After a decade being born, Josh Tillman is finally busy dying.

'Mahashmashana' is the sixth album by Father John Misty. It was produced by Josh Tillman and Drew Erickson. It was engineered and additionally produced by Michael Harris. It was arranged by Drew Erickson. It was performed by Josh Tillman, Drew Erickson, Jonathan Wilson, Dan Bailey, Eli Thomson, David Vandervelde, Chris Dixie Darley, Jon Titterington, and Kyle Flynn. It was executive produced by Jonathan Wilson.It was recorded and mixed at Five Star and East/West , United and Drew's House

'Mahasmasana' -- great cremation ground, all things going thither.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: This feels like a distillation of the serious side of Father John Misty, partially eschewing the humoured twists and surprising musical frivolity of his earlier works. For me, this really shows the skill of a musician and in this instance, a great look at the other side of Josh Tillman.

TRACK LISTING

1. Mahashmashana
2. She Cleans Up
3. Josh Tillman And The Accidental Dose
4. Mental Health
5. Screamland
6. Being You
7. I Guess Time Just Makes Fools Of Us All
8. Summer's Gone

John Cale was never very kind to his solo debut, ‘Vintage Violence’. When it was released in early 1970, Cale had been out of The Velvet Underground for less than two years. He wanted to prove he could be the songwriter, the person penning the words and melodies behind which a band could work. “I was masked on ‘Vintage Violence’,” he wrote much later. “You’re not really seeing the personality.”

Indeed, Cale’s personality as a polyglot seemingly interested in everything emerged more and more on his next two solo albums, his only two for Reprise: 1972’s bracing and exploratory classical sojourn, ‘The Academy in Peril’, and 1973’s masterclass in anxious but accessible songcraft, ‘Paris 1919’.

By reissuing both records in tandem affirms the artistic fearlessness Cale then fostered at the edge of 30, when all of music seemed like one inviting playpen.

Artist-sanctioned reissue, remastered from the original tapes.

TRACK LISTING

The Philosopher (Remastered)
Brahms (Remastered)
Legs Larry At Television Centre (Remastered)
The Academy In Peril (Remastered)
Intro (Remastered)
Days Of Steam (Remastered)
3 Orchestral Pieces: A) Faust b) The Balance C) Capt.
Morgans Lament (Remastered)
King Harry (Remastered)
John Milton (Remastered)
Temper *

* = CD Only Bonus Track (included With LP As A Digital download)

Christine McVie - born Christine Perfect - was the quintessentially English rock star, as both the backbone and the beating heart of Fleetwood Mac. Straddling the band's incarnations to achieve global fame alongside Stevie Nicks, Mick Fleetwood, Lindsey Buckingham and John McVie, the classic line-up, she wrote and performed many of their greatest hits. As famous for their occasionally life-threateningly decadent lifestyles as for their musical brilliance, they were held together by this strong, constant figure whom they dubbed 'the mother' of the band.

It was Christine who contained the flock, regrouped them when they went AWOL, focused and blended their talents and always got them back on track. And yet, as the 'engine' of the band during their Rumours era - an album which charted the complete romantic disintegration within the band - Christine's personal life was every bit as tempestuous as those of her bandmates, weathering affairs, divorce, addiction and fiery passion, all of which bled into her now iconic song-writing. Told by an author who herself was friends with Christine, and with new contributions from those who knew her best, Songbird offers a true insider's view, and deep psychological insight into Christine as a both a woman and a musician - the first, the only, the ultimate picture of a rock legend and a national treasure.

John Cale was never very kind to his solo debut, ‘Vintage Violence’. When it was released in early 1970, Cale had been out of The Velvet Underground for less than two years. He wanted to prove he could be the songwriter, the person penning the words and melodies behind which a band could work. “I was masked on ‘Vintage Violence’,” he wrote much later. “You’re not really seeing the personality.”

Indeed, Cale’s personality as a polyglot seemingly interested in everything emerged more and more on his next two solo albums, his only two for Reprise: 1972’s bracing and exploratory classical sojourn, ‘The Academy in Peril’, and 1973’s masterclass in anxious but accessible songcraft, ‘Paris 1919’.

By reissuing both records in tandem affirms the artistic fearlessness Cale then fostered at the edge of 30, when all of music seemed like one inviting playpen.

Remastered from the original tapes and includes previously unreleased outtakes.

Liner notes written by Grayson Haver Currin.

TRACK LISTING

Child's Christmas In Wales (Remastered)
Hanky Panky Nohow (Remastered)
The Endless Plain Of Fortune (Remastered)
Andalucia (Remastered)
Macbeth (Remastered)
Paris 1919 (Remastered)
Graham Greene (Remastered)
Half Past France (Remastered)
Antarctica Starts Here (Remastered)
I Must Not Sniff Cocaine (Remastered)
Hanky Panky Nohow (Drone Mix) (Remastered)
Child's Christmas In Wales (Rehearsal 1) (Remastered)
Half Past France (Intro Chat) (Remastered)
Macbeth (Take 11) (Remastered)
Hanky Panky Nohow (Guitar Mix) (Remastered)
Fever Dream 2024: You're a Ghost 

In 2015, Spaceman, Coxon, and friends performed a new original score live at a special film screening at the Barbican Gallery in London. The recording sat on a shelf for 10 years, and will finally be unveiled through this release.. Stranded in Canton is a black-and-white film portrait of Memphis in 1974, shot in bars and on street corners, showing Eggleston’s friends carousing, playing music and firing pistols into the night sky. It is raw, greasy, Quaalude-y and hot. Jagged and intimate, the film is a handheld window into a different world; “Hogarth on Beale Street” as writer Richard Williams describes it in the album’s liner notes. The tones Spaceman and Coxon came up with mirror the ragged nature of the film perfectly. Riffs written under flickering light bulbs, hypnotic tremolo, boozy romances, some barroom boogie, the blues, and hoping the bottle won’t let you down tonight. The characters of Stranded in Canton dance around the music, living their best Memphis lives by any means necessary.

TRACK LISTING

1. I Was Stranded In Canton
2. Last Week I Took A Trip
3. It’s Not Gospel
4. What Train Blues
5. I Don’t Know What I Can Possibly Do
6. Mother’s Milk
7. Back Up William
8. Everybody In Their Life At One Time Or Another
9. Love For The Asking
10. Credits Roll

We All Shine On is the personal, intimate and, at times, heart-breaking memoir of an extraordinary friendship, which gives a first hand view of what it was like to be close to one of the most famous couples of all time. From the moment he interviewed Yoko Ono on his late night radio show in September 1971, Elliot Mintz’s life would never the same again. That phone call would lead him to an intense and revealing friendship with Yoko and her husband, John Lennon, until John’s untimely death in 1980, and beyond, to the present day.

In 1971, then the talk host on American airwaves, Elliot Mintz was talking to all of the major figures in the burgeoning West Coast music scene when he was asked whether he would interview Yoko about her new album. Their talk quickly lead to other private calls and then to John Lennon, with whom he quickly formed a firm bond. Those conversations became hours-long epics, to the extent that Elliot had another phone line put in, for which only two people had the number - John and Yoko.

The aftermath of The Beatles’ breakup ushered in a tumultuous decade. Elliot witnessed it, or heard all about it, at close hand including the unbearable cost of such fame when John and Yoko separated for what became known as his ‘lost weekend’. There was joy when their son Sean was born and the creative rebirth that was the multi-platinum selling triumph, Double Fantasy.

But then there was unimaginable tragedy too when John was brutally murdered in December 1980.

A collection of never-before-seen photographs of RADIOHEAD by their bassist Colin Greenwood, with a ten-thousand-word essay by him about the band that has been his life since they formed at school.

‘For years now, I’ve been taking fugitive snaps of my band, Radiohead. I’ve tried to catch out my friends with my small black Yashica T4 Super. They are so lost in their own moment of performance that they don’t see me with the camera.’ Colin Greenwood

How to Disappear is bassist Colin Greenwood’s stunning portrait of Radiohead in his own photographs. Two decades in the making, he takes us on a journey into the heart of the 21st-century’s most influential band, a maverick collective who have vastly broadened our musical landscape while they dominate and distort it. On stage, backstage, in the rehearsal room, behind the scenes, on tour, at work and at play, Colin’s photographs, and the stories and memories they evoke for him in his accompanying text, form an intimate portrait of the musical and cultural iconoclasts as they travel through ‘our middle years: all the joy and doubt and confidence and uncertainty we would oscillate between’.

Colin Greenwood is from Oxford and has played bass in Radiohead since their formation in 1985. He's also recorded and toured with Tamino, Nick Cave and Warren Ellis and has written for publications including the Guardian and the Spectator.

Released for the first time ever, here is the Dandelion Adventure session that they recorded for the John Peel show in 1990. These tracks have never been released before on any album and were recorded exclusively for Peelie. Featuring a double drum attack (Geoff and Jason), bass (Ajay), guitar (Stan), and vocals (Mark). Recorded on 13 May 1990 at Maida Vale Studios, and broadcast on 18 June 1990. Engineered by Mark Farrar and produced by Dale Griffin….it’s a monster sounding session.

The flip side of the album showcases the group’s very first release….a demo tape they recorded in Blackpool in 1988 on a 4-track recorder (including fan favourite “Speed Trials”). Plus a couple of songs that were recorded in their Oyston Mill rehearsal space in Preston. The whole album is a perfect capsule of the first and last thing the group ever recorded, and a brilliant reminder of the genius that this band exuded.

All on 180g blue vinyl with an insert full of photos, posters, reviews, gigography.

Dandelion Adventure were one of the greatest underground bands to emerge from Lancashire in the late 80s. At a time when the UK was fizzing with great groups like My Bloody Valentine, Bog-Shed, The Pastels, A Witness, bIG fLAME, and whilst more “established” underground giants like The Fall, The Nightingales, and Spacemen 3 were all going strong and steady, Dandelion Adventure certainly held their own. A band tendering the kind of leviathan rhythms that only early ‘80s Fall could have competed with, time changes that would make Captain Beefheart proud, and an experimental streak to get the pulse racing of any On-U-Sound fan.

Starting with their first show in 1988 in Blackpool (they had played 2 loose shows in 1986 and 1987 respectively but 1988 was the launchpad), they fizzed and crackled for 2 years, finishing with their final show, again in Blackpool, in September 1990. In that period they released two albums (both on Action Records from Preston), and recorded a John Peel session…Peel loved the group and supported them with much airplay. In the short period they existed, the likes of My Bloody Valentine and The Pastels specifically asked for DA to open for them. Such was mbv’s love for the band, that they appeared at one show with all 4 members (Kevin, Bilinda, Debbie and Colm) of the group wearing Dandelion Adventure t-shirts onstage. Dinosaur Jr. were big fans of DA and J Mascis can be seen wearing a Dandelion Adventure t-shirt in the “Freak Scene” video. Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth stated in 1989 in Melody Maker : “How’s the British music scene? Is it dead? The only bands I hear there are The Vaselines and Dandelion Adventure. They’re awesome”.

TRACK LISTING

1. Exit Frenzy Revisited 04:08
2. Bing Crosby's Cathedral 04:38
3. Don't Look Now 03:36
4. All The World's A Lounge 04:58
5. Speed Trials (The Weedkiller Tapes) 02:20
6. Death Is A Beautiful Carpark (The Weedkiller Tapes) 03:28
7. Chickenfeed (The Weedkiller Tapes) 02:35
8. King Burger Autopsy (The Weedkiller Tapes) 04:13
9. Disneytime (rehearsal 2 August 1988) 02:11
10. There Goes The Neighbourhood (Rehearsal 19 July 1988) 05:18

Newly, radically reimagined remixes, created from John Lennon’s classic song, Mind Games. These 9 Meditation Mixes create their own space while maintaining firm, authentic roots in John Lennon’s original recording of the song. Each of them have been radically altered, slowed down and extended, ranging from 5 to 10 to 0ver 33 minutes, allowing for the musical soundtrack to wash over the listener and provide a relaxing, immersive, deep listening and meditative experience. Four of these tracks are presented as Binaural versions that each focus on different types of brain waves: Beta, Delta, Gamma and Theta. Named ‘Mind’, ‘Space’, ‘Spirit’ and ‘Love’, these tracks utilise the effect created when the ears hear left and right frequencies which combine to be perceived as a new frequency that can activate different brain patterns for scientifically proven therapeutic effects.

Of the original song, Mind Games, Yoko Ono Lennon said: “John was trying to convey the message that we all play mind games. But if we can play mind games, why not make a positive future with it – to be a positive mind game?”

Produced by Sean Ono Lennon, mixed and engineered by Sam Gannon with additional recording engineered by Scott Holingsworth, the song will now bring a new positive impact in the realm of meditation and mindfulness.

TRACK LISTING

LP1 Side A
Mind Games Meditation Mix - MIND (Binaural Gamma Waves 100Hz) (10:02)
Mind Games Meditation Mix - MAGIC (10:58)

LP1 Side B
Mind Games Meditation Mix - SPACE (8Hz Theta Binaural) (5:42)
Mind Games Meditation Mix - SEED (5:59)
Mind Games Meditation Mix - YES (6:03)

LP2 Side A
Mind Games Meditation Mix - SPIRIT (15Hz Beta Binaural) (5:36)
Mind Games Meditation Mix - LOVE ().5Hz Delta Binaural) (12:32)

LP2 Side B
Mind Games Meditation Mix - SURRENDER (23:41)

LP3 Side A
Mind Games Meditation Mix - PEACE (23:55)

LP3 Side B (ALL TRACKS 1.8 SECONDS)
MANTRA 1 (0:018)
MANTRA 2 (0:018)
MANTRA 3 (0:018)
MANTRA 4 (0:018)
MANTRA 5 (0:018)
MANTRA 6 (0:018)
MANTAR 7 (0:018)
MANTRA 8 (0:018)
MANTRA 9 (0:018)

One of London's most loved underground parties, Tangent, celebrates its 10th birthday this year with a new compilation on Mr Bongo. Its residents, John Gomez and Nick the Record , have curated a selection of prized, rare and dancefloor-ready tracks that have soundtracked the past decade of their parties. Alongside remastered reissues of these original cuts, the CD version of the compilation also houses three incredible edits from Nick, John and Dan Tyler of the Idjut Boys. These were too good not to press onto vinyl, so we've given them the standalone 12"they deserve.

Contextualising their edits Nick states, "Tangent was not only the place for us to play the music we love the most, it also became the testing ground for our edits. It was really helpful being able to see the effect each of these had on a dancefloor before the records were released and many of them also became firm Tangent classics."

Up first, Nick is joined by Dan Tyler (Idjut Boys), who he runs the edit label Record Mission with, for a furiously feel-good re-edit of Leo Basel's 'Quelle Drole De Vie'. Basing their edit on the 1987 'Special Remix', it does what any great re-work does, dropping the sections from the original that don't quite hit the mark, whilst focussing on the gold in amongst it all. The result is a slice of peak-time, French boogie joy, that will warm even the coldest hearts.

John then joins Dan at the dials for a cosmic revamp of Love Isaacs 'Surprise Surprise'. A serving of '80s electro-funk, dripping in swagger with a highlife tinge. John and Dan extended the grooves for maximum dancefloor power, space echoing it into the stratosphere at all the juiciest points.

Lastly, Nick takes on Rick Asikpo and Afro Fusion 'Let's Get High' from the super sought- after 1980 album, Got To Be Me. Celestial, gospel- infused soul from Nigeria, Nick homes in on the energetic last 2 minutes of the original as the building block of his 12- minute edit . A completely reworked, feverishly paced creation, Nick switches the sections around, saving the slow, soulful segment for a brilliant cosmic breakdown before the track erupts back into its full flow. Synthesised, jazz-funk elation from start to finish!

TRACK LISTING

Leo Basel - Quelle Drole De Vie (Nick The Record & Dan Tyler Re- Edit)
Love Isaacs - Surprise Surprise (Joao Gomes & Dan Tyler Are Predictably Delayed Rework)
Rick Asikpo And Afro Fusion - Let's Get High (Nick The Record Re-Edit)

Featuring photographs supplied by the Grant and lyrics from the albums BOY FROM MICHGAN; LOVE IS MAGIC; GREY TICKLES, BLACK PRESSURE; PALE GREEN GHOSTS; QUEEN OF DENMARK

The Buzzcocks. Joy Division. The Fall. The Smiths. The Stone Roses. The Happy Mondays. Oasis. Manchester has proved to be an endlessly rich seam of pop-music talent over the last 30 years. Highly opinionated and usually controversial, stars such as Mark E. Smith, Morrissey, Ian Brown and the Gallagher brothers have always had plenty to say for themselves. Here, in John Robb’ s new compilation, Manchester’ s gobbiest musicians tell the story of the city’ s thriving music scene in their own words. When the Buzzcocks put on the Sex Pistols at Lester Free Hall in 1976, they kickstarted a musical revolution and a fervent punk scene exploded.

In 1979 the legendary Tony Wilson founded Factory Records, the home of Joy Division/New Order and later the Happy Mondays. The Hacienda, the Factory nightclub, became notorious in the late 1980s as a centre of the influential Madchester scene, led by the Mondays and the Stone Roses, with a unique style and sound of its own. Then, from the ashes of Madchester rose ü ber-lads Oasis, the kings of Britpop and the biggest UK band of the 1990s.

John Robb is a leading music journalist and the author of the bestselling biography of the Stone Roses. His other books include Punk: An Oral History, The Charlatans … We Are Rock and The Nineties: What the F**k Was That All About? He lives in Manchester.

Johnny The Fox was recorded in the same year as Jailbreak and was released in October 1976 to critical acclaim and got to no 11 in the UK charts.

