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Purchase log, 2021-01-19

[Nathan Gunn - Just Before Sunrise]

I catalog my music purchases on Collectorz and Discogs, but they don’t give me a sense of change over time. So I’m noting them here weekly as well.

Catalog

CD
  • Franz Schubert, Sonata in B-Flat Major / Allegretto in C Minor / Impromptu in A-Flat Major (Richard Goode)
  • Gustav Mahler, Symphony No. 7 / Des Knaben Wunderhorn (Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Sir Georg Solti)
  • Mouth Music, Mouth Music
  • Nathan Gunn, Just Before Sunrise
  • Soundtrack, Frozen
Vinyl
  • Pat Benatar, Precious Time
  • The Vapors, New Clear Days

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Purchase log, 2021-01-05

[J Dilla - Donuts]

I catalog my music purchases on Collectorz and Discogs, but they don’t give me a sense of change over time. So I’m noting them here weekly as well.

Catalog

CD
  • Caron Wheeler, UK BLAK
  • Cowboy Junkies, The Trinity Sessions
  • Pop Will Eat Itself, Cure for Sanity
  • Sting, … Nada como el sol
Vinyl
  • Debbie Gibson, Out of the Blue
  • J Dilla, Donuts
  • The Alan Parsons Project, Turn of a Friendly Card
  • Tiffany, Tiffany

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Purchase log picks, December 2020

[Animotion - Animotion]

Animotion, Animotion

I owned this album on vinyl, but I never played Side B all that much because the two hit singles were the two first tracks of the album (“Obsession”, “Let Him Go”). This album also had to compete with Duran Duran, Tears for Fears and ABC for my attention, and it didn’t fare well. Eventually, I would sell the record for cash.

I picked it up again at the thrift store and actually gave Side B a few spins. As a whole, the album holds together incredibly well. I went so far as to find the expanded edition reissued by Cherry Red on CD.

Big Black, Songs About Fucking

The arm of Big Black stretches long.

Richard Goode, Beethoven: The Complete Sonatas

Nonesuch offered a priced-down reissue of this boxed set for $25 to celebrate Beethoven’s birthday. That same week, I spotted a used copy of the original boxed set selling for that exact amount.

Sam Hunt, SOUTHSIDE

On Twitter, I said, “I find Sam Hunt simultaneously fascinating and disappointing.” The disappointing part are the bro country lyrics. The fascinating part is the use of hip-hop beats in country, which I hear is actually a thing.

Bruce Springsteen, Letter to You

Spike Lee has been described as someone who doesn’t know how to end his films. I sometimes feel the same about Bruce Springsteen. This album does drag after a while, but the stronger moments rank up there with his most renowned works.

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Purchase log, 2020-12-22

[Big Black - Songs About Fucking]

I catalog my music purchases on Collectorz and Discogs, but they don’t give me a sense of change over time. So I’m noting them here weekly as well.

New releases

CD
  • Sturgill Simpson, Cuttin’ Grass, Vol. 1: The Butcher Shoppe Sessions

Catalog

CD
  • Andrew Lloyd Webber, Sunset Boulevard (Premiere American Recording)
  • Animotion, Animotion
  • Aretha Franklin, Aretha Sings the Blues
  • Big Black, Songs About Fucking
  • Justin Townes Earle, Harlem River Blues
  • Ludwig Van Beethoven, The Complete Sonatas (Richard Goode)
  • Sonic Youth, Bad Moon Rising
  • Sonic Youth, Sonic Death
  • Suzanne Ciani, Seven Waves
  • The Sisters of Mercy, First and Last and Always
  • The Sisters of Mercy, Floodland
  • Various Artists, Tom’s Album
Vinyl
  • A Taste of Honey, Twice as Sweet
  • Franz Ferdinand, Franz Ferdinand
  • The Knack, Get the Knack
  • Yes, 90125

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Purchase log, 2020-12-08

[Death Cab for Cutie - The Georgia EP]

I catalog my music purchases on Collectorz and Discogs, but they don’t give me a sense of change over time. So I’m noting them here weekly as well.

New releases

CD
  • Sam Hunt, SOUTHSIDE
Files
  • Death Cab for Cutie, The Georgia EP
  • Eponymous 4, Shinkyoku Moratorium Eigoban

Catalog

CD
  • Heart, Greatest Hits / Live
  • Pizzicato Five, Combinaison spaciale EP
  • The National, The National

Reissues

Box set
  • The Replacements, Pleased to Meet Me

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Purchase log, 2020-12-01

[Jane's Addiction - Ritual de lo Habitual]

I catalog my music purchases on Collectorz and Discogs, but they don’t give me a sense of change over time. So I’m noting them here weekly as well.

New releases

CD
  • Onitsuka Chihiro, Hysteria
Vinyl
  • Drive-By Truckers, Plan 9 Records, July 13, 2006

Catalog

CD
  • Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Slow Riot for New Zero Kanada EP
  • St. Germain, Tourist
  • Supertramp, Breakfast in America
  • The Avett Brothers, The Gleam
  • The Sugarhill Gang, Rapper’s Delight: The Best of Sugarhill Gang
  • U2, The Unforgettable Fire (Deluxe Edition)
  • TV on the Radio, Dear Science
  • Whitney Houston, Whitney Houston
Vinyl
  • Beyoncé, Beyoncé
  • Kanye West, 808s and Heartbreaks
  • Weezer, Weezer (Blue Album)

Reissues

Vinyl
  • Alice in Chains, SAP
  • Beastie Boys, Some Old Bullshit
  • Fountains of Wayne, Welcome Interstate Managers
  • Jane’s Addiction, Ritual de lo Habitual
  • Milla Jovovitch, The Divine Comedy
  • U2, Boy (40th anniversary white vinyl)

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Purchase log picks, November 2020

[Whitney Houston - Whitney Houston]

SUPERCAR, OOKeah!!

SUPERCAR’s vinyl reissue campaign from 2017-2018 gave me an excuse to explore the band’s first three albums. The campaign didn’t include a pair of albums released in 1999, OOKeah!! and OOYeah!! So they’ve escaped my attention till now. I prefer OOKeah!! over OOYeah!!, although the latter include “Be”, a song with a darkly humorous video that can only come from Japan.

So, when can we get these albums reissued on vinyl?

Kylie Minogue, DISCO

Kiss Me Once was one of the last albums I downloaded from eMusic, and I skipped Golden altogether. So I approached DISCO with a fair amount of caution. Oh, she’s back.

PJ Harvey, Dry

Friends tried to get me into PJ Harvey by playing To Give You My Love. I would have gotten on board much sooner if they had played Rid of Me or Dry instead. I am, however, eagerly waiting news for a vinyl reissue of Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea.

Drive-By Truckers, Plan 9 Records, July 13, 2006

I’ve subjected myself to 3-LP live albums before, but this one is a scorcher from start to finish. I still see some copies of this Record Store Day exclusive in the wild, so you should get it if you spot it.

Whitney Houston, Whitney Houston

I disliked Whitney Houston growing up. Her songs were played to death on the radio, and just about every track on this album was released as a single. So how did I end up liking it more than 30 years later? The non-single tracks are actually pretty decent. Paired with the big showstoppers, Houston’s self-titled debut holds together exceptionally well. I didn’t even mind hearing the old singles again.

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