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!
RECORD STORE TALES #1152: Our Wedding Songs Do’s and Don’ts!
I take pride in my music, and I wanted my wedding to reflect that. I wanted nothing but music with integrity. Unfortunately, DJ services didn’t want to deal with that. I learned that with wedding music, you have to compromise. Though the day may be about you, it’s also not. It’s about your spouse, your family, their family, and close friends too. The DJs want them to fill the dance floor, not sit eating wedding cake with sad looks on their faces.
I sent out lists of songs to various DJ services, and got crickets back. Nobody wanted to play my pre-selected list of music.
Eventually we found one called Skip A Beat. The DJ we ultimately chose furnished us with a spreadsheet. It was a list of the most popular dance floor filling songs of the year 2008. I was told to mark down any songs that were good to go, and any that were not to be played. You can see my coding in the spreadsheet below. I also added some songs of my own. I didn’t get my Helix, but I got most of what I wanted.
Green = play it!
Yellow = meh.
Red = over my dead body!
Some “over my dead body” music did get played. Why?
I still remember the DJ coming up and me and saying a man was asking her for all kinds of my banned songs. I asked, what man? It was Uncle Paul!
He loved to dance. So I relunctantly cut him some slack. “Macarena” was played. Shania Twain was played. I know “Y.M.C.A.” played because ultimately, I danced to it.
Take a look at my list. What would be your no-go’s?
For years after, Uncle Paul told me it was the best wedding he’d ever been to. The lesson is, compromise! Even on crappy crappy songs, try to compromise. The happiness of your guests is just as important as yours.
BRUCE DICKINSON – “Resurrection Men” (2024 BMG CD single)
The Mandrake Project is a dense album. It takes a lot of time to absorb and understand. The concept goes way over my head, but the songs are heavy and the direction is metal. Bruce Dickinson is nothing if not ambitious, and of course that means taking the new album on the road. His live band this time out includes the always reliable Dave Moreno on drums, and Whitenake bassist Tanya O’Callaghan. Bruce has released two singles from the album with exclusive B-sides, and the second is “Resurrection Men”.
“Resurrection Men” is long for a single, at almost six and a half minutes. It is loaded with drama, and the acoustic intro really sets a mood. Then it goes into something more western, like from a Clint Eastwood film, with interesting percussion. That soon subsides and we go full electric. This song lunges all over the place, from slow grinding verses to quiet bass-driven parts, and a powerhouse chorus. Ultimately it’s not really single material, but that’s one thing that makes this release so interesting. It’s also impressive how Bruce continues to sing with such lung power.
Live from Sao Paolo comes “Afterglow of Ragnarok“, the first single from The Mandrake Project. A song about “what happens after the end of the world,” according to Bruce. It is tight, and does not deviate far from the original cut. The live setting is unforgiving, but even without multitracked vocals, Bruce nails it. The stage energy is palpable, and Moreno kills it on drums.
The most exciting track is the very first live version of “Abduction” from Tyranny of Souls. This one absolutely smokes, with breakneck pace, lightning drum fills, and melodic guitar harmonies. A lot of solo Bruce stuff could almost be considered Iron Maiden made modern, louder and more intense. “Abduction” falls into that category. This live version has some really cool guitar solo work, very different from Roy Z’s on the album.
It is truly wonderful to see artists such as Def Leppard, Deep Purple, and Bruce Dickinson releasing physical singles with actual B-sides in 2024. Keep it up.
In 1992, we gave Iron Maiden’s Fear of the Dark album a generous 3.75/5 star rating. Fear was the second in a row of underwhelming Iron Maiden albums. After losing melodic songwriter Adrian Smith, the band struggled to achieve the heights of Seventh Son of a Seventh Son. New member Janick Gers was also a songwriter, but Maiden struggled to match their previous mojo. Several songs from Fear were never played live: “Fear Is the Key”, “Childhood’s End”, “The Fugitive”, “Chains of Misery”, “The Apparition”, “Judas Be My Guide”, and “Weekend Warrior”. Meanwhile, the title track is a concert staple, played on almost every tour since.
What can we do to improve this album?