TRACK LISTING

LP1 Side A 
Johnny
Rocky
Borderline
Don't Believe A Word
Fool's Gold

LP1 Side B
Johnny The Fox Meets Jimmy The Weed
Old Flame
Massacre
Sweet Marie
Boogie Woogie Dance

Released in 2003, Boomslang was Johnny Marr’s first solo studio album. After his departure from The Smith in 1987, Marr spent a number of years with the likes of The Pretenders before recruiting Zak Starkey (drums), Alonza Bevan (Bass) and more to form The Healers in 2000. Recorded at Clear Studios in Manchester, with James Spencer (New Order, The Charlatans), Boomslang comprised of eleven tracks that combined his signature guitar playing with heavy psychedelic rhythms.

“Twenty years on I’m pleased we created the music and this new release of Boomslang has given me the opportunity to revisit it and present some songs that we weren’t able to include the first time around.”

Never before on Vinyl,, Boomslang will be available for the first time on Double Black 180g vinyl, and 2CD. The album has been fully remastered at Abbey Road and includes 7 rarities, chosen by Johnny as well as brand new art direction by his long-time collaborator Mat Bancroft.

TRACK LISTING

Vinyl:
A1. The Last Ride
A2. Caught Up
A3. Down On The Corner
A4. Need It
B1. You Are The Magic
B2. InBetweens
B3. Another Day
B4. Headland
C1. Long Gone
C2. Something To Shout About
C3. Bangin' On
C4. The Way That It Was
D1. All Out Attack
D2. Get Me Wrong
D3. Don't Think Twice, It's Alright
D4. A Woman Like You

Deluxe 2CD:
Disc 1
1. The Last Ride
2. Caught Up
3. Down On The Corner
4. Need It
5. You Are The Magic
6. InBetweens
7. Another Day
8. Headland
9. Long Gone
10. Something To Shout About
11. Bangin' On
Disc 2
1. The Way That It Was
2. All Out Attack
3. Get Me Wrong
4. Don't Think Twice, It's Alright
5. A Woman Like You
6. You Are The Magic (Union Mix)
7. Get Me Wrong (Instrumental Version)

The Soundtrack to accompany the Award winning Documentary "The Graceless Age: The Ballad Of John Murry". Written and performed by John Murry and Mike Timmins (Cowboy Junkies). The film has already won Best Irish Documentary at the 35th Galway Film Fleadh and will be premiering in the UK later this year. Directed by Sarah Share best known for her multi award winning ‘If I Should Fall from Grace’ - the Shane MacGowan Story.

"Ever since we finished recording A Short History of Decay back in 2016, I've been waiting for John Murry to return to my studio. I had been working on some ideas for the film score for John's doc when he finally reappeared. He had three days to kill in Toronto, so we decided to get together, sit around and play some music. No real plan and no real goal, just play and enjoy each other's company. This album is the result of that visit. It's a "sort-of" soundtrack album to the film, it contains some score pieces, as well as some of the solo recordings that John and I made when he was here in Toronto, some of which also became a part of the score" Mike Timmins.

This haunting film is the story of American singer songwriter John Murry, who was on the cusp of greatness after the release of his highly acclaimed album The Graceless Age (2013), when his world fell apart. Addicted to heroin and creatively exhausted, he washed up on the shores of Ireland, a broken man. Now, he retraces his steps back to Mississippi into the dark heart of American life and faces his demons- a neglected childhood, traumatic assault, and resulting years of opioid addiction.

John also explores his family links to the Nobel Prize winning author William Faulkner. His adopted grandmother Mimi would tell him if anyone was imbued with the spirit of Bill Faulkner, it was John. She also told him that his famous ancestor was also addicted to opiates. Yet, throughout his long period of substance abuse he was constantly writing and performing. Like Faulkner, Murry's lyrics embrace the dark side of American life - an anger that is born in the rotting underbelly of Mississippi history. Reminiscent at times of Neil Young or Wilco, Murry's music is classic Americana.

This film chronicles his efforts to put it back together again after finding solace in Ireland and come to terms with his turbulent early years. John embarks on a road trip that takes him from his haven on the cliffs of Co Clare, Ireland to his native Mississippi and then his strung-out days in California. The film culminates with John travelling to Toronto to rekindle his creative collaboration with Canadian music legend Mike Timmins, who produced his second album, A Short History of Decay. Mike helps John express himself the best way he can - through his outstanding music. This beautiful documentary charts his journey from near death to redemption and a new zest for life and art. 

TRACK LISTING

1. Grace - Michael Timmins
2. Wrong Man - John Murry
3. Swamp - Michael Timmins
4. Silver Or Lead - John Murry
5. Driving (Part 1) - Michael Timmins & Peter Timmins
6. Dark Side Of The Moon Again - John Murry
7. Driving (Part 2) - Michael Timmins & Peter Timmins
8. Come Five And Twenty - John Murry
9. Cave - Michael Timmins
10. The Stars Are Gods Bullet Holes - John Murry
11. Alleyway - Michael Timmins
12. Mother Mary - John Murry 

Pressure Drop chronicles reggae’s most tumultuous and influential decade. Beginning in 1970 and unfolding both in Britain and Jamaica, reggae flourished against a backdrop of political upheaval, gang warfare, Black Nationalism, racial and class discrimination and grinding poverty.

The music that developed as rocksteady and early reggae gave birth to deejays, dub, rockers, lovers rock, early dancehall and 2 Tone was by turns brutal and revelatory.

Including an extensive analysis of the decade’s major singles and albums, Pressure Drop includes eyewitness accounts and experiences of the decade from the likes of Burning Spear, Chris Blackwell, Gregory Isaacs, Bunny Wailer, Jimmy Cliff, Black Uhuru, U-Roy, Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry, Augustus Pablo, Toots and the Maytals, Desmond Dekker, Sly & Robbie, Dennis Bovell, Don Letts and members of the Specials, as well as first-hand anecdotes of Bob Marley and Peter Tosh.

Contains new specially prepared liner notes by Penguin Guide to Jazz 's writer Brian Morton.

In 1960, and after recording the music to be issued on The Avant Garde (with Don Cherry), and the all- time classic My Favorite Things , Coltrane embarked on the making of Coltrane Plays the Blues, a thematic LP consisting of six tunes based on the blues.

'Blues for Bechet', one of the two tracks on which Coltrane plays soprano sax, is an obvious dedication to the man who brought the instrument to jazz, the great Sidney Bechet. Pianist McCoy Tyner sits out on 'Blues to Bechet ' and 'Blues to You', reducing the quartet to a trio on these two tracks.

"A powerful session. As for the phrase 'plays the blues' in the title, that's not an indicator that the tunes are conventional blues (they aren't). It's more indicative of a bluesy sensibility." - AllMusic, 4.5 STARS (Richie Unterberger)

TRACK LISTING

Blues To Elvin
Blues To Bechet
Blues To You
Blues To Elvin
Mr. Day
Mr. Syms
Mr. Knight
Blues To You

2024 edition - 180 Gram, Tip On Sleeve . One of the rarer records of the mythical Strata East.

The recording of Earth Blossom, the John Betsch Society's one and only album, seems something of an enigma nowadays. For even though Nashville is clearly one of the towns in the US with the highest number of recording studios, who would have thought that the capital of country music would give birth to one of the forgotten masterpieces of 1970s spiritual jazz. The path leading to the album starts in 1963 when John Betsch, originally from Jacksonville in Florida, arrives in Nashville to study at Frisk University. He is a young drummer and joins Bob Holmes trio. Holmes is one of the towns major jazz organists and pianists; he becomes Betschs mentor and, over the space of two years, John will play alternately with him and with the trumpeter Louis Smiths group. However, in 1965, John leaves town to go to the prestigious Berkeley University in Boston and do a two-year course along with his fellow debutants with names like John Abercrombie, Ernie Watts and Alan Broadbent. Two years later, he is invited by a pianist friend, Billy Chilf, to join the legendary singer/songwriter Tim Hardins group. Just after Woodstock, John Betsch and Tim record a psychedelic album Columbia will never release together with the members of the future group Oregon: Colin Walcott, Glen Moore, Paul McCandles and his friend Billy Chilf. But he soon leaves this group to return to Nashville where he hooks up again with his friend Bob Holmes. Two years later, he is accepted on Archie Shepp and Max Roachs famous course at the University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMASS) and for the next four years he participates in this collective of intellectuals and musicians under the aegis of the two masters.

During this period he returns to Nashville to form his Society whose music is obviously influenced by the Afrocentric ideas of the UMASS student and political movement. However, the album, recorded in one day and in one take, also bears the hallmark of their generations psychedelic experiences, and in the themes and playing of the musicians we can hear a less violent form of music than the radical free jazz of New York or Chicago. Nature and environmental themes are the inspiration behind tracks touched by the spirit of Coltrane but also of Flower Power.

After Amherst, John Betsch joins Marion Browns group in 1976, leaves Tennessee for good and makes his home in New York over the next ten years or so. He plays and records with Dollar Brand, Kalaparusha Maurice McIntyre and many others, before heading off to France. He has lived in Paris for the last twenty years and played in Steve Lacy, Mal Waldron and Archie Shepp bands, as well as forming groups of his own. He now lives in Paris and plays with many musicians/bands.

TRACK LISTING

Ode To Ethiopia
Earth Blossom
Open Pastures
Song For An Untidy Lady
Ra
Darling Doria
Get Up And Go

Widely hailed as a genius, Arthur Lee was a character every bit as colorful and unique as his music. In 1966, he was Prince of the Sunset Strip, busy with his pioneering racially mixed band, Love, and accelerating the evolution of California folk-rock by infusing it with jazz and orchestral influences, a process that would climax in a timeless masterpiece, the Love album Forever Changes. Shaped by a Memphis childhood and a South Los Angeles youth, Lee always craved fame.

He would achieve his ambition with a mixture of vaulting talent and colossal chutzpah. Drug use and a reticence to tour were his Achilles heels, and he succumbed to a dissolute lifestyle just as superstardom was beckoning. Despite endorsements from the likes of Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton, Lee s subsequent career was erratic and haunted by the shadow of Forever Changes, reaching a nadir with his imprisonment in 1996 for a firearms offence.

Redemption followed, culminating in an astonishing postmillennial comeback that found him playing Forever Changes to adoring, multi-generational fans around the world. This upswing was only interrupted by his untimely death from leukemia in 2006. Written with the full consent and cooperation of Arthur s widow, Diane Lee, Forever Changes is a meticulously researched biography that includes lengthy extracts from Arthur s vivid, comic, and poignant memoirs, published here for the first time.

Author John Einarson has also amassed dozens of new interviews with the surviving members of Love and with many others who fell into the incomparable Lee s flamboyant orbit. This updated edition adds a new foreword by Love s co-founder and lead guitarist, Johnny Echols.

January 2024 looked endless; I needed to do some recording to cheer myself up. The studio I usually use was booked all month, but before the disasters of Brexit & Covid I’d met pianist Yves Meerschaut in Gent, and he’d shown me his recording studio, Room 13, and that did have a couple of days free in January…

I decided to make a record of old songs that other people have liked, and / or that I play differently now, and / or that haven’t appeared on vinyl before. So, here, there’s:

“Pennypot Lane”, a fox song that people like, “Winter Turns to Spring” that was Tony Benn’s favourite song, “The Blue Sea Says Yes”, a song about how the sea welcomes us all, heroic or fragile, equally in our mortality (something like that anyway) , that I had forgotten about till people started saying how much they liked it, “More Than Enough”, that Roy Bailey and Martin Simpson have kindly rescued from the obscurity of its previous appearance on a CD in 1992, “Babbecombe at the Closing of the Day”, a song about going to Babbecombe model village, “At the Siege of Madrid” which quite a few people like, but is one of those songs that always somehow eludes a definitive performance, “A True History of Couscous”, a song I like that is more or a less fictionalized autobiography, and lastly..

“You Don’t Have to Say Goodbye”. This is a song from my first CD; Thames Valley folk-stalwart Terry Silver used to enjoy performing it so that afterwards he could shock audiences who’d been happily singing along to it by revealing it had been written by that dreadful lefty Robb Johnson, It’s also, more recently, a song our son Arvin likes very much too, and he graces this version with his characteristically modest tasteful Spanish guitar playing. He also nagged me into doing the artwork for the cover.

Three of these songs are lucky enough to have Yves’s breathtaking, exquisite piano playing embellishing them, and Sian Allen gifts “Madrid” some beautiful trumpet accompaniment too. But primarily, for good or ill, it’s mainly me with an acoustic guitar. Robb Johnson, May 24.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
Pennypot Lane
Winter Turns To Spring
The Blue Sea Says Yes
More Than Enough

Side B
Babbecombe At The Closing Of The Day
At The Siege Of Madrid
A True History Of Couscous
You Don't Have To Say Goodbye

“The Rebel Sings” is a collection of Johnny Cash recordings as released on six U.S. EP’s in the late fifties. “Don’t Take Your Guns To Town”, Cash’s breakout single on Columbia; “Five Feet High And Rising”, “Frankie’s Man, Johnny” and “Rock Island Line” are among the hits here. The final four tracks show Cash’s penchant for “concept” albums. “The Rebel – Johnny Yuma” (the theme for the Western TV show “The Rebel”) was a hit single. With the addition of “Remember The Alamo”, “The Ballad Of Boot Hill” and “Lorena”, Cash presents four songs reminiscing on 19th century life in the West, something Cash would revisit frequently in his career.

To celebrate 10 years of one of London’s most loved underground club nights, Tangent, Mr Bongo are thrilled to launch this new compilation series. Crafted by its two residents, John Gómez and Nick the Record, it aims to transmit a taste of Tangent’s spirit. A party rooted in inclusivity and open-mindedness, whose name captures the spontaneous switches in musical direction that are a defining element of their nights. For the compilation, the pair have cherry-picked a selection of their prized, rare and dancefloor-ready tracks from around the globe, that have soundtracked the past decade of parties.

Friends for close to 20 years, music lovers, record obsessives and internationally renowned DJs in their own right, John and Nick have two lifetimes worth of musical knowledge to draw from. John a long-standing NTS Radio resident and compiler for Music From Memory. Nick one of the UK’s go-to record dealers, resident DJ since the ‘90s at one of Japan’s pioneering parties, Life Force, and co-captain / co-edit-expert of Record Mission with Dan Tyler (Idjut Boys).

In 2014, the pair decided to bring some of Life Force’s grassroots principles to the UK, whilst channelling underground clubbing institution Plastic People’s meticulous attitude to sound. Tangent grew from being a small gathering of friends, to an established fixture in London’s nightlife, whilst always maintaining a strict no guest DJ policy. “As London’s clubs have become increasingly reliant on international guests, we wanted to emphasize the importance of a club night growing through its residents”, John and Nick reflect. With 10 years of the duo at the helm, an intimate connection between DJ and dancefloor has been built, allowing for freedom of expression on both sides of the decks.

Tangent reaches around the globe and across different eras to make connections that stimulate emotional reverberations in the unfamiliar. Where the blissfully Balearic ‘Laberinto’ by Miguel Perikás, goes hand-in-hand with the Cameroonian hip-house of King B.’s ‘Love is Crazy’. The thundering ‘Amek Amek’ by L'Innovateur Djoe Ahmed et le Zoukabyle, rubs shoulders with the soulful Caribbean-influenced touch of Champagn’s ‘Bel Ti Négress’. And Pellegrin El Kady’s afro-cosmic ‘Seiva de Carnaval’, crosses paths with Kajou’s Kompa disco anthem ‘Tet Chajé’.

Tangent’s longevity is in part down to it having always embraced contemporary sounds. The sub-rattling bass of Srirajah Sound System’s stunning Molam dub stepper ‘Si Phan Don Lovers Rock’ and the slow, woozy mantra of leftfield dancehall explorer Androo’s ‘Lyriso’, are two shining examples.

This compilation represents an ongoing dialogue between past and present, transporting listeners to the heart of a pure musical experience, where open minds and open hearts are eager to follow the tangent. 

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Two of London's most decorated and respected music aficionados present a compilation of hits from their long running club night. Including plenty of new tweaks and twists by some well feted friends, as well as new tracks standing proud alongside the old, it's a brilliantly colourful and varied set which really paints a picture of this much celebrated London institution.

TRACK LISTING

1.  Srirajah Sound System - Si Phan Don Lovers Rock Feat. Molam Inteng Keawbuala
2.  PERIKAS - Laberinto
3.  Leo Basel - Quelle Drôle De Vie (Nick The Record & Dan Tyler Re-Edit)
4.  Mac Thornhill - No Way To Control It
5.  King B. - Love Is Crazy
6.  L'Innovateur Djoe Ahmed Et Le Zoukabyle - Amek Amek
7.  Champagn’ - Bel Ti Négress
8.  Androo - Lyriso
9.  Hidrogenesse - La Carta Era Muy Larga (Dub)
10.  Love Isaacs - Surprise Surprise (João Gomes & Dan Tyler Are Predictably Delayed Rework)
11.  Kajou - Tet Chajé 
12.  Conjunto Baluartes - Nira Gongo
13.  Land Shark - Tie Me Up (The Nas-T Version Instrumental)
14.  Rick Asikpo & Afro Fusion - Let’s Get High (Nick The Record Re-Edit)
15.  Pellegrin El Kady - Seiva De Carnaval
16.  Lee Jackson Band - Call On Me
17.  LTA (Love The Action) - What Comes To Ya?
18.  Urban Volcano Sounds - Ame No Uta (Rain Song) (Extended Version)

Continuing The Ultimate Collection series of John Lennon album remixes for 2024.
The John Lennon Estate and Universal Music Recordings present:
JOHN LENNON - MIND GAMES - THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION

2 LP
Featuring Mind Games - The Ultimate Mixes and The Out-takes – 24 tracks on 180mg vinyl; plus an 8-page booklet of photos and artwork; a reproduction of the original 1973 triptych marketing poster; postcard sized reproductions of 1973 advert artworks and an individually numbered Citizen of Nutopia ID Card.
Produced by Sean Ono Lennon, Mixed and Engineered by Triple GRAMMY-Award winner Paul Hicks, Additional Engineering by Sam Gannon, Mastered by Alex Wharton at Abbey Road Studios.

