, the label will release two mid-'80s cult classics - Kleeer's Intimate Connection and the Predator soundtrack. Fiftieth anniversary reissues of Eugene McDaniels' Outlaw and Fanny's self-titled debut will follow on June 26. Long a favorite of electro-funk connoisseurs, New York-based Kleeer recorded half a dozen acclaimed albums for Atlantic. One of their most
Cherry Red Round-Up: Complete Box Sets Celebrate The Honeycombs, The Meters
The Honeycombs weren't quite a one-hit wonder. The stomping "Have I the Right?" established the group, under the aegis of maverick producer Joe Meek, when it topped the U.K. Singles Chart in the summer of 1964. But its follow-ups barely squeaked into the top 40, and a No. 12 placement for "That's the Way" was too little, too late to bolster the group's fortunes. These showings, however, were no reflection on the band's quality. For one of its final releases, Cherry Red's RPM imprint has
Release Round-Up: Week of January 31
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! Rod McKuen, New Ballads (Real Gone Music) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) Real Gone celebrates the late Rod McKuen with a slate of releases this week. For the 1970 album New Ballads, the singer-songwriter teamed with renowned arranger-conductor Don Costa for this remarkable collection of songs including "As I Love My Own," the dramatic Jacques Brel collaboration "I'm Not Afraid," "Thank You for Christmas," and a composition which
Release Round-Up: Week of January 24
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! Elton John, Live from Moscow 1979 (Mercury/UMe) 2-CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2-LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2019 marked the 40th anniversary of Elton John's landmark tour of Russia, where he stunned audiences as the first rocker to perform in the country. His concerts there were intimate events where he performed alongside percussionist Ray Cooper. Now, Elton brings his May 28, 1979 concert in Moscow to
Affirmative Yes: Real Gone Announces Vinyl Reissues of The Bonniwell Music Machine, The Donnas, and Little Beaver
Real Gone Music is at it again with a slate of overlooked classics due for reissue on vinyl this February and March. First up, there's The Donnas' Gold Medal, a power-pop favorite from 2004 that features the radio hit "Fall Behind Me." The Butch Walker-produced album marked a new direction for the band as they embraced a '70s-inspired psychedelic sound evoked visually by the very groovy artwork. Due on February 28, Real Gone's black-and-gold splatter vinyl edition will reproduce all the
Ace Round-Up, Part One: London American and Westbound Records Anthologies
Having previously chronicled 1956-1966 over eleven volumes, Ace has returned to its London American Label series for a last (?) hurrah. The London American Label Year by Year: 1967 is packed with 28 stellar selections to illuminate a year in which the label was in steadfast decline. London had long been the destination for great American records, but the major U.S. companies were launching their own U.K. arms and declining to license to London. This led London to release fewer 45s from
You Can Handle It: Real Gone Announces Vinyl Reissues of Soul Classics
Happy New Year, everybody! 2020 is shaping up to be a great year for Real Gone Music. There's the upcoming standalone version of Johnny Mathis' The Island, the return of Laura Nyro's More Than A New Discovery in mono...and that's just the Second Disc Records slate so far! In addition to titles from Rod McKuen and Barbara Eden, Real Gone has also announced remastered vinyl editions of Charles Wright and the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band's enduring Express Yourself and It's Just A Matter of
OUT TOMORROW! Blinky Is Free at Last on Second Disc Records, Real Gone Music's "Heart Full of Soul: The Motown Anthology"
The story of Sondra "Blinky" Williams has long been shrouded in mystery. The soulful singer came to Motown Records in 1967 following stints at Vee-Jay and Atlantic, bringing her passionate and powerful deep soul sound to Hitsville, USA. Despite recording dozens of tracks between 1968 and 1973, only a small handful saw release: a mere four 45s plus an album of duets with Edwin Starr, two live cuts, and a couple of one-off recordings, including a key moment on the best-selling soundtrack of Lady
Release Round-Up: Week of October 25