1. Tone down the keyboards
As the last Maiden album co-produced by Martin Birch, perhaps the metal maven was getting a little tired. Fear isn’t as punchy as past albums. Since Somewhere in Time, Maiden had become increasingly reliant on synths or keyboards. Even the back-to-basics No Prayer for the Dying had keyboards. Let’s not get rid of all the keyboards, let’s just tone them down. On some tracks, such as “Afraid to Shoot Strangers”, they are little more than sonic wallpaper. Let’s mix them a little lower for this experiment, and bring the drums up in the mix.
2. Remix the drums
Something about Nick McBrain’s drums on this album sound a little dead. A tad too much like they’re in the back of a cave. We should try making them a little more lively, and maybe just a tad louder in the mix. Aim for something more like the Piece of Mind era drums sound.
3. Edit the album down, and re-sequence it
Let’s go for a nine track song list. Clearly, the 12 on Fear were too many since they didn’t play the majority live. Fear was a long album. As the CD rose to dominance, albums grew longer. CDs were initially made to be 74 minutes long so you could put long classical pieces on it without breaks. 74 minutes was never intended to be the standard album length, though Fear is shy of that at 58:34. Still too long for a single record. Classic Maiden albums were shorter than this. We’ll go with nine songs. Number of the Beast had eight, and Piece of Mind had nine. Fear already had the perfect openers and closers, so we won’t touch those.
Side one
“Be Quick or Be Dead”
“Chains of Misery”
“From Here to Eternity”
“Judas Be My Guide”
“Wasting Love”
Side two
“Afraid to Shoot Strangers”
“The Fugitive”
“Weekend Warrior”
“Fear of the Dark”
It was a real struggle to include “Weekend Warrior”, as I don’t think this ode to soccer hooliganism is a particularly good song. However, I committed to nine, and I find “Fear is the Key” and “The Apparition” a tad dull. “Childhood’s End” is the other deleted song, and really it could have been one or the other. I went with “Weekend Warrior” because it’s different for Maiden. (Not that “The Apparition” isn’t, but these songs aren’t really that great. That’s why they weren’t played live.)
We maintain the kicking opener, high speed and going for the throat of big business. Then we have anthemic shout-along rock in “Chains of Misery”. “Wasting Love” acts as a side closer as it does on the proper album. Kicking off side two with “Afraid to Shoot Strangers” is a bit of a risk, as it is a bit ballady to start, and coming off a ballad gives you two in a row. However, it would work brilliantly as a side opener. “Fear of the Dark” of course should close. That’s what it’s built for.
This makes the album a perfect 44 minutes and 24 seconds!
4. Get rid of the tree Eddie!
Regular Maiden artist Derek Riggs had a falling out with Maiden’s management over his sketches for this album. Instead, for the first of many times, Maiden went with the legendary sci-fi and fantasty artist Melvyn Grant, who didn’t really understand Eddie yet, or the continuity established on prior album covers. From Number of the Beast to No Prayer for the Dying, there seemed to be an ongoing story with Eddie being manipulated, captured, and killed. He is reborn, borgified, and gives birth, only to be reborn again. Then, suddenly he’s a tree. The lightning from Eddie’s eyes is gone, replaced by evil red peepers. For our improved version of this album, the cover has to go. Cover art is so important to Iron Maiden, and Fear had one of their most disappointing covers to date (with No Prayer by Riggs coming in second).
In Sum
Little can be done to improve some of the actual songs on this album. Fear had filler, and a lot of it. Even at nine songs, tracks like “The Fugitive” and “Weekend Warrior” are dangerously close to filler material. Perhaps our hypothetical remix can liven them up, but shortening the album will do it some wonders. Maiden rarely record original material for B-sides, and don’t put cover songs on their records. There is no extra material we can substitute.
Doing the best with what we have at hand, what would you do to improve Fear of the Dark?
Here we have a simple and straightforward one hour bonus DVD. No bonus features other than subtitles, so let’s dive in and watch Deep Purple hit the road! This documentary, unlike past ones, is not about the making of the =1 album. This is about Deep Purple on tour, and is more like a fly on the wall look at the band in their environment. We seem them relax, practice, drink and work.
