VINTAGE VINYL IS PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE THE RELEASE OF MUSIC BY TWO GREAT ARTISTS, OLIVER SAIN and U-ROY: St. Louis Breakdown: The Best Of Oliver Sain on Sain Sound Records, and Foundation Skank: Rare Sides By The DJ Originator, on Sound System Records.
 
Both are available on CD and 180-gram vinyl presses, and from the time we announced plans for their release in 2008 there were inquiries and expressions of interest both here in our hometown as well as from friends nationally and around the world.  This is fitting, for both men have created a body of work that over time only grows in reputation around the globe. 

	1. Oliver Sain - Soul Serenade 2. Oliver Sain - St. Louis Breakdown 3. Oliver Sain - Bus Stop
	OLIVER SAIN ST. LOUIS BREAKDOWN-BEST OF OLIVER SAIN
	LP $14.99	CD $12.99

OLIVER SAIN was the single most influential musician in the St. Louis area from 1960 to his death in 2003; no one had as great an impact as this bandleader/songwriter/producer/studio owner in nearly a half-century of dominance.  But beyond his hometown, Sain gained international respect and admiration for his distinctive sound as an alto saxophonist/multi-instrumentalist.
 
Yes, he wrote material for which others (Fontella Bass, Ann Peebles) achieved chart hits, with a telling gift for crafting songs for female vocalists (blues singer Tracy Nelson has been quoted as saying his song “Walk Away” being as fine a lyric ever written for a woman), and always had the best working band St. Louis could boast, but as a soloist in the blues/soul/funk realm, only Maceo Parker is comparable as having such a signature sound and original tone.  His influence on no less than St. Louis native David Sanborn is obvious, and the recordings on St. Louis Breakdown show a master of the studio world framing his great playing over original compositions as well as songs by others that became so transformed by Oliver, his versions are arguably definitive.  Specifically, his stirring, strutting version of ‘Soul Serenade’ was a rallying cry for his fans in our city----his four-note introduction to this King Curtis number would evoke standing ovations and cheers at the shows and club appearances he made throughout his career.
 
We are so proud of making available again the music of Oliver Sain, a man we admired and loved as one does your best of friends.  PERHAPS one day, our city will posthumously recognize this cultural icon; in the meantime, listen to his music, and be amazed and gladdened. Give a listen, and you will understand. 

	1. U Roy - Foundation Skank 2. U Roy - Rhytm Train 3. U Roy - Creation Rebel
	U ROY FOUNDATION SKANK-1971-75 RARE SIDES BY THE DJ ORIGINATOR
	LP $14.99	CD $12.99

“YOU CAN BEAT ME, BUT YOU JUST CAN’T BEAT THE WORD”
   
At this point, U-ROY inhabits a status similar in reggae as Louis Armstrong did in his later years: The unchallenged innovator, so responsible and influential on those who followed his ground-breaking achievements, it’s impossible to imagine how the music of their respective nations would exist without them. Still in full possession of his musical skills and in demand on stages around the world, Jamaica’s greatest DJ has received his nation’s highest cultural award, The Order Of Distinction, in the rank of Officer. As one of the most enduring of Jamaican artists, his influence extends to non-reggae forms; as Leroy Pierson noted in the liner notes for Foundation Skank: 1971-1975 Rare Sides by the DJ Originator, 
 
“To the extent that Hip Hop owes a debt to Jamaican music, that debt is owed equally to U Roy.”
 
This is our second release by U Roy on our label devoted to Jamaican music, Sound System (the first, The Lost Album: Right Time Rockers  being rated as ‘essential’ in ‘The Rough Guide To Reggae’), and it gathers the very rarest of his recorded music, almost entirely from releases on his various labels in Jamaica between the years 1971-75.  These include Roy’s personal choices of hits by producers such as Lee Perry, Bunny Lee, and others, transformed by him into dialogues with the top vocalists of that time: Ken Booth, Delroy Wilson, Slim Smith, Dennis Brown, Linval Thompson, and Johnnie Clarke. Top producers were so desirous of having the #1 DJ record for them they readily allowed him use of their best sides, and today these records stand as the equal to Roy’s best work in the 1970s. Anyone who wishes to hear one of the greatest of reggae’s founders in full-flight of his talents should give Foundation Skank a listen; we anticipate there will not be as impressive an example of 70s reggae made available in 2009, and a Grammy Nomination would not be out of place. 
 
Yes, it’s that good----Who Feels It Knows It.

Rick Wood's Concert Diary - Vol. 76

12/13/08 The Wilders, House Concert.  This Kansas City quartet showed up in the late afternoon and didn’t take long to adjust our PA to their particular needs.  They replaced our mics with their own, higher quality mics and moved out the monitor speakers.   Soon after, they changed into vintage clothing to match their vintage instruments- guitar, fiddle, stand-up bass and dobro/banjo/mandolin) right before the guests arrived.  Our December house concert is billed as the Twangfest/KDHX Holiday Party…we had the Christmas tree set up in the corner next to the band.  There was a nice, wholesome, community vibe as a number of KDHX donors were invited and a bunch of people brought their kids. 
 
The best reference point I can come up with for these guys is Red Knuckles And The Trailblazers.&nb

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