no-demo-disc

We would never make a claim of top quality audiophile sound for these titles.

The Hot Stamper pressings you see on our site must be understood to offer the best available sound and nothing more.

Born in the U.S.A., for example, is not a great sounding record, but some pressings of it sound a lot better than others, and those are the ones we sell.

If you like the music found on these albums, we guarantee that our pressings will sound better than any others you may have heard, or you get your money back.

Bob Dylan – Slow Train Coming

More of the Music of Bob Dylan

  • Slow Train Coming returns to the site on this early Columbia pressing with INCREDIBLE Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sound or close to it from start to finish
  • These sides are bigger, more natural, warmer and more solid than those of any other copy you’ve heard or your money back
  • The big hit here is “Gotta Serve Somebody” – Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits is featured throughout
  • I doubt this is anyone’s very favorite Dylan album, but it’s sure a lot more enjoyable when you have sound like this

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Prince – Around The World In A Day

More of the Music of Prince

  • With solid Double Plus (A++) grades or close to them from top to bottom, we guarantee you’ve never heard Around The World In A Day sound this good
  • This side one is bigger and richer and has more of the rock solid energy that’s missing from the average copy, and side two is not far behind in all those areas
  • Clean and clear and open are nice qualities to have, but rich and full are harder to come by on this record – but here they are! (particularly on this side one)
  • “If Prince had streamlined and rocked up his approach for global domination, now he was creating something more intimate, cerebral, and challenging… a brave and deeply personal project, exploring sounds and ideas that were almost shocking coming from a pop icon at his peak.” – Pitchfork

The best copies sound pretty much the way the best copies of most Classic Rock records sound: tonally correct, rich, clear, sweet, smooth, open, present, lively, big, spacious, Tubey Magical, with breathy vocals and little to no spit, grit, grain or grunge.

That’s the sound of analog, and the best copies of this title have that sound.

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The Rolling Stones – Self-Titled

More of the Music of The Rolling Stones

  • You’ll find solid Double Plus (A++) sound from first note to last on this outstanding pressing of The Stones’ 1964 release – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
  • We guarantee there is dramatically more richness, fullness and presence on this copy than others you’ve heard, and that’s especially true for whatever godawful Heavy Vinyl pressing is currently being foisted on an unsuspecting record buying public
  • This is the real, honest sound of the early, early Stones
  • “The Stones’ debut knocked The Beatles from the chart summit… They were on their way.” – BBC Review
  • If you’re a fan of the early Stones, their debut from 1964 belongs in your collection.

The best word I could use to sum up both the sound and the music on this record is HONEST. If you want to hear how early Rolling Stones records sound when they sound right, this is the ticket. This is the real sound of the early, early Stones.

Probably what any modern engineer would want to do to the album would only end up making it worse. It is what it is and that’s good enough for us. Since the tapes are now more than 60 years old, no modern reissue will sound remotely as good as this one.

The Stones wanted their stuff to sound like the old Blues albums they grew up on and revered, and with that sound in mind you can’t argue that they didn’t succeed here.

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The Pretenders – Get Close

More of the Music of The Pretenders

  • With two INSANELY GOOD Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sides, you’ll have a hard time finding a copy that sounds remotely as good as this vintage import pressing – fairly quiet vinyl too
  • These sides are energetic, clear and full-bodied, with Chrissie Hynde’s vocals front and center where they belong
  • If all you know are audiophile or domestic pressings, you should be prepared for a mind-blowing experience with this copy
  • However, the sound of the album is more aggressive than some audiophiles might like, so fair warning: you will not be demonstrating your stereo with this one, no matter how much better sounding than other copies it may be
  • “Hynde’s voice is in great form throughout, and when she gets her dander up, she still has plenty to say and good ways to say it; ‘How Much Did You Get for Your Soul?’ is a gleefully venomous attack on the musically unscrupulous; ‘Don’t Get Me Wrong’ is a superb pop tune and a deserved hit single; and the Motown-flavored ‘I Remember You’ and the moody ‘Chill Factor’ suggest she’d been learning a lot from her old soul singles.”

Get Close has long been a personal favorite of mine. Side one starts off with a bang with “My Baby,” one of the best tracks this band ever recorded. Of course at this point it’s hard to call The Pretenders a band as it is pretty much Chrissie Hynde’s show. She continues to mature as a songwriter, and the arrangements and production value are excellent as well, with heavy hitters such as Steve Lillywhite, Bob Clearmountain and Jimmy Iovine involved.

We have a category on the site entitled women who rock. No other woman on earth can rock the way Chrissie Hynde can, and this album, along with Learning to Crawl, is all the proof anyone needs.

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Alice Cooper – School’s Out

More of the Music of Alice Cooper

  • This early Green Label pressing boasts solid Double Plus (A++) grades from top to bottom
  • Surprisingly rich and full-bodied, the better copies really rock with big bass and punchy drums – just the right sound for Alice Cooper’s brand of hard-rockin’ chaos
  • The beloved title track remains the most-performed song in his concert history, and the presence on this copy will put the band right there in your listening room
  • Marks in the vinyl are sometimes the nature of the beast with these Classic Rock records – there simply is no way around them if the superior sound of vintage analog is important to you
  • 4 1/2 stars: “School’s Out catapulted Alice Cooper into the hard rock stratosphere, largely due to its timeless, all-time classic title track.”
  • If you’re a fan of the band, this title from 1972 is clearly one of their best

Yet another impossible-to-find record in clean condition with good sound has made it to the site, and those of you who are fans should scoop it up because it takes us about four years to find enough copies to do this shootout. Check back with us in 2024 if this one is sold by the time you get to the end of this sentence!