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! The Kinks, Arthur, or The Decline and Fall of the British Empire [Various Formats] (BMG) 4CD/4-seven-inch single box: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / The Kinks Official 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / The Kinks Official 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / The Kinks Official The Kinks' 1969 concept album continued in the quintessentially British vein of The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation
Na Na Na Na Na: Minky Records Celebrates East L.A. Chicano Soul and More on "Land of 1,000 Dances" Box
The sound of East Los Angeles is spreading far and wide with the November 29 release of a new 4-CD box set. Land of 1,000 Dances: The Rampart Records Complete Singles Collection, which arrives on Black Friday's Record Store Day, offers a comprehensive overview of the groundbreaking Mexican-American rock coming out of East L.A. between 1961 and 1991 on Eddie Davis' Rampart label. The Minky Records release is limited to 1,000 units. Minky has previously mined the Rampart family of labels via
Earwig Music Unearths Trove of Chicago Blues and Soul on "Cadillac Baby's Bea & Baby Records: The Definitive Collection"
Chicago in the '50s was overflowing with skilled bluesmen, vocal groups, gospel singers, not to mention the mom-and-pop labels eager to make a hit off the artists. There are the now-famous labels - Chess, Delmark, and Vee-Jay among them. But the Windy City was so teeming with talent (and entrepreneurial hucksters trying to launch their own careers) that small, independent labels were plentiful. Earwig Music Company celebrates one such label in its ambitious new box set, Cadillac Baby's Bea
Check Out Grover: SoulMusic Records Collects Columbia-Era Grover Washington, Jr. Titles on "Sacred Kind of Love"
During the '70s, '80s and '90s, there were few jazz musicians as popular and influential as Grover Washington, Jr. The talented reed-man's skilled saxophone work (he could bring the funk on soprano, alto, baritone, tenor, and even flute) was matched by a pop sensibility that made him an instrumental figure in jazz-fusion as it morphed into smooth-jazz. His music was funky, danceable, accessible, and always smooth. His groundbreaking work in the '70s and early '89s has been well-documented --
Get On Up: James Brown's 1969 Homecoming Show Remixed and Expanded For October Release
Are you ready for Star Time? A new James Brown release, chronicling a 50-year-old homecoming show released in full for the first time, will surely do the trick. Live At Home With His Bad Self was in fact intended to be released not long after its recording. In the fall of 1969, Brown came to Augusta, Georgia's Bell Auditorium, hours from where Brown first sang gospel as a young man in Toccoa. He was backed by a stellar band that featured the talents of horn players Maceo Parker and Fred
Release Round-Up: Week of September 13
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! Johnny Mathis, Different Kinda Different: Expanded Edition (Second Disc Records/Real Gone Music) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) Johnny Mathis' first album of the 1980s, Different Kinda Different, arrives today in an expanded edition from TSD & Real Gone Music. Mathis ushered in the decade with one of the most romantic and sensual albums in his extensive discography. Different Kinda Different teamed him once more with Jack Gold
BREAKING! Second Disc, Real Gone Release First-Ever Collection from Motown's Lost Superstar, Blinky
The story of Sondra "Blinky" Williams has long been shrouded in mystery. The soulful singer came to Motown Records in 1967 following stints at Vee-Jay and Atlantic, bringing her passionate and powerful deep soul sound to Hitsville, USA. Despite recording dozens of tracks between 1968 and 1973, only a small handful saw release: a mere four 45s plus an album of duets with Edwin Starr, two live cuts, and a couple of one-off recordings, including a key moment on the best-selling soundtrack of Lady
Review: Craft Latino Invites You To Take A Far-Out Trip With "Fania Goes Psychedelic"
Get ready for a freak-out, because Craft Recordings has announced a new 15-song compilation of experimental and far-out treasures from the legendary Latin music label Fania! Entitled Fania Goes Psychedelic, this crate-digger's fantasy is part of Craft Latino's ongoing celebration of the influential imprint that became a home to the Latin-soul fusion "boogaloo" tunes that were coming out of the barrios. Originally founded by musician Johnny Pacheco and lawyer Jerry Masucci in 1964, the label
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