2CD
Featuring Mind Games – The Ultimate Mixes and The Out-takes – 24 tracks on 2 CDs; plus a 20 page booklet of photos and artworks; a reproduction of the original 1973 triptych marketing poster; postcard sized reproductions of 1973 advert artworks and an individually numbered Citizen of Nutopia ID Card.
Produced by Sean Ono Lennon, Mixed and Engineered by Triple GRAMMY-Award winner Paul Hicks, Additional Engineering by Sam Gannon, Mastered by Alex Wharton at Abbey Road Studios.

6 CD/2 Blu Ray Deluxe Box Set
A Limited Edition 10-inch square Box Set including 6 CDs, 2 HD Audio Blu-Rays, a 128-page hardback book; a reproduction of the original 1973 triptych marketing poster; postcard sized reproductions of 1973 advert artworks and an individually numbered Citizen of Nutopia ID Card.

6 CDs of The Ultimate Mixes, Elemental Mixes, Elements Mixes, Evolution Documentary, Out-takes and Raw Studio Mixes.
2 Audio Blu-Rays include High Definition 24-192 Stereo, 24-192 5.1 Surround, and Dolby Atmos versions of all of the above, plus the 2024 Remastered ‘Mind Games’ music video and a ‘You Are Here’ (additional out-take) tape boxes music video.

Produced by Sean Ono Lennon. Mixed and Engineered by Triple GRAMMY-Award winner Paul Hicks, Mixed and Engineered by Sam Gannon and Mixed by Rob Stevens. Stereos Mastered by Alex Wharton at Abbey Road Studios. 5.1 Surround and Dolby Atmos mastered by Sam Gannon.

Included is a 128-page glossy, hardback coffee-table book about the writing and recording of the album - in the words of John & Yoko - taken from hundreds of
hours of archive interviews; also featuring brand-new interviews with all the
musicians and engineers, exclusive never-before-seen photographs by Bob Gruen and unseen photos, lyrics, letters, original tape boxes and memorabilia from the John Lennon & Yoko Ono Lennon Archives.

"I love these Iced Bears – all 14 of them!” – John Peel

14 Iced Bears began as one of the most beloved bands on the C86 wave that spread through the UK in the mid-80s after the Jesus and Mary Chain brought back pop songs, albeit drenched in noise, to the alternative scene.

Having released a single on the legendary Sarah Records, the Bears went down a psychedelic path for their first album, a move which led to a ringing endorsement from the United States of America’s Dorothy Moskowitz for their cover of ‘Coming Down’, and a six-page article in Shindig magazine, the type of coverage usually reserved for psych giants like Arthur Lee or Syd Barrett.

The band recorded two sessions for John Peel in their earlier period, and these new releases on Precious cover the period from their first single ‘Inside’ (described by Pitchfork as one of the prototype Shoegaze records), of late 1986, to shortly before their acclaimed ‘Come Get Me’ EP on Sarah in 1988.
On hearing the Bears’ first session, John Peel exclaimed his new-found love for the band. “My type of band,” he said. “I love these Iced Bears, all 14 of them!”

With half the band changing between the two sessions, their second visit to the BBC’s Maida Vale Studios found them progressing subtly to a sound that would help define psych-indie. Now released on vinyl for the first time, these releases capture a band in momentum from early indie popularity to genre-shaping creations. 

TRACK LISTING

1. Balloon Song
2. Cut
3. Shy(-)Like You
4. Train Song

"I love these Iced Bears – all 14 of them!” – John Peel

14 Iced Bears began as one of the most beloved bands on the C86 wave that spread through the UK in the mid-80s after the Jesus and Mary Chain brought back pop songs, albeit drenched in noise, to the alternative scene.

Having released a single on the legendary Sarah Records, the Bears went down a psychedelic path for their first album, a move which led to a ringing endorsement from the United States of America’s Dorothy Moskowitz for their cover of ‘Coming Down’, and a six-page article in Shindig magazine, the type of coverage usually reserved for psych giants like Arthur Lee or Syd Barrett.

The band recorded two sessions for John Peel in their earlier period, and these new releases on Precious cover the period from their first single ‘Inside’ (described by Pitchfork as one of the prototype Shoegaze records), of late 1986, to shortly before their acclaimed ‘Come Get Me’ EP on Sarah in 1988.
On hearing the Bears’ first session, John Peel exclaimed his new-found love for the band. “My type of band,” he said. “I love these Iced Bears, all 14 of them!”

With half the band changing between the two sessions, their second visit to the BBC’s Maida Vale Studios found them progressing subtly to a sound that would help define psych-indie. Now released on vinyl for the first time, these releases capture a band in momentum from early indie popularity to genre-shaping creations. 

TRACK LISTING

1. If I Said
2. Spangle
3. Miles Away
4. Hay Fever

Daniel Johnston had previously written hundreds of songs but "Yip Jump Music" marked his first deliberate album. The foreboding circumstance and crude tools proved to be a test of Daniel's expressive resource. Over the tape hiss his voice could be heard – sometimes alone – or using a see-and-say toy, a chord organ, or an out-of-tune ukulele. It became an example of soul-baring heartfelt music-making that accomplished musicians and celebrities would later love. Kurt Cobain listed "Yip Jump Music" as #35 of his top 50 albums. Digitally re-mastered, with new packaging, a fold out poster, lyrics sheet and drawing.

Introducing the new album from Johnny Cash titled 'Songwriter'.

Johnny Cash recorded an album’s worth of unreleased, self-penned songs in 1993 ahead of him signing with American Records and his releases with Rick Rubin that re-established himself as one of world’s best songwriters to a new generation of fans. Songwriter’s 11 songs have been updated by his son John Carter and longtime producer David Ferguson.

In early 1993, the legendary Johnny Cash found himself between contracts in his then nearly 40-year career and recorded an album’s worth of songwriting demos at LSI Studios in Nashville of songs he’d written over many years. LSI at the time was owned by his son-in-law Mike Daniels and daughter Rosey, and he wanted to help the family financially while also record some songs special to him. Not long after the fruitful session, Johnny met producer Rick Rubin, and the recordings were shelved as the two embarked on an important and prolific musical partnership that revitalized the Man in Black’s career that would last the rest of his life.

Some thirty years later, John Carter Cash, the son of Johnny and June Carter Cash, rediscovered the songs and stripped them back to just Johnny’s powerful, pristine vocals and acoustic guitar. Along with co-producer David “Fergie” Ferguson, the two invited a handpicked group of musicians that played with Johnny, including guitarist Marty Stuart and the late bassist Dave Roe, along with drummer Pete Abbott and several others, to the Cash Cabin, a hallowed space in Hendersonville, Tenn. where Johnny would write, record and relax, to breathe new life into the tracks, taking the sound back to the roots and heart of the songs.

TRACK LISTING

Vinyl:
Side A
1. Hello Out There
2. Spotlight
3. Drive On
4. I Love You Tonite
5. Have You Ever Been To Little Rock?
Side B
1. Well Alright
2. She Sang Sweet Baby James
3. Poor Valley Girl
4. Soldier Boy
5. Sing It Pretty Sue
6. Like A Soldier

CD:
1. Hello Out There
2. Spotlight
3. Drive On
4. I Love You Tonite
5. Have You Ever Been To Little Rock?
6. Well Alright
7. She Sang Sweet Baby James
8. Poor Valley Girl
9. Soldier Boy
10.Sing It Pretty Sue
11. Like A Soldier

Bonus Disc (2CD):
1. I Walk The Line (1988 Version)
2. The Night Hank Williams Came To Town (with Waylon Jennings)
3. Sixteen Tons
4. Long Black Veil (1988 Version)
5. Cry, Cry, Cry (1988 Version)
6. Guess Things Happen That Way (1988 Version)
7. Get Rhythm (1988 Version)
8. Ring Of Fire (1988 Version)
9. Folsom Prison Blues (1988 Version)
10. Cat's In The Cradle
11. Hey Porter
12. Wanted Man

“Recording at Maida Vale for the Peel Session was literally the highlight of our career as a band.”

So says Alicia from San Francisco indie legends The Aislers Set, and who are we to argue? Precious Recordings of London is excited to release this 2001 session for the one and only John Peel by the Slumberland dream-poppers, who recorded four songs for the BBC – among them a celebrated cover of Joy Division’s ‘Walked In Line’ and the band’s own classic ‘Mission Bells’.

The latter was written specifically for the session by Linton, who also supplies a sleeve essay with memories of the day of recording – and then hunkering down in a Glasgow pub with members of Belle and Sebastian to listen to the first broadcast on a tinny transistor.

10" vinyl limited edition of 500 copies featuring previously unseen photos on the inner plus download codes.

TRACK LISTING

1. Mission Bells
2. Walked In Line
3. Long Division
4. The Walk

Oasis were a band like bands used to be. Hard-drinking and substance abusing. If they liked you, they loved you.

If they didn't, you had to be prepared for confrontation. Iain Robertson is used to tough jobs - after retiring from the Parachute Regiment, he took on jobs guarding George Harrison, Gary Moore and Johnny Rotten. But keeping Oasis on the rails after debut album Definitely Maybe ignited their rise toward global superstardom would be the toughest gig of them all.

Oasis would explode into public consciousness and have the world at their feet in the wake of their epic first album and a huge world tour. Iain was side-by-side as their road manager and minder, twenty-four hours a day, eight days a week, as they took on the world and won. No one was closer.

Now updated with new unpublished material ahead of the thirty year anniversary of Definitely Maybe, this story is the defining chronicle of life on tour with Oasis.

Following the runaway success of his last LP, Boy From Michigan, which crashed the UK Top 10 back in July 2021, legendary singer-songwriter John Grant returns with his hugely-anticipated sixth album, The Art Of The Lie.

Released 14th June via longtime label Bella Union, The Art Of The Lie is Grant’s most opulent, cinematic, luxurious album yet and confirms Grant’s status as a modern electronic auteur. Grant likens the musical flavours of The Art of the Lie to the sumptuous Vangelis soundtrack for Bladerunner or the Carpenters if John Carpenter were also a member. While undeniably a John Grant record, nestling humour into tragedy, bleeding anger into compassion, there is a musical ambition and nerve to ‘The Art of the Lie’ which offsets its most political and personal moments.

The Art of The Lie was produced by Grant and Grammy-nominated producer Ivor Guest who is perhaps best known for his work with Grace Jones & Brigitte Fontaine. The album features an array of celebrated musicians including Dave Okumu, Seb Rochford and Robin Mullarkey.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Aaaah, finally! It's always a good day when shop favourite disco synthlord and all-round sleaze-pop genius John Grant puts out a new LP, and this is a doozie. Gradually eschewing the straight-laced (but obviously thoroughly brilliant) moody synth chug of Pale Green Ghosts or Queen Of Denmark for an increasingly diverse and ever-blooming sound palette, 'The Art Of The Lie' is a wildly inventive and brilliantly produced new chapter in JG's storied musical legacy.

TRACK LISTING

1. All That School For Nothing
2. Marbles
3. Father
4. Mother And Son
5. Twistin Scriptures
6. Meek AF
7. It's A Bitch
8. Daddy
9. The Child Catcher
10. Laura Lou
11. Zeitgeist

Everything was just so intense. There was an alienation and awkwardness about Josef K, but that was actually very true to life for me. Listening today I find really difficult because it brings back so many memories, so many ghosts and characters from the past.

-- Paul Haig. A lot of what Josef K were about was as much to do with what not to play as what to play. Josef K could never have anything rootsy, no blues scale.

We were always looking for the modern. -- Malcolm Ross. Josef K are the great lost post-punk band.

Taking their name from the haunted protagonist of Franz Kafka s existentialist novel The Trial, they posed for photographs before brutalist and gothic architecture and produced visionary, often incendiary music that felt like the product of perpetual anxiety. And it really was. Through The Crack In The Wall is the first ever biography of the band, tracing their story from their origins in the leafy suburbs of Edinburgh through to their untimely implosion four years later.

It s a tale of fun and frenzy, filled with highs and lows. From their thrilling live shows, which left onlookers spellbound, to more anxious occasions confronting a baying audience of rioting anarcho-punks in Brussels; from a brief spell as press darlings of the inkies to the fateful decision to pull their debut album just as pop stardom beckoned -- one that continues to haunt them today. Drawing extensively on new interviews with the band members and those around them as well as contemporary press articles, the book explores the band s inner workings and analyses their relationships with Postcard Records supremo Alan Horne, labelmates Orange Juice, and manager Allan Campbell.

It re-evaluates their position in the pantheon of post-punk greats and considers how their music helped shape the UK independent scene of the eighties. More than anything else, though, the book s primary purpose is to celebrate the incredible music Josef K made and consider what makes it more vital today than ever.

Despite the album’s playful title, Cale’s second album in just over a year still contains the same feelings of fierce and inquisitive rage that were present in 2023 album MERCY. He remains angry, still incensed by the willful destruction that unchecked capitalists and unrepentant conmen have hoisted upon the wonders of this world and the goodness of its people. But this is not at all MERCY II, or some collection of castoffs, as throughout his career of more than six decades, Cale has never been much for repetition. His vanguard-shaping enthusiasms have shifted among ecstatic classicism and unbound rock, classic songcraft and electronic reimagination with proud restlessness.

And so, on POPtical Illusion, he foregoes the illustrious cast to burrow mostly alone into mazes of synthesizers and samples, organs and pianos, with words that, as far as Cale goes, constitute a sort of swirling hope, a sage insistence that change is yet possible. Produced by Cale and longtime artistic partner Nita Scott, POPtical Illusion is the work of someone trying to turn toward the future – exactly as Cale always has.

TRACK LISTING

1. God Made Me Do It (don’t Ask Me Again)
2. Davies And Wales
3. Calling You Out
4. Edge Of Reason
5. I’m Angry
6. How We See The Light
7. Company Commander
8. Setting Fires
9. Shark-Shark
10. Funkball The Brewster
11. All To The Good
12. Laughing In My Sleep
13. There Will Be No River

The Emmy-winning Comeback Kid himself comes back yet again with a blunt, brilliantly quotable stand-up special. 'Baby J' takes the form of a wide-ranging
conversation between John Mulaney, a kid in the balcony named Henry, and the rest of the sold-out crowd at Boston’s Symphony Hall. And now, you!

John dominates the chat, of course - and while his cautionary tales are a bit too convulsive to be functionally preventative, you probably aren’t here to be cautioned. So have at it!

TRACK LISTING

1. Miss America
2. Lost In New York
3. Star-Studded Intervention
4. Koala Bank Changing Station
5. Dr. Michael
6. A Call From Al Pacino
7. Baby J
8. John, John And John
9. Breaking Up With
10. Your Dealer
11. Mushing Metals
12. Hello Old Friend
13. A Wide Ranging Conversation

Introducing John Coltrane 'Now Playing' on Translucent Blue Vinyl - Uncover the brilliance of jazz legend John Coltrane through a tracklist uncovering rich gems, such as the iconic "Giant Steps", the soulful "Naima," demonstrating Coltrane's virtuosity and innovation, the enchanting melodies of "My Favorite Things, Pt. 1" and the tender ballad "I'll Wait and Pray" as the perfect start or continuation of your musical journey.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. Giant Steps [4:48]
2. Cousin Mary [5:50]
3. Naima [4:25]
4. Village Blues [5:23]

Side B
1. I’ll Wait And Pray [3:35]
2. My Favorite Things, Pt. 1 (Single Version) [2:47]
3. Everytime We Say Goodbye [5:45]
4. Central Park West [4:15]
5. Body And Soul [5:41]

'The heartwarming story of the collaboration and friendship between English football's oddest couple, Elton John and Graham Taylor' The Times 'An ever-entertaining telling of a remarkable sporting fairy-tale' Daily Telegraph

An unforgettable British underdog story from one of our greatest narrative nonfiction writers, John Preston, and the international musical icon and bestselling author, Sir Elton John. Britain in the 1970s was beset by unrest and unemployment, as inflation soared, fuel was scarce, and hooliganism was on the rise. And for Watford FC, the outlook was even gloomier.

Rundown and rat-infested, Watford were an ailing side with holes in their kit and barely enough fans to fill a stand. Of the 92 clubs in the Football League, spread across four divisions, Watford were in 92nd place. Meanwhile, Elton John was the most successful rockstar in the world.

With six-inch platforms, spangled jumpsuits, and peroxide hair, he was glamorous, gay, and seemingly a world away from the semi-detached house in Pinner where he had supported Watford FC as a child. Many assumed he would move to America. Instead, he bought the football club.

Watford Forever is the remarkable story of Elton John's ownership of Watford FC and its transformational journey to the top of the First Division under iconic manager Graham Taylor. Perhaps most remarkably, four of the same players who had been written off as has-beens went with them all the way from the bottom to the top. Inspiring and infectiously funny, this is a tribute to football's unlikeliest friendship as Elton John and Taylor, a straight-talking former fullback with a love of Vera Lynn, beat the odds and their personal demons to save a club and a community.

Immersed in the grime and glamour of '70s Britain, Watford Forever is one of sport's great underdog stories and a love letter to the beautiful game.

