Josie Cotton – Johnny Are You Queer? (US 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1982

“Johnny Are You Queer?” is a 1980s pop song that was written by Bobby and Larson Paine. The song was first performed live by the Go-Go’s and was later performed by Josie Cotton, who released the song as a single in 1981 and 1982, and as part of her 1982 album Convertible Music. The song was also featured on the Valley Girl soundtrack.

The song was the subject of controversy upon its release. Cotton was accused by multiple conservative groups as promoting homosexuality and one network claimed that “there was no Josie Cotton and that she was actually a gay man who was trying to convert unsuspecting straight men into a homosexual lifestyle.” The Village Voice and The Advocate were both highly critical of “Johnny, Are You Queer?” and The Advocate demonized the work in an article entitled “Josie, Are You A Bitch?”

Years later AllMusic reviewed the song and noted that “In retrospect, the song sounds rather tame, and throughout, the joke is on the petulant girl, not Johnny: “he’s not interested in her that way, so clearly he must not like girls” is (deliberately) a laughably arrogant premise.”

Cotton has stated that since the song’s release she has been contacted by several people who thanked her for the song, as it helped them come to terms with their own homosexuality.

In 1982, the song reached #38 on the U.S. Billboard Club Play Singles chart.

SIDE A:
Johnny Are You Queer? 2:46

SIDE B:
(Let’s Do) The Blackout 2:57

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

U.S. CHART HISTORY:

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1982	Johnny Are You Queer?	U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play	#38

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Elektra ‎– AS-11538
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM
Country: US
Released: 1981
Genre: Rock
Style: New Wave, Power Pop

CREDITS:
Bass, Guitar – Bobby Paine
Drums – Richard Adelman
Drums [Additional] – Don Heffington
Engineer – Geza X, Glenn Feit, Ray Blair
Piano – Jimmy Ehinger
Producer, Written-By – Bobby Paine, Larson Paine
Synthesizer – J.B. Frank*

NOTES:
“Johnny Are You Queer?” from the LP “Convertible Music”.

Find the 12″ on DISCOGS

EQUIPMENT USED:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut Carbon (DC)
Cartridge: Ortofon 2M
Stylus: Ortofon 2M Bronze
Isolation: Auralex Acoustics ISO-Tone Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro-Ject Acryl-It platter
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Phono Pre-amp: Bellari VP130 Tube Phono Preamp
Tube: Tung-Sol 12AX7ECC803-S Gold Electron Tube
Soundcard: ESI Juli@
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Brother MFC-6490CW Professional Series Scanner

SOFTWARE USED:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling: 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)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

April 13, 2017

Sparks – All You Ever Think About Is Sex (US 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1983

“All You Ever Think About Is Sex” was the second single released from the album In Outer Space by American rock band Sparks. The single was remixed for it’s single release but failed to chart. The b-side is a remixed version of the album track; “Dance Godammit”.

SIDE A:
All You Ever Think About Is Sex (12″ Club Version) 5:06

SIDE B:
Dance Godammit (12″ Club Version) 4:05

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Atlantic ‎– 0-86990
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, Single
Country: US
Released: 1983
Genre: Electronic
Style: Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Art Direction – Larry Vigon
Engineer – Dan Lacksman
Management [Personal] – Joseph Fleury
Photography By – Jim Shea
Producer, Written-By – Ron Mael, Russell Mael
Remix – Brian Reeves

NOTES:
Produced for Giorgio Moroder Enterprises Ltd.
Mastered at Sterling Sound, New York.
Printed in U.S.A.

Find the 12″ on DISCOGS

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

April 12, 2017

Ēbn-Ōzn – AEIOU Sometimes Y (US 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1983

“AEIOU Sometimes Y” is the debut single by New York based synth pop duo Ēbn-Ōzn. “AEIOU” became an international MTV and dance club hit, reaching # 20 on the Billboard Club Chart. The single also received significant black radio play and remains a modern rock radio and 1980s music staple. AllMusic writes that the song “combines intelligence, melody, and weirdness in just the right doses. Accompanied by a video that featured a stream-of-consciousness rap about ‘this incredible Swedish girl,’ and with a more serious subtext about communication, it became a bizarre but deserved hit.”

Recorded in 1981, “AEIOU” has the distinction of being the first commercial single ever recorded entirely on a computer (a Fairlight CMI) in the United States and the subsequent album, Feeling Cavalier, the first such album. Ēbn-Ōzn’s use of the Fairlight CMI’s “sampling” functions makes them true pioneers of sampling, a music recording process, which was then revolutionary and is now common practice in 21st century sound music recording.

