Tag: US

July 7, 2026

Rob Base – Turn It Out (Go Base) (US 12″) (1989)

Burning The Ground Exclusive

Remembering Rob Base.

“Turn It Out (Go Base)” was the first single taken from Rob Base’s 1989 solo album The Incredible Base, released on Profile Records. Coming off the huge success of It Takes Two with DJ E-Z Rock, Rob Base had already left a permanent mark on late 80s hip-hop and dance floors everywhere. That record was one of those moments where rap, club music, and pop culture all crashed into each other in the best way possible.

By the time “Turn It Out (Go Base)” arrived, expectations were high. How do you follow a monster like “It Takes Two”? That is never an easy job. Instead of trying to remake that record note-for-note, Rob came back with another party-ready track built for movement. It has that late 80s Profile Records punch, big drums, plenty of call-and-response energy, and the kind of groove that sounds right at home on a 12-inch single.

The Incredible Base was released in November 1989 and became Rob Base’s only solo studio album. While it did not match the massive success of It Takes Two, the LP still performed well, reaching #50 on the Billboard 200 and #20 on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. It was also certified Gold in the United States.

Although “Turn It Out (Go Base)” did not reach the Billboard Hot 100, it did find action on several genre charts. The single peaked at #4 on the Billboard Hot Rap Singles chart, #16 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, and #23 on the Dance Club Songs chart. It also reached #88 on the UK Singles Chart.

That feels about right. Some records are made for pop radio. Others are made for the floor. This one lands firmly in the second camp.

There is also something bittersweet about hearing it now after Rob Base’s passing. He had one of those voices that could fill a room without trying too hard. Confident, direct, and full of fun. He did not sound like he was asking the party to start. He sounded like he had already walked in and flipped the switch.

“Turn It Out (Go Base)” may not be the first song most people reach for when they think of Rob Base, but that is part of what makes revisiting it so much fun. It is a reminder that there was more to his catalog than one giant anthem. For collectors, DJs, and fans of late 80s hip-hop 12-inch singles, this is a nice piece of the story.

A quick note about the lyrics: the track does include the word “retard,” a term that was used more casually in 1989 but is now considered offensive and hurtful. The record is presented here as originally released, but I did not want to ignore that the word carries a much different weight today.

Rest in peace, Rob Base. Thanks for helping make the dance floor louder, happier, and a lot more fun.

SIDE A:
Turn It Out (Go Base) (Sky King Remix) 8:02
Engineer [Remix] – Rob Paustian
Producer [Additional Production], Remix, Edited By – Gail “Sky” King
Programmed By [Additional Keyboard Programming] – Joe Moskowitz*

Turn It Out (Go Base) (Percapella) 3:06

SIDE B:
Turn It Out (Go Base) (Sky King Dub) 6:34
Engineer [Remix] – Rob Paustian
Producer [Additional Production], Remix, Edited By – Gail “Sky” King
Programmed By [Additional Keyboard Programming] – Joe Moskowitz*

Turn It Out (Go Base) (Album Version) 5:31

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

Chart Performance – Rob Base: Turn It Out (Go Base) (1989)	Peak Position
US Billboard Hot Rap Singles	#4
US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs	#16
US Billboard Dance Club Songs	#23
UK Singles Chart	#88

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Profile Records – PRO-7275
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, Single, Stereo
Country: US
Released: 1989
Genre: Hip Hop
Style: Breakbeat, Hip-House, Electro

CREDITS:

Executive-Producer – William Hamilton
Lacquer Cut By – HW*
Mastered By – Howie Weinberg
Photography By – Chris Carroll (4)
Producer – Rob Base, William Hamilton
Written-By – R. Ginyard*

NOTES:
Executive produced for World to World Records, Inc.
Recorded at Hillside Sound Studio, Englewood, New Jersey.
Tracks A1 & B1 additionally produced, remixed and edited for In The Spin Productions.
Tracks A1 & B1 remixes engineered at Shakedown Sound, N.Y.

Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
for BURNING THE GROUND

THE GEAR:
Turntable: Technics SL-1200MK7
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon Concorde Music Black
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Ject Tube Box DS2
Phono Tubes: Genalex Gold Lion 12AX7 ECC83/B759 Gold Pins Vacuum Tube – Matched Pair
Audio Interface: MOTU M4
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro Spin Acrylic Mat
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Cleaning Solution: Turgikleen Record Cleaning Solution
Scanner: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner

SOFTWARE:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 25 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

PLEASE READ

There are two 24-Bit links; if one does not work, try the other

**24-bit FLAC Only Available For SIX Days!

Password: burningtheground

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July 3, 2026

Englandneworder – World In Motion… (US 12″) (1990)

Burning The Ground Exclusive

With the 2026 FIFA World Cup currently taking place, this felt like the perfect time to revisit one of the most unlikely, and most successful, football records ever released.

