J. Geils Band - "Live" Full House (Atlantic SD7241 - 1972)

The J. Geils Band - Bloodshot (Atlantic SD7260 - 1973)

This is number two of my J. Geils albums. And yes, this IS on red vinyl. The condition of the vinyl is near mint. Amazon has this for about 9 bucks in either CD or download.

The J. Geils Band - The J. Geils Band (Atlantic SD8275 - 1970)

This has been in my collection for years but I doubt I bought it new. The condition of the vinyl was near mint which is better than the ringwear on the jacket might hint. Amazon has this for purchase on CD or download. It's 9 bucks either way so you just have to decide to pass up the media or not.

Steve Forbert - Jackrabbit Slim (Nemperor Records JZ36191 - 1079)

I can't even be sure that I actually went to the show at The Brandywine Club. Maybe I just picked up the flyer somewhere. But, it was my habit to store stuff like that in the record jackets. The 7" single was how the industry did bonus tracks in the pre-CD era. This one is particularly odd in that it only has one side. The condition was near mint. I hardly heard anything about Forbert after this album but it seems like he continued to pump out records. Amazon has this for $7 or you can download it for $10. In no case, that I've found, do you actually get the bonus track though.

Steve Forbert (Nemperor Records JZ35538 - 1978)

This was one of mine. I still had the opened cellophane on this album up to the point of taking the cover photos. The cellophane had a price sticker of $4.96 from Record Revolution. I can't remember where Record Revolution was but I would have thought I got this while still in college but based on the copyright date of 1978 I would have to have been in the last half of my senior year so I expect it was after graduation. The condition was mint. Amazon has this on CD or 10 bucks or downloadable for 9.

Sea Level - Sea Level (Capricorn Records CP0178 - 1977)

This was Lans' but I always wanted this album. I saw Sea Level about when this album came out. I think Allegheny College tried to book Dickey Betts and Great Southern and Sea Level for the same night and they couldn't agree who would be the top bill and so the deal fell apart and only Betts played that show. I can't remember where I saw Sea Level play. The album was in near mint condition. Amazon has it for $12 or .99 per track for downloads. I particularly liked Grand Larceny and Scarborough Fair which is the meat of the B side. The track marks were short and I had to back up several times.

Flatt & Scruggs - Greatest Hits (Columbiia CS9370 - 1966)

This puppy from Lans' collection didn't have an inner sleeve but after a round with the Discwasher, the vinyl quality was surprisingly good. It doesn't look like this package is available on CD but certainly a best of CD could be had.

Van Morrison - Veedon Fleece (Warner Bros. BS2805 - 1974)

I'm not sure if this was Lans' or mine. I guess it doesn't much matter. The condition was near mint. This is only available through resellers at Amazon starting at $18.

Blondie - Parallel Lines (MFSL MSFL1050 originally Chrysilis - 1978)

From Richard D. In near mint condition. In a twist, Amazon has this for 8 bucks or you can download it and not get any physical media if you pay a dollar more.

The Moody Blues The Other Side of Life (Polygram 82191Y1 - 1986)

It seems like 1986 was about the edge of the end of LPs. I wasn't buying much music at that time and I suspect Lans adopted this but he might have bought it for himself. The condition was mint. Amazon doesn't have this but resellers are starting the offers at 9 bucks.

Bob Dylan - Slow Train Coming (CBS/Columbia Records FC36120 - 1979)

I've kind of been avoiding this one for a while. I never really felt good about Dylan's Christian phase. Still, it's not a bad record. I assume Lans bought this one for himself. The condition was mint. Amazon is selling this one for 11 dollars.

iRony

I get to work this morning all jazzed to let Bill P. hear the Tony Rice cover of Scarborough Fair from California Autum. I was sure that the last thing I did before leaving the house this morning was to sync my iPod. But apparently I failed to drag the My Music folder into the iTunes library before syncing. So... I've got this 160GB iPod and the ONE song I want to play ISN'T there! That's iRony!

Tony Rice - California Autumn (Rebel Recording SLP1549 - 1975)

Just a real pleasant album. Reviewers don't seem to consider this early Rice album to be one of his best but it felt like another great Tony Rice album to me. The vinyl quality was absolutely mint. Lans probably put this on cassette on its first playing. Amazon has this for 16 dollars or downloadable for 9 or single tracks for a buck.

Bobbie Gentry - Ode To Billie Joe (Capitol ST2830 - 196?)

I think this album has been in the family since it came out back in 1967 when the title track hit number one on the pop singles chart. My brothers and I no doubt played it on the stereo that we affectionately referred to as "the record eater" in our pre hi-fi era. The cover is in remarkably good condition but the vinyl is average at best. That means that to a casual listener it would probably sound like what they think of when they think of listening to old scratchy LPs. I pulled this out because I saw Reba McEntire and Kelly Clarkson singing a duet version of the song from CMT's "Crossroads" program of 2007 where Reba mentioned that Bobbie Gentry wrote "Fancy". Both Ode to Billie Joe and Fancy appear on a Greatest Hits album Amazon has for 7 bucks. This album is currently selling on Amazon for $9 and a half.

The Flying Burrito Brothers - Close Up The Honky Tonks (A&M Records SP-3632 - 1974)

I've had this one for years but didn't listen to it much. Disc 1 contains material from Guilded Palace of Sin and Burrito Deluxe and Disc 2 contains previously unreleased material. The condition was very good. I had to enter the titles myself. This has probably been repackaged for CD and thus I couldn't find this title available. Wikipedia says, "This compilation still holds relevance into modern times as some of these songs have yet to be released anywhere else".

Jimmy Cliff - The Harder They Come (Island Records LPS-9202 - 1972)

From Lans' collection and near mint condition. Amazon has this available for 10 dollars. For some reason this album has been catching my eye lately. I have a "Soundtracks" section in the undone pile but none in the done pile so... an organizational decision...

The Byrds - Preflyte (Together Records ST-T-1001 - 1963)

This was mine and I probably bought it because it was in the cheapie bin and I was favorably disposed to The Byrds... but it's not like I bought their BEST albums. Still the vinyl sounded like new although there might have been a little skip or perhaps it was that bug that I saw walking on the disc when I flipped it over to do the B side. There isn't a copyright date on this disc. The data coming down from the Net said 1968 and the liner notes mention 1963. I believe both may be right. It was recorded in '63 and released as an "Archival" thing in '68. Amazon has it in stock for 14 bucks.

On a second listen, there seems to be an issue in "The Reason Why" at about 1:48 into the track. I can't tell if it came from the LP that way or was introduced downstream of there.