SIDE A:
AEIOU Sometimes Y (Long Version – Vocal) 7:38

SIDE B:
AEIOU Sometimes Y (Dub Version – Instrumental) 7:29

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

U.S. CHART HISTORY:

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1983	AEIOU Sometimes Y	U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play	#20

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Elektra ‎– 0-67915
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, Single
Country: US
Released: 1983
Genre: Electronic
Style: New Wave, Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Art Direction, Cover [Concept By] – Lynn Dreese Breslin
Backing Vocals [The Techettes] – Jimmy Lowell, Joe Berger, Ēbn-Ōzn
Computer [Fairlight Cmi], Synthesizer [Various], Guitar, Vocals [Occasional] – Ēbn*
Cover [Concept By] – Ēbn-Ōzn
Cover [Concept By], Photography By – Virginia Liberatore
Engineer [Assistant] – Bruce Buchalter, Gregory J. Moss
Engineer [Remix] – Dave Wittman
Lead Vocals, Vocals [Characterizations], Synthesizer [Occasional] – Ōzn*
Management [Direction] –Steven E. Machat*
Mastered By – Greg Calbi
Other [Hair] – Romeo
Other [Make-up] – Yuseff Rodney
Other [Nuts And Bolts] – Kenn Fink
Other [Styling] – Kim Hastreiter
Producer [Associate] –Robert Rosen
Producer, Recorded By, Programmed By – Ned Liben
Remix – John Luongo, Ēbn-Ōzn
Written-By – Ēbn-Ōzn

NOTES:
Recorded and programmed at M.S.P. Music, NYC.
Mastered at Sterling Sound.

Find the 12″ on DISCOGS

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

April 6, 2017

Pet Shop Boys and Dusty Springfield – What Have I Done To Deserve This? (US 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1988

“What Have I Done to Deserve This?” is a song by English synthpop duo Pet Shop Boys, featuring singer Dusty Springfield.

When released as a single in late 1987, it peaked at number 2 in the UK and also at number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the fourth top ten hit for Pet Shop Boys as well as the biggest hit of Springfield’s career in the US. It was kept from the top spot by “Seasons Change” by Expose and “Father Figure” by their fellow British singer George Michael on that chart. The single made it to number 1 on the Irish singles chart, where it was Pet Shop Boys’ second number 1 hit in the space of just six weeks.

The song’s success helped revive Springfield’s career and led to a resurgence of interest in her music. Pet Shop Boys and Dusty Springfield performed the song for the 1988 BRIT Awards. Following the duet the Pet Shop Boys wrote and produced the singles “Nothing Has Been Proved” and “In Private” for Springfield, both included on her 1990 album Reputation.

The music video was filmed in a music hall, featuring a female chorus line and male members of the pit orchestra. It made significant use of the theater drapes and stage curtains for dramatic effect. Like all of the singles taken from the Actually album, the song also appears on the film It Couldn’t Happen Here, where it is briefly played in instrumental form, without vocals.

In North America the 12″ single included alternate Shep Pettibone remixes with “Rent” and “I Want A Dog” as the b-side tracks.

SIDE A:
What Have I Done To Deserve This? (The Shep Pettibone Remix) 8:30
Edited By – Junior Vasquez, Shep Pettibone
Engineer [Remix] – Bob Rosa
Producer – Stephen Hague
Remix, Producer [Additional Production] – Stephen Hague
Written-By – Allee Willis, Chris Lowe, Neil Tennant*

What Have I Done To Deserve This? (Dub Mix) 6:50
Edited By – Junior Vasquez, Shep Pettibone
Engineer [Remix] – Bob Rosa
Producer – Stephen Hague
Remix, Producer [Additional Production] – Stephen Hague
Written-By – Allee Willis, Chris Lowe, Neil Tennant*

SIDE B:
Rent (The François Kevorkian Remix) 7:02
Keyboards [Fairlight] – Andy Richards
Producer, Engineer – Julian Mendelsohn
Remix – François Kevorkian, Michael Hutchinson
Written-By – Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe*

I Want A Dog 4:57
Engineer – David Jacob, Mike Nielson*
Producer – Pet Shop Boys
ysWritten-By – Neil Tennant Chris Lowe*

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

U.S. CHART HISTORY:

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1988	What Have I Done To Deserve This?	U.S. Billboard Hot 100	#2
1988	What Have I Done To Deserve This?	U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary	#14
1988	What Have I Done To Deserve This?	U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play	#1

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: EMI-Manhattan Records ‎– V-56080
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM
Country: US
Released: 1988
Genre: Electronic
Style: Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Composed By – Willis* (tracks: A1, A2), Tennant/Lowe*
Design [Sleeve] – Mark Farrow At (3)*, Pet Shop Boys
Photography By – Eric Watson (3)
Photography By [Dusty Springfield] – Val Wilmer*

NOTES:
Printed in the U.S.A

Find the 12″ on DISCOGS

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi