Tag: 12″ Single

Kiss – ‘Lick It Up’ (2023) – 40th Anniversary Picture Disc Box Set (The Kiss Review Series)

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic11 Comments

The ‘Lick it Up’ album, which came out on September 23, 1983, garnered way more attention than it’s predecessor ‘Creatures of the Night’ for one main reason. The band finally took off the make-up which is something they had been talking about doing since at least the ‘Music from the Elder’ era. They finally did it and the big reveal was on MTV during primetime. I remember this vividly as this was event TV for me as I was a lifelong Kiss fan at the time (and still am today). I remember seeing each member in make-up and then without and I remember thinking, “PUT IT BACK ON!!! OOOOH THE HORROR!!!” No, it really wasn’t that bad. It was actually pretty cool. And just like that Kiss was back in the public eye and they had some songs that could back it up.

Now, 40 years later, Kiss was rumored to be releasing another Box Set like say ‘Creatures’ or ‘Destroyer’, but those plans were squashed probably due to the fact the other box sets didn’t sell out…but who knows why. Instead they released a new Japanese Edition with a lot of little extras (but no extra discs or music) and a Picture Disc box set for ‘Lick It Up’ that included two 12″ Singles that were picture discs as well. They were limited to 3,000 copies and my copy is 1,729. This was way better than what happened to the Japanese edition which instead of #’s, a lot of them just showed XXXX…man, that would piss me off. The box is a heavy duty cardboard box embossed in silver rather than the white of the original album. It is quite nice.

I have already reviewed ‘Lick It Up’ in great detail which you can click here and read…Kiss – Lick It Up (1983). For this post, we are only going to show off the new picture discs and packaging for the box set. I hope you enjoy.

‘LICK IT UP’ – THE ALBUM

Continue reading “Kiss – ‘Lick It Up’ (2023) – 40th Anniversary Picture Disc Box Set (The Kiss Review Series)” →

Bon Jovi – “Borderline” (1986) – 12″ Single (Japanese Edition) – (The Bon Jovi Collection Series)

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic21 Comments

While I was in New York City a little while back for the Final Kiss Show at Madison Square Garden, my brother and I did hit some shops and I found, not one, but two Japanese Singles from Bon Jovi. These were released back in the 80’s in Japan only and they are in such beautiful shape. I had to have them so I bought them. First up was “Burning for Love” and now we get in to the 2nd Single I found with “Borderline”.

I am not sure the reason behind this Japanese Only release. We are during the ‘Slippery When Wet’ era of the band and they release a 12″ Single for “Borderline” which wasn’t even on the album, only a studio outtake. It doesn’t make quite much sense. The opening track is “Livin’ On A Prayer” from the Slippery album, but why label it as “Borderline”??? Very confusing to me, but I don’t care, it is still a cool piece for the collection. The Japanese audience was always treated with special releases from Bon Jovi and better covers.

Included in the release was a lyric sheet for the songs in both English and Japanese…

Continue reading “Bon Jovi – “Borderline” (1986) – 12″ Single (Japanese Edition) – (The Bon Jovi Collection Series)” →

Bon Jovi – “Burning For Love” (1984) – 12″ Single (Japanese Edition) – (The Bon Jovi Collection Series)

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic21 Comments

While I was in New York City a little while back for the Final Kiss Show at Madison Square Garden, my brother and I did hit some shops and I found, not one, but two Japanese Singles from Bon Jovi. These were released back in the 80’s in Japan only and they are in such beautiful shape. I had to have them so I bought them. First up is “Burning for Love”…

Bon Jovi was becoming huge in Japan after the release of their debut album. To celebrate that success they did a Japanese only single release for the song “Burning For Love” off their debut, ‘Bon Jovi’ album which came out January 23, 1984. And when I say big, it is a relative term as it was their debut and the album did chart at #38 on the Japanese Charts, but they weren’t putting out massive #1 songs yet. They were trying to capitalize further on charting and trying to make a name for themselves. For the 12″ single that was released, it also included a calendar for the first 3 months of 1985.

