Erika Kapp, our Springsteen CD catalog contest winner!

In honor of  The Boss’  60th birthday and to celebrate his series of shows that closed down the old Meadowlands, Sony/BMG was kind enough to donate almost the entire Bruce Springsteen CD catalog, 15 CDs and 3 DVDs, for us to give away….thanks guys!

Ms. Kapp was one of over 200 entrants who vied to win this prize, and she won in the random drawing.  Congratulations to her!

We had a lot of fun with this and plan to do more in-store contests in the future… keep your eyes peeled for the next!

Hope to see you soon.

Springsteen Entry Box

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Meet The Beat Rats, a four piece band from New York City, who recreate the sound, style and attitude of an early sixties British combo with utter perfection. The best rock and roll has always been built upon a skeletal foundation of a few basic chords, trashy drumming and impassioned vocals, and “A Cellar Full Of Rats!” trembles and shakes on such ground. Energy and enthusiasm are doled out in spades, making for a collection of highly infectious songs.

A happening hybrid of peppy Mersey pop inspired melodies, surf slanted guitar licks and rugged garage rock overtones inhabits each and every corner of the album. Having studied and adopted the finest points of the masters, The Beat Rats are today’s version of The Big Three, The Pretty Things and John, Paul, George and Ringo wrapped in one explosive package. “Only 16,” “She’s Twisted,” Mine All Mine” and “The Beat Rats Theme” are executed so convincingly that you can’t help but be blown away by the band’s undying devotion to the music they play. But “A Cellar Full Of Rats!’ is no cheesy nostalgia type effort, as the delivery is fresh and vital. Scruffy, raw and teeming with danceable grooves, here’s a record guaranteed to warrant repeated listenings.

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Recently arrived: over 200 Classical Audiophile LPs!

It feels like it has been ages since we have had a large quality classical audiophile collection come in, but we are pleased to announce a great one today. For those not in the know, these types of records were mainly produced in the late fifties through the mid-to-late sixties using all-tube recording equipment on high-quality virgin vinyl. They are sought after as much for their sonic qualities as for their performances. Some folks think these are the perfect media to showcase their premium stereo systems.

This collection includes many RCA Shaded Dogs, Mercury SRs, and other miscellaneous audiophiles, but the real highlights are an incredible assortment of British imports. There are dozens of original Columbia SAXs, (blue/silver labels and slightly later red/black), early Deccas (many wide-bands, both edition 1s and edition 2s), and early E.M.I.s (blue/gold labels); its a rare day that we see so many of these rare British pressings at one time.

Because of the scarcity of these records, and because so many of our valued customers are looking for them, we do request that you do not call us to put items on hold. We want to make sure that everyone has an equal opportunity to buy them. First come, first served please!

Also note if you are not familiar with our store…we are a bricks-and-mortar walk-in store only. We do not ship.

Hope to see you soon.

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Death as a subject in rock music (or “nec-rock-philia” as some wags have dubbed it) is nothing new. It showed up in everything from Mark Dinning’s 1959 one-hit wonder Teen Angel, to J. Frank Wilson & The Cavaliers’ romance-comic-like tear-jerker from 1964, Last Kiss to Bloodrock’s grinding, dirgey, death-metallic 1971 hit, DOA. Nonetheless, when Jim Carroll’s single People Who Died arrived at the radio station I spin for back in 1980, my jaw hit the floor. What was this guy up to? What was this guy on? Read the rest of this entry »

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There have always been two Woodstocks – the event and the myth.

Woodstock the event consisted of lots of rain, little food, bad acid, and sometimes bad music.  Woodstock the myth, according to festival promoter Michael Lang, gave young Americans “a sense of possibility and hope” that “spread around the globe.”

Lang’s long-awaited memoir, The Road to Woodstock, sheds new light on the event even as it offers more undeserved hoke about the importance of those three days at Bethel, NY in August 1969. Read the rest of this entry »

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