I wanted to play a game of Ms. Pac-Man for this video, but it appears my Plug and Play did not survive the winter. This is a real shame since it also had Pole Position and Dig Dug on it. It will be difficult to replace, as it was a version that came with a cartridge slot. Alas, replace it I must. These used to be cheap, $20 to $25 at Toys R Us.
In this video, I played a regular version of Pac-Man. I didn’t do too badly for being so out of practice, but you’ll see a couple spots where I got frustrated.
GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike, Aaron KMA and Tim Durling
Special Edition Episode: An 8 Track Holy Grail & More
This video is years in the making. More than just an “unboxing” video, this is a fun and informative episode that documents one man’s journey to collect his favourite bands on obsolete formats, and another man’s ability to find them.
About four years ago, Aaron provided Tim with a rare 8-track tape that he needed for his collection. Another one of Aaron’s tapes went to Martin Popoff. But there was one tape that Tim needed to “complete” a specific collection. And this summer, Aaron found that one too. He just has a knack for it, and it seems appropriate that it was Aaron who found this last tape. There’s a story that goes with it, and three tapes that went to me as well!
“Complete” is in quotes, because this video is far more than just an unboxing video. This is a philosophical (and fun) discussion about 8-track tapes, collecting, and genuine Australian bubble wrap. We discuss breaks in the middle of tracks, altered track listings, and for good measure, a little bit about vintage Star Wars toys. We also speculate on one tape that may still be out there, but remains unknown.
This episode is in two parts. It begins with Aaron and I unboxing three beautiful 8-track tapes, and a number of birthday gifts. Also inside that box was Tim’s tape, which I mailed immediately to New Brunswick. The video cuts and picks up with Tim, ready to open his treasure in front of the cameras.
Whew! That was a rock marathon, but Ryan and I crossed the finish line with a complete ranking of all the Deep Purple studio albums (excluding the covers album Turning to Crime). This was not an easy task. We both immersed ourselves fully in the music all week. In the end, some albums struck us harder than others. While our Top Fives were both very similar, but the rest of the lists were widely varied.
Thank you to Ryan Gavalier for this awesome jump through the Deep Purple catalogue. Not only was it an electrfying week of music, but it was also a week for re-appraisal. I always knew my first and last albums, but the middle was quite fluid.
While we did attempt to spend a good deal of time discussing each album, we really only scratched the surface. The best thing to do would be for you to check out the music yourself.
Thanks for watching, and we’ll see you tomorrow for another episode of Grab A Stack of Rock (Special Editon). Stay tuned!
My list can be seen at the bottom of this post by highlighting the hidden text.
GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man Episode 69: Ranking ALL the Deep Purple Studio Albums, with Ryan Gavalier
Please welcome Ryan Gavalier from Gavalier Productions for his show debut! We have been wanting to work together for about a year now. For Ryan’s first topic, he went big: we are tackling the complete Deep Purple studio albums and ranking them. (We are excluding the covers album Turning to Crime, and the Concerto since it was a live album.) That’s 21 albums, so buckle up. We are giving you extra this long Labour Day weekend.
Both Ryan and I have spent the last week listening to Deep Purple, in chronological order. I always knew what my first pick would be, and I knew my last pick from the start. Now, it is a matter of filling in the blanks.
Be sure to join Ryan and I live, as you’ll want to play along in the comments. See you then!
Sunday September 1 at 8:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 9:00 P.M. Atlantic. Enjoy onYouTube or on Facebook!
Aerosmith have called it a day, at least insofar as playing live is concerned. While we know a series of reissues is coming, it is likely that Aerosmith are done as an active band. I never got to see them live, but at least I did get to participate in this great Top Five album ranking with Tim, Jex and Will! (The same team that did a “least favourite Kiss list last year.)
The task was simple: Pick our top five Aerosmith albums, and two runners-up. This time, Jex didn’t go wild and pick, like, Just Push Play as his #1. In fact we think these lists were pretty rock solid! Some lesser-appreciated albums were given love, and the “big ones” were well represented. Studio only, no live or compilations.
Please enjoy this show as much as we enjoyed making it.