Continue reading “Bon Jovi – “Burning For Love” (1984) – 12″ Single (Japanese Edition) – (The Bon Jovi Collection Series)” →

Billy Idol – ‘Idol Songs: 11 of the Best’ (1988) – Album Review (The Billy Idol Series)

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic14 Comments

While I was recording a show on Grant’s Rock Warehaus, we were discussing the Billy Idol Chrysalis Years and as I was gathering my vinyl for that show, I realized that I was missing the ‘Idol Songs: 11 of the Best’ from my collection. I could’ve sworn I had bought that one before as I remember holding it in my hand at one time. But, I apparently didn’t buy it. So, I told Grant I would remedy that situation and so I head over to discogs to see if I could get one and what the best one to get. Well, it turned out the best version to get was the UK 1988 version which came with a 12″ Limited 4 Track E.P. exclusive to this set. Sold. I bought it from someone in Sweden and a week later, it was in my hands. It still had the stickers on the front and back cover talking about the 12″ Exclusive 4 Track E.P. and it was in pristine shape.

The album was released on June 20, 1988 on Chrysalis Records and contains 11 tracks from his first three studio albums as well as the E.P. and includes a live version of “Mony, Mony” which wiki says comes from the ‘Don’t Stop’ E.P. but my E.P. does not have a live version, it is the studio track. You can get another limited edition version with 2 bonus tracks, but why do that when you get one like I have with the the 4 bonus tracks. The album went to #2 on the UK Charts and was certified Platinum. I don’t really remember this album here in the States as it came out after Vital Idol and I felt that was pushed way more than this compilation. But I have one now, so all is good. In 2003, they did reissue this album with a different cover and called it ‘Essentials’…I like my version better.

The opening track is the title song “Rebel Yell” which actually opened the ‘Rebel Yell’ album.  It is a scorcher of a song, high energy and attitude.  The opening of the song is all done with the guitar even though it sounds like both a guitar and a keyboard.  Steve is showing off right out of the gate.  Vocally, Billy is on fire and you can see his lip curling up while he is signing which is amazing as it is on vinyl.  “Rebel Yell” was actually inspired by the Rolling Stones according to Billy on VH1 Storytellers.  Billy was at a party thrown by the Stones and everyone was drinking Rebel Yell Bourbon Whiskey.  I guess he loved that whiskey (along with a lot of drugs at the time).

Continue reading “Billy Idol – ‘Idol Songs: 11 of the Best’ (1988) – Album Review (The Billy Idol Series)” →

Def Leppard – “Too Late For Love” (1983) – 12″ Single (The Def Leppard Collection)

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic34 Comments

The final single for the album ‘Pyromania’ was unplanned. “Too Late For Love” would be the fourth single and was released on November 25, 1983. A song that wasn’t going to be a single, but due to the success fo the first three singles, they thought let’s release another one and it went to #9 on the US Mainstream Rock chart, but didn’t hit the Top 40 as no official video was done for it.

The single I have is a 12″ Single and it is also out of the U.K. like the “Photograph” single from last week. However, this I actually found in the wild here in the States so I grabbed it up quickly. You have “Too Late for Love” on one side and the other side has two tracks, “Foolin'” from Pyromania and “High ‘N’ Dry (Saturday Night)” off the ‘High ‘N’ Dry’ album. I’m sure that was done to help drive sales of the prior album…and it worked.

SIDE 1:

Continue reading “Def Leppard – “Too Late For Love” (1983) – 12″ Single (The Def Leppard Collection)” →

The Cult – “Love Removal Machine” – 12″ Single

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic20 Comments

Continuing the saga of all the 12″ Singles I picked up at the big Metalocalypse sell at Noble Records, we are now on a 4 week run of singles from The Cult. First up was from the band’s 1985 album ‘Love’ with “She Sells Sanctuary” and then we took a look at the lead track and third single form the band’s 1987 album ‘Electric’ with the song “Wild Flower”. The 12″ this time around is also off ‘Electric’ and was the first single off the album. The song was “Love Removal Machine” written by both Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy. My copy was still sealed, but since it wasn’t expensive and music should be listened to, it is no longer sealed and it sounds fantastic now that it finally gets to breathe and be heard. I could feel it sigh with relief when I broke the seal. I swear I heard it say softly…”finally”.

