Miles Davis’ earliest masterpiece Birth Of The Cool gets the royal treatment with a new Tone Poet Vinyl Edition to be released by Blue Note Records on May 22 in celebration of the legendary trumpeter’s Centennial. Produced by Joe Harley, the album was mastered by Kevin Gray directly from the original analog phono reel master tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl at Record Technology Inc. (RTI), and packaged in a deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket featuring session photos by William... Read More

Despite its stature today as one of the greatest and most influential records in rock history, Pet Sounds was kind of a rush job. In late 1965 Brian Wilson met jingle writer/lyricist Tony Asher at an L.A. recording studio and shortly thereafter the two began writing the songs. By April it had mostly been completed. Considering the complexity of the compositions, arrangements and production, that's an impressive feat in such a short time. It was also expensive,... Read More

Blue Note Records announces the April 24 release of a special Tone Poet Vinyl Edition of The Complete ‘Round About Midnight At The Cafe Bohemia by trumpeter Kenny Dorham. Produced for release by Joe Harley, the 3-LP vinyl set is all-analog and cut directly from Rudy Van Gelder’s original master tapes by Kevin Gray. Pressed on 180g vinyl at RTI, the LPs come packaged in a deluxe tip-on trifold jacket which includes a booklet with never-before-seen photos by Francis... Read More

Two weeks ago, Record Store Day announced the list of special releases for independent record shops on Saturday, April 18. The past few years have been mostly underwhelming aside from archival jazz releases, but the 2026 RSD list is easily the best since 2020. Sure, there are still needless 7”’s of album tracks, Doors cash grabs, and zoetrope picture discs, though thankfully that’s balanced out by interesting archival projects and reissues of deserving albums that haven’t already been reissued to death. Without further ado, here’s our guide to some Record Store Day 2026 releases worth seeking out.

Toneoptic manufactures a really neat rotatable wall hanging rotatable record rack that I wrote about some years ago at my previous endeavor. You can show your records by the spines as is typical, or you can easily rotate the whole thing and display them record store like, jackets forward. Not cheap, but efficacious. Now the company has something new that's less expensive but still not IKEA priced but they appear to be beautifully designed and well manufactured... Read More

Los Angeles — January 21, 2026 — In the mid-1970s, the unexpected success of two back-to-back Top 10 greatest hits albums pushed The Beach Boys toward their early surf-and-cars past, fueling hits-laden nostalgia tours at sold-out stadiums and arenas across the U.S. Amidst this era, America’s Band, led by Brian Wilson’s return to songwriting and producing, quietly made some of the rawest, unexpected, and most emotionally exposed studio recordings of their career at... Read More

MAPLE GROVE, MN (January 28, 2026) – Sumiko, a leader in analog audio innovation, today announced the launch of the Oriole Phono Cartridge, a new benchmark in high-performance sound positioned between the company’s acclaimed Songbird and Starling models. Crafted in Japan, the Oriole Phono Cartridge delivers elevated musical detail and dynamic accuracy through a nude Shibata stylus and low-impedance generator rated at 5.5Ω (0.3mV output). These refinements reduce... Read More

Frank Sinatra’s classic 1956 Capitol Records album Songs For Swingin’ Lovers! will be reissued in Blue Note’s acclaimed Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl Series on March 27 marking the album’s 70th anniversary. Produced for release by Joe Harley, the new Tone Poet Vinyl Edition was mastered by Kevin Gray from the original analog master tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl at Record Technology Inc. (RTI), and comes packaged in a deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket featuring session photos... Read More

Hana cartridge importer Musical Surroundings and the Excel Sound Corporation/YouTek Partnership launched Hana's new $11,500 Umami Black cartridge at the Hana G-6 Summit/Hana Umami California Fest last October 7-10. Excel Sound cartridge designer Masihiro Okada and YouTek's Hiroshi Ishihara joined Musical Surroundings Garth Leerer who hosted the event that included distributors and journalists from around the world. While the celebration wasn't intended... Read More

