Another place to Listen to Vinyl Voyage

Vinyl Voyage is now available on Longtail.fm!

This is a great site with a wide variety of internet music stations, including Vinyl Voyage Radio. Plus, there are opportunities to listen to some other stations as well, especially if you are tired of the Pandora and Spotify models. These are real stations run by real people. Give it a listen.

The Best Vinyl is back!

We hope you enjoyed 2016 Vinyl Christmas. We are back to playing the most eclectic mix of music on the internet, 24/7!

What K-Tel Album Should be Featured in February?

I am at a loss:  with so many K-Tel albums to choose for February's edition of Adventures in Vinyl, I am not sure what to pick.

Therefore, I am leaving it up to you.  Vote below for the K-Tel album you would like to hear on February's edition of Adventures in Vinyl. (vote below)

Super Bad (1973): Isaac Hayes, Joe Tex, Millie Jackson, Staple Singers, James Brown
Hit Machine (1976):  KC & the Sunshine Band, Frankie Valli, Elton John, Kiss, War, Rick Springfield
Hot Lights & City Nights (1979): Jacksons, Village People, Sister Sledge, Blondie, Instant Funk
Pure Rock (1981): ZZ Top, Pat Benatar, Foreigner, Heart, Eddie Money, Styx, Foghat

Online Surveys & Market Research

Vinyl Voyage is Live and Commercial Free During the Day

Starting today, the Vinyl Voyage will be live and commercial free, streaming the best music on vinyl throughout the day.  Perfect for listening at work.  Growing up during the 70s and 80s, I have a large record collection, so most of the music will be from those eras---with a few new modern hits thrown in as well.  We offer an eclectic mix of the best tunes from the last several decades plus deep tracks, rarities and oldies as well.  And we are constantly adding to our collection.  You never know what might end up on the Vinyl Voyage turntable.

Give us a listen.

Let us know what you think.

On the Turntable Today

Tonight, we will be an encore broadcast of Mix Tape Memories, Episode 1.  This mix is called "Many Songs #4" from 1986 and includes such 80s bands as Oingo Boingo, Tones on Tail and R.E.M.

Broadcast begins at 8 pm CT.

Join us for this nostalgic trip back to the mid-80s--commercial free.

Mix Tape Memories---First Show TONIGHT!

Just a few weeks ago, I collected two boxes labeled, "cassettes" from my basement.

And these boxes were full of.....you guessed it, old cassette tapes. Hundreds of them. Many of them old mix tapes spanning the last thirty or so years.

Mix tapes. What a concept---a concept that is completely lost on this new generation of kids who know only their iPods. Kids don't make mixes for each other. They create playlists, to be sure. But these are not necessarily designed to share. The mix tape was a collective art form. Mix tapes were meant to share. They were meant to be heard by more than just the person who put it together. There was a certain amount of pride that went into the mix tapes we created. Mix tapes given as gifts contained cryptic messages in the form of songs, and much agonizing thought went into the creation of these.

I pulled out an old Walkman and listened to some of my tapes. The tapes reflect me at certain times in my life. A diary told through song.  Listening to these tapes brought back memories of sitting in the bus, of driving to a friend's house, of parties, of driving alone through the neighborhood late at night.

So that gave me an idea....

I want to share my tapes again. Tonight at 9 pm Central will be the first installment of "Mix Tape Memories." It will air every Friday night, live and commercial free. I will play one of my many mix tapes all the way through and comment a little on the songs and the history. So join us. But catch the stream early, since we are going live and without commercials, there are fewer "slots" available. But don't worry. If you miss it, you can catch it at a different time. The schedule can be found here.

On tap tonight is "Many Songs #4." I know, not a very creative title. In fact, most of my early mix tapes are simply numbered. But that's alright, it's the music that matters.

Oingo Boingo. R.E.M. Tones on Tail. David Bowie. Depeche Mode. Boomtown Rats. B-52s. Jethro Tull.

And Grand Funk Railroad?

Yes, that's the glory of Mix Tapes. You never know what to expect.

Mix Tape Memories can be heard Friday nights at 9 pm central only on the Vinyl Voyage.

Thank You Benny Mardones

This is Benny Mardones

I know nothing about Benny Mardones. Nothing. I don't know any albums. I don't know if he still makes music. I don't know if he ever was a member of a band. Until recently, I had no idea what he looks like. And I don't know any of his songs. Except, that is, for one.

That song is "Into the Night." It originally came out in 1980 but was rereleased in 1989. Both times it made the charts; one of the few times a single song had made the charts for the same recording. It happened with the Righteous Brothers and their song "Unchained Melody" and also Chubby Checkers made the charts twice with "The Twist." So this is quite a feat for Mr. Mardones.

I first heard "Into the Night" sometime in the early 80s. And the thing that I remember about hearing the song for the first time was that I thought it was Steve Perry. At that time, I was a huge Journey fan (and, frankly, still like the band an awful lot. Old Journey. Not the new Journey) and believed "Into the Night" was either a new Journey song I hadn't heard or solo Steve Perry. I quickly discovered that it was not a new new Steve Perry song; I would have to wait a couple of years for "Oh Sherrie." And it wasn't Journey.

It was some dude named Benny.

Nonetheless, I bought the 45. Played it for awhile and put it away. Occasionally, I hear the song on the radio and still think to myself, "Man, that guy sounds like Steve Perry." And then I feel sorry for Benny Mardones. I think I should probably know more about him.

I still have that 45. I dusted it off recently and placed it on the turntable after spending a ridiculously long time looking for one of those annoying 45 adapters. Through the crackle and the pops of the old 45, "Into the Night" reignited memories that only vinyl can. Sure, music has a tremendous ability to spark memories---but music played on its original source with the tactile experience of pulling the record from the sleeve and gently placing it on the turntable, perhaps wiping away the dust. Lifting the tone arm and setting it gently on the shiny rim of the jet black vinyl. Hearing the initial crackle and pop as the needle sets itself into the groove. That's a complete sensory experience that goes beyond the song. And it is a powerful memory reclaimer.

So there I was, a man in my 40s, sitting in my basement and feeling again like a 14 year old kid.  And that was cool.

Thank you Benny Mardones. Whoever you are.



This video features Benny Mardones and the song "Into the Night." Check out that tie. I had that tie in high school.

"Into the Night" is now streaming on The Vinyl Voyage from the original 45.