Vinyl Me Please Anthology

Indymisanthrope said:
Yeah, I mean if the point of these is "tell a story," as VMP is fond of saying, then the story should be one that can actually be told by the product, IMO. The scope of Blue Note, as has been discussed here ad nauseam, is too broad for what the final product turned out to be. Same for Motown. But if you were telling the story of, say, Rick Rubin? Dave Fridmann? Josh Homme or Mark Lanegan? *That* you can maybe do in 5-6 albums, and if you find somebody who has a strong association with a label, then maybe you can even tell the story of the label through the lens of that individual.
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I think also that the story of a label is the story of various personalities too. I mean how do you tell the story of Berry Gordy through Mowtown albums? Especially a small selection. Similarly with someone like Don Wass and Blue Note?

To take an example of a label I’ve liked a lot of releases by and had a chaotic and exciting history, creation records. The dvd documentary was brilliant and worthwhile and gave a real insight into the time and place. Would a collection of the key creation records albums even hold together, never mind tell that story, even though they are from a broadly similar genre and all from across the U.K. & ireland. No, because while I’d enjoy the albums but it’d fail as a concept.
 
Joe Mac said:
Here’s my take. Record Labels aren’t important. Acts are. Celebrating Blue Note or Stax or Mowtown is bollocks. I only get artist box sets, label ones are senseless cash grabs that put the customer last. I wonder why VMP are there...
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Motown also defines a style, though. Same with Stax. And in a certain era of the label, the artists were marketed together. Sent out on revues, singles marketed to distributors in bundles. With the same set of songwriting teams and session musicians, backup singers, and the frequent interchangeability of these components to make the best song possible, a Motown set can actually be meaningful in demonstrating the contributions of the label. And in terms of the effort in the 60s to get Motown artists recognized and played by mainstream radio and other media, Motown was a force of nature.
 
mcherry said:
Motown also defines a style, though. Same with Stax. And in a certain era of the label, the artists were marketed together. Sent out on revues, singles marketed to distributors in bundles. With the same set of songwriting teams and session musicians, backup singers, and the frequent interchangeability of these components to make the best song possible, a Motown set can actually be meaningful in demonstrating the contributions of the label. And in terms of the effort in the 60s to get Motown artists recognized and played by mainstream radio and other media, Motown was a force of nature.
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But can even an era, never mind that whole story, be effectively told by 6 albums in a box?

Edit: I do get the point that these hit factory labels, where teams of songwriters/session musicians/producers worked on whole groups of releases by different artists, are a bit of different case in terms of having a unifying aesthetic.
 
Joe Mac said:
But can even an era, never mind that whole story, be effectively told by 6 albums in a box?

Edit: I do get the point that these hit factory labels, where teams of songwriters/session musicians/producers worked on whole groups of releases by different artists, are a bit of different case in terms of having a unifying aesthetic.
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I think your point that a single-artist box set tells a much more comprehensive and complete story is definitely a good one. I totally agree with that.

But I think I might prefer the label anthology for the same reason you don't like it. Yes, it can't tell the whole story, but you get a pretty interesting high level snapshot. There's more diversity in a label-centered anthology. It's more of a starting point than an ending point.
 
I think there is a definite era to the whole label thing as @mcherry mentioned. Back in the day, it was the label that did everything but actually perform, but in that era as well, some of those performers were happy to have that.........sign of the times.

That being said and the representation of a label in terms of an "Anthology" release, I found it interesting the take that VMP took, not that the album selections were bad, but it is subject to interpretation. I came across this article a while back because of VMPs release, and I gotta say, I like this "version" of what made Blue Note better than the VMP version.......but again, we all have our preferences.

Needless to say, I've been pecking away at this list as I give them a listen ;)
www.nytimes.com

A History of Blue Note Records in 15 Albums (Published 2019)

The most storied label in jazz turns 80 this year. Hear the music that shaped its legacy.
www.nytimes.com www.nytimes.com
 
botherly said:
I think your point that a single-artist box set tells a much more comprehensive and complete story is definitely a good one. I totally agree with that.

But I think I might prefer the label anthology for the same reason you don't like it. Yes, it can't tell the whole story, but you get a pretty interesting high level snapshot. There's more diversity in a label-centered anthology. It's more of a starting point than an ending point.
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Can I also add that the idea of lots of different artists in one box makes me want to explode like the Incredible Hulk and rip the box into a million tiny smithereens and file the individual albums by the artists...
 
Joe Mac said:
I think also that the story of a label is the story of various personalities too. I mean how do you tell the story of Berry Gordy through Mowtown albums? Especially a small selection. Similarly with someone like Don Wass and Blue Note?

To take an example of a label I’ve liked a lot of releases by and had a chaotic and exciting history, creation records. The dvd documentary was brilliant and worthwhile and gave a real insight into the time and place. Would a collection of the key creation records albums even hold together, never mind tell that story, even though they are from a broadly similar genre and all from across the U.K. & ireland. No, because while I’d enjoy the albums but it’d fail as a concept.
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I understand what you're saying. The part of the Blue Note Anthology I found funny was I've heard Don Was reference Joe Henderson's Mode for Joe (in the podcast and elsewhere) as an important record in the start of his love for Blue Note, but it wasn't in the Anthology.

Also, I now want a Shoegaze Anthology through Creation Records...If VMP did it, the execution would need to be better with more print material and maybe a DVD, but I'd buy a box set of:

My Bloody Valentine - Isn't Anything
Ride - Nowhere
Primal Scream - Screamadelica
Slowdive - Just For A Day
Swervedriver - Mezcal Head
The Boo Radleys - Everything's All Right Forever

(These were off the top of my head, don't kill me if these are readily available or I missed an obvious pick. My knowledge of Shoegaze/Creation is pretty basic hence I'd love an Anthology.)
 
