Helpful suggestion for Retrospect Records...

[Guest SenatorLynx]

Hi All,

 

Like many of you I have been following the controversy over the Retrospect Records thing for a while now. As a collector, I have to admit I was pretty pissed to learn that original CDs I had owned for years or searched everywhere and perhaps paid top dollar for were being offered up as CD-Rs and also being sold for top dollar (which I think is the worst crime at work here).

 

Now that some time has gone by though, I have to say that it's becoming obvious that even though I have seen an apparent drop in value with some pieces in my collection, the integrity of true collectors still willing to track down and pay for the real thing has not completely ruined the value attached to having the 100% originals on the shelf at home.

 

Although now it's become much more difficult to decern the real thing from the bogus (without naming titles....ok, Strutt comes to mind! Rare as fuck if you've got the real deal!).

 

So, while I'm angered at some of the activities with Retrospect, I do admire the desire to release the more obscure music to the masses.

 

Now my suggestion. The fundamental issue here seems to be the difference between CD-Rs and factory pressed or "silver" CDs. As a rookie member of the HH forums, I'm sure I lack the credibilty of the rest of you on everything, but maybe can provide a fresh perspective for RR.

 

How about starting from scratch (which appears to be what's happening now?) and make things right? Take the time to respect each and every re-issue in your catalog, as well as every new band you sign....and also for a reasonable price!! EVERY SINGLE TITLE!! It takes a real ass hole (pardon me) to offer up a re-issue, CD-R or not for $40 (The Cauze). It's unreasonable business and totally transparently greedy.

 

Again RR (Sam?), I'm not jumping you or trying to throw fuel on the flaming. I'm just saying, listen to all the folks out there who love this stuff and give them what they want. There's been a ton of great labels dealing with re-issues (Long Island, Wounded Bird, etc.) who have taken the time and had the interest in protecting the integrity of everything they sell to do it right!

 

To tell the truth, I wouldn't have touched one of your releases for free until I saw Georg Siegl over at AOR Heaven selling the Mariah stuff. This man is one of the pillars of the selling community for hard rock and AOR collectors and if he is willing to sell it, I am willing to buy it. He's got the same mature attitude about doing business that most of us respect and want to see in the world.

 

So how about it? Everything silver pressed and officially licensed or authorized by each band, and everything $12 to $15. I'll be a customer for certain then, and I think a lot of others who visit the HH forum will be too.

 

Thanks for reading my opinions. If you agree, maybe you can all let Sam know we're behind him if he gives us all what we want most.

 

Chris

[Retrospect Records]

Hello SenatorLynx , I am suspecting that you are David in a new screenname and that wouldn't surprise me , but in case you are the real deal , I'll have to explain things to you like I have many times before....so let me answer to the best of my ability..

 

 

"As a collector, I have to admit I was pretty pissed to learn that original CDs I had owned for years or searched everywhere and perhaps paid top dollar for were being offered up as CD-Rs and also being sold for top dollar (which I think is the worst crime at work here)."

 

Top dollar? Nothing on the Retrospect label is over $17....and did you expect that some discs were never going to be re-issued eventually?

 

 

"Now that some time has gone by though, I have to say that it's becoming obvious that even though I have seen an apparent drop in value with some pieces in my collection, the integrity of true collectors still willing to track down and pay for the real thing has not completely ruined the value attached to having the 100% originals on the shelf at home."

 

That's good news.

 

 

 

"Although now it's become much more difficult to decern the real thing from the bogus (without naming titles....ok, Strutt comes to mind! Rare as fuck if you've got the real deal!). "

 

All the Strutt cd's I have are the real deal.

 

 

"So, while I'm angered at some of the activities with Retrospect, I do admire the desire to release the more obscure music to the masses."

 

Thanks.

 

 

"How about starting from scratch (which appears to be what's happening now?) and make things right? Take the time to respect each and every re-issue in your catalog, as well as every new band you sign....and also for a reasonable price!! EVERY SINGLE TITLE!! It takes a real ass hole (pardon me) to offer up a re-issue, CD-R or not for $40 (The Cauze). It's unreasonable business and totally transparently greedy."

