ABOUT ME

  After listening to several Oldie related radio stations or shows in the mid to late '80's, I became an avid vinyl record collector. Since my other hobby was electronics, I even built my own Operational Amplifier - Phono Preamplifier, from Walter Jung's plans/design. It was difficult to share my enthusiasm with others, with what I collected, so I tried my hardest to record the best sounding cassette "Metal" tapes, from vinyl sources I felt were superior, and allowed others to hear them as I played them in my car. I received several compliments. That was nice.

 While I found songs, in Stereo, exciting, I found studio chatter/talk, alternate versions/takes, etc., even more exciting. I believe in Goldmine Magazine, I read about a Marcel's LP with the song "Blue Moon", with studio talk. That was my initiation into "Uncommon Recordings".

 Even though I collected those Audiophile, half-speed mastered LPs, they didn't quite sound as exciting as a mint Promotional LP. They sounded too flat, too clean. I even began collecting Audio CDs once they began surfacing in record stores, but was disappointed by the sound, because spent mastered tapes were used for their content. High levels of tape hiss, such as on the first "pressing" of Elton John's Greatest Hits CD, caused me to return the Audio CD Player. I gave up on Audio CDs, until I heard talk of two bootleg CDs of The Beatles material. I asked about these bootleg CDs when visiting a record dealer, and he pulled one out from under the counter. I bought another CD Player just to hear it. Boy, was it impressive sounding! Then, I knew there was hope for this new Audio CD technology.

You might say I left my entire vinyl collection behind, for pennies on a dollar. I continued to buy commercial CDs, but wasn't always excited, since Monophonic sources were used when I knew Stereophonic sources existed. Mastering from vinyl was even more of a disappointed. But when the actual Studio Tapes were discovered and remastered, the sound became more and more exciting. Some "major" labels included Alternate Takes of popular songs with or without studio talk. I found that great.

 What I have compiled on my site is what I have found. While there is more, I try not to duplicate artist entries, or dwell on Elvis Presley or The Beatles, since there's a ton of their "uncommon" material available. Most snippets are from Audio CDs, but a handful from LPs. Most snippets have been tweaked (using Philips SHL9500 headphones, amplified via Jensen JPS 46 speakers) in sound for MP3 binary format, at 96 kb/s, which is adequate for sound quality.

 I'm primarily a Pop Music collector, both national hits and regional (Philly and other) hits. Soul, Rock, Disco, Big Band, it doesn't matter, I collect it all. Although my site is primitive looking and difficult to navigate, it might improve one day. I constructed it for two reason, to share with other collectors what is available, and, hopefully, someone will be impressed and may want to feature it on a FM commercial radio station, in New Jersey or Pennsylvania. I'm not looking for money, just a little credit for my research (and money spent). It's kind of late in the game, since commercial stations are phasing out the "oldies" music that once made this country great and strong. That's sad.

 I wish I could I say I have it all, but that would be a lie. If you know of something that might fit well on this site, please let me know about it. I'll give you credit. I prefer not to provide source information, until I get these "Uncommon Recordings" aired.

Who might benefit from this site? Song Writers, Music Columnists, Music Collectors, Record Companies and Radio Stations, to name a few. Thank You for visiting!

 Enjoy,
 John