We had poor luck with the second and third label copies on this AC title. It seems that, unlike so many records we play, the originals are the only way to go on School’s Out. (more…)

Cream – Wheels Of Fire

More of the Music of Cream

  • Cream rocks on these vintage UK import pressings with STUNNING Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sound or close to it on sides one and two, and solid Double Plus (A++) sound or close to it on sides three and four
  • The power and energy of these live sides is off the charts — punchy, open, and spacious with bass and WHOMP you have never experienced for this music, guaranteed (particularly on side three)
  • Everything you’d want sonically from a live Cream recording is present on this copy – big-time presence, an abundance of life, tonal correctness, and loads of Tubey Magic (also particularly on side three)
  • Those of you looking for a White Hot copy with Triple Plus (A+++) sound on both the studio disc and the live disc will be disappointed to learn (as we were) that no such copy came out of our most recent shootout, making this one of the best copies we can offer this time around
  • 4 stars: “…[Eric] Clapton is at a peak here, whether he’s tearing off solos on a 17-minute ‘Spoonful’ or goosing ‘White Room’ toward the heights of madness. But it’s the architect of ‘White Room,’ bassist Jack Bruce, who, along with his collaborator Peter Brown, reaches a peak as a songwriter…. [I]n many ways Wheels of Fire is indeed filled with Cream’s very best work.
  • If you’re a fan of Clapton and the band, this RSO UK import from 1968 belongs in your collection.

It’s exceptionally difficult to find even decent sounding copies of this album. We’ve played SCORES of original domestic copies, original imports, and all kinds of reissues over the years, and it’s very rare to find a copy that sounds this good on all four sides. (more…)

Bruce Springsteen – Born To Run

More of the Music of Bruce Springsteen

  • A Born To Run like you’ve never heard, with outstanding Double Plus (A++) sound throughout
  • Not the best sounding Springsteen record – we think that’s The River – but the most groundbreaking and probably the most important
  • The title track here really sounds the way you want to hear it – big, bold, and full of rock and roll energy that jumps out of the speakers (which, as most of you know, is the kind of thing that never happens when playing modern Heavy Vinyl pressings)
  • A 5 star album in the AMG, and the Boss’ first Masterpiece – who can argue with the power of this music?
  • Marks in the vinyl are sometimes the nature of the beast with these Classic Rock records – there simply is no way around them if the superior sound of vintage analog is important to you
  • “Layers of guitar, layers of echo on the vocals, lots of keyboards, thunderous drums — Born to Run had a big sound, and Springsteen wrote big songs to match it.” (Did he ever!)

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The Cars – Heartbeat City

More of the Music of The Cars

  • You’ll find very good Hot Stamper sound on both sides of this vintage Elektra pressing – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
  • We guarantee there is more space, richness, presence, and performance energy on this copy than others you’ve heard or you get your money back – it’s as simple as that
  • 5 stars: “… a gleaming pop masterpiece. The producer’s golden touch, the strength of the songs Ric Ocasek wrote, and the stunning vocal performance both he and Benjamin Orr deliver make the album one of the best of the 80s and something that still sounds perfect many years later.”

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Bruce Springsteen – Nebraska

More of the Music of Bruce Springsteen

  • You’ll find STUNNING Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) grades or close to them on both sides of this vintage copy of Nebraska – a tough record to find with audiophile playing surfaces and sound this “good”
  • There’s more space, richness, vocal presence, and performance energy on this copy than practically all others we’ve played, but please take the time to read about the recording of the album so you know what to expect
  • 5 stars: “[A] recording artist’s demos of new songs often come off better than the more polished versions later worked up in a studio. But Bruce Springsteen was the first person to act on that theory, when he opted to release the demo versions of his latest songs, recorded with only acoustic or electric guitar, harmonica, and vocals, as his sixth album, Nebraska”

This famously compromised recording certainly has its limitations, but here is a copy that shows what Bruce recorded on four-track cassette tape in the best possible light. (more…)

Bruce Springsteen – Born In The U.S.A.

More of the Music of Bruce Springsteen

  • You’ll find solid Double Plus (A++) sound or close to it on both sides of this gazillion-selling 80s classic – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
  • We would be foolish to make claims for “audiophile” sound on Springsteen’s albums – they are what they are, but the better copies are head and shoulders above anything else you’ve heard
  • Some of The Boss’s biggest hits are here, including “Glory Days” and “Dancin’ in the Dark.”
  • 5 stars: “… where Springsteen remembered that he was a rock & roll star, which is how a vastly increased public was happy to treat him.”

It’s tough to find great sounding copies of this album — or any Springsteen album for that matter — but this one is a step up from most of the copies we played, with less distortion and more energy, two qualities that are not easy to come by on Born In The U.S.A.

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