Record Store Day’s 2023 Black Friday Exclusives Include a Bigger Dose of Classic Hip-Hop, Along With Rare Gram Parsons, Joni Mitchell and More
Record Store Day has announced a lineup of more than 170 exclusive titles for its annual Black Friday event this fall, with the “black” almost being a misnomer for this particular Nov. 24, 2023 rollout — given the amount of purple, gold, red, blue, green, marble, clear and splatter-colored vinyl variants on the list.
The number of classic hip-hop titles on the list shows clear evidence of Record Store Day’s and participating labels’ interest in celebrating the 50th anniversary of the genre with an abundance of product, a pretty strong correction after years in which there were fewer hip-hop RSD releases than vinyl-loving fans of the genre might have liked. Among those with reissues or collections being released as exclusives or “RSD First” items are Dr. Dre, Lil Wayne, Nas, De La Soul, Madly, Schooly D, Three 6 Mafia, Digital Underground, Czarface, C-BO, Yungblud, Souls of Mischief, Spice 1, four Tuff City hip-hop compilations and the “Judgment Night” soundtrack.
More from Variety
Olivia Rodrigo, SZA, Nicki Minaj to Headline iHeart's Jingle Ball Tour
Olivia Rodrigo and Sony Electronics to Release Special 'LinkBuds S' Headphones
Ticketmaster Attempts to Block Olivia Rodrigo Scalpers With 72-Hour Rule
All told, about 175 exclusives are coming out in indie stores on the day after Thanksgiving, about half the number that appear annually for the main April event.
The lineup includes some names that are new to Record Store Day, like rising stars Kim Petras and Noah Kahan. But there are plenty of the familiar names whose vault releases have drawn crowds to stores for RSD events in the past, like the Grateful Dead, the Doors, Bill Evans and Prince.
The lineup includes previously unreleased live albums from Gram Parsons and Ahmad Jamal, rare or unreleased studio material from Joni Mitchell and Los Lobos, hits sets from Post Malone and the Jonas Brothers and boxed sets from Bo Diddley and War, among other highlights.
The full list of titles can be found on the RSD website here.
Genre-wise, jazz as well as hip-hop are definitely giving classic rock a run for its money in representation at the fall event this year. Here are a few items to look for, sorted by genre, picked out from the full list of roughly 175:
CONTEMPORARY
Noah Kahan, “Cape Elizabeth EP,” 5000 copies. The suddenly red-hot singer-songwriter reissues a five-song EP from 2020 on marble vinyl.
Kim Petras, “Problématique,” 3500 copies. The first vinyl edition of a recent digital release of what had been planned to be her debut album for Amigo Records, leaked and then shelved. On red vinyl.
Aimee Mann, “Dead Eyes,” 1000 copies. The 7-inch single premieres a previously unreleased track, “Dead Eyes” — inspired by Conor Ratliff’s podcast — with a demo version on the B-side.
Margo Price, “Strays (Live At Grimey’s),” 2000 copies. The seven-song set was recorded at a day-of-release in-store performance of songs from “Strays” at Nashville’s most beloved shop on Jan. 13 of this year. On sangria marble vinyl.
Norah Jones, “Playing Along,” 3000 copies. Includes excerpts from Jones’ podcast, in which she collaborates with other artists. On sea-blue vinyl.
Joan Jett, “Mindsets,” 2900 copies. Joan Jett and the Blackhearts rock through six brand new originals and throw in live versions of those tracks.
Billy Strings featuring Willie Nelson, “California Sober,” 5000 copies. The two stars’ April duet gets its first physical issue, with, on the flip side, Strings’ cover of Nelson’s “Whiskey River,” with which he opened both all-star tributes to Nelson at the Hollywood Bowl that same month. Because it’s weed-themed, naturally, it’s on green vinyl.
HITS SETS
Post Malone, “The Diamond Collection,” 10,000 copies. This came out in other formats earlier this year, but arrives now on clear vinyl in a jacket customized for the occasion.
Jonas Brothers, “The Family Business,” 3500 copies. Another hits set from earlier this year getting an LP debut on clear vinyl.
CLASSIC ROCK
Joni Mitchell, “Court and Spark Demos,” 6300 copies. Her recent CD boxed set included a wealth of many dozens of tracks from the mid-’70s; culled from it is this more specific LP of raw material prepared in advance of the bestselling album of her career.
Los Lobos, “Kiko (30th Anniversary Deluxe Edition).” The long original album has been spread across two LPs for better fidelity, with a third disc of never-before-released demos.
INXS, “Shabooh Shoobah Rarities,” 3500 copies. A new collection of 11 B-sides, remixes and live performances from the period of the band’s 1982 breakthrough album.
Grateful Dead, “Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA 3/2/1969,” 7500 copies. Are fans down for another five-LP set encompassing a single show from their first classic era? Of course they are.
Faces, “Had Me A Real Good Time… With Faces! In Session & Live at the BBC 1971-1973.” A two-LP set of in-studio U.K. radio performances from Rod, Rod, Ronnie and company.
The Doors, “Live in Bakersfield,” 7500 copies on LP, 12,500 copies on CD. One of the few titles to be getting a compact disc as well as vinyl edition for the day.
CLASSIC COUNTRY
Willie Nelson, “Shotgun Willie” (50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition). Includes a second disc of outtakes and alternates, never before issued on vinyl.