It’s been a decade since John Carpenter recorded the material that would become 'Lost Themes', his debut album of non-film music and the opening salvo in one of Hollywood’s great second acts. Those vibrant, synth-driven songs, made in collaboration with his son Cody Carpenter and godson Daniel Davies, kickstarted a musical renaissance for the pioneering composer and director. In the years since, Carpenter, Carpenter, and Davies have released close to a dozen musical projects, including a growing library of studio albums and the scores for David Gordon Green’s trilogy of Halloween reboots. With 'Lost Themes IV: Noir', they’ve struck gold again, this time mining the rich history of the film noir genre for inspiration.

Since the first 'Lost Themes', John has referred to these compositions as “soundtracks for the movies in your mind.” On the fourth installment in the series, those movies are noirs. Like the film genre they were influenced by, what makes these songs “noirish” is sometimes slippery and hard to define, and not merely reducible to a collection of tropes. The scores for the great American noir pictures were largely orchestral, while the Carpenters and Davies work off a sturdy synth-and-guitar backbone. The noir quality, then, is something you understand instinctively when you hear it, as in connected in an emotional way.

The trio’s free-flowing chemistry means 'Lost Themes IV: Noir' runs like a well-oiled machine - the 1951 Jaguar XK120 Roadster from Kiss Me Deadly, perhaps, or the 1958 Plymouth Fury from John’s own Christine. It’s a chemistry that’s helped power one of the most productive stretches of John’s creative life, and Noir proves that it’s nowhere near done yielding brilliant results.

TRACK LISTING

1. My Name Is Death
2. Machine Fear
3. Last Rites
4. The Burning Door
5. He Walks By Night
6. Beyond The Gallows
7. Kiss The Blood Off My Fingers
8. Guillotine
9. The Demon’s Shadow
10. Shadows Have A Thousand Eyes

Indie's Exclusive 7" Bonus Track:
1. Black Cathedral

Adrenalin Baby was recorded live during the Playland tour in 2014. It includes live recordings predominantly from the iconic Manchester Apollo and Brixton Academy. Marr said he wanted to capture the atmosphere and feeling of the last couple of tours. It contains live versions of tracks from his solo records, Playland, The Messenger, whilst also including songs from earlier in his career, such as Getting Away With It. Adrenalin Baby also features several songs by The Smiths, such as The Headmaster Ritual, How Soon Is Now and Bigmouth Strikes Again.

TRACK LISTING

LP
A1 Playland
A2 The Right Thing Right
A3 Easy Money
A4 25 Hours
B1 New Town Velocity
B2 The Headmaster Ritual
B3 The Messenger
B4 Back In The Box
C1 Generate! Generate!
C2 Bigmouth Strikes Again
C3 Boys Get Straight
C4 Candidate
D1 Getting Away With It
D2 There Is A Light That Never Goes Out
D3 Dynamo
D4 I Fought The Law
D5 How Soon Is Now?

CD
1 Playland
2 The Right Thing Right
3 Easy Money
4 25 Hours
5 New Town Velocity
6 The Headmaster Ritual
7 The Messenger
8 Back In The Box
9 Generate! Generate!
10 Bigmouth Strikes Again
11 Boys Get Straight
12 Candidate
13 Getting Away With It
14 There Is A Light That Never Goes Out
15 Dynamo
16 I Fought The Law
17 How Soon Is Now?

Hailing from the rather more literate side of Camden’s garage-punk scene in the mid-90s, The Flaming Stars were Peel favourites over the years, recording no fewer than EIGHT sessions for the legendary DJ.

Six of them were collected on a Vinyl Japan CD at the turn of the century – but this fantastic final session is one of two never released before (the other one is PRE 042!). And what a session it is, featuring the brilliant ‘Cash 22’ (should’ve been a single!) and the noir vision of ‘Killer In The Rain’.

TRACK LISTING

Cash 22
Over And Done
Action Crime & Vision
Killer In The Rain

Long-term friends with a mutual admiration for each other’s work, the idea of a collaboration started when John joined Liam on-stage at his biblical knebworth shows.

Song ideas were soon flowing, and the album took shape with an intuitive intensity while in Los Angeles with the revered producer Greg Kurstin. He played bass throughout the record, while drums were performed by Joey Waronker (Beck, R.E.M., Atoms For Peace).

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: I think about when I used to listen to Oasis and The Stone Roses back in 'The Day' and imagine how i'd feel if you told me that this would be a collaboration that could happen in the future. It's Squire's unmistakeable songwriting and playing, with Gallagher's vocals over the top. I bet he's even got his arms behind his back. Danceable, baggy psychedelic rock with vox one of the most legendary vocalists of his generation.

TRACK LISTING

1. Raise Your Hands
2. Mars To Liverpool
3. One Day At A Time
4. I’m A Wheel
5. Just Another Rainbow
6. Love You Forever
7. Make It Up As You Go Along
8. You're Not The Only One
9. I’m So Bored
10. Mother Nature's Song

One of the country's most underrated singer-songwriters, John Bramwell, returns to the fray with a remarkable new album The Light Fantastic via Townsend Music.

Anyone who has heard John's work with seminal Manchester band I Am Kloot, will be cheered by the news of this impending release. Nominated for a Mercury Prize in 2010 for their acclaimed Sky At Night album, I Am Kloot never quite received the widespread success their music deserved.

This new album is a masterclass in emotionally charged and melodically driven tunes for the adventurous. All 12 tracks were written by John except for 'Nobody Left But You' which he co-wrote with album producer Dave Fidler.

"After both my Mum and Dad died, I started writing these songs to cheer myself up," John admits with typical candour. "The themes are taken from my dreams at the time. Wake up and take whatever impression I had from what I could remember of my dream and write that."

Despite the sentiment, the songs are surprisingly uplifting. And will no doubt sound great live.

TRACK LISTING

1. Leave No Traces
2. A World Full Of Flowers
3. It's Just You
4. The Light Fantastic
5. Here It Comes
6. A Sky Full Of Thunder And Lightning
7. I Am The Sky
8. Days Go By
9. The Element Of Truth
10. I Feel Me
11. Nobody Left But You
12. Illegalised

'Nothing short of dazzling' - Alex Turner

Dr John Cooper Clarke's dazzling, scabrous voice has reverberated through pop culture for decades, his influence on generations of performance poets and musicians plain for all to see. In WHAT, the original 'People's Poet' comes storming out of the gate with an uproarious new collection, reminding us why he is one of Britain's most beloved writers and performers. James Brown, John F.

Kennedy, Jesus Christ: nobody is safe from the punk rocker's acerbic pen - and that's just the first poem. Hot on the heels of The Luckiest Guy Alive and his sprawling, encyclopaediac memoir I Wanna Be Yours, the good Doctor returns with his most trenchant collection of poems yet. Vivid and alive, with a sensitivity only a writer with a life as varied and extraordinary as Cooper Clarke's could summon, WHAT is an exceptional collection from one of our foremost satirists.

Brand new music from Dylan John Thomas following his 2 EPs last year.

“Dylan John Thomas could be Scotland’s next big singer-songwriter.” The Scotsman.

“Scotland’s break out star of 2022” Daily Record.

“Dylan John Thomas looks set for the big leagues.” Notion.

“A unique juxtaposition of heartfelt lyricism, affirming optimism, and a driving energy.” The Line of Best Fit.

TRACK LISTING

1. Fever
2. Feel The Fire
3. What I Need
4. Up In The Air
5. Now And Then
6. Melancholy's Cure
7. Rich Boy
8. Yesterday Is Gone
9. Champs-Élysées
10. When I Get Home
11. Jenna
12. Lovely Day
13. Wake Up Ma (Live At Barrowlands)

Daniel Johnston’s ‘Alive in New York City’: A full performance captured before a live audience in New York City, the city of Daniel Johnston’s dreams. Daniel is at the height of his performing powers, with his solo voice in full poignant bloom. A real time-capsule, each song is a gem rendered in full color by an artist dedicated to his craft. This LP captures him at an unusually happy point in his life, sharing the deepest parts of himself with his audience. We are given a rare glimpse into Daniel’s heart, where the physical rendering he gives over to his lyrics transcends the music and works as a beacon into the tender mind of a genius - grappling with how to love himself and find his place in the world. This 2000 concert recorded and live-mixed by Kramer in NYC happened on a very special night and Shimmy-Disc is proud to present it to the world, along with 18 minutes of bonus material comprised of some of the rarest audio treasures from the Daniel Johnston Archives - a series of “Telephone Demos” created by Daniel specifically for sending to friends over his phone. These little teleplays from Daniel’s pre-”1990” days have never been heard before, so his fans will go wild with joy over this newly discovered and precious cargo from the mind of this one-of-a-kind and irreplaceable Artist.

TRACK LISTING

Frito Lay (Sweetheart)
Frustrated Artist
The Spook
Love Will See You Through
Silly Love
Live And Let Die
You’ve Got To Hide Your Love
Casper The Friendly Ghost
Memory Of Love
Bloody Rainbow
Super Love
Kool-Aid
Folly
Interview (Excerpt)

Collaborations don’t get much more biblical than this. Solo star, Oasis legend and force-of-nature Liam Gallagher has teamed up with John Squire, one of the most influential guitarists and songwriters of his generation via his time with The Stone Roses. The duo will set a high watermark for 2024 when they release their first single together, ‘Just Another Rainbow’, on January 5th, on limited 7” vinyl.

There will be much more new music to come - and there could well be shows, too - but for now ‘Just Another Rainbow’ lives up to the highfalutin expectations that come with such a collaboration.

STAFF COMMENTS

Andy says: With it's loping groove, backwards guitars and classic chord changes , this could only be a John Squire song. With his trademark Lennon-inspired delivery and customary vocal swagger this could only be the (sorry!) one and only Liam Gallagher. Imagine The Beatles' Rain mixed with perhaps the Roses' Waterfall and you wouldn't be a million miles away. It's great!

DELUXE LIMITED COLLECTOR'S EDITION: Enclosed in a protective slipcase debossed with foil, including several frameable reproductions of rare memorabilia:
- A never-before-published photograph of Johnny Cash performing at a private event in Knoxville, TN, in April, 1975
- A reproduction of the Cash coat of arms, hand-drawn and lettered by Cash, with reflections on its meaning
- A double-sided reproduction of Cash's handwritten lyrics for "Flesh and Blood" with ornamental drawings and a special note to June Carter
- An access code to listen to never-before-released audio comments by Cash.

This book marks the first time Johnny Cash's 60 years of songwriting have been collected anywhere. Cash is one of the most beloved and influential country-music stars of all time, having composed more than 600 songs and perhaps best known for blending country, rock, blues, and gospel in his music, ushering in the countrypolitan and Outlaw country movements.

An essential collectible that sheds new light on Cash's life and work, this oversize and sumptuously designed book includes rare and never-before-seen visual material alongside stories and commentary from Cash's son, John Carter Cash, Mark Stielper, Cash and Carter family historian, and others. Released the year of the twentieth anniversary of the legendary musician's passing, it will be a landmark moment in music publishing.

This publication marks the first time the Cash Estate will open its archive to help lovers of his music understand his timeless songs in a new light, and to share the stories behind their creation. Public Historian Dr. Brian Dempsey will oversee the visual contributions.

THIS IS A BLACK FRIDAY 2023 EXCLUSIVE AND WILL BE AVAILABLE INSTORE ON FRIDAY NOVEMBER 24TH ON A FIRST COME FIRST SERVED BASIS, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

IF THERE ARE ANY REMAINING COPIES THEY WILL BE MADE AVAILABLE ONLINE AT 8AM ON SATURDAY NOVEMBER 25TH).


The Guardians Of The Galaxy Holiday Special is the soundtrack to the television special released on Disney+ in November 2022. The album features an original score composed by John Murphy, plus two songs performed by Old 97’s and Kevin Bacon. Available for the first time on vinyl, this color splatter LP is being released exclusively for RSD Black Friday 2023.Releasing internationally in line with the US/Canada RSD release - 2-Colour Splatter Vinyl

This book marks the first time Johnny Cash's 60 years of songwriting have been collected anywhere. Cash is one of the most beloved and influential country-music stars of all time, having composed more than 600 songs and perhaps best known for blending country, rock, blues, and gospel in his music, ushering in the countrypolitan and Outlaw country movements.

An essential collectible that sheds new light on Cash's life and work, this oversize and sumptuously designed book includes rare and never-before-seen visual material alongside stories and commentary from Cash's son, John Carter Cash, Mark Stielper, Cash and Carter family historian, and others. Released the year of the twentieth anniversary of the legendary musician's passing, it will be a landmark moment in music publishing.

This publication marks the first time the Cash Estate will open its archive to help lovers of his music understand his timeless songs in a new light, and to share the stories behind their creation. Public Historian Dr. Brian Dempsey will oversee the visual contributions.

The seminal recordings that make up Lush Life were taped during a transitional period in John Coltrane's musical career. He had first joined the Miles Davis Quintet in 1955 and would form his own celebrated quartet with McCoy Tyner, Jimmy Garrison, and Elvin Jones in 1960. In the intervening years, he overcame his narcotics addiction and began to expand on his own musical ideas while experimenting with both the Thelonious Monk Quartet and the Miles Davis Sextet (featuring Bill Evans and Cannonball Adderley). Lush Life was constructed with material from three different sessions, all of which produced additional material issued in other albums. While Side A is in trio format with no piano, Side B features a quintet showcasing Donald Byrd and Red Garland.

Contains new specially prepared liner notes by Penguin Guide to Jazz's writer Brian Morton and by Paris' prestigious Jazz Magazine.

"All aspects of Coltrane's conception during this period are well-illustrated on the album: the classic simplicity and haunting loveliness of the Coltrane ballad technique is here. For sheer beauty of approach and execution, his work has rarely been equalled." - ***** Franz Kofsky, DownBeat

TRACK LISTING

1. Like Someone In Love
2. I Love You
3. Trane's Slow Blues
4. Slowtrane
5. Lush Life
6. I Hear A Rhapsody
7. While My Lady Sleeps

Johnny Flynn’s sixth album, and the second co-written with his friend Robert Macfarlane gathers songs that Johnny and Robert have written together since finishing their first joint album, Lost In The Cedar Wood (2021). At its heart are the oldest themes of all: death and renewal, darkness and light. The first five tracks are songs of burial, shadows and memory, while the final four are songs of awakening, light and love. The album turns around a central song, ‘The Sun Also Rises’, which stands with a foot in both dark and light.

Fuses poetry, story, landscape, history, nature and myth into a series of rich, strange songlines that criss-cross time and place, joining winter to spring, ancient to present and birth to death. As the Sun sets, so the Moon rises as its echo; as one light dies, another, altogether different light is born.

Partly recorded in an old Methodist chapel –now the home of Johnny and Rob’s friends, Cosmo and Flora Sheldrake.

Produced by Charlie Andrew (Alt-J, Marika Hackman).

BIOG
Johnny Flynn is a singer, composer, musician and actor. His musical releases to date include the studio albums A Larum (2008), Been Listening (2010), Country Mile (2013), Sillion (2017) and Lost In The Cedar Wood (2021). He has released two full live albums, Live in Washington DC (2014) and Live at the Roundhouse (2018) and various EPs and soundtracks. As well as touring the world with his band, Johnny regularly composes music for film, TV and theatre –– including work for period instruments at the Globe Theatre. Johnny’s recent acting projects include Hangmen and True West (for which he also composed the music) on stage and Emma, Beast and The Dig on film. He is currently appearing as Richard Burton in Jack Thorne’s sell-out play The Motive and the Cue, directed by Sam Mendes.

Robert Macfarlane is a writer of books about nature, people, place and landscape including Underland (2019), Landmarks (2015), The Old Ways (2012) and, with Jackie Morris, The Lost Words (2017) and The Lost Spells (2020). He also writes films (inc. Mountain and River, both starring Willem Dafoe), operas, plays and screenplays, and collaborates widely, including with artist Stanley Donwood, and musicians Cosmo Sheldrake, Jocelyn Pook and Karine Polwart. His work has been widely adapted for film, stage, television, radio, dance, music and performance, and his books have been published in more than thirty languages. In 2023 he was awarded the inaugural Weston International Award for Non-Fiction.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: A rousing collection of songs from the neo-folk troubador Johnny Flynn (whose Detectorists theme is forever etched in my brain) and frequent collaboration partner Robert Macfarlane. It's a warming, bucolic selection that's every bit as beautiful as 2021's stunning 'Lost In The Cedar Wood'.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. Uncanny Valley
2. Song With No Name
3. Burial Blessing
4. No Matter The Weight
5. Coins For The Eyes
Side B
6. The Sun Also Rises
7. The Wild Hunt
8. Through The Misty With You
9. Year-Long Winter
10. River, Mountain And Love

Coltrane's sessions for Atlantic in late October 1960 were prolific, yielding the material for 'My Favorite Things', 'Coltrane Plays the Blues', and 'Coltrane's Sound'. 'My Favorite Things' was destined to be the most remembered and influential of these, and while Coltrane Plays the Blues is not as renowned or daring in material, it is still a powerful session.

As for the phrase "plays the blues" in the title, it's not so much an indicator that the tunes are conventional blues, but more indicative of a bluesy sensibility.

TRACK LISTING

1. Blues To Elvin
2. Blues To Bechet
3. Blues To You
4. Blues To Elvin [Alternative Take]
5. Mr. Day
6. Mr. Syms
7. Mr. Knight
8. Blues To You [Alternative Take]

Released in early 1961, Lush Life was assembled from previous unissued tracks from three recording sessions at Van Gelder Studio in Hackensack, New Jersey in 1957 and 1958.

John Coltrane’s Prestige years began when he joined the Miles Davis Quintet in 1955. During the next few years, when he was either with Davis or the Thelonious Monk Quartet, he functioned as both leader and sideman for this label. These recordings document the first part of his relatively short but highly influential time in the spotlight. Lush Life, a combination of standards and a blues, treated in the unique Coltrane manner - sound wedded to material in a completely personal way - contains three tracks without a piano. This is the first time he recorded in this manner, other than when Monk was 'strolling,' and it offers another aspect from, and of, Trane. 

Personally curated and compiled by Johnny Marr, Spirit Power: The Best Of Johnny Marr encompasses music from across his four widely acclaimed solo albums released over the last decade (2013’s The Messenger, 2014’s Playland, 2018’s Call The Comet, 2022 double album Fever Dreams Pts 1-4), non-album single releases ‘Armatopia’ and ‘The Priest’ (w/ Maxine Peake). The collection also includes 2 brand new studio recordings Somewhere and The Answer.

Since establishing the current chapter of his solo work a decade ago, Johnny has remained a restless creative. Working and recording out of his own purpose-built Manchester studio, the Crazy Face Factory, his songwriting has embraced an instinctive sonic evolution across four full length albums.

STAFF COMMENTS

Andy says: When Johnny got back to sounding like, well, JOHNNY, again, with his debut solo album around ten years ago, the world of Indie Pop welcomed back an old friend and guitar hero with open arms. To hear his best songs stacked up like this just goes to show what a great song-writer he is, in his own right, without "her indoors", as well as being one of the all-time great UK guitarists. The proof's in the pudding. Magic.

TRACK LISTING

2LP (19 Tracks)
Side 1
Armatopia
New Town Velocity
Easy Money
Spirit Power & Soul
Hi Hello
Side 2
Somewhere
European Me
The Messenger
I Feel You
Side 3
The Answer
Dynamo
Spiral Cities
The Priest
Night And Day
Side 4
Sensory Street
Walk Into The Sea
Upstarts
Candidate
Tenement Time

Standard CD (16 Tracks)
1. Armatopia
2. New Town Velocity
3. Easy Money
4. Spirit Power & Soul
5. Hi Hello
6. Somewhere
7. The Messenger
8. I Feel You
9. The Answer
10. Dynamo
11. Spiral Cities
12. Night And Day
13. Sensory Street
14. Walk Into The Sea
15. Candidate
16. Tenement Time

Deluxe 2CD (24 Tracks)
Disc 1
1. Armatopia
2. New Town Velocity
3. Easy Money
4. Spirit Power And Soul
5. Hi Hello
6. Somewhere
7. European Me
8. The Messenger
9. I Feel You
10. The Answer
11. Dynamo
12. Spiral Cities
13. The Priest
Disc 2
1. Night And Day
2. Sensory Street
3. Walk Into The Sea
4. Upstarts
5. Candidate
6. Tenement Time
7. Hi Hello (Demo)
8. Somewhere (Demo)
9. The Answer (Crazy Face Version)
10. The Messenger (Demo)
11. Speak Out Reach Out (Crazy Face Version)

‘Fireflies’ is the penultimate song from the Deluxe Version of John Grant’s debut solo album; ‘Queen Of Denmark’ - which was released on the seminal UK label Bella Union in 2010.

Recorded in Texas in collaboration with members of Midlake, the album was heralded as an “Instant Classic” by Mojo Magazine and went on to be selected as their choice for Best Album of that year.

The Independent described it as "a near-perfect marriage of his warm baritone with their lush woodwind and keyboard textures” and the BBC cited it as "one of the most deeply satisfying debut albums of recent times.

This version of this plaintive ballad replays it’s beautiful piano & vocal melodies.

The band is John Dwyer (synths, vocals), Heather Lockie (viola), Thomas Dolas (synths), Andres Renteria (hand percussion), Brad Caulkins (tenor saxophone), Kyp Malone (synths) and Archie Carey (bassoon). The singers are YoshimiO (Boredoms, OOIOO), Albert Wolski (EXEK), Gracie Jackson (GracieHorse), Ciriza (Artist Extraordinaire), Kyp Malone (Bent Arcana, TV On The Radio, Rain Machine etc.), Brigid Dawson (Thee Oh Sees, The Mothers Network), AZITA (Scissor Girls, Bride of NONO, AZITA).

For fans of Steve Roach, Eno, Syrinx, Howard Shore, Current 93, Terry Riley, Tangerine Dream and a proper sage scrub.

“An experiment in symphonic improvisation paired with synthesizerscapes. Strings, reeds, synths and hand percussion all blend sweetly into an odd landscape indeed. The final touch was to bring aboard some singers I have loved over the years. I’m so pleased they were all willing to participate and I’m very tickled by the plane we navigate. Once YoshimiO agreed to be on board I knew we were going to be OK. Recorded and mixed at my home studio (Stu-Stu-Studio in Los Angeles) and remotely, this one was a slow burn to see the light of day. And here it is in its final crystal form. Celebrating the spaces between ritual, habit and ceremony. And all the parallels between. The line is blurred. This is occult adjacent strain of sound. At home in daily ritual, contemplation and meditation.” - John Dwyer.

TRACK LISTING

1. What Do (YoshimiO)
2. Ruths Mouth (Albert Wolski)
3. For Those Who Don’t Get Anything (Gracie Jackson)
4. Memory Mirror Floweth Over (Ciriza)
5. Sound The Unknown (Kyp Malone)
6. Azazel (Brigid Dawson)
7. Debris In The Sky (Azita)

A stunning photographic presentation of the guitars that defined the distinctive sounds and style of Johnny Marr with personal reflections and insights from the legendary guitarist himself. 'Guitars have been the obsession of my life ... they've been a mission and sometimes a lifeline' - Johnny Marr The guitarist's guitarist, Johnny Marr redefined music for a generation.

His ringing arpeggios and chordal innovations helped elevate The Smiths to be one of the most influential and important British bands of all time. Tracing Marr's career from his teenage years to his recent work on the Bond soundtrack, Marr's Guitars showcases the most significant of Marr's superb collection of electric and acoustic guitars, revealing through them the evolution of his iconic sound and style of playing. Each guitar is identified with a crucial moment, a specific song or a particular sound, and each embodies a key aspect of Marr's lifelong passion.

Renowned photographer Pat Graham presents each instrument as a full portrait, supported by micro shots highlighting the specific details that make each one unique, while Johnny Marr himself reveals in his accompanying commentary on what tracks and at which shows the guitars were played. Many of the guitars are closely associated with Marr, such as the Rickenbacker 330, the Gibson ES-355 and the Johnny Marr Signature Fender Jaguar. Some were passed down to him, including Nile Rodgers' Stratocaster, Bryan Ferry's Roxy Music Hagstrom and Bert Jansch's Yamaha.

Others are guitars once owned by Marr that have since been passed on to the next generation of guitar heroes, including the Stratocaster used by Noel Gallagher on 'Wonderwall' and the Gibson Les Paul Goldtop used on In Rainbows by Radiohead's Ed O'Brien. Punctuating the photography of the guitars and the accompanying commentary are contextual studio, backstage and onstage shots. Together, they make Marr's Guitars a unique cultural history of modern music and guitar playing told through the prism of Johnny Marr's experiences and achievements.

Originally released in 1958 on Sun Records, Johnny Cash's second album was a smash success, with singles such as "I Walk The Line", "Guess Things Happen That Way", and "Ballad of a Teenage Queen" shooting to the top of the charts and earning Cash a reputation as one of country's greatest songwriters and performers. The Man In Black is accompanied by Luther Perkins and Marshall Grant, known at the time as The Tennessee Two. The album was produced by Sun Records founder, Sam Phillips, and Jack Clement.

TRACK LISTING

SIDE A
Ballad Of A Teenage Dream
There You Go
I Walk The Line
Don’t Make Me Go
Guess Things Happen That Way
Train Of Love
SIDE B
The Ways Of A Woman In Love
Next In Line
You’re The Nearest Thing To Heaven
I Can’t Help If If I’m Still In Love With You
Home Of The Blues
Big River

Our review from 2003:

The eccentric genius that is Daniel Johnston returns with the help of Sparklehorse's Mark Linkous, which in turn has made this one of his most accessible albums to date potentially appealing to fans of the Mercury Rev / Flaming Lips style sound.

TRACK LISTING

1. Now
2. Syrup Of Tears
3. Mountain Top
4. Love Enchanted
5. Must
6. Fish
7. The Power Of Love
8. Forever Your Love
9. Love Not Dead
10. You Hurt Me
11. Wish
12. Living It For The Moment

The official release of The White Stripes Peel Sessions on one stuffed-to-the-brim disc. Capturing Jack and Meg at the precipice of international renown in the hubbub of "White Blood Cells," their two live sessions with famed BBC DJ John Peel are arguably the best document of the White Stripes at that time.

TRACK LISTING

Vol. I // Maida Vale // July 25th, 2001
1. Let's Shake Hands
2. When I Hear My Name
3. Jolene
4. Death Letter
5. Cannon
6. Astro / Jack The Ripper
7. Hotel Yorba
8. I'm Finding It Hard To Be A Gentleman
9. Screwdriver
10. We're Going To Be Friends
11. You're Pretty Good Looking
12. Boll Weevil
13. Hello Operator
14. Baby Blue

Vol. II // Peel Acres II November 8th, 2001
15. Lord Send Me An Angel
16. Dead Leaves And The Dirty Ground
17. I Think I Smell A Rat
18. Lets Build A Home / Goin’ Back To Memphis
19. Little Room
20. The Union Forever
21. The Same Boy You've Always Known
22. Look Me Over Closely
23. Looking At You
24. St James Infirmary Blues
25. Apple Blossom
26. Rated X
27. Little Girl That Says
28. Jumble, Jumble
29. Little People

By now everyone should know John Carpenter is not only a celebrated filmmaker but also a musical maestro whose soundtracks have become synonymous with the genres of horror, suspense, and science fiction. His innate talent for composition and his deep understanding of how music can elevate storytelling have left an indelible mark on the world of cinema, and a haunting presence in people’s record collections.

Anthology II continues the celebration of his compositional genius via an excellently sequenced collection of some of his most iconic pieces of music from his extensive filmography, all newly recorded with his musical collaborators Daniel Davies and Cody Carpenter.

The compilation opens with “Chariots of Pumpkins” from Halloween III that perfectly captures the eerie essence of the cult classic film with its pulsating synths and haunting melodies. The listener is engulfed by a sense of unease and anticipation, before being thrust into “69th St. Bridge” from Escape From New York, a dynamic track that encapsulates the futuristic and gritty nature of the film via the use of throbbing bass lines, driving rhythms, and electronic textures. The record has also an isolating tone as it skulks through ambient leaning tracks such as “Fuchs” and “To Mac’s Shack” from The Thing, and “Walk to the Lighthouse” from The Fog, all of which display a slower tempo, foreboding undertones and an ethereal atmosphere that feels like a distant whisper. All of which has been cautiously laid in preparation to the grand finale. The iconic and instantly recognizable ”Laurie’s Theme” from the original Halloween. Its simple yet menacing piano melody which has become synonymous with the horror genre, concludes the album by striking fear into the hearts of listeners.

These tracks represent just a fraction of John Carpenter’s impressive musical repertoire. With each haunting note and pulsating beat, his soundtracks continue to resonate with audiences, forever etching his name in the annals offilm music history.

TRACK LISTING

1. Chariots Of Pumpkins (Halloween III)
2. 69th St. Bridge (Escape From New York)
3. The Alley (War) (Big Trouble In Little China)
4. Wake Up (They Live)
5. Julie’s Dead (Assault On Precinct 13)
6. The Shape Enters Laurie’s Room (Halloween II)
7. Season Of The Witch (Halloween III)
8. Love At A Distance (Prince Of Darkness)
9. The Shape Stalks Again (Halloween II)
10. Burn It (The Thing)
11. Fuchs (The Thing)
12. To Mac’s Shack (The Thing)
13. Walk To The Lighthouse (The Fog)
14. Laurie’s Theme (Halloween)

The John Carter and Bobby Bradford Quartet/Quintet were critical to the progressive jazz movement around Los Angeles in the late 60s alongside the likes of Horace Tapscott. Both hailed from the Watts area and trumpeter, Bradford played with a woodshedding Ornette Coleman for two years in the early 60s when the legendary free movement leader decided not to record for a while but wanted to hone his trademark sound on the saxophone. Multi-reed player, Carter also worked with Coleman who brought them together to lead their own band.

Their first outing on Flying Dutchman was “Flight For Four” as the Carter Bradford Quartet that was released in 1969. This is the second album they recorded where Carter and Bradford were supported by Tom Williamson (bass), Buzz Freeman (drums) and another uncredited bass player on four extended improvisations – ‘The Sunday Afternoon Jazz Blues Society’, ‘The Eye Of The Storm’, ‘Loneliness’ and ‘Encounter’.

The album has been out of print on vinyl since 1971 and Ace are delighted to release it with audio taken from hi-res digital transfers from the original masters.

TRACK LISTING

Side One
1. The Sunday Afternoon
Jazz Blues Society
2. The Eye Of The Storm
Side Two
1. Loneliness
2. Encounter

Holly Johnson is proud to present a 35th anniversary reissue of his 1989 number one debut solo album.

Blast will be available on limited edition red vinyl (Pressing of 1500 copies worldwide).

Here’s what Holly calls "Blast in a Nutshell” - "My exploding red hot vinyl, from the fag end of the nineteen eighties. It's not purple, but it's mine all mine. Thirty five years in the same house, the vibes are still here. Still alive in 2023.”\

Prepare to blast off once more.

TRACK LISTING

1. Atomic City
2. Heaven's Here
3. Americanos
4. Deep In Love
5. S.U.C.C.E.S.S.
6. Love Train
7. Got It Made
8. Love Will Come
9. Perfume
10. Feel Good

With March 2023's 7" ‘Theme New Bond Junior’/‘Hopper On The Dial’ reaching No.1 in the UK Vinyl Single Chart, and April 2023's BBC/KEXP supported ‘Trauma Mosaic’ single announcing a debut fifteen date US/CA Tour for October 2023. JOHN consolidate their reputation as a truly uncompromising force with the announcement of their fourth full length A Life Diagrammatic.

The album – which features collaborations with award-winning actor Simon Pegg, and Barry Adamson (formerly of The Bad Seeds and seminal post-punk act Magazine) – is released via Brace Yourself Records & Pets Care Records, and is the follow-up to 2021’s Nocturnal Manoeuvres LP which crashed the top 75 of the main UK album chart.

“Limitations are key for us,” says drummer and vocalist John Newton. “I never view being a two-piece as a minus - it’s a key idiosyncratic element of what the project is.”

For the last decade, and now over four albums, the duo of Newton and Johnny Healey have constantly redefined and expanded the role, function and parameters of what a guitar and drum two-piece can be. No more so is this apparent than on their latest A Life Diagrammatic, a record that harnesses the punch and intensity of their blistering live shows with the band’s increasingly textural, cinematic and expressive sensibilities. “We knew the direction we wanted to go in after the last record,” Healey says of Nocturnal Manoeuvres. “We had started moving towards soundscapes rather than straight-up noise and four to the floor structure.”

The level of thought, ambition and scope is what makes JOHN such a captivating and genre-defying band, and A Life Diagrammatic such a rich and evocative listening experience. And the album artwork is perhaps a perfect metaphor for the band itself: a surface level glance may only reveal the basic function of an ostensible two-piece rock band but undertake a full service and you’ll discover a wealth of complexity, technicality, skill and function. Or quite simply, as Healey himself says, “we're not just a rock band. There's more to it than that.”

Seth Manchester (Big Brave, Battles, METZ) was brought in to mix the album, with Frank Arkwright (Mogwai, Arab Strap, Squarepusher, Autechre) mastering it at the legendary Abbey Road Studios. The aim being to merge the powerful live presence of the band whilst also honing in on some of the more varied dynamics at play. “We wanted to further explore the space and ambience of our instrumentation,” says Newton. “To offer an album that deliberately pushes and pulls in a multitude of directions throughout its duration.”

STAFF COMMENTS

Laura says: On their fourth album John continue to evolve their sound, adding more experimentation to their driving guitar and drums onslaught. As with previous releases, the taut guitar riffs create a tension throughout the album as it sweeps between brooding atmospherics and explosive outbursts, but there’s a more nuanced, cinematic feel this time around. This is typified on “Media Res” which features a strange, slightly unnerving monologue from Simon Pegg - a distorted conversation that you only hear one side of. Typical of the whole album there’s an ambiguity to the narrative that sucks you in and forces you to listen. There’s no snappy sloganeering here, the lyrical depth is integral to the sound as a whole, it’s an album that demands your attention. Still not convinced? Then surely a nod of approval, in the shape of a collaboration on “Riddley Scott Walker”, from the king of cinematic noir, Barry Adamson, should surely seal the deal.

TRACK LISTING

1. At Peacehaven
2. Media Res
3. Côte D’Adur
4. A Submersible
5. A Whole House
6. Service Stationed
7. Construction Site/Summer_22
8. Trauma Mosaic
9. Riddley Scott Walker
10. The Common Cold

Kansas City born Hammond B3 organ dynamo Big John Patton made a stellar run of soul jazz albums for Blue Note thru the 1960s but Let ‘Em Roll stands among the finest with Patton adding vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson to a standard organ trio line-up with guitarist Grant Green and drummer Otis Finch.

This stereo Tone Poet Vinyl Edition was produced by Joe Harley, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original analog master tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl at RTI, and packaged in a deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket.

TRACK LISTING

1. Let 'Em Roll (Side A)
2. Latona (Side A)
3. The Shadow Of Your Smile (Side A)
4. The Turnaround (Side B)
5. Jakey (Side B)
6. One Step Ahead (Side B)

Rejected Unknown is a 2001 album released by the acclaimed musician, Daniel Johnston. This is the first time the record has been pressed to vinyl in over 20 years. "The main themes on Rejected Unknown are the themes Johnston has explored throughout much of his career: hopeless longing, unrequited love, and as might be gathered from the album's title, fear of rejection. This fear probably took on very real terms for Johnston as he was finally dropped from Atlantic Records after being held for years in contractual limbo. Rejected Unknown is unmistakably Johnston's album; he sings and plays piano and guitar, and even adds some percussion to the oddly quirky pop songs."

TRACK LISTING

1. Impossible Love
2. Funeral Girl
3. Dream Scream
4. Love Forever
5. Cathy Cline
6. Davinare
7. Party
8. The Spook
9. Girl Of My Dreams
10. Billions / Rock
11. Thrill
12. Favorite Darling Girl
13. Some Time Spent In Heaven
14. Wedding Ring Bells Blue
15. I Lose

Incredible jazz / prog / folk score to groundbreaking tattoo film by maverick filmmaker. Unreleased until now, so don’t go saying it’s a reissue because it isn’t, but I’m sure some people will because they always do.

John Samson (1946 - 2004) was a truly great documentary maker. He must be as I’ve been obsessed with his work for many years. Educated first at Glasgow School Of Art (circa 1963) and then finally in the art of film making at The National Film And Television School in Beaconsfield - he headed there in its opening year of 1971 having made a short film that got him a scholarship. It was at the NFTS that Samson met Mike Wallington, who was to become his right hand man and eventual producer; together as a quite brilliant team they made a handful of inspiring, entertaining and hugely prescient films about important, overlooked, unseen and marginal fringes in society.

Tattoo (1975) Exploring the rather clandestine world of tattooing in the UK.

Dressing For Pleasure (1977) Exploring the rather clandestine world of festish in the UK.

Brittania (1979) A film about railway enthusiasts and a steam train restoration. Arrows (1979) The life of dart player Eric Bristow.

Drag Ball (1981) An unreleased film about the annual Porchester Hall Drag Ball.

The Skin Horse (1983) BAFTA winning film about The Outsiders Club, a dating agency for disabled people.

The subject matter in all films was always unusual for the time, and Samson managed to navigate his way with compassion, interest and subtlety, immersing himself in the chosen scene and producing moving, fascinating and sometimes darkly amusing situations. His documentaries also do not rely on traditional voiceovers, with stories, facts and narrative threads being dictated by the subjects.

I’ve tried for a long time to find the music for a couple of his early films (there was actually an original 7” for Arrows) - so far this is the only unreleased soundtrack I have found. This one was written by Steve Jolliffe, who met Samson at the NFTS. Joliffe was the resident composer and had a room at the college complex where he could work on scores for the fledgling film makers. Jolliffe was and still is a multi-instrumentalist and prolific composer who had met Edgar Froese at the Berlin Konservatorium in the late 1960s and played in an early incarnation of Tangerine Dream. He toured with blues rock outfit Steamhammer, before hanging out at the NFTS, making this recording (and many others) and eventually rejoining Tangerine Dream in the late 1970s. Jolliffe still writes, records and releases today and once i had made contact with him we traced the original Tattoo master tape to a box at his brother’s house. Musically it’s charming, slightly folky, a touch baroque, there’s a whiff of prog too, and it perfectly suited this early documentary about the art and desire of tattoos. I only wish it was longer. But the film is only 16 minutes long. Seek it out if you can. Try and find all the Samson films, they really are a joy.

As well as featuring intimate footage of tattooed people, the film also includes a rare and very early interview with Alan Oversby (better known as Mr Sebastian), a seminal character in the development of tattoos and body modifications worldwide - it was he who eventually was to tattoo and pierce Genesis P-Orridge.

The images for this vinyl release were all found in Mike Wallington’s Tattoo documentary research folder from 1974, and were photos sent in to Mike and John by people who wanted to feature in the film. Most answered an advert in Time Out, and others included people from my home town of Aldershot where tattooist Bill Skuse and his wife, Rusty (the most tattooed woman in Britain at the time, and featured in the film) were based. His parlour was situated at the back of the arcade where we all used to lose all our pocket money in the slot machines.

The Musicians:
Steve Jolliffe - keyboards, flute, sax Geoff Jolliffe - bass guitar Julian Furniss - guitar Mick Kirby – drums.

First time vinyl repress of this John Cale album, originally released on the Opal label in 1989, produced by Brian Eno.

“‘Words For The Dying’ has at its heart The Falklands Suite, Cale’s baroque if heartfelt response to the Anglo-Argentinian War, which finds him setting the poems of his beloved Dylan Thomas to music. When building songs around another’s words, the results often sound forced, but Cale does a magnificent job of compressing Thomas’s lyricism into neat melodic phrases, themselves just components of a vast harmonic mega-structure scored for the USSR’s Orchestra of Symphonic & Popular Music of Gostelradio. A project that could easily have collapsed under the weight of its own ambition is instead a late masterpiece, thanks to Cale’s deep-seated compositional genius, and unobtrusive but resonant production from Brian Eno.” - Kiran Sande

TRACK LISTING

The Falkland Suite
Introduction
There Was A Saviour
Interlude I
On A Wedding
Anniversary
Interlude II
Lie Still, Sleep Becalmed
Do Not Go Gentle Into That
Good Night

Songs Without Words. II
The Soul Of Carmen
Miranda

A complex and sometimes belligerent character in real life, on record, John Martyn was the epitome of the folk-dreamer, embodying the spirit of the bourgeoning London acoustic scene of the late 60s - Well-known and respected for his 70s albums Solid Air and One World, this is where it began.

Released in October 1967, London Conversation was the first album by the first 'rock' signing to Chris Blackwell's Island Records. With eight of the twelve tracks written by Martyn, it is easy to see why Blackwell was such a champion of his work. The five- minute plus sitar drone of Rolling Home pointed the way to the possibilities that lay ahead. The sleeve captured the earnest folky sitting among the capital's chimney tops, strumming his acoustic. At once Martyn was part of it; Martyn was above it.

TRACK LISTING

Fairy Tale Lullaby
Sandy Grey
London Conversation
Ballad Of An Elder Woman
Cocaine
Run Honey Run
Back To Stay
Rolling Home
Who's Grown Up Now
Golden Girl
This Time
Don't Think Twice

A complex and sometimes belligerent character in real life, on record, John Martyn was the epitome of the folk-dreamer, embodying the spirit of the bourgeoning London acoustic scene of the late 60s - Well-known and respected for his 70s albums Solid Air and One World, this is where it began.

Produced by fellow London scenester Al Stewart, The Tumbler was a huge step forward, presenting Martyn as the questing soul he would become; yet, for the abstraction of The Gardeners, there was the simple folk ditty of Fishin' Blues. With the exemplary flute playing of Harold McNair, Fly On Home is clear in its influence on Martyn's peer, Nick Drake. Knuckeldy Crunch and Slippledee- Slee Song demonstrates what would have happened if Syd Barrett had gone folk.

The Tumbler can be viewed also as the beginning of Martyn's slurred vocal style and sweet sentiment that was to chime with thousands of his aficionados in the UK.

TRACK LISTING

Sing A Song Of Summer
The River
Goin' Down To Memphis
The Gardeners
A Day At The Sea
Fishin' Blues
Dusty
Hello Train
Winding Boy
Fly On Home
Knuckledy Crunch And Slippledee-Slee Song
Seven Black Roses

In August of 1961, the John Coltrane Quintet played an engagement at the legendary Village Gate in Greenwich Village, New York. Coltrane’s Classic Quartet was not as fully established as it would soon become and there was a meteoric fifth member of Coltrane’s group those nights— visionary multi-instrumentalist Eric Dolphy. Ninety minutes of never-before-heard music from this group were recently discovered at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, offering a glimpse into a powerful musical partnership that ended much too soon.

In addition to some well-known Coltrane material (“My Favorite Things”, “Impressions”, “Greensleeves”), there is a breathtaking feature for Dolphy’s bass clarinet on “When Lights Are Low” and the only known non-studio recording of Coltrane’s composition “Africa”, from the Africa/Brass album. This recording represents a very special moment in John Coltrane's journey—the summer of 1961—when his signature, ecstatic live sound, commonly associated his Classic Quartet of '62 to '65, was first maturing and when he was drawing inspiration from deep, African sources— and experimenting with the two-bass idea both in the studio (Olé) and on stage. This truly rare recording of "Africa" captures his expansive vision at the time.

TRACK LISTING

My Favorite Things
When Lights Are Low
Impressions
Greensleeves
Africa

My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross, ANOHNI’s sixth studio album, expresses a world view by shape-shifting through a broad range of subject matter. Through a personal lens, ANOHNI addresses loss of loved ones, inequality, alienation, acceptance, cruelty, ecocide, devastation wrought by Abrahamic theologies, Future Feminism, and the possibility that we might yet transform our ways of thinking, our spiritual ideas, our societal structures, and our relationships with the rest of nature.

On her first full album since 2016’s HOPELESSNESS, she explains the creative process was painstaking, yet also inspired, joyful, and intimate, a renewal and a renaming of her response to the world as she sees it. “Some of these songs respond to global and environmental concerns first voiced in popular music over 50 years ago.”

ANOHNI’s approach since her last record has shifted from someone tasked with challenging global denial, to an artist seeking to support others on the front lines. “I learned with HOPELESSNESS that I can provide a soundtrack that might fortify people in their work, in their activism, in their dreaming and decision-making. I can sing of an awareness that makes others feel less alone, people for whom the frank articulation of these frightening times is not a source of discomfort but a cause for identification and relief.

On “It Must Change,”ANOHNI soulfully describes systems in collapse with a note of compassion for humanity: “The truth is I always thought you were beautiful in your own way // That’s why this is so sad.” ANOHNI’s voice is sensual and smoothed, selectively reaching to the edges of what it can contain. “We’re not getting out of here // No one’s getting out of here // This is our world,” she murmurs.

A portrait of legendary human rights activist Marsha P. Johnson taken by Alvin Baltrop features on the cover, reflecting a 25-year relationship with the memory of Johnson that ANOHNI has held space for in the presentation of her own work.
Elsewhere, the album artwork states ”IT’S TIME TO FEEL WHAT’S REALLY HAPPENING”. In some ways it feels as if she is reaching across her life’s expression, and has found a moment of unique composure, wearing her long exploration of disarming intensity, with the maturity of a painter carefully choosing her colors. “I want the work to be useful, to help others move through these conversations we are now facing, to move with dignity and resilience through this bitter dawning.” 

TRACK LISTING

1. It Must Change
2. Go Ahead
3. Sliver Of Ice
4. Can’t
5. Scapegoat
6. It’s My Fault
7. Rest
8. There Wasn’t Enough
9. Why Am I Alive Now
10. You Be Free

John Carroll Kirby is a GRAMMY Award-nominated producer, composer and keyboardist from Los Angeles. New album Blowout was inspired by the local people, music and nature of Costa Rica. In addition to his acclaimed solo albums, Kirby has collaborated with Solange, Harry Styles, Yves Tumor, Eddie Chacon, and more.

Blowout contains all the hallmarks of the signature sound John Carroll Kirby has finessed over six solo albums and dozens of collaborations – playfulness, humour, and lushness.

TRACK LISTING

1) Oropendola
2) Mates
3) The Takedown
4) Hotel Jonny Chingas
5) Vertigo
6) So So So
7) Sun Go Down
8) Gecko Sun
9) Flying Cat
10) Mates (Dub)
11) So So So (Dub)
12) Hotel Jonny Chingas (Dub)

The apartheid boycott In the 80s, the world – rightly - stepped up its boycott against South Africa’s apartheid government. But this had unexpected and sometimes adverse consequences for South Africa’s music professionals and consumers. Musicians still needed to work live shows both at home and abroad, and to make and sell records. The youth still aspired to clubbing and partying at the weekend after hard, poorly paid jobs under the thumb of an oppressive government. Music was their sanctuary: specifically, African- American inspired soul, jazz, boogie, disco and funk.

Unique diversity producing musical excellence was nothing new for South Africa, even in the 80s: both traditional and jazz music of various genres had been performed, showcased and recorded for decades with the assistance of some of the most skilled and ingenious sound-engineers and producers in the world, the jazz players rivalling their American peers in many cases. But what makes Mzansi 80s popular music unique is that it had to – and for the most part, did- appeal to a multi-ethnic, multilingual population almost like no other in the world, for its geographical size. There may have been many tribal and political differences between Zulu, Sotho, Xhosa, Tsonga and others day-to-day, but when it came to the weekend, those differences often melted away for a while on the dancefloor. Paul Ndlovu had kwaZulu fans as well as Shangaan followers; Black Moses and the Soul Brothers had followers and fans with everyone..and so on. And everyone- detractors and lovers alike- were content to settle on the monicker ‘Bubblegum’ as a general description. Mzansi took disco- and slowed it down a bit.. ..exactly as 90s and early 2000s South African DJs and mixers took House- and slowed it down a bit to develop Kwaito, Gqom and – later – Amapiano. The Roland TR-707 sampler came along in 1985- at just the right time for the flowering of Mzansi disco and boogie. And in the artful hands of arrangers, engineers and producers such as Peter “Hitman’ Moticoe, whose work figures on several of the tracks here, it became something unique to South Africa.

TRACK LISTING

1. Tsakane
2. Johnny Boy
3. Crocodile's Rock
4. I Was Born In Africa
5. Don't Follow Me
6. Special Angel
7. Blackout
8. Ximamane
9. Dayshift
10. Khombora Mina
11. Pusa Twala
12. Nwananga Washanesera
13. Ku Hluvukile Eka Zete
14. Chomesa

Mark is one of the most indomitable yet gentle spirits I ve ever met. He will always be one of my favorite artists I ve ever worked with. And someday when I grow up, I want to be just like him.

Alice Cooper. This book is a puzzle. The outside frame pieces are about me, but the picture wouldn t be complete without the perspectives of all the people telling you about me.

Mark Volman. Mark Volman has led a storied life, and many of those stories are contained in Happy Forever. A true son of southern California, he has gone from topping the charts with The Turtles ( Happy Together ) to underground cred with Frank Zappa and beyond.

As Flo & Eddie, Mark and his longtime singing partner Howard Kaylan were the not-so-secret ingredient on many other artist s records, taking Bruce Springsteen into the Top 10 for the very first time and helping T. Rex dominate the British charts. Then came The Ramones, U2, Blondie, Duran Duran, and so many more; the list of credits is long and varied.

Happy Forever covers all of that, along with subsequent forays into animation, a stint as a radio personality in Los Angeles and New York, and a midlife return to academia, which led Mark to create and run innovative college programs in LA and Nashville. But this is not the world according to Mark Volman, and it is not your average musical autobiography. Alongside his own comments, this uniquely insightful book contains contributions from more than one hundred of Mark s peers, friends, and lovers who share their thoughts on the man himself and on topics that span the social and cultural landscape of past half-century.

Happy Forever s cast list reads like a who s who of popular music, featuring members of The Doors, The Monkees, The Byrds, The E Street Band, and many more; producers Tony Visconti, Bob Ezrin, and Hal Willner; voice actors from The Simpsons and the Firesign Theatre; and key figures from the worlds of radio, animation, and academia. The book also includes previously unseen photographs and forewords by Alice Cooper and Chris Hillman.

'This is the book we've been waiting for . . .

It is a biography to be treasured' Joe Boyd'The Drake completist could ask for nothing else' Telegraph'Illuminating. The definitive word on Drake' ObserverIn 1968 Nick Drake had everything to live for. The product of a loving, creative family and a privileged background, he was not only a handsome and popular Cambridge undergraduate, but also a new signing to the UK's hippest record label, Island.

Three years later, however - having made three well-reviewed but low-selling albums - Nick had been overwhelmed by a mysterious mental illness. He returned to live in his family home in rural Warwickshire in 1971, and died in obscurity in 1974, aged just 26. In the decades since, Nick has become the subject of ever-growing fascination and speculation.

Combined sales of his records now stand in the millions, his songs are frequently heard on TV and in films, and he has become one of the most widely known and admired singer-songwriters of his generation. Nick Drake: The Life is the only biography of Nick to be written with the blessing and involvement of his sister and Estate. Drawing on copious original research and new interviews with his family, friends and musical collaborators, as well as deeply personal archive material unavailable to previous writers - including his father's diaries, his essays and private correspondence - this is the most comprehensive and authoritative account possible of Nick's short and enigmatic life.

Includes a foreword by Gabrielle Drake and over 75 photos, many rare or previously unseen.

The Endless Coloured Ways is a collection of songs by legendary singer / songwriter, Nick Drake, performed and recorded by over 30 incredible artists from a range of different backgrounds, genres, age groups and audiences. From Fontaines D.C to Guy Garvey, and Aurora to Feist, each artist has offered their own incredible take on a timeless classic.

TRACK LISTING

1.One Of These Things First - Emeli Sandé
2. Day Is Done - John Grant

French producer Timothee Milton debuts on Local Talk with a killer EP that fuses electronic rhythms and soulful vocals in a way that's typical of the long standing label. Written by Angela Johnson, "Love's Gonna Get you" is a deep but big room, vocal house jam that's got some hints of the 90s Jersey sound about it as well as subtly being a bit of a voguing anthem on the sly.

To give the package an extra edge, deep house connoisseur Hugo LX and boogie-house maestro Art Of Tones are enlisted for remixes. The former strips things back to a more delicate groove; aquaplaning syths and pads all combining with the gently shaking perx to create a more sublime and serene version of the OG. The Art Of Tones remix is equally strong but goes for a more uplifting approach and puts the funk, boogie and soul front & center, with live sounding disco drums and a much more organic palette guiding proceedings. Top stuff as always from the Local Talk mob! 

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Soulful, sun-flecked house music from the unstoppable Local Talk camp. Three different takes on this catchy track ranging from disco, voguey house and a skitty, deep house twist.

TRACK LISTING

A. Love's Gonna Get You (Hugo LX Underwater Mix)
B1. Love's Gonna Get You (Art Of Tones Remix)
B2. Love's Gonna Get You (Main Mix)

A collection of Dr. John’s finest Montreux Jazz Festival live performances!

The audio has Expertly restored and remastered in superlative HD audio; The Montreux Years is released on superior audiophile heavy weight vinyl, MQA quality CD and in HD digital. The release includes brand new liner notes and rare photos from his Montreux shows.

TRACK LISTING

1. Professor Longhair Boogie (Live - Montreux Jazz Festival 1986) 03:35
2. You Ain't Such A Much (Live - Montreux Jazz Festival 1986) 04:52
3. Sick And Tired (Live - Montreux Jazz Festival 1986) 03:30
4. Stack-A-Lee (Live - Montreux Jazz Festival 1986) 04:11
5. Accentuate The Positive (Live - Montreux Jazz Festival 2007) 03:50
6. Right Place, Wrong Time (Live - Montreux Jazz Festival 2004) 04:04
7. Rain (Live - Montreux Jazz Festival 2007) 04:53
8. Going Back To New Orleans (Live - Montreux Jazz Festival 1993) 10:34
9. Makin' Whoopee (Live - Montreux Jazz Festival 1995) 04:01
10. Big Chief (Live - Montreux Jazz Festival 2011) 07:18
11. In A Sentimental Mood / Mississippi Mud / Hard Times (Medley) (Live - Montreux Jazz Festival 2012) 07:35
12. Love For Sale (Live - Montreux Jazz Festival 2007) 08:34
13. Let The Good Times Roll (Live - Montreux Jazz Festival 1995) 06:07
14. Good Night Irene (Live - Montreux Jazz Festival 1986) 05:41

In March 2020, Jack reached out to Lee “Scratch" Perry to produce a dub remix album based on Jack’s most loved recordings. On 8/29/21 the project was brought to a halt as Scratch departed this physical world. In ‘22 Jack and Subatomic Sound System, Perry’s band of the last decade, connected directly and discovered they had all the pieces to bring Lee “Scratch” Perry’s 3 creations to completion. The LP also features dubs from Dennis Bovell, Scientist, Mad Professor, Nightmares on Wax & more.

Reflections of the Sun is a collection of new music that see John Rocca experiment with a more laid back side to his musical personality. John is best know in Jazz Funk circles for his 1980s self funded, self produced and self released Brit Funk classic 'Southern Freeez', and as the band Freeez's founder.

Much of the album is also somewhat reflective. A personal and emotional reflection on John's life - the tracks a nod to John's varied musical pasts. Sounds, a pondering upon his collection of global influences and his life experiences over the years; Genre, the pulse of today, societal, musical or otherwise - but not easy to place as is John's character; Lyrics, the present dilemmas we face as humanity, whilst reflecting on our own private and deepest human feelings, of life and, of love in all its wonderous forms.

Musically, the 'Reflections of the Sun' album casts a glimpse back to Rocca's Brit Funk roots growing up amongst 1970s classic Jazz Funk and Soul, while also blending inspiration from his 1980-90s electronic influences topped off with everything else he has seen and heard on his life travels since then.

Giving a nod to John's own past while bringing Reflections of the Sun up to date was completed by adding elements of London's re-surgent and vibrant jazz scene. Not so different from John’s own early days jamming with Freeez, he is accompanied on all the album's tracks by his two young nephews and highly respected jazz musicians, Benjamin Rocca on keyboards and Joel Rocca on Saxophone. The two youngsters are known on the current London Jazz scene as the "Rocca Brothers".

The album's title track, "Reflections of the Sun" refers to how humanity, gorging on the sunshine that brings life to everything, also has a tendency to reflect the hellishness of the sun itself. Comparing our self-destructive nature with our planet's volumes of un-ending beauty.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Angel
A2. Close Your Eyes (Take The Ride)
A3. Dream, LoveB1Reflections Of The Sun
B2. I’ve Known Love (the Feeling Of Love)
B3. Open Spaces, Open Minds

After fronting popular Jamaican vocal trio the Paragons on a succession of best-selling rock steady singles during the late Sixties, John Holt went on to become one of Jamaica’s most popular solo performers, scoring a series of reggae hits for many of the island’s leading record producers.

His international breakthrough came in 1974 with the hugely popular ‘1000 Volts of Holt’ album, which fused raw reggae rhythms with sophisticated orchestral arrangements.

The highlight of the long-player was a reworking of Kris Kristoffersson’s country hit, ‘Help Me Make It Through The Night’, which the following year became a global hit, with the single, peaking at Number 6 in the UK charts. Over the years that followed, Holt remained a giant of the reggae scene with further best sellers and numerous sell-out shows around the world.

The very best of his solo work has been brought together on this ‘Essential Artist’ compilation, the latest release in Trojan Records’ newly launched range that showcases the work of Jamaica’s best-loved ‘foundation’ artists.

Available as a 28-track double vinyl LP and a comprehensive 2CD compilation, the collection superbly illustrates the talent that made John Holt one of the reggae music’s most popular and enduring singers. 

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: A nice catch-all / best of from one of reggae music's most popular and enduring singers. Mainly dealing with issues of love and longing, it's a light-hearted alternative to some of the more political and riotous music also being at the time. Lover's rock heads are certainly gonna dig this.

TRACK LISTING

Vinyl Tracklisting:
Side A
1. Help Me Make It Through The Night
2. Pledging My Love
3. Stealing Stealing
4. My Heart Is Gone
5. Looking Back
6. I'll Be Lonely
7. I Wanna Dance
Side B
1. Ali Baba
2. Stick By Me
3. Strange Things
4. Tonight
5. The Further You Look
6. Wild Fire
7. Sweetie Come Brush Me
Side C
1. Sister Big Stuff
2. My Desire
3. I'll Take A Melody
4. Time And The River
5. Let's Get It While It's Hot
6. Ghetto Queen
7. Reggae From The Ghetto
Side D
1. You Baby
2. You Will Never Find Another Love Like Mine
3. I See Your Face
4. The Tide Is High
5. Let's Build Our Dreams
6. Before The Next Teardrop
7. Just The Way You Are

CD Tracklisting:
CD 1
1. Help Me Make It Through The Night
2. Pledging My Love
3. Stealing Stealing
4. My Heart Is Gone
5. Looking Back
6. I'll Be Lonely
7. I Wanna Dance
8. Anymore
9. I Want You Closer
10. Morning Of My Life
11. Sometimes
12. What You Gonna Do Now
13. I’d Love You To Want Me
14. Ungrateful Lady
15. Keep It Up
16. My Eyes
17. In The Springtime
18. Tell Me Why
19. Ali Baba
20. Stick By Me
21. Strange Things
22. Tonight
23. The Further You Look
24. Wildfire
25. Sweetie Come Brush Me
26. Just The Way You Are
CD 2
1. Sister Big Stuff
2. My Desire
3. I'll Take A Melody
4. Time And The River
5. Let's Get It While It's Hot
6. Ghetto Queen
7. Reggae From The Ghetto
8. Riding For A Fall
9. All My Life
10. Love So Right
11. Winter World Of Love
12. Memories By The Score
13. Have You Ever Been To Heaven
14. Wasted Days And Wasted Nights
15. Try A Thing
16. The Treasure Of Love
17. I’m The One To Be Blamed
18. A Love Like Yours
19. You Baby
20. You Will Never Find Another Love Like Mine
21. I See Your Face
22. The Tide Is High
23. Let’s Build Our Dream
24. Before The Next Teardrop Falls 

John Andrews is something of an open secret in a certain corner of the music scene: a versatile musician and animator. A film school drop out whose work hat-tips tradition as much as outsider anti-aesthetics. He’s spent over a decade on the DIY circuit, playing early house shows alongside then up-and-coming peers Weyes Blood and Daniel Bachman. Today he is still out there projecting his sketchy hand-drawn animations during his performances in coffee shops, small galleries and non-traditional venues. Andrews’ painterly approach now introduces the listener to his version of New York City, the place he was bound to end up after years of dwelling in Pennsylvania farm towns and New Hampshire barns. There is handmade vibrancy to the world he’s imagined here: intimate moments seen from the interior, looking outward from hole-in-the-wall restaurants, theaters and the fragments of peace found within the restless and dirty street corners.

Love For The Underdog, his aptly titled fourth release with the Woodsist label, was tracked live to tape in various studios and apartments across the Empire State with help from his bandmates in Cut Worms’ touring outfit, Max Clarke, Keven Lareau and Noah Bond. Buoyant melodies are supported by timeless string arrangements, translated from Andrews’ head to page with the help of friend Simon Hanes. The string quartet follows the tradition of Francoise Hardy, Harry Nilsson, Margo Guryan and Belle and Sebastian, giving the whole thing a cinematic ambience with stark shadows of an Edward Hopper painting. The lyrics tie together narratives of cynical heroes and troubled lovers. Put on the record and sink into well-worn red velvet theater seats, when the lights go down and the flickering of projectors run the title: Love For The Underdog, indeed.

TRACK LISTING

1. Checks In The Mail
2. Never Go Away
3. Fourth Wall
4. Starving Artist
5. Walking Under My Loves Ladders
6. Cloudy
7. Only Heart
8. I Want To Believe

THIS IS A RECORD STORE DAY 2023 EXCLUSIVE, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

Caitlin Rose releases a special limited 7" Vinyl for Record Store Day 2023. The 500 unit Limited 'Cherry Red' Coloured 7" release features two exclusive tracks recorded during the sessions for Caitlinís new critically acclaimed album 'CAZIMI'. New Track 'Johnny Velvet' and the demo version of 'Carried Away (Demo)í will be available for fans for the first time as exclusive to this 7" release.

The one arm keyboard luminary is well known in the entertainment circle of Western Jamaica. Born on the 2nd of March 1954, the accomplished singer and musician hails from Hayes, Clarendon. In 1969 he went to live in Kingston until 1973. Ancel's first effort in a recording studio was inside the popular Randy's in downtown Kingston. He did a single called 'Riding On' on the Musical Barber label out of Mandeville.
In 1977 he joined a group called Solid Foundation and stayed with them for two years. After that he moved to Montego Bay to sing with Stamma and the Sounds of Mobay, with who he appeared on Reggae Sunsplash festival in 1980.
Johnny made the move for the United States in 1982, and formed his first own band 'Uprisers' in Pittsburgh city.
One of the things he likes to talk about is how he once reunited the famed Clarendonians with Peter Austin and Ernest Wilson. Both pioneer icons were at irreconcilable odds with each other for quite some time. When he came back to Jamaica in 1985, he invited Ernest Wilson to do back-up vocals for him. For the same studio session, he also invited Peter Austin for the same back-up duties, and that was how the reunion came about. Inside famous Aquarius studio, there was Burning Spear's personal Band called Burning. The songs recorded there were 'Moving Out' and 'True Love' with top musicians : Tony Green on the saxophone, Bobby Ellis on the trumpet, Dwight Pinkney on the guitar, Calvin on percussion, Nelson Miller on the drums and Maurice Gordon on bass. This was not the first time Ancel was working with Peter Austin. When the split came in the ranks of the Clarendonians, Ancel was asked to fill the breach. He thus teamed up with Peter Austin and their first single together was entitled 'Out Of Sight'. They later entered the annual Jamaica Festival Song competition in 1975. Their entry was entitled 'Paradise On Earth' which Ancel said was quite popular. However, it was not popular enough to prevent the late Roman Stewart from copping the award with 'Hooray Festival'.
After the release of 'Moving Out', Johnny moved to Miami and continued his career as a solo artist, singing with different local bands. He did a number of singles, notably were 'Faith, Patience and Love' and 'Stand Back' for a producer called Jolly in Miami. In 1988 Powell formed his second band Benja, a band which gained increasing popularity in the time in South Florida. They have performed on several festivals, played in most major clubs and were a big success in Andros Island in the Bahamas for an audience who not necessarily consider Reggae their prime choice of music.

The saddest part of his life was when he lost his left hand to what doctors termed as a cancerous situation in 1977. This did not, however, stop him from learning how to play keyboards. Initially he was taught by the late Bobby Vaugh in Montego Bay and also got further teaching from jamaican saxophinist Reuben Alexander.

Now approaching 70 years old, Ancel is still very active in his music. In previous years he performed at the Marcus Garvey Celebration and is currently working with the “Synergy Band” at Royalton Hotel in Negril under the stage name “Ancel P.” Let the one arm keyboard luminary life and music live eternally !

Produced by Ancel "Johnny" Powell & Patricia Wallace
Engineer: Melvin Williams
Recorded at Aquarius Studio (Kingston, JA) in 1985

Bass: Maurice Gordon
Drums: Nelson Miller
Guitar: Dwight Pinkney
Saxophone: Tony Green
Trumpet: Bobby Ellis
Percussion: Calvin
Keyboards: Winston Wright
Backing vocals: Ernest Wilson & Peter Austin from the Clarendonians

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Jaxmwax continue to excavate the gold mines of roots and dub; with this rare double header from Johnny Powell a particular shiny nugget. "Moving Out" is a riotous slab of political reggae with a supreme hook. "True Love" has a bit of lover's rock about it, and brings some lightness in contrast to the unruly A-side.

TRACK LISTING

Moving Out
True Love

THIS IS A RECORD STORE DAY 2023 EXCLUSIVE, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

Andy Rourke, formerly of The Smiths & one of the most revered bassists of all time, has teamed up with front-man & guitarist Kav for their music project "BLITZ VEGA" They release their debut vinyl for Record Store Day, featuring new versions of their single "Strong Forever", including guest guitar from Johnny Marr & B-Sides / mixes & remixes from Z-Trip, Jagz Kooner, DayBreakers & Will Kennedy. The vinyl features unreleased new material, unavailable online.

TRACK LISTING

Strong Forever (single Version) Z-Trip Mix
Strong Forever Original (Jagz Kooner Mix)
Strong Forever (Day Breakers Remix)
Strong Forever ( Will Kennedy Live Band Mix)
Lost & Found (Jagz Kooner Mix)
Lost & Found ( Day Breakers Remix)
LA Vampire ( Jagz Kooner Mix)
Big Nose

Rock’n’roll is dead. Gallows Wine is a wake for its charred remains. Calvin Johnson traveled to Columbus, Mississippi to record Gallows Wine with the combo Hartle Road at their Pompeii studio. Columbus, in Lowndes County, is the childhood home of Tennessee Williams (just down US Route 45 from White Station, birthplace of Howlin’ Wolf). Songs reflecting this singular environment include: “Pink Cadillac” written by Calvin when he was 16 (in reserve for just the right session); Title song ”Gallows Wine” rips psycho psychedelic, poetic license intact; “Crazy Legs” is a Gene Vincent class act celebrating our sock hopulation; “Orange Aid” melts downtown no WAV. Yeah, Gallows Wine gets primitive: Lurch pulls a night shift on organ, Grandma Moses on the fife and drum. Calvin busk (melodica garage worm profane). Rockabilly spin cycle, guitar scrape and crush. Hand jive. You wanted Calvin Johnson howling beyond the magnolia curtain, you got it: Gallows Wine. The only proper response -  Rock’n’roll is dead. Long live rock’n’roll.

TRACK LISTING

1. Hat Trick
2. Pink Cadillac
3. Good And Crazy
4. Blues (We Got 'Em)
5. Melod For Miss
6. Sugar On Sunday
7. Gallows Wine
8. Orange Aid
9. A Walk In The Sun
10. Toby Deano
11. Here Comes
12. Crazy Legs

Songs of Pain, the debut album from the late Daniel Johnston, is being released on vinyl for the first time this March. Originally recorded on homemade cassette in 1981 and later released as a standardised version by Stress Records in 1988, Songs of Pain was recorded between 1980 and 1981 in Johnston’s parents’ basement in West Virginia.

TRACK LISTING

1. Grievances
2. A Little Story
3. Joy Without Pleasure
4. Never Relaxed
5. Brainwash
6. Pot Head
7. Wicked World
8. Lazy
9. I Save Cigarette Butts
10. Like A Monkey In A Zoo
11. Wicked Will
12. An Idiot's End
13. Wild West Virginia
14. Since I Lost My Tooth
15. Urge
16. Living Life
17. Tuna Ketchup
18. Premarital Sex
19. Don't Act Nice
20. Hate Song
21. Lead Belly Was An Outlaw
22. I Love You (I'd Like To Read You Some Poetry)
23. Why Don't You Love Me True
24. I'm A Rambling Kinda Guy
25. Sleepy Lagoon
26. Natalie Queen Of Weirton
27. Golly Gee
28. You Need A Reason

This second of three underrated releases for Hi finds Syl Johnson slowly but surely transforming from a credulous loser into a standup guy no one messes around with. Diamond in the Rough could be viewed as a creative bridge between the slightly formulaic Hi approach of 1973's Back for a Taste of Your Love and the more bluesy and rewarding Total Explosion from 1975. Different from the southern soul belter which distinguished fellow Hi second leaguers Otis Clay and O.V. Wright, Johnson's unique feat lies in his earnest yet sometimes ironic take on love and relationships.