We begin with Steve Morse, and his sad necessity to step down from Deep Purple after 28 years in the band. Roger Glover explains that Steve came in at a time (1995) when Deep Purple needed to reinvent themselves, which is what they did. Then, we transition to Deep Purple live on stage with Simon McBride, and “No Need to Shout” from the bonus live 10″ records included in this box set. Don Airey calls it a “fresh start”, and Ian Paice contemplates on how a new member creates new energy in the Purples. Roger praises Simon’s “cool” personality. The important thing, with any new Deep Purple member, is to musically just be themselves. Don jokes that Simon “brought the average age of the band down to 74.”
Time to hit the road. Ian Gillan talks about the routine, and the tour begins (to the tune of “Hush”). Hotels, breakfasts, limousines…and security tips from Gillan! It takes about three hours to set up the stage and start checking the PA. Drums are tuned and cymbals are attached to the kit. The guitar tech talks about the adjustment from Steve Morse to Simon McBride, and a different brand of guitars. We also get a good look at Don Airey’s keyboard rig. In a cute touch, Don keeps a bobblehead of his old boss, Ozzy Osbourne, on his keys. Finally the band turns up and sound checks. Don Airey tells Ian Paice a funny story about Gary Moore messing with his keys. The band have a quiet, very English sense of humour, but they are often seen laughing and kidding around.
During soundcheck, we get to hear Purple working on a new song: “Old-Fangled Thing”, which ended up on =1. Airey says he really enjoys soundchecks because it gives them a chance to play things like bossa novas, and entertain the crew. We move on to the 02 arena with Blue Oyster Cult opening, and other gigs with Jefferson Starship, who Purple seem to get along with famously.
There is a hilarious bit in Don Airey’s keyboard solo. He takes a wooden shim, and sticks it in the keys to hold them down. As a single note plays. A waiter with a glass and bottle emerges. Don pours himself a glass of wine as he takes a brief break. It’s all so very quaint and gentlemanly funny. Don’s son is actually the band’s stage manager, and it has allowed him to see more of his dad than he ever would at home.
The documentary then jumps to another day, and the 10 minute wait before showtime. Backstage, Roger Glover takes a crack at Ritchie Blackmore’s violent aversion to cameras. Ian Paice jokes about the palpable tension in the air, as the band continue to joke around and laugh, whiling away the last minutes before stage time. Paicey picks up a pair of bananas, plays a drum roll, complains the bananas are not properly balanced, and tosses them aside. That’s the wildest party moment in the Deep Purple dressing room.
Finally the waiting is over. The whole day revolves around the 90 minutes on stage, remarks Gillan. The band take the stage while Holst’s “Mars: Bringer of War” assaults the crowd in preparation. “Highway Star” (which, incidentally, is not included on the live records in the box) rolls out the thunder, and Simon McBride brings his own style to it. The documentary runs through a few live clips to give you a taste of the set, including the beautiful ballad “Nothing At All”.
When Deep Purple hits Berlin, Ian Paice has the idea to play a bit of “Let the Good Times Roll”. A young horn section is brought in, and it sounds great to everyone. We are treated to a clip of a soundcheck of “Hush” with the horns.
Show over, it’s off to the hotel, get a tea, and into bed with a book for Ian Gillan. Paicey prefers a glass of wine after a show, “because I’m allowed”.
Though it’s never overtly stated, one can’t help but notice the contrast in this documentary to the war stories of old. We remember the tales of on-stage and backstage blowups, food trays thrown about…but not any more. Now Deep Purple is five older gents who love playing together and don’t seem to mind each other’s company too much. That’s nice to see. And it’s still entertaining enough for an hour.
As a bonus DVD in a box set, this one’s easily a 5/5.
The box also came with art prints, a lanyard, guitar picks, a nice T-shirt and more, all seen in this unboxing video below.
DEEP PURPLE – =1 Live Album – 10″ Vinyl (2024 Edel)
When you buy a Deep Purple super deluxe, you get a new live album on three 10″ records every time. These records are each 45 RPM. This wonderful Deep Purple tradition carries on with this important release, the first live album with Simon McBride to be released. Let’s have a listen to all six sides.