Gram Parsons and the Fallen Angels, “The Last Roundup: Live from the Bijou Café in Philadelphia, March 16th 1973,” 7500 copies. The soundboard tape of this show is said to have sat unnoticed for 40 years, then acquired by Amoeba for release, then lost again for 10 years until it was rediscovered as the famous Hollywood store moved shop during the pandemic. Includes a poster of Parsons and a cover photo of the singer and his collaborator in this 50-year-old set, Emmylou Harris.
CLASSIC R&B AND BLUES
Bo DIddley, “I’m A Man: Chess Masters, 1955-1958,” 900 copies. Jack White’s Third Man label is putting out a four-LP set of Diddley’s complete Chess studio recordings, with an exclusive RSD variant on silver flake vinyl. It is expected to come out more widely in a standard black-vinyl edition, but this will be the collectible.
Prince, “Gett Off!,” 7000 copies. A recreation of a rare one-sided promo 12” (only 1500 copies originally pressed) that included a 10-minute version of the song that introduced his New Power Generation era.
War, “The World Is A Ghetto (50th Anniversary Collector’s Edition),” 2000 copies. The bestselling album of 1973 is commemorated in a five-LP set full of alternate takes and “reimaginings” from the original sessions.
HOLIDAY
My Morning Jacket, “Happpy Holiday!,” 5000 copies. First time on vinyl, with three new songs added for the occasion.
The Beach Boys’ Christmas Album,” 7000 copies. Hardly the first time on vinyl, but you need it in green, no?
Sia, “Everyday Is Christmas (Snowman EP),” 7,000 copies. The pop singer-songwriter had one of the best Christmas albums of recent decades, and this EP includes the hit off that album as well as five songs that were appended a year later to a deluxe edition but never came out on vinyl… until this red and white splatter vinyl issue.
CLASSIC HIP-HOP
Lil Wayne, “I Am Music,” 5000 copies. His first greatest hits set includes a recent single, “Kant Nobody (feat. DMX)” produced by Swizz Beatz, among its 18 tracks on two LPs. On translucent ruby vinyl.
Schoolly-D, “Get On Down.” His 1985 debut gets a fresh pressing in a yet-unspecified color.
Three 6 Mafia,” Da Unbreakables,” 2000 copies. Their sixth and biggest album comes back into print with a color pressing, also unspecified.
Nas, “I AM… Autobiography,” 4100 copies. Details to come. But, he is.
Dr. Dre, “The Chronic,” 1500 copies. This is the only item for this RSD only coming out on CD, not LP. It will be packaged in a longbox — remember those? no? — with custom rolling papers included.
De La Soul, “3 Feet High and Rising,” 3500 copies. The trio’s debut album is being packaged as a set of a dozen 7-inch singles, on splatter vinyl in custom sleeves, with a pin-up poster and a special turntable slipmat.
Digital Underground, “The Body-Hat Syndrome (30th Anniversary),” 2500 copies. The rap group’s third album never came out on vinyl except in Italy; it makes its global LP premiere with this.
JAZZ
Bill Evans, “Tales: Live In Copenhagen (1964),” 3650 copies. Elemental has a previously unreleased trio recording laid down in ’64, with the usual copious liner notes- and photo-filled packaging from the label.
“Gil Evans & Ten (Mono Edition),” 4250 copies. The 1957 studio classic has been remastered by Kevin Gray with lacquers cut from the original master tapes.
Ahmad Jamal, “Emerald City Nights: Live At The Penthouse (1966-1968),” 2300 copies. Zev Feldman’s Jazz Detective label has rescued another unreleased set of Jamal material from Seattle’s Penthouse jazz club from the vault, with printed interviews with his pianist contemporaries on what made Jamal great.
Les McCann, “Never A Dull Moment! Live From Coast To Coast (1966-1967),” 2500 copies. Resonance dips into the same Seattle Penthouse archives used for the Jamal set, but with additional recordings from the Village Vanguard, spread across three LPs.
Charles Mingus, “Incarnations,” 3000 copies. Previously unreleased studio material from Mingus and his band (including Eric Dolphy) in 1960 adds up to “the Mingus masterpiece nobody knew they were missing,” cut to disc by Bernie Grundman.
Wes Montgomery, “Maximum Swing: The Unissued 1965 Half Note Recordings,” 3000 copies. Unreleased material laid down at the Half Note jazz club in New York, accompanied by Resonance’s usual large and luscious booklet.
Cal Tjader, “Catch the Groove: Live at the Penthouse (1963-1967),” 2000 copies. The Penthouse was a busy place in the 1960s.
Oscar Peterson Trio, “Con Alma: The Oscar Peterson Trio — Live in Lugano, 1964,” 2000 copies. Peterson’s classic trio with Ray Brown and Ed Thigpen captured five years into their collaboration.
Chico Hamilton, “The Master (50th Anniversary Edition),” 2000 copies. The soul-jazz classic on Stax had Lowell George and Little Feat as players. Remastered with lacquers cut from the original tapes at Take Out Vinyl, on 180g purple marble vinyl.
Chet Baker, “Chet’s Choice,” 2300 copies. A reissue of a studio album from Baker’s final years, in 1985, with five previously unreleased alternate takes and three songs making their debut on vinyl.
Best of Variety
Sign up for Variety’s Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
