Daily Travels: March in Tompkins Square Park

Tompkins Square Rolls Out Line of 78 RPM Discs for Record Store Day

With the recently announced full list of special releases for Record Store Day, it can be difficult for a label to separate themselves from the pack. One way to do it is is to follow Tompkins Square's example - release some 78 r.p.m. discs! Luckily I have a record player that can play at 78 so this will not be an issue for me!

San Francisco-based record label Tompkins Square announces the first in a series of releases in the 78 rpm 10" vinyl format.


The first two will feature previously unreleased recordings from Luther Dickinson (North Mississippi Allstars), and Ralph Stanley. Both 78's will be released as a limited edition of 500 copies on Record Store Day, April 21, 2012.


Luther Dickinson plays medleys of Southern melodies on his 78, including "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah/Beautiful Dreamer" on the A side and "Nobody Knows The Trouble I've Seen/Peace in the Valley" on the B side. Ralph Stanley's 78 features "Single Girl", with "Little Birdie" on the B side.


Tompkins Square owner Josh Rosenthal comments, "A lot of new turntables play 78's, and many 78 collectors listen to their records on modern equipment. Tom Waits, Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe have all recently released 78's. So I thought it would be fun to start a line of them."



The label will also release a white label 45 of Hiss Golden Messenger's "Jesus Shot Me in The Head" from the forthcoming album 'Poor Moon', b/w the unreleased "Jesus Dub," on Record Store Day.

Hiss Golden Messenger's album "Poor Moon" is set for release April 17th, and you can preview the entire album here.

Twenty minutes of love In Tompkins Square

Geordie from Konk just posted this fantastic live video of the band tearing it up in Tompkins Square Park in 1986. It's an epic twenty (!) minute version of "Love Attack."



In keeping with the live, eighties, LES vibe, visit EV Grieve for some excellent footage of a crowd enjoying themselves at a 1981 Tompkins Square concert featuring Pierce Turner, Essential Bop, Liquid Liquid, Science, and Certain General.