TRACK LISTING

1. Let Yourself Go
2. Don't Do It
3. I Want To Take You Home (to See Mama)
4. Could I Be Falling In Love
5. Stuck In Chicago
6. Diamond In The Rough
7. Keeping Down Confusion
8. Please, Don't Give Up On Me
9. Music To My Ears
10. I Hear The Love Chimes

Posh Swat, an all percussion improvisation album with John Dwyer, Ryan Sawyer & Andres Renteria. Trap kit, Hand percussion, homemade percussion instruments and electronic percussion over flow here with extra weirdness. Sick pop rhythms grinding thru the wasteland. Sand in your hair and bugs in your teeth. Hand on your knife, knife in your sheath. Grimy bass burps thru a fried stack. And the crack of the snare is a mighty pink smack. Bells, whistles conga and vibes. This is a drug record. One thousand times.

For fans of Niagra, Black Pus, Container, Bruce Ditmas and all things beat driven and drum craven. 

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: You never expect John Dwyer to stay still for too long, but I really didn't expect his foray with Ryan Sawyer & Andres Renteria to be quite this *drummy*. It's a beautifully expressive and brilliantly organic sounding suite of rhythms punctuated with incidental synth stabs and jagged groove. Unsurprisingly inventive and unique.

TRACK LISTING

Intro
The Spent Sadist
Chit Chat
Scavenger
Red Clay Wall
Dungeon Crawler
Bug City
The Sythe Is Remorseless
Bricked Rune
Scatter
The Hostile Womb
More Will Be Revealed

For nearly 60 years, or at least since he was a young Welshman who moved to New York and formed The Velvet Underground, Cale has been reinventing his music with dazzling and inspiring regularity. There was the bewitching chamber folk of Paris 1919 followed instantly by the gnarled rock of Fear, the provocative and spare song cycle Music for a New Society followed more than 30 years later by mighty and unabashed electronic updates. Once again, here is Cale, reimagining how his music is made, sounds, and even works. His engrossing 12-track MERCY moves through true dark-night-of-the-soul electronics toward vulnerable love songs and hopeful considerations for the future.

On MERCY, Cale enlists some of music’s most curious young minds: Animal Collective, Sylvan Esso, Laurel Halo, Tei Shi, Actress. They’re only some of the astounding cast here, brilliant musicians who climb inside Cale’s consummate vision of the world and help him redecorate there. Cale turned 80 in March, and he’s watched as many peers have passed away, particularly during the last decade. MERCY is the continuation of a long career’s work with wonder. Cale has always searched for new ways to explore old ideas of alienation, hurt, and joy; MERCY is the latest transfixing find of this unsatisfied mind.

The writings and recordings that shaped MERCY piled up for years, as Cale watched society totter at the brink of dystopia. Trump and Brexit, Covid and climate change, civil rights and right-wing extremism—Cale let the bad news of the day filter into his lines, whether that meant contemplating the sovereignty and legal status of sea ice melting near the poles or the unhinged arming of Americans. Lessons from a life (still being) richly lived floated to the fore, too, nodded to on the previously released “NIGHT CRAWLING.” If we’re always regretting our past, aren’t we conscripting ourselves to permanent disappointment?

During “STORY OF BLOOD,” after the piano prelude gives way to a frame-rattling beat and synthesizers that feel like sunshine splashed across a snowfield, the voices of Cale and Weyes Blood’s Natalie Mering slide past one another, two phantoms trying to find a partner amid the modern din. “Swing your soul,” they both sing in aspiration. In the final verse, Cale remembers this existence is not just about himself. “I’m going back to get them, my friends in the morning. Bring them with me into the light.” The accompanying video by Emmy-winning director Jethro Waters is a mix of disturbing and serene featuring both Cale and Weyes Blood. Its deep tones and religious images emphasize the track’s dark, spiritual mood.

Cale elaborates: “I’d been listening to Weyes Blood’s latest record and remembered Natalie’s puritanical vocals. I thought if I could get her to come and sing with me on the ‘Swing your soul’ section, and a few other harmonies, it would be beautiful. What I got from her was something else! Once I understood the versatility in her voice, it was as if I’d written the song with her in mind all along. Her range and fearless approach to tonality was an unexpected surprise. There’s even a little passage in there where she’s a dead-ringer for Nico.”

TRACK LISTING

1. Mercy Feat. Laurel Halo
2. Marilyn Monroe’s Leg (Beauty Elsewhere) Feat. Actress
3. Noise Of You
4. Story Of Blood Feat. Weyes Blood
5. Time Stands Still Feat. Sylvan Esso
6. Moonstruck (Nico’s Song)
7. Everlasting Days Feat. Animal Collective
8. Night Crawling
9. Not The End Of The World
10. The Legal Status Of Ice Feat. Fat White Family
11. I Know You’re Happy Feat. Tei Shi
12. Out Your Window

The meeting of two great reggae artists, reissued on LP for the very first time. A must-have for reggae, roots and dancehall collectors. Includes Johnson’s fabulous take on ‘Sitting In The Park’ and French’s protest ‘No War’. Recorded at the legendary Channel One Recording studio in Kingston, Jamaica, with the reputed Roots Radics Band, produced by ‘Jah’ Thomas Remastererd by Nick Robbins at Sound Mastering and presented in a deluxe sleeve, featuring the original artwork by Wilfred Limonious

TRACK LISTING

1. Sitting In The Park
2. Park Dub
3. Know Yourself Mankind
4. Mankind Dub
5. I Want To Hold You
6. Hold You Dub
7. Stop Spread Rumour
8. Rumour Dub
9. Number One Lover
10. Love Dub
11. No War
12. War Dub

Since his first recordings in 1955, Johnny Cash has been an icon in the music world. In his newly discovered poems and song lyrics, we see the world through his eyes. The poetry reveals his depth of understanding, both of the world around him and within - his frailties and his strengths alike.

He pens verses in his hallmark voice, reflecting upon love, pain, freedom, fame and mortality. Illustrated with facsimile reproductions of Cash's own handwritten pages, Forever Words is a remarkable addition to the canon of one of America's heroes. His music is a part of our collective history, and here he demonstrates the depth of his talent as a writer.

Edited and introduced by Paul Muldoon, with a foreword by John Carter Cash, this is a book sure to delight and surprise fans the world over.

The classic concert at Koko in London, from October 2014, at which Holly performed new material, solo singles, all of the Frankie hits and more!

TRACK LISTING

Atomic City
Warriors Of The Wasteland
Welcome To The Pleasuredome
Rage Hard
Love Train
Follow Your Heart
In And Out Of Love
Heaven's Here
Americanos
Lonesome Town
Europa
Disco Heaven
Dancing With No Fear
Penny Arcade
So Much It Hurts
Watching The Wildlife
Relax
Two Tribes
The Power Of Love 

All legends start somewhere, and With His Hot and Blue Guitar is where the legend of Johnny Cash began.

Newly remastered in honor of Sun Records’ 70th Anniversary, Cash’s debut album was also the first LP issued by Sam Phillips on the legendary label.

TRACK LISTING

Rock Island Line
I Heard That Lonesome Whistle 
Country Boy
If The Good Lord's Willing
Cry, Cry, Cry
Remember Me
So Doggone Lonesome
I Was There When It Happened
I Walk The Line
The Wreck Of The Old '97
Folsom Prison Blues
Doin' My Time

Last year Robb released the vinyl-only album Minimum Wages, 9 songs performed on acoustic guitar, with guest appearances from Boff Whalley, Fae Simon & John Forrester on vocals, Jude Abbott on brass, Jason Pegg on accordion & Jenny Carr on piano. The album was very well-received; “a timeless album for the times” (****RNR), Folk Radio UK named it as one of their top 10 albums of the year, & Ian Anderson said it would have been one of Podwireless’s CDs of the year – if it had been on CD.

The album has its CD release as part of a double album with Bodger: My Part In His Downfall, a collection of 20 songs chronicling the events of the last three years – “the worst of possible times to have the worst of governments too.” There are voice & acoustic guitar based tracks, 2 ukulele songs, & various contributions from Irregulars Sian Allen (trumpet), John Forrester (bass), Ali Gavan (drums), Arvin Johnson (drums), Linze Maesterosa (clarinet), Fae Simon (b/vox, lead vocal on track 190, & from Irregular Records recording artiste & award-winning poet Roger Stevens (piano). The recording of the album’s last track “Goodbye” was finished on July 6th - & the following day the Prime Minister resigned. Irregular Records decided to release the album to celebrate the departure of this most murderously lazy, corrupt, mendacious & incompetent of Prime Ministers. The double album includes a 12 page booklet with notes for all the songs. 

TRACK LISTING

Minimum Wages:
1: Fiddler In The Rain
2: Last Night Of The Proms
3: Hartlepool ASDA, Saturday Morning
4: Great Aunt Gladys
5: My Quiet Flame
6: Sister Reynardine
7: This Is Your History
8: Minimum Wages
9: My Very Best Of Friends

Bodger: My Part In His Downfall:
1: Well Done Little England
2: The Cheese & Wine Of Privilege
3: Barry Bucket
4: Common Sense
5: Don’t Forget To Wash Your Hands
6: Tony Skinner’s Lad
7: Blue Light On A Red Brick Wall
8: When The Leaves Have All Fallen
9: Jack & Jill Are Good For The Economy
10: Chipping Sodoffbury
11: Shut Up & Just Go Xmas Shopping
12: We Can All Join A Union
13: The Plague Ship
14: What A Week It Was When The Pubs Reopened
15: Freedom Day
16: You’ve Only Got Yourself To Blame
17: Well Done Little England
18: The Worst Prime Minister In The World
19: Sunlight On The Wall
20: Goodbye

This limited edition transparent 12” vinyl is Dylan’s second EP. It includes brand new single ‘If I Didn’t Laugh’, previously released ‘Fever’ plus two brand new songs ‘Now and Then’ and ‘What a Shame’, introduced by opening instrumental ‘Battle of Alesia’.

Mentored by Gerry Cinnamon, the singer-songwriter made history selling out King Tut’s quicker than any other artist in the venue’s history. Having played gigs with Sam Fender, Liam Gallagher, Stereophonics and Courteeners, Dylan also played a sold-out headline show at Glasgow’s legendary Barrowland earlier this year. Fresh from making his Glastonbury debut, he will be appearing at festivals throughout the summer, including a main stage slot at TRNSMT, with a headline tour to follow this November.

TRACK LISTING

1. Battle Of Alesia
2. Fever
3. If I Didn’t Laugh
4. What A Shame
5. Now And Then

Without a doubt, To Rococo Rot are an exception within the German music landscape. From 1995 until they broke up in 2014, the group around Robert Lippok, Ronald Lippok and Stefan Schneider researched a unique sound between electronic music, ambient, post-melancholy and the further development of a new, free music like krautrock. The trio was invited 3 times by John Peel to record radio sessions in the BBC. Available on record for the first time, which, in addition to the versions of selected album tracks, also contains exclusive, unreleased songs.

TRACK LISTING

Intro
Thomson Colour
Tour De Repechage
Glück
This Sandy Piece
Prado
A Little Asphalt Here And There
Rocket Fuel
Telema
Esther
Glas

To mark the 65th anniversary of the album’s recording, Blue Train will be released in two special editions on September 16 as part of Blue Note’s acclaimed Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series.

A 1-LP mono pressing of the original album will be presented in a deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket, while the 2-LP stereo collection Blue Train: The Complete Masters will include a second disc featuring seven alternate and incomplete takes, none of which have been released previously on vinyl, and four of which have never been released before on any format. The Complete Masters comes with a booklet featuring never-before-seen session photos by Francis Wolff and an essay by Coltrane expert Ashley Kahn. Both Tone Poet Vinyl Editions were produced by Joe Harley, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original analog master tapes, and pressed on 180g vinyl at RTI.

Blue Train: The Complete Masters will also be released as a 2-CD set and digital collection.

“Few studio experiences I’ve had can compare with the thrill of listening to the original master tapes—mono, stereo and alternate takes—of Blue Train,” says Harley. “I consider these two new versions the definitive editions of this masterpiece performance by John Coltrane.”

TRACK LISTING

2CD
Blue Train
Moment’s Notice
Locomotion
I’m Old Fashioned
Lazy Bird
Blue Train (false Start)
Blue Train (take 7)
Moment’s Notice (alternate Take 4)
Lazy Bird (take 1)
Blue Train (alternate Take)
Moment’s Notice (incomplete Alternate Take 5A)
Lazy Bird (alternate Take)

1LP
LP 1 | Blue Train | Original Album | Studio
Side A
Blue Train
Moment’s Notice
Side B
Locomotion
I’m Old Fashioned
Lazy Bird

2LP
LP 1 | Blue Train | Original Album | Studio
Side A
Blue Train
Moment’s Notice
Side B
Locomotion
I’m Old Fashioned
Lazy Bird
LP 2 | Blue Train | Alternate And Incomplete Takes
Side A
Blue Train (false Start)
Blue Train (take 7)
Moment’s Notice (alternate Take 4)
Lazy Bird (take 1)
Side B
Blue Train (alternate Take)
Moment’s Notice (incomplete Alternate Take 5A)
Lazy Bird (alternate Take)

"Welcome To My World" is a collection of some of Daniel's most-beloved songs and is now available on vinyl for the very first time. These are the songs that built the legend...a must-have for the legion of devoted Daniel Johnston Fans as well as the perfect introduction for new listeners. Welcome To My World serves as an introduction to Daniel Johnston, housing a number of his most acclaimed works. Johnston's music captivated fellow artists and fans with its childlike elements and lo-fi elements. The singer-songwriter and artist earned a cult following in the early '80s, sharing homemade cassette tapes of his music, and his prominence was established after Kurt Cobain was publicly seen wearing a shirt with Johnston's illustration.

TRACK LISTING

1. Peek A Boo
2. Casper The Friendly Ghost
3. Some Things Last A Long Time
4. Walking The Cow
5. I'm Nervous
6. Man Obsessed
7. Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Your Grievances
8. Never Before Never Again
9. The Sun Shines Down On Me
10. Chord Organ Blues
11. Living Life
12. Speeding Motorcycle
13. True Love Will Find You In The End
14. Never Relaxed
15. Sorry Entertainer
16. Ain't No Woman Gonna Make A George Jones Outta Me
17. Lennon Song
18. Devil Town
19. Laurie
20. Story Of An Artist
21. Funeral Home
22. Go
23. My Yoke Is Heavy
24. Wild West Virginia
25. I Live My Broken Dreams
26. Marching Guitars
27. The Great Tune

Retro house sounds from Italy on this release... tunes that still go down well with some of the big name festival dj's during their summer tour! A track that remained unpublished for 33 years until Devil Dee decided to make it public and bring his own voice to the spotlight joined by jazz-blues singer Joan Faulkner, (former supporting voice of Boney M and Milli Vanilli, also known by her stage name 'Dee-Vah'). Devil Dee is Davide Mancori - a cinematograph with a flattering career as a club-dj from 80s-90s onwards - who lovingly produced this release which differs from most of the releases on Best Record by its housey vibe. 'And The Beat Goes On' was written in Germany in 1989 by Leonie Gane and Ryan Paris laying the crucial foundations for an evolutionary step of the italian disco music. A step forward for the 'Italo' movement considered obsolete and defunct. In fact, the track is also referring to the latest Italo-Disco which entirely covered the scene of the 1980s with furious activity, If the meeting between Devil Dee and the famous interpreter of 'Dolce Vita' - Mister Ryan Paris - creates the alchemy, the explosive mix is completed with the precious work of Marco Magrini. The arrangement by Pierluigi Cerin and the executive work of Claudio Casalini close the magic circle. Five friends and a great singer from Indiana to fill the dance floors all over Europe, while the images of the provocative and surreal video-clip capture the audience by splitting in two. There are those who do not want to see certain issues publicized and those who appreciate their cheekiness, such as Best Record which by publishing the vinyl printed at 180 grams celebrates the 40 years of activity.

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Can you believe this sat unreleased for 33 years? Can you believe it's actually 33 years old?! Unfathomable questions to a record that, if it had been released, would be WAY ahead of its time. Instead, we get it now, and it makes complete sense. Devil Dee - a timing genius.

TRACK LISTING

01 And The Beat Goes On (marco Magrini Extended Edit)
02 And The Beat Goes On (instrumental)
03 Devil Dee Ft Joan Faulkner And The Beat Goes On Club Version
04 And The Beat Goes On (electro Dub By Devil Dee Claudio Casalini)

Two major soul sides, one from the Twinight catalogue, one from Capsoul. Velma Perkins is the sister of guitarist, songwriter and producer Al Perkins (whose Atco 45, ‘Nothing Is Impossible’, was a big Northern sound). A successful songwriter in her own right under her married name Vee Allen, ‘Yes, My Goodness, Yes’ was the flipside of her only Twinight single, her 1970 debut 45 ,‘I’ll Always Love You’.

With more than a touch of Diana-era Supremes, it’s a gorgeous uptempo groove with typical Twinight horns and a funky guitar that could well be Al himself lending a hand. It’s a super rare 45 that never seems to come up for sale these days. Cut with Johnson, Hawkins, Tatum and Durr’s debut single for Capsoul, ‘You Can’t Blame Me’.

Signed to the label by DJ and singer Bill Moss (his ‘Sock It To ‘Em Soul Brother’ on Pama is a corker) as The Revelations, the band changed name and cut two 45s before disappearing. A super soulful funky mid-tempo tune that lets all five (even though there are just four names in their chosen name) vocalists lay down a super plush soundtrack. Punctuated with strings, it’s a magnificent full-on sound that goes for over £30 on seven inch.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Velma Perkins - Yes, My Goodness Yes
B1. Hawkins Johnson, Tatum & Durr - You Can't Blame Me