New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Craft Recordings is excited to announce our roundup of exclusive vinyl titles for Record Store Day 2020, taking place on April 18th at independent record stores across the country. This year's array of titles features several rarities, including the first-ever vinyl reissue of The Iron Pot Cooker—the 1975 LP from performance artist and activist
Camille Yarbrough plus, a UK-only exclusive EP from British garage, grime and hip hop pioneers, So Solid Crew.
Craft has also put together a very special compilation.
Double Whammy! A 1960s Garage Rock Rave-Up, offers a power-packed lineup of hits and rarities from the era's influential underground music scene, and features acts like the
Music Machine, the Vagrants and Count Five.
Since 2008, Record Store Day has celebrated the culture of the independent record store—offering music lovers the chance to pick up exclusive or limited-edition releases, while supporting their local music retailer at the same time. With the spirit of the devoted cratedigger in mind, the team at Craft Recordings has put together the following #RSD20 releases:
Camille Yarbrough: The Iron Pot Cooker
Praised by SPIN as a "hip-hop foremother,"
Camille Yarbrough is an award-winning performance artist, author and cultural activist, among many other hyphenates. In 1971, Yarbrough wrote and starred in a one-woman, spoken-word show, called Tales and Tunes of an African American Griot. Four years later, Yarbrough released The Iron Pot Cooker, an album based on the show.
This rare and highly collectible landmark title has been recognized for its candor and passionate rhetoric. Part R&B, part street poetry, The Iron Pot Cooker has been called "a precursor to … The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill" by writer
Kevin Powell, while Billboard called it "thought-provoking," adding that "Yarbrough has stylish traces of
Nina Simone and Gil Scott-Heron but her own style of singing and recitation ... are outstanding."
The album is perhaps best known by a younger generation for its song "Take Yo' Praise," which was sampled in the hit 1998
Fatboy Slim song "Praise You." This 180-gram reissue, which marks the first vinyl availability of the title since its 1975 release on Vanguard Records, was cut from the original analog tapes by
Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio. The album was manufactured at
Memphis Record Pressing and comes housed in a tip-on jacket.
The Iron Pot Cooker is digitally available now (listen here) and will be released in high-resolution audio for the first time on April 24th. Limited to 2,300 copies worldwide.
The Iron Pot Cooker Track List:
Side A
But It Comes Out Mad
Dream - Panic -
Sonny Boy The Rip-Off Man -
Little Sally The Super Sex Star (Taking Care Of Business)
Ain't It A Lonely Feeling
Side B
Take Yo' Praise
Can I Get A Witness
All Hid
Various Artists:
Double Whammy! A 1960s Garage Rock Rave-Up
This garage rock extravaganza unearths rarities and spotlights classic tracks from the vaults of Stax, Original Sound, Vanguard and Fantasy Records. A follow-up to the 2019 Record Store Day title Poppies: Assorted Finery From the First Psychedelic Age,
Double Whammy! surveys another influential underground scene of the 1960s: garage rock—or, as compilation producer Alec Palao describes it, "The American grass roots response to the British Invasion." Thanks to the popularity of rock acts like the
Beatles and the Rolling Stones, bands without formal training or a slick, studio-tweaked sound suddenly had an opportunity for recognition and radio play. It was the beginning of an exciting new cultural era—one that celebrated the raw energy of youth culture, and where possibilities seemed limitless.
Focusing on the period between 1965 and 1968, the set features such legendary acts as the
Music Machine, the Vagrants and Count Five, as well as lesser-known groups like Sacramento's Group "B," New York City's Circus
Maximus and Memphis' the Poor
Little Rich Kids. The 16-track LP also includes three previously unreleased tracks. Pressed on limited-edition translucent blue vinyl in a foil-wrapped jacket, the package includes liner notes from GRAMMY-nominated writer and producer Alec Palao, who offers an in-depth look into each song on the compilation. Limited to 2,800 copies worldwide.
Double Whammy! A 1960s Garage Rock Rave-Up will also be available across all digital platforms on April 24th, while a previously unreleased version of the
Music Machine's "The People in Me" will be available to stream or download as a special sneak peek on April 10th.
Double Whammy! A 1960s Garage Rock Rave-Up Track List:
Side A
Count Five: Psychotic Reaction (Unedited Version)
Lonnie Duvall: Attention*
The Torquays: Harmonica Man (From London Town)
The Pullice: Can't Get Enough*
The Squires: Anytime Anywhere
Circus Maximus: Short-Haired Fathers
The Bittersweets: In The Night
Joey Paige: 'Cause I'm In Love With You
Side B
Jack Bedient & The Chessman:
Double Whammy
The Orfuns: The Animal In Me
The
Music Machine: The People In Me (Full-Length Version)*
The Poor
Little Rich Kids: Stop Quit-It
The Vagrants: I Can't Make A Friend
Group "B": She's Gone
The Tears: Rat Race
The Fantastic Zoo: This Calls For a Celebration
*previously unreleased
So Solid Crew: 21 Seconds
So Solid Crew are a British garage and hip-hop group originating from Battersea/Clapham Junction, London. With their seminal #1 single '21 Seconds', the collective defined the UK music scene in the early 2000s & are today cited as pioneers of UK garage, grime and hip hop. The BRIT award winning crew consisted of many influential members, the most notable include Megaman, Lisa Maffia, Romeo, Asher D, DJ
Swiss and Harvey.
To celebrate upcoming Anniversary tour dates in 2020,
So Solid Crew will release a new EP featuring the original anthem, alternate mixes & unreleased live cuts from the BBC archives! A very special 12" EP for Record Store Day 2020, limited to 2100 copies, is pressed on ultra-clear heavyweight vinyl & housed within a bespoke 21 cut-out sleeve. This title is available for the UK-only.
So Solid Crew: 21 Seconds Track List:
Side A
21 Seconds (Original Mix)
21 Seconds (BBC
Radio 1 Lamacq Live 2002)
Side B
21 Seconds (DJ
Swiss & Dan Da Man Vocal Remix)
21 Seconds (12" Version)
21 Seconds (BBC
Radio 1 Live Lounge 2001)
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, 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, Vee-Jay and Victory, 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 catalogue label team for Concord Recorded Music.
For more info, visit CraftRecordings.com, and follow on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and Spotify.