Record 1 was recorded in Milan 2022, the same gig that yielded the B-sides for the “Pictures of You” single (“When A Blind Man Cries” and “Uncommon Man”), though they are not included here. This record opens with Machine Head‘s “Pictures of Home”, and Ian Paice beginning the proceedings with his usual drum intro. Don Airey’s organ dominates the mix, but Simon can be heard doing justice to the original arrangement. His tasty solo is his own unique composition, combining bluesy playing with shred in a way unheard before in Deep Purple. Blackmore fans who found Steve Morse to be just too different may prefer Simon McBride.
From 2020’s Whoosh! album comes “No Need to Shout”, one of the more straightforward tracks. It has a solid “Stormbringer”-like groove, but consider that Deep Purple remain unafraid to play new songs on tour every time. Simon and Don sneak in these quick licks that add season to the sauce. The chemistry with McBride is immediately undeniable.
A set highlight is the powerful ballad “Nothing At All”, probably the best song from Whoosh! Originally this song had a trademark Steve Morse guitar lick, but Simon acquits himself very well in this tricky part. It’s not identical, but the right notes are played, if in a very slightly different style. This beautiful song is harder live, with Ian Paice really smoking those drums, and Don Airey hitting his keys with more vigor.
The first record closes with another Machine Head classic, the undeniable “Lazy”, which we have so many live versions of. I have at least 34 live versions of “Lazy”, with more residing on live albums I have yet to rip to my PC. This version is the first available with Simon, and the word to use is “refreshing”. After 52 years, it is nice to have a version with another lead soloist, bringing his own powerful, melodic twist. Ian Gillan’s vocal is a little laid-back, but this version is a delight! When Ian starts playing the harmonica, it changes into something more akin to a country jam.
Record 2 was recorded in Sofia, Bulgaria in 2022. “Strange Kind of Woman” keeps us in classic territory. Somehow I get the feeling that Airey’s organ isn’t growly enough. Of course Gillan struggles with the high notes, but that’s old news and nobody should really care anymore. Simon’s solo is, once again, a fresh twist. Then they dig back even further with “Hush” from Shades of Deep Purple. Nothing different here, just the same classic groove and a killer organ solo, followed by a playful tradeoff between Simon and Don.
Side two only has newer material, beginning with “7 and 7 Is” (by Love) from the covers album Turning To Crime. Including “Hush”, that’s two covers in a row. It is cool that they were playing Turning To Crime material live, but this is skippable for most people (except Ian Paice fans who will dig the busy drum parts). More enjoyable is “Throw My Bones” from Whoosh! Don’s synth on this track is especially fun, and Simon makes it a bit heavier in the guitars. “Time For Bedlam” from InFinite closes this side. Ian Gillan struggles with the difficult vocals, which makes it harder to enjoy, though the guitar melodies are just sublime. This is a very technical track. Roger Glover holds everything together on bass while the feature players stretch out.
We are back to Milan on the third disc. Record 3 opens with the biggest surprise: “Anya” from 1993’s The Cattle Grazes Battle Rages On. It is no secret that making the album was an unpleasant experience for the band, especially Ian Gillan, but it is really cool to see them reaching back to the early 90s. This is the first version available with Don or Simon. Just as “Anya” is the only representation of the 1990s (a decade with four Deep Purple studio albums), “Perfect Strangers” is the only track from the 80s, as it often is. This is a solid workmanlike version.
The final side closes, of course, with “Smoke on the Water” and “Black Night”, leaving us without a version of “Highway Star” with Simon. This is a real shame; we hope one will come on future inevitable live albums. Ian Paice sounds great on these, and Simon’s solo on “Black Night” is bonkers, the same way that Blackers used to be bonkers.
This is a great little late-period live album. With a band and a back catalogue this extensive, it is natural that they can’t always fit in songs from Purpendicular, Now What, or In Rock. Newer material is more valuable in a live release such as this. Still…would have been nice to get “Highway Star”.
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.