It’s always a special night when I see something on the show from a guest’s collection, that I never saw before and want very badly. That happens periodically…but on this show, it happened on every round! This was a classic “random and chaotic” Grab A Stack of Rock episode and one of the most exciting to date.
First of all: thank you to John T. Snow of 2Loud2OldMusic for powering through illness to be here on this night. “I didn’t want to miss this,” he said, referring to the mighty Def Leppard collection of megafan Chris Preston.
Second: thank you to Chris from @rockthesetweets for sharing your awesome collection with us! The “oohs!” and “aahs!” from John and I were audible multiple times in this show. Chris had CDs of many varieties: 3″, Japanese 3″, promo, French, German, US, video…so many kinds. Not shockingly, he also had one track that seems to be exclusive to a promo CD for “Action”, that I do not have. I anticipated that would happen. Adding it the “wantlist”.
John had some cool bootlegs, singles, European releases, and plenty more stuff that made Chris and I jealous. There were some live shows he had from the mid and late 1990s that are highly desirable. He also had recordings from earlier times, such as the Pyromania tour and the Pete Willis/Frank Noon years.
As for me, you know I have Japanese imports, including two that the other guys didn’t have. I also had some singles from the Hysteria era to show, a 24k gold Mastersound CD in mint condition with original jewel case, and my original CDr that provided the live tracks heard on Def Leppard Rarities Volume Four, with the original cover I made on my parents’ printer back in the day. This is the original CD that Def Leppard used for music on that collection.
I can’t thank these two diamond gents more for doing this show with me tonight. Definitely some of the best stacks of rock ever seen on this show!
Next week: Deep Purple Album Ranking with Ryan Gavalier, Sunday Sept 1 at 8:00 PM EST!
GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man Episode 68: Def Leppard CD Rarities with @RockTheseTweets and @2Loud2OldMusic
This has been a meeting long in the making. For years, I have admired the music collection of Chris from MyRockAndRollHeaven on Twitter. In particular, Chris is a Def Leppard collector, and I believe his collection is one of the best in the world.
Finally the stars have aligned, and we have Chris tonight on Grab A Stack of Rock. Since his collection is so massive, we decided to narrow it down to rare Def Leppard on CD. Singles, Japanese imports, EPs and more will be shown tonight. Joining us as co-host will be fellow fan and collector John Snow from 2Loud2OldMusic! He is currently in the midst of a Def Leppard review series, so this lines up perfect.
What will we see tonight? The rarest of the rare Leppard on CD. Don’t miss it.
Friday August 23 at 7:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 8:00 P.M. Atlantic. Enjoy onYouTube or on Facebook!
A young Steve Anthony, just starting on his MuchMusic career, but not yet known as the on-screen madman he’d become, chatted with Aerosmith right when they were hot again, in 1987 on the Permanent Vacation tour. He opens by mentioning how sick they must be talking about the “drug thing”, and then asks about the “Toxic Twins”, a strategy that worked in getting some good comments out of Steven Tyler and Joe Perry.
Joe Perry discusses the 1984 reunion tour, and the risk of going out without a new album to promote. Common today, rare then.
An interesting flash from the past as we remember Aerosmith!
The Mad Metal Man has spread his wings! I am proud to present below, Harrison’s first appearance on a show that isn’t our own!
Harrison wanted to do an Australia-centric topic with Peter Kerr for some time. Peter has been wanting to put together an all-Australia panel. This week on Rock Daydream Nation, that’s exactly what we got! With Peter Wicks, and Bicyclelegs himself.
It was enjoyable for me to hear about familiar Australian bands, and those I’d never heard of before. Harrison stirred the pot with some questions and comments, like a good lad! (Do the Bee Gees count as an Australian band?) Really proud of the “resident contrarian” Mad Metal Man. Check out the show!
Deep Purple albums take time to absorb, especially in the current “Ezrin era”. The records are not lazy with simple songs (puns intended)! Tim and I attempted to break down the new album =1, track by track. We tended to agree on a lot of the songs.
What’s with the artwork? Is Simon a new Blackmore? What the heck is Ian Gillan singing about? Find out in this excellent episode of Tim’s Vinyl Confessions, out today.
My written review of the album will follow tomorrow morning, with the deluxe edition live discs getting the written review treatment in the coming weeks.
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