Jerome Sabbagh update

It's been a wait for those of us who backed the new Jerome Sabbagh/Greg Tuohey vinyl but I have few doubts the results will prove worthwhile. Latest mailing to backers indicate the albums are finally ready and will be shipped next week.

It's been a couple of years since the last vinyl release which I've continued to enjoy so much and the coupling of Jerome's playing with a top-notch guitarist in Greg just raises the anticipation. More when I get a chance. Kickstarter page here

LP counterfeiting plant discovered

I suppose the money involved in special LP releases of old stuff has obviously attracted the criminal element (and no, I'm not talking about endless repackaging of Jimi's recordings). Just read that special intelligence work in the UK led police to a pressing plant in Wales that specialized in niche recordings of Northern Soul. These were sold via Ebay and Amazon and netted enough money obviously for one of those charged to have over $150,000 in his PayPal account alone (might that have been a sign?).

More info here

New Music Matters series 2019 plus a Tone Poet series on the way

So, in case you had not heard (where was I that I missed the earlier notice?), Music Matters is embarking on a fresh set of classic jazz releases on vinyl. As a subscriber to the last two series I figured I'd just be on whatever list was mailed this info but if so, the mail went awol. More likely no such list exists. Regardless, these are marketed as the 'definitive Blue Note reissues' on new Silent Running Xperience (SRX) vinyl, apparently a new formulation that runs quieter than previous slabs.

The various records run about $60 a copy (!) and will be limited edition. The full list contains mostly recordings that saw previous light in the 2x45RPM releases (10/12 I think, but don't quote me) so it's not clear how much demand there will be nor why these titles were chosen over others but I have to say my experience with Ron Rambach and co's previous efforts render these very desirable and certainly worthy of attention. See more, including the chance to buy all 12 for a cut-rate $699, on the official announcement page

Coupled, sort of, Joe Harley and Don Was are planning a new series of high quality vinyl releases this year under the 'Tone Poet' title which will (I believe) involve 18 releases from Blue Note's vaults also given the MM-level treatment. This is good news for music lovers but surely a taxing prospect for many people's wallets. Stay tuned.

Vinyl sales slightly up in UK 2018?

Latest numbers out suggest vinyl sales continued to rise, albeit slightly, in the UK last year. Not sure how to interpret this as the totals are still pretty small but with CDs sliding further, it seems the LP format will continue for a while longer, despite predictions of death going back decades.

Not entirely surprised or excited by what is selling however...Rumours? Dark Side of the Moon? Still, Arctic Monkeys and Ezra make a bit of a change from the usual suspects over here.  Hard to be too sure of the numbers here but trends are trends...

Full story here