Craft Recordings' Black Friday Record Store Day: Collective Soul, Violent Femmes And More

Craft Recordings is celebrating 2018's Black Friday Record Store Day (November 23) with six covetable, limited edition vinyl releases. Among the releases are the first-ever vinyl pressings of Collective Soul's double-platinum 1993 debut, Hints Allegations and Things Left Unsaid, and Violent Femmes' 2005 best-of collection, Permanent Record: The Very Best of Violent Femmes. Craft is also reissuing the out-of-print self-titled debut from Butch Trucks' pre-Allman Brothers Band group, The 31st of February.

In addition to the above artist titles, Craft is releasing three vinyl compilations. Feelin' Right Saturday Night is a double LP celebrating the 60th anniversary of the legendary New Orleans R&B label group, Ric & Ron Records. Jazz Dispensary: Purple Funk, Vol. 2 comprises a selection of deep dives from jazz-funk titans issued via the Jazz Dispensary imprint. And The Christmas Collection will be a festive platter of jazz rarities plucked from the Prestige, Contemporary, and Debut label vaults. More detail on each of these below.

Now in its ninth year, Record Store Day Black Friday kicks off the holiday shopping season by offering vinyl enthusiasts and music fans a chance to grab exclusive releases at their favorite record stores. For a full list of participating retailers and releases, visitrecordstoreday.com.

Craft Recordings' 2018 Record Store Day Black Friday releases include:

Collective Soul, Hints Allegations and Things Left Unsaid (180-gram opaque red vinyl)

In 1993, Collective Soul combined grunge, soul, and Southern-style hard rock on their debut full-length, Hints Allegations and Things Left Unsaid, which spawned the indelible No. 1 rock radio smash "Shine" and the follow-up hit "Breathe." To celebrate the 25th anniversary of this double-platinum landmark, it will enjoy its first-ever vinyl pressing-available on 180-gram opaque red vinyl.

The 31st of February, The 31st of February (180-gram vinyl)

Prior to joining The Allman Brothers Band, the late drummer Butch Trucks cut his teeth in The 31st of February, a Florida-based rock group fond of the psychedelic-pop sounds transforming music in the late '60s. Long out of print, the group's self-titled 1968 debut LP for the Vanguard label is being pressed on 180-gram vinyl. This reissue was cut from the original stereo tapes and is housed in a Stoughton old-style tip-on jacket.

Various Artists, The Christmas Collection (translucent red vinyl)

This holiday LP is brimming with jazz rarities plucked from the Prestige, Contemporary, and Debut label vaults. Notable artists include pianist Bobby Timmons, known for playing with Chet Baker and here contributing covers of "White Christmas" and "You're All I Want For Christmas," and tenor saxophone greats Dexter Gordon and Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, each performing spirited takes on "The Christmas Song." The Christmas Collection songs, most of which are long out-of-print, have been remastered from original audio tapes and then pressed on festive translucent red vinyl.

Various Artists, Feelin' Right Saturday Night: The Ric & Ron Anthology (2xLP black vinyl)

Founded by Joe Ruffino-a former salesman for New Orleans-based music-industry hub A-1 Distributors-the legendary labels Ric and Ron helped document Crescent City's booming R&B scene from 1958 to 1962. Feelin' Right Saturday Night: The Ric & Ron Anthology commemorates Ric's 60th anniversary (Ron was founded in 1959) by highlighting classics such as Professor Longhair's "Go to the Mardi Gras," Eddie Bo's "Dinky Doo," Al Johnson's "Carnival Time," and sides from future star Irma Thomas. Joe Jones' "You Talk Too Much," which reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, is also included. This double-LP set features new liner notes from award-winning producer/artist Scott Billington and two previously unreleased tracks: a demo of "Tipitina" from Professor Longhair and "Good Enough For Me" from Eddie Bo.

Various Artists, Jazz Dispensary: Purple Funk, Vol. 2 (180-gram purple cotton candy-colored vinyl)

A follow-up to the Cosmic Stash box set breakout LP, Jazz Dispensary: Purple Funk, Vol. 2 features rare sides from Bobby Rush, Johnny Hammond, Pleasure, and many more jazz-funk titans. This limited edition RSD-exclusive release features original, psychedelic paint-marbling artwork by fine artist Danielle Garza (aka Ellierex) and contains long-out-of-print tracks from the Prestige and Galaxy Records vaults making their return to vinyl.The included songs are newly remastered for this collection, and are pressed on 180-gram, purple cotton candy-colored vinyl.

Violent Femmes, Permanent Record: The Very Best of Violent Femmes (coke-bottle clear vinyl)

Violent Femmes were one of the most inventive and original bands to emerge during the '80s college-rock boom. Hailing from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the stripped-down trio uniquely combined punk and folk, sarcasm and spirituality, on songs that acutely captured romantic angst. From there, Violent Femmes released eight studio albums, achieved an excess of 10 million sales worldwide, and released a string of iconic singles-many of which are featured here. Pressed for the first time on coke-bottle-clear vinyl, the 2005 retrospective Permanent Record: The Very Best of Violent Femmescontains favorites "Blister In The Sun," "Gone Daddy Gone," "Add It Up," "American Music," and "Kiss Off," as well as a dozen other classics.

About Craft Recordings

Craft Recordings is home to one of the largest and most prestigious collections of master recordings and compositions in the world. Its rich and storied repertoire includes legendary artists such as Joan Baez, Ray Charles, John Coltrane, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Miles Davis, Bill Evans, Vince Guaraldi, John Lee Hooker, Little Richard, Fania All-Stars, Antonio Aguilar, Joan Sebastian, Nine Inch Nails, Thelonious Monk, Otis Redding, R.E.M., and Traveling Wilburys, to name just a few. Renowned imprints with catalogs issued under the Craft banner include Concord, Fania, Fantasy, Milestone, Musart, Nitro, Prestige, Riverside, Rounder, Specialty, Stax, Sugar Hill, Vanguard, and Vee-Jay Records, among many others. Craft creates thoughtfully curated packages, with a meticulous devotion to quality and a commitment to preservation-ensuring that these recordings endure for new generations to discover. Craft Recordings is the catalog label team for Concord Music. For more information, visit Craft Recordings' website.

To post a comment, you must register and login.