The 12″ comes with three tracks. The LP Version of the song as well as an extended version. The third track is “Wolf Child’s Blues” which was not on the album so that is the gem piece for this 12″ Maxi Single. All songs were produced by Rick Rubin and “Wolf Child’s Blues” was actually recorded live in the studio on New Years Eve 1986.

Continue reading “The Cult – “Love Removal Machine” – 12″ Single” →

The Cult – “She Sells Sanctuary” – 12″ Single

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic26 Comments

Continuing the saga of all the 12″ Singles I picked up at the big Metalocalypse sell at Noble Records, we are now on a 4 week run of singles from The Cult. First up is from the band’s album ‘Love’ from 1985. The song is “She Sells Sanctuary” and this is the 12″ Remix release. The original version of the song is not on here, nope. Instead you get two extended mixes of the song and one unreleased track.

All of these were only available on one of their 12″ Single releases which they had a couple. That was until 2009 when the band released a deluxe edition of the album which included all the mixes and unreleased tracks.

The original song did really well and stayed on the Dance Club Chart for about 6 weeks reaching #36 back in 1986. I never thought of The Cult as a dance band, but whatever floats your boat. My only complaint with this 12″ is the back cover. I’m old and my eyes aren’t that great anymore, but the font with songs is really light and very heard to read. I snapped a closer up shot so I can read it and you too…

Let’s get to the music…

Side 1:

As you can see, the sole song on side one is “She Sells Sanctuary (Howling Mix)” which is over 8 minutes long. The howling mix does just that. It has a howling dog at the beginning and several other times in the mix. There isn’t much in the way of vocals as it is mostly music done in more of a dance fashion than anything else. It was remixed by Steve Brown. The song is good if you like that sort of thing, but I’ll stick with Side 2 as that is where the greatness is for this disc.

Side 2:

Side 2 kicks off with the 12″ Mix of of “She Sells Sanctuary” and this one more closely resembles the original song. It has the vocals from Ian Astbury who sings with such confidence and a sound that is unique to him. He is easily recognizable. But it is that guitar work from Billy Duffy that shines on this song. Accompanied by that driving beat from Nigel Preston, which this was his last recording before he was fired, Billy’s gritty metallic guitar sound delivers a killer riff and some cool fills This is the version I’m more familiar with and the extended version just adds to its greatness.

The real gem at the time of this release is the final track which was the unreleased song called “Little Faces”. Ian’s vocals are so melodic and powerful, it has a smoothness to it that lifts the song to another level. Billy’s guitar work is sensational as usual and he lays down a nice solo. I found the song to be worthy of the album and no reason it needed to be left off as it is as good as anything else they have done. I love it when a B-Side track shines and this does brightly.

And there you have it. I hope you enjoyed the look at this little gem…well, a gem to me. Side Two is the winner of the best side as the extended long version of “She Sells Sanctuary” is just as good as the album version. But the real joy is the song “Long Faces” as that is worth price for just this song. My copy is practically mint and I don’t think was played much…that has since changed. We will be back next week with the next The Cult 12″ that we picked up. Thanks for stopping by.

Bon Jovi – “You Give Love A Bad Name” – 12″ Single Promo

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic73 Comments

Back before Christmas, Noble Records here in Charlotte came across an amazing Record Collection that was being sold and it was filled with so many rare and amazing rock and metal albums. He naturally bought it and offered it up in his store in a huge release on December 12, 2020. He called it Metalocalypse or something like that. It was full of great stuff and worth getting up and being in line almost an hour before opening and I was’t alone. I was sadly, about 20th in line and as a result I didn’t get everything I wanted. But there was one thing I saw on his instagram posts and videos that caught my eye and I was able to grab it.

