The subsidiary labels within the Cherry Red family aren’t shy of mining the mod, soul and freakbeat archives in the name of a great compilation. The now defunct RPM issued a string of box sets, beginning with 2011’s ‘Looking Back’ and culminating with 2016’s ‘Looking Stateside’ which became a pleasingly comprehensive journey through an alternative 60s, and Strawberry Records’ similarly structured ‘Halcyon Days’ and its timely delivered follow up ‘I Love To See You Strut’ – issued in 2020 and 2022, respectively – proved equally essential.
Author Archives: Real Gone
THE REAL GONE SINGLES BAR: A NEW YEAR’S EVE LOCK IN 2023
After launching the Real Gone Singles Bar in June 2023, we found ourselves covering an even broader range of music than before. It became a natural home for anything that mightn’t see a follow up album, or music that, perhaps, might not lead to a full review. The popular feature also became an easy way to introduce people to new music, and our inbox became very busy. Naturally, by limiting the feature to eight tracks per week, not everything made the cut. In fairness, not everything deserved to, but we heard a lot of stuff that was too good to not share.
JOHN DUNBAR – What A Difference Indifference Makes
John Dunbar is a busy man. Between the beginning of 2020 and the end of 2023, he released two solo albums filled with retro pop, another two as a member of The John Sally Ride – a similar sounding pop outfit fond of humorous song titles (‘See Emily Work’, ‘Sheena Is A Prog Rocker’, ‘I Won’t Let Failure Go To My Head’) – and two more as Elvis Eno, exploring more experimental lo-fi work. Despite six albums and a bunch of one off singles appearing within a four year period, chances are, his name still isn’t familiar to you.
Listen: A Phone Call From Oliver Reed (A Real Gone Sampler 2023)
The year end “sampler” has long been one of our year end traditions at Real Gone. Although in recent years, the sampler has taken the form of an online stream as opposed to a traditional download, we’ve continued to receive good feedback about the annual project, and still managed to introduce people to things they missed throughout the previous twelve months.
THE REAL GONE SINGLES BAR #32
Welcome back to the Real Gone Singles Bar, the place where we dip into the various individual tracks and mp3s that have landed in our inbox over the previous few weeks. As 2023 draws to a close, the tunes are still coming. This week, we’ve got a second track from a great singer songwriter, a couple of strong pop punk bits, and the return of the legendary Michael Des Barres. It’s a slightly rockier selection this time around, but we hope you’ll find something of interest.
Do you have a new or recent single you feel would be suitable for inclusion in a future Singles Bar? We’re always on the lookout for new material, so please don’t hesitate to get in touch via the contact button at the top of our home page!
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