 

 

This really sounds like David here but giving you the benefit of the doubt , I'll offer up my age-old answer.

Supply and demand. The Cauze cd I have been selling is not a re-issue of any kind and in fact , it was the very first pressing of 100 units that was made by the band as promotional cd's for record companies only. $40 is hardly unreasonable.

I have learned alot in the first year of running my own label and pricing has been something I have had to adhere to as I tried to analyze supply and demand. Right now you'll find all Retrospect titles on the website from 9.99 to 14.99 , I believe that is very fair considering most of them will only see a 100 unit pressing. Not to mention I have a flat rate of $3 shipping anywhere in the world for unlimited amount of discs.

How can I be more fair?

Next , the idea of RE-pressing silver (1000) units for ALL 135 Retrospect releases is completely ludicrous. If you think there are 1,000 people out there who are going to buy a 4-track EP from Uzi Suite (for example) then YOU make the investment. I have no interest in spending $135,000 in pressing silver discs of obscure bands just so a few people will be happy at the color of a disc. I have maintained from day one that I do NOT cater to people concerned about the color of a disc. A true collector would want the music in any format , even if they had to download it.

There are a few bands I have taken the risk of pressing silver discs for , some have paid off , some have not. It's all a learning process and I'm always very careful at this point to make the right decisions for the bands and my company.

Defcon's first 100 units sold out in 30 days so yes, they deserve a silver pressing. Mariah deserved it. RPM deserved it. XL New York deserved it , although them , Axtion , Manila Thrills and Strikeforce are moving slower than Mariah. It's not your investment 'Chris' , so although I appreciate the advice , it's ultimately my decision , and there is no way you will see a silver press of 135 releases.

 

 

"Again RR (Sam?), I'm not jumping you or trying to throw fuel on the flaming. I'm just saying, listen to all the folks out there who love this stuff and give them what they want. There's been a ton of great labels dealing with re-issues (Long Island, Wounded Bird, etc.) who have taken the time and had the interest in protecting the integrity of everything they sell to do it right!"

 

Protecting the integrity? Are you kidding? Long Island was in business for what? 2 or 3 years? They went under , filed bankruptcy , and the bands never got paid....EVER.

Wounded Bird? Ask Paul Shortino how much he has seen from the Rough Cutt re-issues. Ask Mike Uzzell how much he has seen from the Nantucket re-issues. Ask Henry Paul how much he has made from the re-issues of his solo albums. I have more examples if you need them...

Look , Wounded Bird may be a great company but they aren't doing the artists any favors by re-issuing their material and quite frankly , the artists are freakin pissed , especially when they had plans to re-issue the albums themselves so they could make a little cash off their hard work from back in the day. Oh , they owe the record company right? Well , in my eyes , if a record company does NOTHING to promote an album in 20+ years then they forfeit their rights to that album....and friends of mine like Ron Keel , Frank Dimino , Richie Ranno and Paul Shortino feel the same way. I wouldn't care if Metal Mayhem re-issues were 24k gold , Ryan owes Ron Keel $10,000 for the Right To Rock royalties and it should piss people off knowing that.

 

 

"To tell the truth, I wouldn't have touched one of your releases for free until I saw Georg Siegl over at AOR Heaven selling the Mariah stuff. This man is one of the pillars of the selling community for hard rock and AOR collectors and if he is willing to sell it, I am willing to buy it. He's got the same mature attitude about doing business that most of us respect and want to see in the world."

 

I don't have a problem with Georg , except for the fact that he has an outstanding bill of $200.

 

 

"So how about it? Everything silver pressed and officially licensed or authorized by each band, and everything $12 to $15. I'll be a customer for certain then, and I think a lot of others who visit the HH forum will be too."

 

All silver-pressed? Ain't gonna happen, however, everything on the RETROSPECT label is officially licensed and priced between $9.99 and $15 so I guess 2 out of 3 ain't bad...