When a football record works, it is usually because it forgets to be a football record for a few minutes. World In Motion is exactly that. On paper, the whole idea sounds like a disaster waiting to happen. New Order, one of Manchester’s coolest and most unlikely pop institutions, teamed up with the England national football team for the 1990 FIFA World Cup in Italy.

Somehow, it worked. Not only did it work, but it also became one of the best football songs ever recorded.

Credited as Englandeworder, World In Motion was released in May 1990. It arrived at just the right moment. The band had come off the success of Technique, UK dance culture was everywhere, and football was about to have one of its most emotional summers.

What makes World In Motion so special is that it still sounds like a New Order single. The bright synths, steady dance rhythm, Peter Hook’s bass, and Bernard Sumner’s understated vocal all sit perfectly in place. The football chants are there, but they never take over. Even the squad vocals feel like part of the record instead of a cheap add-on.

Then, of course, there is John Barnes.

His rap near the end of the song has become part of UK pop culture in its own right. It is joyful, awkward, charming, and strangely perfect. It should not work as well as it does, but Barnes delivers it with enough confidence to make it unforgettable. In a genre filled with novelty football records, this one had rhythm, wit, and a real pulse.

The 12-inch single is especially interesting because it treats the song like a proper club release. My US 12-inch does not include The B-Side, which appeared on other editions, but instead focuses on the remixes. The Subbuteo Mix and Subbuteo Dub by Graeme Park and Mike Pickering give the track a more club-ready feel, while Andrew Weatherall and Terry Farley’s Carabinieri Mix and No Alla Violenza Mix take things even further into the dancefloor.

That roster alone tells you this was not being handled like a throwaway sports tie-in. This was New Order, football culture, and the club scene meeting at the exact right moment.

World In Motion became New Order’s only UK No. 1 single, spending two weeks at the top and 12 weeks on the Official Singles Chart. It also reached No. 1 on the UK Indie chart and found success in several other countries.

More than three decades later, World In Motion still has that rare glow. It captures a moment when pop, football, club music, and national hope all collided without becoming corny. England did not win the World Cup in 1990, but this record gave them a song that has outlived the tournament itself.

Now, with the 2026 FIFA World Cup underway, it feels like the right record at the right time all over again.

It is funny, bright, emotional, and completely of its time. It is also still a fantastic New Order single.

And really, how many football records can you honestly say that about?

AWAY SIDE:
World In Motion… (Carabinieri Mix) 5:54
Mixed By – Andrew Weatherall, Terry Farley

World In Motion… (No Alla Violenza Mix) 5:36
Mixed By – Andrew Weatherall, Terry Farley

HOME SIDE:
World In Motion… (Subbuteo Mix) 5:08
Producer [Additional Production By], Remix [Remix By] – Graeme Park, Mike Pickering

World In Motion… (Subbuteo Dub) 5:08
Producer [Additional Production By], Remix [Remix By] – Graeme Park, Mike Pickering

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

Chart Performance – New Order: World In Motion (1990)	Peak Position
UK Singles Chart	1
UK Indie Chart	1
Eurochart Hot 100	2
Finland	4
Ireland	7
New Zealand	8
Australia	21
Switzerland	27
US Modern Rock Tracks	5
US Dance Club Songs	10

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Qwest Records – 0-21582, Qwest Records – 9 21582-0, Warner Bros. Records – 0-21582, Warner Bros. Records – 9 21582-0
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, Maxi-Single
Country: US
Released: May 1990
Genre: Electronic
Style: House, Synth-pop

CREDITS:

Design [Uncredited], Art Direction [Uncredited] – Peter Saville Associates
Producer [Produced By], Recorded By – Stephen Hague
Written-By – Keith Allen, New Order

NOTES:
Artist on sleeve & spine: Englandneworder
Artist on labels: New Order
Both labels say “Side 1”.

A1, A2 mixed at the Townhouse

Made in U.S.A.

Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
for BURNING THE GROUND

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

PLEASE READ

There are two 24-Bit links; if one does not work, try the other

**24-bit FLAC Only Available For SIX Days!

Password: burningtheground

You can help show your support for this blog by donating using PayPal.

