For once, I didn't have to do the rips! Brad, the King of Jingaling, donated three ripped-and-scanned LPs to my blog, all by the outstanding Shawnee Choir (of the Shawnee Press, Inc.). He asked if I would like to feature them, and I said "Sure." I had posted a Shawnee Choir LP last year, and I had declared it superb, so I figured I'd be nuts to turn down the offer. This is not to suggest that, by any rule of logic, that I'm necessarily sane because I accepted the offer (or as a result of accepting it), but... right.
And don't miss Brad's Line Material catalog scans at Falalalala.com--they're terrific. So far, Brad has featured images from the 1956 and 1958 LM brochures, along with my LM record rips from those years. The images are charming, wonderfully "period," and--best of all--downloadable. By the way, if anyone has the 1957 catalog, I'm sure Brad would love to hear from you.
I just finished listening to the present offering--Shawnee's Tidings of Joy, from 1975--and it's first-rate in every regard. I love hearing choral arrangements done right, and of course Shawnee would have wanted the best singers in town when it came to plugging its arrangements--and so it got them. (I assume "reference recording" means "demo.") One problem with this sort of record, though, is the chance that a group of amateurs might listen to performances on this level, and (not realizing their limitations), say, "Hey, we can sound like that!" Then again, if it sells choir arrangements...
A delightful and stirring group of selections, and I think I'd better upload the zip (I knew I'd forgotten something). Uploading helps immeasurably with the downloading part, I've found.
Two more Shawnee LPs to come, and thanks again to Brad.
DOWNLOAD: Tidings of Joy-The Shawnee Choir (1975)
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