[Mullethead]

Hi All,

 

Like many of you I have been following the controversy over the Retrospect Records thing for a while now. As a collector, I have to admit I was pretty pissed to learn that original CDs I had owned for years or searched everywhere and perhaps paid top dollar for were being offered up as CD-Rs and also being sold for top dollar (which I think is the worst crime at work here).

 

Now that some time has gone by though, I have to say that it's becoming obvious that even though I have seen an apparent drop in value with some pieces in my collection, the integrity of true collectors still willing to track down and pay for the real thing has not completely ruined the value attached to having the 100% originals on the shelf at home.

 

Although now it's become much more difficult to decern the real thing from the bogus (without naming titles....ok, Strutt comes to mind! Rare as fuck if you've got the real deal!).

 

So, while I'm angered at some of the activities with Retrospect, I do admire the desire to release the more obscure music to the masses.

 

Now my suggestion. The fundamental issue here seems to be the difference between CD-Rs and factory pressed or "silver" CDs. As a rookie member of the HH forums, I'm sure I lack the credibilty of the rest of you on everything, but maybe can provide a fresh perspective for RR.

 

How about starting from scratch (which appears to be what's happening now?) and make things right? Take the time to respect each and every re-issue in your catalog, as well as every new band you sign....and also for a reasonable price!! EVERY SINGLE TITLE!! It takes a real ass hole (pardon me) to offer up a re-issue, CD-R or not for $40 (The Cauze). It's unreasonable business and totally transparently greedy.

 

Again RR (Sam?), I'm not jumping you or trying to throw fuel on the flaming. I'm just saying, listen to all the folks out there who love this stuff and give them what they want. There's been a ton of great labels dealing with re-issues (Long Island, Wounded Bird, etc.) who have taken the time and had the interest in protecting the integrity of everything they sell to do it right!

 

To tell the truth, I wouldn't have touched one of your releases for free until I saw Georg Siegl over at AOR Heaven selling the Mariah stuff. This man is one of the pillars of the selling community for hard rock and AOR collectors and if he is willing to sell it, I am willing to buy it. He's got the same mature attitude about doing business that most of us respect and want to see in the world.

 

So how about it? Everything silver pressed and officially licensed or authorized by each band, and everything $12 to $15. I'll be a customer for certain then, and I think a lot of others who visit the HH forum will be too.

 

Thanks for reading my opinions. If you agree, maybe you can all let Sam know we're behind him if he gives us all what we want most.

 

Chris

 

 

 

 

 

Why don't you save this kind of post for your 10th post at least.........

[Bubbasmama]

OH FFS......

[Retrospect Records]

I think Dan should copy and paste my response as a pinned statement at the top of this forum - LOL. I get really tired of typing it all. Haha.

[Guest cerebus]

This is the retrospect forum, where people can come and speak their minds. If people don't like the criticism, then don't visit this forum. The way I understand it, this forum was meant for controversial issues as it relates to Retrospect both positive and negative.

 

I think its b.s. that people jump all over David because of his frustration with a competitor that doesn't play by the rules, cheats bands and customers, and sells cds that come directly off his computer cdr drive and laser color printer.

 

Sam, you don't sell your released for more than 17 dollars?? What about the London release, which is on the Retrospect label, which is not even available on your website (for obvious reasons that you bootlegged it without the bands permission). You routinely sell if for 30 bucks plus, passing it off as a legit cd. Interestingly, you don't advertise it as a Retrospect Records cd. But you and I both know that it is.

 

What about the Vyper release, which is also questionable? Or how about the hard rock demo series you sell on ebay (limited to 100) as per all of your other Retrospect releases?

 

I recognize that your trying to go straight now, but don't pull your holier than thou BS. I wish your business the best of luck, but if you keep bootlegging and/or selling bootlegs, your eventually going to fail miserably and quite possibly get prosecuted for fraud and a number of other offenses.

 

Sam, your not Keyser Soze. Your not fooling anyone, except yourself.

[heavyharmonies]

To remove some doubt: After checking IP addresses, the OP is not coming from Australia, nor have any other HH posters previously posted from that IP address or proxy.

