The Joy of 45 Collecting: Lost 45 Tunes Not Available from iTunes, Spotify, or Similar Services
Jukebox "Snippet" 45s: Chronological List of Site Additions
As I add 45s to our inventory, I pick select 45s to highlight with mp3 "snippets" so you can hear the music yourself. I only record "snippets" of tunes I particularly like, ones I think have been under-played and under-appreciated, or ones that are so rare and wonderful I'll never hear them otherwise. For myself, I keep an iTunes playlist of these "snippets," and that playlist is one I listen to most often. These pages chronicle the mp3 "snippets" I've added to our online "jukebox" in reverse chronological order. You can browse the pages to see what was added and when. Click on the blue "Play" button to play the snippet, or click on a song's title to load the page. Many of these 45 records are still for sale, though just as many have been sold. I hope you enjoy perusing these pages as much as I have enjoyed putting them together!
Did it ever occur to you that Billy Ocean sounds like General Johnson (Showmen, Chairmen of the Board)? Me either. But wait till you take a listen to this one! You might think otherwise.
Wonderful two-sider, both sides featuring terrific, seldom heard tunes by Carole King and Gerry Goffin. Classic arrangements. The A side, "Sharing You," is a Gene-Pitneyesque ballad, while this flip is an uptempo rocker similar to his classic "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes."
It's truly amazing that this one missed out on the radio airplay that other, less tuneful Northern Soul/Disco-style hits enjoyed this year. Perhaps it was because the song is melodically similar to Gwen McCrae's huge hit from a few months earlier, "Rockin' Chair." But asked to choose between the two as the better dance number, I'd definitely pick "OooLa La!"
I'm assuming that everyone out there knows the unbelievably classic "Spanish Harlem," either in its first version by Ben E. King or by the amazing version Aretha Franklin recorded a decade later. But I suspect that not many have had the pleasure of this single's B side, so I'm sticking a snippet of it in the jukebox for you. "First Taste of Love" is more uptempo than "Spanish Harlem," features surprising, doo-wop-style backup vocals, and was cowritten by none other than Phil Spector.
Rummage through hundreds of original-issue 45's for $6.00 or less!
Now playing:
Lover Please by Clyde McPhatter
Headin' Out/ Right There by Screamin' A's
These virtual "boxes" are for you folks who only like new, unplayed or pristine Mint 45s.