LOS ANGELES – Rhino High Fidelity (Rhino Hi-Fi), the limited-edition audiophile vinyl reissue series, returns with two albums that helped reframe rock at the dawn of the 1970s: The Stooges’ Fun House and the Velvet Underground’s Loaded. Each album was cut from the original master tapes by Kevin Gray and pressed on 180-gram black vinyl at Optimalin Germany. Both releases feature glossy gatefold packaging with “tip-on” jackets and newly written liner notes. They are... Read More

David Bowie fans not from New Jersey first became familiar with musical comedian "Uncle" Floyd Vivino from the reference in Bowie's song "Slip Away" (originally called "Uncle Floyd") from the 2002 album Heathen. Bowie's first encounter with Vivino was at The Bottom Line in New York, when he attended an "Uncle Floyd" performance at the club at the suggestion of John Lennon who also was a fan as was Iggy Pop.Much like... Read More

(January 21, 2026 - Los Angeles, CA) Tentative Decisions: Demos & Live offers an unprecedented look at Talking Heads’ earliest years. Arriving March 6 from Talking Heads and Rhino, the 3CD collection charts the rapid evolution of the original trio—David Byrne, Chris Frantz, and Tina Weymouth—through a trove of newly unearthed demos and live recordings.

Analogue Productions announced this box set reissue earlier in the month and we missed it. This is an essential Miles set. Here is the press release: One of Analogue Productions' most successful and collectible projects has been the Miles Davis Quintet/The Great Prestige Recordings deluxe box set on 33 1/3 LP. Now, that beautiful five-album set is being reintroduced. Featuring a 12" x 12" 12-page gorgeous booklet, packaged with the LPs (each housed in a... Read More

Analogue Productions unveils a new partnership with Rhino Records for 2026 and beyond: The Acoustic Sounds 40th Anniversary Series. Building on the success of the Analogue Productions Atlantic 75 Series, Analogue Productions and Rhino have partnered once again to bring iconic recordings from Warner Music Group’s storied catalog to vinyl, pressed at Quality Record Pressings (QRP) in Salina, Kansas.Beginning this January, the series will deliver two meticulously... Read More

When I traveled by train to Kyiv earlier this month as part of a small group invited by the Transatlantic Dialogue Center, I stocked up on a headlamp, power bank for my iPhone and various other sundries in anticipation of blackouts and nights in a bomb shelter. While blackouts up to 16 hours have become routine thanks to incessant Russian bombings (many buildings have their own diesel generators) that have targeted the Ukrainian energy sector, I was surprised to... Read More

Blue Note announced these three new titles that can be made public today and a bunch that have to wait a while: Jan. 23: Julian Lage - Scenes from Above, Jan. 30: Joel Ross - Gospel Music, Feb. 6: Ron Carter & Ricky Dillard - Sweet, Sweet Spirit. The first two will have immediate vinyl releases. The Ron Carter coming on vinyl "down the road".Julian Lage Scenes From Above Guitar virtuoso Julian Lage returns with his 5th Blue Note release, Scenes From... Read More

Los Angeles – December 17, 2026 – Verve Label Group and UMe, the centralized global catalog division of Universal Music Group (UMG), are thrilled to announce the 2026 continuation of their acclaimed Acoustic Sounds Series, their audiophile vinyl reissue program presenting definitive editions of essential albums from the Verve and Impulse! Records catalogs. The 2026 slate places a special spotlight on landmark Impulse! Records sessions and classic Verve titles spanning... Read More

The Los Angeles & Orange County Audio Society holds its annual Gala the first Sunday of December at a Buena Park California hotel not far from Knott's Berry Farm and Disneyland. Awards are handed out and there's a raffle held to benefit the Society, with tens of thousands of dollars worth of audio related prizes donated by manufacturers and retailers.This year's prestigious Founder's Award went to Dave and Sheryl Lee Wilson, the couple that... Read More