 

-Dan

[heaven&hell]

Hi All,

 

Like many of you I have been following the controversy over the Retrospect Records thing for a while now. As a collector, I have to admit I was pretty pissed to learn that original CDs I had owned for years or searched everywhere and perhaps paid top dollar for were being offered up as CD-Rs and also being sold for top dollar (which I think is the worst crime at work here).

 

Now that some time has gone by though, I have to say that it's becoming obvious that even though I have seen an apparent drop in value with some pieces in my collection, the integrity of true collectors still willing to track down and pay for the real thing has not completely ruined the value attached to having the 100% originals on the shelf at home.

 

Although now it's become much more difficult to decern the real thing from the bogus (without naming titles....ok, Strutt comes to mind! Rare as fuck if you've got the real deal!).

 

So, while I'm angered at some of the activities with Retrospect, I do admire the desire to release the more obscure music to the masses.

 

Now my suggestion. The fundamental issue here seems to be the difference between CD-Rs and factory pressed or "silver" CDs. As a rookie member of the HH forums, I'm sure I lack the credibilty of the rest of you on everything, but maybe can provide a fresh perspective for RR.

 

How about starting from scratch (which appears to be what's happening now?) and make things right? Take the time to respect each and every re-issue in your catalog, as well as every new band you sign....and also for a reasonable price!! EVERY SINGLE TITLE!! It takes a real ass hole (pardon me) to offer up a re-issue, CD-R or not for $40 (The Cauze). It's unreasonable business and totally transparently greedy.

 

Again RR (Sam?), I'm not jumping you or trying to throw fuel on the flaming. I'm just saying, listen to all the folks out there who love this stuff and give them what they want. There's been a ton of great labels dealing with re-issues (Long Island, Wounded Bird, etc.) who have taken the time and had the interest in protecting the integrity of everything they sell to do it right!

 

To tell the truth, I wouldn't have touched one of your releases for free until I saw Georg Siegl over at AOR Heaven selling the Mariah stuff. This man is one of the pillars of the selling community for hard rock and AOR collectors and if he is willing to sell it, I am willing to buy it. He's got the same mature attitude about doing business that most of us respect and want to see in the world.

 

So how about it? Everything silver pressed and officially licensed or authorized by each band, and everything $12 to $15. I'll be a customer for certain then, and I think a lot of others who visit the HH forum will be too.

 

Thanks for reading my opinions. If you agree, maybe you can all let Sam know we're behind him if he gives us all what we want most.

 

Chris

 

 

 

 

 

Why don't you save this kind of post for your 10th post at least.........

 

 

I was thinking more like the 100th post.

[Mullethead]

This is the retrospect forum, where people can come and speak their minds. If people don't like the criticism, then don't visit this forum. The way I understand it, this forum was meant for controversial issues as it relates to Retrospect both positive and negative.

 

 

 

Then I guess David should get his own also because I see more bitching about him than Sam these days..........

 

 

Just speaking my mind...........

[David]

Thanks for clearing that up Dan. There's not much I can do when Sam accuses me of being someone else. Basically everyone who disagrees with his business practises from Australia or with the first name of David has gotta be me.

 

I have NEVER posted anything on these boards and NEVER will, not using my own name (unlike Sam, who has had many different aliases).

 

Kind regards

Dave

[Guest SenatorLynx]

Hello Again,

 

 

Look, I know you are all veteran users of the site and I'm just some drive-by know nothing but I am not, and have no idea who "David" is. I'm not well connected to the scene in that way. I know some traders/dealers from around the world and am not currently working directly with any bands, producers of bands, marketing agents, licensing companies, attorneys or anything else connected with that side of the biz.

 

I am a consumer who buys, trades, sells (every so often) and mostly collects this kind of music. I don't wish to be a part of anything associated with this issue beyond offering up my opinions and suggestions to the owner of the company who is producing the products.