Joe Mac said:
Can I also add that the idea of lots of different artists in one box makes me want to explode like the Incredible Hulk and rip the box into a million tiny smithereens and file the individual albums by the artists...
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lol yes and that's exactly what I did. I just have an empty box sitting on the floor... stupid box, mocking me!
 
Joe Mac said:
But can even an era, never mind that whole story, be effectively told by 6 albums in a box?

Edit: I do get the point that these hit factory labels, where teams of songwriters/session musicians/producers worked on whole groups of releases by different artists, are a bit of different case in terms of having a unifying aesthetic.
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I tend to agree with what I think you're suggesting, which is that 6 albums can't tell much of a story. That was definitely a weakness of the BN Anthology because as much as I love Montara, it's not really a fusion album in the sense that most people mean when they talk about jazz fusion. I posted this a while back, but it seems timely again: I had this Motown Anthology on 3 cassettes back in the 80s. It tells an incredible story of the label with narrated bits integrated into the tracklists. It works because it's not limited to entire albums. It's basically a greatest hits compilation curated to tell a particular story and then they recorded commentary to actually tell (as opposed to imply) the story.

You can stream an updated version of The Motown Story here
 
I see both sides. For every Factory or Creation that truly defined an era there are others that were simply vehicles for distribution. Some labels supported an artist's creativity, but if the label did not occur modern music would relatively remain the same. Others had a huge impact.

I would prefer a career spanning boxset for a single artist to another Trojan Records Greatest Rumprollers. But if there was an SST: The Damaged Years boxset focusing on the early LA hardcore scene I would be interested, even if it only had 1 Black Flag record.
Label anthologies are just easier to do. Why it is done can be for a myriad of reasons, from cash grab to bringing recognition to great acts that may have played an important role in shaping that era.
 
Joe Mac said:
Can I also add that the idea of lots of different artists in one box makes me want to explode like the Incredible Hulk and rip the box into a million tiny smithereens and file the individual albums by the artists...
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The idea of another artist box set makes me want to fall asleep. Like being at a tedious dinner party with Dr Banner, waiting for the Incredible Hulk to turn up and slap on some vinyl.

I get your point but I think it works both ways, in all the artist box sets I have, there are always (at least) a few records that don't get played. The collector in me gets excited for completeness, the accountant in me gets excited if it works out cheaper per record, and I do love the nice boxes, but I'd generally be better off buying individual records. I rarely love all the records an artist makes. Same for a label. But, a box set can give an insight into a label, or artist.

What a label can do is put a different focus on production and recording. The Blue Note example is easiest from a label & artist point of view as well. So many of the artists played on each others records. You had consistency in production with RVG. Wolf & Lion gave the artists freedom to experiment, money to practice and encouraged them to write their own songs, so the label did make a big difference.

I think CTI where known for bringing in strings in their jazz releases in the early 70's, giving a distinct sound. I'm sure there are lot's of other inters testing labels out their for other reasons, but first and foremost, if the selection was of some great albums I would probably buy it regardless of artist or label focus.

@TCell mentioned Screamadelica, that was heavily influenced by the rave scene (written mostly when the band would come in after raves high on E), and the production from Andrew Weatherall. I wonder if an Andrew Weatherall box set would be more interesting than a Primal Scream one?

I would love a copy of Nowhere on vinyl, though.
 
Andy said:
The idea of another artist box set makes me want to fall asleep. Like being at a tedious dinner party with Dr Banner, waiting for the Incredible Hulk to turn up and slap on some vinyl.

I get your point but I think it works both ways, in all the artist box sets I have, there are always (at least) a few records that don't get played. The collector in me gets excited for completeness, the accountant in me gets excited if it works out cheaper per record, and I do love the nice boxes, but I'd generally be better off buying individual records. I rarely love all the records an artist makes. Same for a label. But, a box set can give an insight into a label, or artist.

What a label can do is put a different focus on production and recording. The Blue Note example is easiest from a label & artist point of view as well. So many of the artists played on each others records. You had consistency in production with RVG. Wolf & Lion gave the artists freedom to experiment, money to practice and encouraged them to write their own songs, so the label did make a big difference.

I think CTI where known for bringing in strings in their jazz releases in the early 70's, giving a distinct sound. I'm sure there are lot's of other inters testing labels out their for other reasons, but first and foremost, if the selection was of some great albums I would probably buy it regardless of artist or label focus.

@TCell mentioned Screamadelica, that was heavily influenced by the rave scene (written mostly when the band would come in after raves high on E), and the production from Andrew Weatherall. I wonder if an Andrew Weatherall box set would be more interesting than a Primal Scream one?

I would love a copy of Nowhere on vinyl, though.
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Honestly I’d just rather no box sets. I stand by label ones making less than no sense to me. Artist ones I understand. But really, just let me buy the records.
 
Joe Mac said:
Honestly I’d just rather no box sets. I stand by label ones making less than no sense to me. Artist ones I understand. But really, just let me buy the records.
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I think I would agree with that. Generally it is package some crap with something good to sell more stuff.

EDIT - I suppose I just don't see the difference with Artist, label or producer boxes
 
Andy said:
I think I would agree with that. Generally it is package some crap with something good to sell more stuff.

EDIT - I suppose I just don't see the difference with Artist, label or producer boxes
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A label or producer box on my shelf makes no sense. It drives my ocd insane. At least with artist boxes they’re a chronological collection of a point in their career so it files well!
 
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