I appreciate your help.

July 2, 2026

Frank Tovey – Luxury (US 12″ Promo) (1986)

Burning The Ground Exclusive

“Luxury” is a 1985 single by Frank Tovey, the man many of us first came to know as Fad Gadget.

Frank Tovey was one of those artists who never really fit into a neat little box. As Fad Gadget, he helped shape the darker, stranger side of early electronic music. He could be funny, disturbing, sharp, theatrical, and oddly catchy, sometimes all in the same song. By the mid-1980s, Tovey had put the Fad Gadget name aside and began releasing music under his own name.

“Luxury” was one of those moments where he stepped a little closer to pop without losing that bite.

Produced by Frank Tovey and Daniel Miller, with Flood engineering, “Luxury” has a bright, almost polished surface. But don’t let that fool you. Under the sheen, Tovey is still poking at greed, image, class, and all the shiny things people chase to feel important. The song moves with a sharp electronic snap, but there is a sly grin behind it. It is catchy, but it is not empty.

Chart-wise, “Luxury” did not break into the official UK Top 100, but it did make a respectable showing on the UK Independent Singles Chart, reaching No. 20 in 1985. That feels about right for Frank Tovey. Too strange for the mainstream, but right at home with the listeners and DJs who were paying attention.

My copy is the U.S. 12″ promotional pressing released by Sire Records in 1986. The A-side features both “Luxury (12″ Mix)” and the LP version of “Luxury,” giving DJs the choice between the extended mix and the album cut. The B-side pairs “Collapsing New People (London Mix),” recorded as Fad Gadget, with the LP version of “Concrete,” another Frank Tovey track from Snakes and Ladders.

That track listing is what makes this promo especially interesting. It does not just promote one single. It gives us Frank Tovey in transition, with his solo work sitting right next to one of the best-known Fad Gadget tracks.

“Collapsing New People” is tense, metallic, and very much tied to the early 1980s underground electronic scene. The “London Mix” gives the track a harder club push while keeping all of its strange, nervous energy intact. Placed next to “Luxury,” it also shows how much range Tovey had. He could move from abrasive electronic art-pop into something more streamlined and still sound completely like himself.

For me, that is what makes this 12″ such a cool piece. “Luxury” may be one of Tovey’s more accessible moments, but it still carries that restless spirit that made his work stand apart. Whether recording as Fad Gadget or under his own name, Frank Tovey always sounded like he was pushing against the walls.

This U.S. promo is a great little snapshot of that story.

SIDE A:
Frank Tovey – Luxury (12″ Mix) 7:00
Engineer – Flood
Producer – Daniel Miller, Frank Tovey
Recorded By [Additional] – Tony Harris
Remix – Alistair Clay, Flood, Frank Tovey

Frank Tovey – Luxury (LP Version) 4:02
Producer – Daniel Miller, Frank Tovey

SIDE B:
Fad Gadget – Collapsing New People (London Mix) 9:21
Featuring – Einstürzende Neubauten
Producer – Daniel Miller, Flood, Frank Tovey, Gareth Jones

Frank Tovey – Concrete (LP Version) 4:36
Engineer – E.C. Radcliffe
Producer – E.C. Radcliffe, Frank Tovey

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label:Sire – PRO-A-2573
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, Promo
Country: US
Released: 1986
Genre: Electronic
Style: New Wave, Industrial, Synth-pop

NOTES:
Housed in a custom one-sided Sire Records picture sleeve

Original versions of “Luxury”, “Collapsing New People”, and “Concrete” are available on the Frank Tovey album “Snakes & Ladders” on Sire Records.

Promotional Copy Not For Sale

Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
for BURNING THE GROUND

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

PLEASE READ

There are two 24-Bit links; if one does not work, try the other

**24-bit FLAC Only Available For SIX Days!

Password: burningtheground

You can help show your support for this blog by donating using PayPal.

I appreciate your help.

June 26, 2026

Erasure – Drama! (US 12″) (1989)

Burning The Ground Exclusive

For today’s entry in my “Soundtrack Of Pride” series, I wanted to feature one of synth-pop’s most beloved duos, Erasure.

Released in 1989, “Drama!” was the first single taken from the English duo’s fourth studio album, Wild!. Written by Vince Clarke and Andy Bell, the single became another major hit for Erasure, reaching #4 on the UK Singles Chart and #10 on the U.S. Billboard Dance Chart.

