Every Changing Moods, Town Called Malice and others still get a ton of airplay on First Wave and any station that focuses on 80s synth pop. And again, Erasure I think got done in by UK reissues flooding stores at same time. But point is taken and today I'd be hesitant to green light that.
Hearing it here first- late this week or early next I'll be announcing Joan Armatrading's Self-Titled album from 1976, produced and recorded by Glyn Johns! Kevin Gray cut it from another A&M 1/2" safety copy, and it's another AMAZING cut.
I hate to keep asking, but will there be a Starfish gofundme type of thing happening? I’ll STFU about it now. Thanks!
That's a great album, and a good-sounding one in its original mastering - nice to hear it will get the KG treatment!
Yeah I was shocked to hear how great the original sounds. And always super cheap. I got a WLP with some promo pics and goodies inside for 5 bucks or something. The sound on it reminds me a lot of some other Johns work, Eagles “Desperado” comes to mind. Massive sound. Cool to see IR doing the Joan, I’ll have to snag it!
Personally, never heard of Joan Armatrading. Probably time I did something about that it seems. That’s one of the best things about this label. You had me at Glyn Johns and then you said Kevin Grey, 1/2” safety tape, the usual packaging and cover art. I’m just a believer I guess. Count me in.
Massive, yes, and yet the original does have some compression that we of course avoided, so the lid's off it even more. I really really LOVE how this one came out, I think it's going to take its place among our best sounding releases!
Other updates- 100% Fun SACD On-Sale (finally!) on 10/5 and Gene Clark's amazing White Light is looking like it will hit LP on 10/12. YES!
Wow, that sounds great! I've never heard that album, but I have heard some stuff from Joan Armatrading from the early '80s. I remember playing Drop The Pilot on my college radio show in the mid-'80s. From her 1983 album The Key. How would you describe her 1976 album?
Now that’s a cool choice You manage to stear clear of the obvious yet nothing so obscure it lacks interest. Which is a roundabout of way of saying good choices
Shane, Altered Beast sounds absolutely amazing!! Dying for Girlfriend! Seriously thinking about ordering the Sweet SACDs even though I have no player, only CD. Edit: Just curious, what happened to the bit of Caligula after Evergreen?
Chissie Hynde picked up a few stylistic touches from Joan....check that out next time. I saw her open for Nils Lofgren in 77 in Richmond....a very nice double bill.... She certainly broke the ice and held her own that evening And that s/t lp is lovely...it a record that cheers me up always.
Joan Armatrading self titled LP is such a cool choice. I’ve owned it since its release and it has not aged a bit. There are folk, jazz, funk, r & b influences all wrapped up in a superb production by Glyn Johns. Drop The Pilot was a fun song but the material on this album goes much deeper. Joan’s vocals are so good, you will absolutely want to sleep with her. She has a crack band behind her to boot.
Joan Armatrading's S/T album is a great one and definitely her best I think. She had a smoking hot band on that album. I bought the album in the UK just after it came out, still have it and it's still one of the best sounding records in my collection. The one problem that my copy at least has is sibilance on the vocals on "Save Me", the last track on side 1. The CD doesn't have this fault so I think it's probably the pressing - whether a general issue or just my specific disc I can't say. I'm sure Shane's version won't have this sibilance, so I expect that it will be my first IR purchase, as I still love this album as I did back in 1976. It has had an audiophile release before, however, by Speakers Corner, but I haven't heard their reissue. I'm still hoping that my second purchase will be "Starfish".