RECORD STORE TALES #1151: An Egg of a Day: End of August Scores
I have a coworker whose parents recently passed. This is always sad, but the time came for my coworker to purge her mom’s music collection. Periodically when this happens, people come to me to ask my opinion. Essentially, she wanted to know: “is there anything here that I shouldn’t take to the local Beat Goes On because it might be worth more?” She didn’t think much of her chances, but wanted to be sure.
“Sure, I’ll pop over and have a look,” I said. “I can’t promise you anything but I can at least have a look.”
That was good enough for her.
“I bet I find a bunch of Lawrence Welk!” I joked to Tim Durling and Jex Russell. You know the kind of record collection I mean.
Indeed, I did find Lawrence Welk in the very first box of vinyl. I had a laugh and kept digging. To everyone’s surprise, I found things that might indeed have been valuable, and they had no idea how it got into that collection.
First of all, she had a really nice stack of 78s. Big Crosby was the first one I saw. I have no idea on value of 78s, but this were stored well and all seemed in good condition. It might have been my first time handling a stack of 78’s like that. They are thicker than an LP, and much heavier. They require a special stylus as well as a turntable that can go up to 78. I used to have that equipment. She even had a cylinder, whether Edison or a competing brand, that was out for professional appraisal. So, this collection I was looking at had these formats:
LPs
45s
78s
Cassettes
8-tracks
CDs
and one cylinder
Pretty wild scope. The genres were all over the place, from easy listening and country (the usual suspects) to disco, jazz, oldies, and even progressive rock and heavy metal, as you’ll see. This, I did not expect.
Then I spied an album called Egg. Something about it jumped out at me. I flipped it around and there were black and white photos of long haired guys jamming. That struck me as out of place in this collection, so I set it aside. Somebody looked it up, and it can sell for easily over $100. Everyone seemed really impressed by my ability to sniff this out. I am no expert, folks. Not at all. But it looked out of place, which is why I took a second glance. It turns out Egg were an English progressive rock band, and the album was released in 1970. Very surprising, but they felt that this one find justified me coming over and looking at their records, so I was happy.
Original price: $6.99
I found some things I wanted for myself and made an offer. I left with the following titles:
Guns N’ Roses – “You Could Be Mine” 1991 Geffen cassette single. I own it on CD, but never on cassette. Why not? In this day and age of owning everything on every format, why not?
The Best Of ZZ Top 1977 Wea Music cassette. A staple, but one that I somehow have never owned before on any format. Stone cold classic compilation.
John Williams and the Boston Pops – Pops In Space 1980, Philips, made in Holland. This contains music from some of Williams science fiction classics: Superman, The Empire Strikes Back (which was brand new in 1980), Star Wars, and Close Encounters. I haven’t seen this one before.
Oscar Peterson – The Trio – Live from Chicago 1961 Verve/1986 Polygram CD. My second Oscar Peterson score this summer. You rarely find Oscar in the wild, and never this one.
Johnny Cash – His Greatest Hits, Volume II1971 Columbia 8-track. This was the Cash album I grew up with in the car with my dad, albeit on cassette. This cartridge is in great shape, and resides in a bright red shell. This is my first red shell 8-track tape.
When I called my dad to tell him of my musical scores, he was surprised at the 8-track. While he clearly remembers that Cash album, he asked me “Do you have anything that plays an 8-track?” This is a common question that we collectors get. No I do not. I don’t have a way to play a Minidisc, a DAT, or a DCC either but I would love to have some in my collection. My collecting desires are no longer strictly just to have music to play. Now I collect music I can’t even play too! Just to have a piece of history.
After we completely examined the collection and left some advice, I departed with my treasures. Since we were in the neighbourhood, I decided to visit the old Toys R Us/HMV store. There, I finally decided to pick up Iron Maiden’s Powerslave on vinyl, edging me closer to completing the 1980s collection. Now, all I should need are the first two Di’Anno albums (I think). Powerslave was $36 and hard to pull the trigger on, since I can distinctly remember a time when Sam the Record Man was swinning in new copies for $6.99 each, and that sticks with you. I finally have it now.
A successful Saturday. Time to listen to some music!
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