By this point, Erasure had already built a colorful world of electronic pop, one where heartache, humor, camp, and pure dance floor release could all live in the same song. “Drama!” is a perfect example of that magic. It is theatrical, sharp, and joyfully over the top, but beneath all the sparkle there is something much more serious going on.

The song takes aim at judgment, gossip, shame, and the way people love to point fingers from a safe distance. Throughout the track, the shouted “Guilty!” gives the record one of its most memorable hooks. That uncredited exclamation was provided by Scottish band The Jesus and Mary Chain, who were recording in the studio next door. It is one of those wonderfully odd pop music moments that sounds almost too good to be true.

That “Guilty!” also gives the song an extra bite. It turns the record into a kind of courtroom drama on the dance floor, with Andy Bell refusing to stand quietly while the world passes judgment.

That is where “Drama!” fits so beautifully into Pride.

Andy Bell’s voice has always carried a special kind of strength. He can sound wounded, funny, romantic, and defiant all at once. On “Drama!” he does not sound like someone begging to be accepted. He sounds like someone calling out the absurdity of being judged in the first place.

The line “We all have the ability, our freedom is fragile” lands especially hard. For LGBTQ+ people, freedom has never been something to take for granted. It has been fought for, danced for, marched for, and sometimes protected in the dark safety of a club while the outside world kept shouting its own accusations.

Erasure understood that pop music could be more than catchy. It could be a lifeline. Their records gave queer listeners joy without apology. They made emotions feel huge, colorful, and worth celebrating. In a time when LGBTQ+ lives were still too often framed by fear, silence, or scandal, Erasure gave us songs that were loud, proud, and full of feeling.

“Drama!” is not just a great pop single. It is also a reminder that the people who scream “guilty” the loudest are often the ones who should take a closer look at themselves.

The 12-inch versions gave the song even more room to strut, with “Drama! (Act 2)” and the “Krucial Mix” stretching the track into full club territory. The B-sides, “Sweet, Sweet Baby” and “Paradise,” added even more value to an already essential Erasure single.

For me, “Drama!” remains one of those records that could only come from Erasure. It is clever, camp, emotional, and completely danceable. It turns judgment into theater and shame into release.

And really, what is Pride without a little drama?

SIDE A:
Drama! (Krucial Mix) 7:07
Mixed By – Bob Kraushaar

Sweet, Sweet Baby (Medi-Mix) 4:22
Engineer – Mike Spencer
Mixed By – Dave Randall

Paradise (Lost & Found Mix) 5:48
Remix – George Holt

SIDE B:
Drama! (Act 2) 5:38
Mixed By – Mark Saunders

Sweet, Sweet Baby (The Moo-Moo Mix) 5:13
Mixed By – Mark Saunders

Paradise 4:10
Mixed By – Mark Saunders

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

Chart Performance – Erasure: Drama! (1989)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)	157
Austria (Hitradio Ö3)	13
Denmark (IFPI)	3
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)	12
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)	15
Ireland (IRMA)	5
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)	35
Spain (AFYVE)	18
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)	15
UK Singles (OCC)	4
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)	11
US Dance Club Songs (Billboard) with “Sweet, Sweet Baby”	10
US Dance Singles Sales (Billboard) with “Sweet, Sweet Baby”	13
West Germany (GfK)	12

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Sire – 0-21356, Reprise Records – 0-21356, Sire – 9 21356-0, Reprise Records – 9 21356-0, Mute – 0-21356, Mute – 9 21356-0
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, Maxi-Single
Country: US
Released: 1989
Genre: Electronic
Style: Synth-pop

CREDITS:

Design [Designed By] – Me Company
Photography By – Pierre Et Gilles
Producer – Erasure, Gareth Jones (tracks: A1, A3, B1, B3), Mark Saunders
Written-By – Clarke/Bell

NOTES:
Specially-Priced Maxi-Single

“Drama” and “Paradise” recorded at The Church/Swing Studios.
“Sweet, Sweet Baby” recorded at Swing Studios.
A1 mixed at Sarm Studios.
A2 mixed at Arcantide Studios.
A3 remixed at Konk Studios.
B1, B2, B3 mixed at Konk Studios.

Original version of “Drama!” available on the Sire/Reprise album “Wild!“.

Made In U.S.A.

Buy the 12” at DISCOGS

VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
for BURNING THE GROUND

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

PLEASE READ

There are two 24-Bit links; if one does not work, try the other

**24-bit FLAC Only Available For SIX Days!

Password: burningtheground

You can help show your support for this blog by donating using PayPal.

I appreciate your help.