R.S.D. 2017: Neil Young's "Decade" (1977)

Really?! Wow. I thought it was obvious is was a woman

 

I'm honestly not sure if that's what it's considered that way. It's a gatefold with a third unattached sleeve inside that has a single fold out with large photo on one side and lyrics and Neil lying down with guitar on the other. The vinyl labels have the square with the white ":r" on red which I think means it's a reprint.

 

What makes it obvious?

 

Has looked like a woman to me for the last 40 years. But to each his own.

 

There is a book that we have in our metaphysics section from time to time that has a photo on the cover of a boy with long blonde hair wearing shorts, not shirt, that looks very much like the person on the cover of Decade, so maybe it's possible that person is a boy. But this is a Neil Young album we're talking about. I really, REALLY doubt that is a boy on the cover.

 

In the 70s, sometimes it was hard to tell!

 

The picture on the front cover is awful?
Well I'm going to throw all my copies in the trash then.

 

I never had that problem.

 

Kinda hard to tell these days. Music is gender neutral.

 

No I wouldn't want anyone to do that but it is certainly not a fave front album picture for me. I have to say I have no idea who the drippy hippy is but the guitar case is ok. Am expecting my RSD leftover copy today. I shall stare at the cover for several hours.
PS even if you bin the cover keep the records as I don't see the unreleased material being reissued anytime soon.

 

With most of my Decade experience happening with the double-cassette version and then the fatboy 1990 CD mastering, the picture wasn't really big enough to cause me any wonder...until college - when staring at album covers was suddenly another important course on your schedule. Something just didn't make sense to me about this photo.
Thanks for posting the image and the link for the article. Very interesting.
I always thought the picture seemed strange - It never seemed like a Neil Young photo to me because it's too posed and unusual (for Neil). But, overall, it's an iconic album cover and looks pretty dang awesome!

 

That's no way to talk about your son.

 

Man, I've spent 25 years thinking it was Neil after a dye and perm.

 

Sorry to bring this up again, but has anybody been able to get anywhere with exchanging defective pressings?

 

I don't know how I could fix it. The first song on each side is unplayable.
It's not a very big "edge warp", but it definitely has an affect. I didn't notice it the first time I put it on, but when the tonearm was thrown off the record I certainly took notice.
Not the kind of thing anybody wants to deal with. Especially with an expensive stylus.

 

I guess people didn't get the joke, which was about guys with long hair.

 

Got my copy today and fortunately it seems fine. Did anyone ever do a translation of Neil's handwriting so that it is easy to read. I spent hours reading the song comments back in the day. The 2 photos included are super.

 

And I've got that long hair! I can count on one hand how many guys have asked me to dance. The expression on their faces when I turn around and say "What?!?!" in priceless.

 

Some members have mentioned Vinyl Flat, but I have no experience of that. I would prefer one of the Japanese Disc Flatteners, from Orb or Furutech, which I use here. Unless it is a really catastrophic pressing fault, it should be fixable on one of the flattening machines. It would probably takes at least 4 cycles judging by how it looks.

If the record is defect free but is warped, I think it is better to try and flatten it rather than take a chance on a replacement copy which could be worse. Record Industry (Netherlands) pressed LPs respond well to flattening machines. Another thing is that the record was only recently pressed so the warp should be reversible without too much effort. If it was like that for years, it would be more difficult but not impossible. Keep it away from your stylus until you either fix it or get a satisfactory replacement. I hope you resolve the issue. It's disappointing to get a record like this considering the money you paid. Would there be any point in emailing Record Industry via the Music On Vinyl website? They respond to email and maybe they could direct you as regards seeking a replacement set? Worth a try, I think.

 

Can you explain the science behind these two claims?

 

Sounds like someone breaking wind in one or both channels!

 

I think different vinyl formula respond differently with these flattening machines. I will leave it to Satrus but at one time the GZ vinyl was not fixable (they may have now changed their production). Those edge warps are likely the worst to remove. There should be more copies appearing today as I believe these won't have sold out since it's a large pressing run by RSD standards.

 

I always assumed it was Young, too.

 

Still not convinced that isn't a dude.

 

If a record has been warped for a long number of years, it is generally speaking, more difficult to reverse that warp. Not impossible, just more difficult and more time consuming. I have noted with new releases, when they are warped, that it takes much less effort to flatten them because the warp is not that 'old'. My experience is that European vinyl is less difficult to flatten as opposed to say U.S. vinyl. U.S. vinyl from the 70/80s etc. is of a harder type than the softer European type and therefore takes longer to respond. Sometimes a record will exhibit a warping defect that is down to a serious manufacturing error and that cannot be fixed entirely. I am thinking of recent vinyl LPs that I have purchased that were pressed at Pallas in Germany where there appears to be a 'ridge' or a 'hump' at a particular point on the record that is present from the lead in groove to the lead out groove and you can see the cartridge actually negotiating the 'hump' as it traverses the record.

Michael Fremer on his analog planet website was recently comparing his own Caliburn turntable with a Technics playing the same record. The record in question (can't remember the title just now) had been pressed at Pallas also and had the same warping defect that I described previously. One of the records in my Mobile Fidelity vinyl issue of Alison Krauss 'So Long, So Wrong' has the same problem (pressed at RTI). Those kind of warps don't respond in my experience.

Vinyl has a 'memory' and it will resist efforts to change its shape, initially anyway. So the longer the record has been warped, the longer it will take to respond, generally in my experience. Also, Record Industry LPs have a 'groove guard' so are safe to use on one of the Japanese flattening units.