Record Store Day 2016

One of my favorite weekends of the year has just come and gone and what a weekend it was. I'm talking about Record Store Day which is held on the third Saturday of every April, a celebration of the independent record store. This is a weekend I always save up for starting right after Christmas, and thank goodness I do that as I did spend a pile of money. Not only is it RSD but here in Edmonton, the following day is the Music Collectors show.

So my Saturday started with lining up outside of Blackbyrd Myoozik at 8am, store opened at 10am, I was about twentieth in line by that time. Word was that the first person in line had been there since 5:45am. So a two hour line up for me. By the time the store opened I would estimate about a hundred plus people lined up.

Glad I lined up as I got pretty much everything I was hoping to get and then some. Ya, some of the RSD stuff is over priced, but with the Canadian dollar being what it is, it's no surprise. But at least most of the Record Store Day releases are very limited pressings, so it's worth it the long run. And this one very busy day for the record shops is usually a good way to keep the store afloat after a slow few months after Xmas.

And with record stores disappearing in Edmonton here, you have to get out and support these independent record shops. Record Store Day used to be an all day thing for me, but this year I was done by 10:45. It was only last year that there were three different record stores I would go to within walking distance of my home. This year, only one and that is Blackbyrd Myoozik. In the last year Sound Connection and Permanent Records have both closed there doors, and in the last five years you can add Octopus Ink and Southside Sound, again all within walking distance. I miss being able to make a day of record shopping and seeing local bands play Permanent Records all day. So things were done early for me on this day, which gave me time to go home and listen to all my new purchases.

After Blackbyrd closed they held an after party in the back alley behind the store featuring the local punk band at No Problem.

Here is a list of what I picked up on Record Store Day 2016. Good times!!!

Because I lined up early I was lucky and managed to snag a copy of this years Mystery Single which is a seven inch single which is part of the Side By Side series that they do every RSD. The cover is just black and you don't know what two bands will be on it. The series is always the original song by the band then covered by another band on the B Side.

This years single featured the MC5 song "Rocket Reducer No.62 (Rama Lama Fa Fa Fa)" with The Melvins covering it on the B Side, very cool.

* Shawn Colvin & Steve Earle seven inch single. Limited edition of 2000.

* Bob Dylan seven inch EP “Melancholy Mood” that was released as a limited edition 7” vinyl EP for Bob Dylan's recent Japanese tour. This was something that really made me want to line up early and get. It features four songs from his upcoming album Fallen Angels. This is on red vinyl and limited to 7000 copies.

* Another seven inch single in the Side By Side series, this one with the Bee Gees song "Started A Joke", and on the B Side Faith No More covering the song. This FNM version was originally on their 1995 album King For A Day... Fool For A Lifetime. This too is a limited edition release of 5500 on mint green vinyl.

* Also got the Brian Fallon solo (Brian also sings for Gaslight Anthem) ten inch three song EP called Georgia. Limited pressing of 2000.

* Another album I picked up which I have ever only had on CD was the Soul Asylum album Grave Dancers Union. This too is a limited pressing of 3800 and the album is numbered, mine being number 2430. This too is on coloured vinyl, very sharp looking.

* Finally got myself my very first Runaways album, this one being the album And Now... The Runaways. This is a limited pressing of 1000 copies.

* Picked up Volume 2 of the Tom Petty - Kiss My Amps Live. This album features some deep tracks from Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers 2013 tour. Limited edition of 7500 copies.

* The last Record Store Day special album I picked up is the Blitzen Trapper album Field Rexx that was originally released in 2004, has now been remastered and available for the first time on vinyl. This too was a limited edition release of 1500 copies.

I also picked up a few albums that I have wanted that weren't RSD releases. Blackbyrd had all their stock on for 20% off, so I got Joel Plaskett's Scrappy Happiness vinyl and Lucero's album Tennessee. So I got lots of new music to listen to on this very successful Record Store Day. Good times!!!