That was a Promotional Copy of Bon Jovi’s single “You Give Love a Bad Name”. Doesn’t sound like a big deal does it? You’d be wrong because this is special for two reasons. First, It has the original banned album cover as the single cover art work. The woman in the wet T-Shirt. Yeah, I’ll take that shot any day. But that wasn’t the only thing cool about it. It was also autographed by Jon Bon Jovi himself. Of course, it is made out to Paul who was the gentlemen that originally had these albums. He owned a record shop back in the 70’s, 80’s and early 90’s as that was the time frame of most of his albums. I am glad that I have one of his pieces and he can be happy it is with a fellow music lover. Paul has since passed away which is the reason the collection was up for sell.

Continue reading “Bon Jovi – “You Give Love A Bad Name” – 12″ Single Promo” →

Ace Frehley – “Bronx Boy” – 12″ Single

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic10 Comments

Back in April 2018, Ace Frehley released his first single from his upcoming (yet unannounced) album.  The day was actually April 27th which was Ace’s birthday…do you think they planned that??  This the first new track since his 2014 album ‘Space Invaders’.  He did have a new album back in 2016, but it was a cover’s album so nothing new there.

The reception of the new music was so great, that a special limited edition 12″ Single has now been released (3 months later).  They had no intentions of releasing a physical copy of the song, but the people spoke and Ace & the record company listened and BAM!!  Physical product.

I was able to pick up one of these Limited Numbered Edition 12″ Singles with the White/Black Marble vinyl.  And they weren’t kidding about being numbered.  I am #3701 out of #4000, I believe.

IMG_1128

The new song “Bronx Boy” is a heavy guitar driven track…what else would you expect, it is Ace “freakin’ Frehley.  There is a raw, grittiness to the song that harkens back to his early days growing up in the Bronx, New York.  The song opens with a quick, nasty guitar riff and jumps right into the vocals describing Ace’s life as a “street kid” and his “street life”.  The vocals are rough and classic Ace which is what is great about the song.  Plus, the guitar solo is what we know and love from the Spaceman and he doesn’t disappoint.

Continue reading “Ace Frehley – “Bronx Boy” – 12″ Single” →

“Screaming in the Night (Live)” by Krokus – Special Promotional 12 Inch

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic13 Comments

In 1986, Krokus released their first live album, ‘Alive  and Screamin” and to celebrate that release they put out a Special Promotional 12″ Single of “Screaming in the Night”.  When I was in New York back in April, I came across this beauty and had to have it.

What attracted it to me was the cover.  It was a variation of the live album’s cover by Les Edwards.  It is so creepy and sinister that it looked perfectly eerie and something I needed in my collection.  The picture is taken from Les Edwards’ painting of ‘The Croglin  Vampire’ and was also used as a bookcover for Best New Horror 1990, edited by Stephen Jones and Ramsey Campbell and published by Robinson, and on Super-Monsters by Daniel Cohen, published by Archway.  Just click on the link if you want to see the original artwork.

IMG_0915

 

The first side of the record you get two versions of “Screaming in the Night”. You get the live version from the live album and then you get the full length studio version (not the radio edit).  The live version sounds incredible.  It captures the magic of the album version and brings a new energy to the song.  The sound is crystal clear and is everything you want in a live song.

For the live album, there are two changes in the line-up.  You now have Tommy Keiser on Bass and Jeff Klaven on drums.  The studio album had Chris von Rohr on Bass and Steve Pace on drums.  Otherwise, you still have Marc Storace on Vocals, Fernando von Arb on Lead Guitar and Mark Kohler on Rhythm Guitar.

IMG_0917

On Side Two you get a live version of “Headhunter” also from ‘Alive and Screamin”.  It is bombastic, loud, and so in your face.  Marc Storace sounds amazing and the band is hitting on all cylinders.  It is  a raucous good time and they are just killing it.

IMG_0918

I also like the fact it is a promotional copy.  It says it on the vinyl labels as well as the little stamp on the back of the album jacket.  All-in-all, I love it and it is a great addition to the collection and another Krokus album is always a good thing (almost always as they didn’t always get it right, but around this time they did).

img_0916.jpg

I hope you enjoyed this look at the 12″ Single and maybe I will have some more coming down the pipeline for you to check out.