 

Sorry to hear these negative things about labels I enjoy(ed) like Wounded Bird or Long Island (by the way, I believe the owner got cancer or something?). That alone tells me a lot about your character that you'd be willing to take such an unprofessional approach and rip those in the same business as you. Also Mr. Siegl's alleged outstanding debts to you or anyone else is not at issue here and is none of my business either.

 

It's obvious you've made your decisions with RR and I will continue to make mine as a collector of hard rock, AOR and metal.

 

You've attempted to clear up some of the things I asked about and I appreciate that. I'd love to believe that the CDs of The Cauze that you sell are original pressings, but your credibility has been called into question enough that I can't spend $40 to find out for myself. Same with Galaxy Group...how about these "silver pressed" CDs for $30?? Originals from some post-Cold War storage facility in Siberia I suppose?

 

As for Strutt, I have owned that CD since the mid-1990's before anyone else knew about or cared about who they were. So I am absolutely positive that I own the "real" thing, and I'd love to compare my authentic article to the ones you sell as "legit". Even if they pass legal inspection, there will be a difference no doubt.

 

So thanks again for just plain being rude in return to my suggestion. It seems to me if you'd have started off on more honest ground with people and been willing to spend the time and money to make your products of some quality that everyone would have responded to your label better. I certainly wish things were different with you because I think we were all waiting and hoping for someone to re-issue a lot of hard to find releases from the past. We just wanted it to be better than this.

 

Oh, and a couple final thoughts in response as well. "Real" collectors of music will not all settle for a CD-R. It's a completely different animal, even to those who aren't hardcore enough to pay through the nose to get an original. A CD-R is a CD-R is a CD-R. You can buy them in stacks of 100 at Wal*Mart for next to nothing. Real CDs are more collectable and always will be. Don't believe me? Let's auction off one of your Friction - Baby Talk green-tinted swirly shit discs against the real McCoy from PA back in the day and see what happens! Collectors do have integrity and the community that buys music should (and in many cases does) demand the same from the people who make and sell it!

 

And as for waiting for my 10th or 100th or 1,000th post to make this statement? Who the fuck do some of you people think you are anyway?

 

Last you'll hear from me on this because I don't have the desire to sit around all day and post a bunch of grade school horseshit back and forth with someone who has nothing better to do all day (I noticed you were the first to reply, what an honor to be so controversial that you get your own topic board on HH so you can check it all day long...?)

 

Have fun with your life:-)

 

Chris

 

 

Hey Dan...I have a quick suggestion for you if your looking?

 

Ever think about having scans of some of the CDs themselves that are here at HH?

 

Besides the RR stuff that's controversial, there are a number of other boots (like the Black N' Blue Japan stuff for example) of which images of the various CDs available would be really helpful in determining authenticity or giving people a heads up about which one they wanted to look for.

 

No need to do this with every item, but I noticed some scans already here helping others in the forums and also some info about the legitimacy of last year's Hot Boy discovery that was instrumental in making some decisions of my own.

 

Just a thought...BTW, I have enjoyed the site for years. Not much of a chatter, so never really ventured here before now, but the library of albums and information is invaluable. Thanks a lot for keeping it up so nicely over the years:-)

 

Chris

[martinsane]

Hello Again,

 

 

Look, I know you are all veteran users of the site and I'm just some drive-by know nothing but I am not, and have no idea who "David" is. I'm not well connected to the scene in that way. I know some traders/dealers from around the world and am not currently working directly with any bands, producers of bands, marketing agents, licensing companies, attorneys or anything else connected with that side of the biz.

 

I am a consumer who buys, trades, sells (every so often) and mostly collects this kind of music. I don't wish to be a part of anything associated with this issue beyond offering up my opinions and suggestions to the owner of the company who is producing the products.

 

Sorry to hear these negative things about labels I enjoy(ed) like Wounded Bird or Long Island (by the way, I believe the owner got cancer or something?). That alone tells me a lot about your character that you'd be willing to take such an unprofessional approach and rip those in the same business as you. Also Mr. Siegl's alleged outstanding debts to you or anyone else is not at issue here and is none of my business either.

 

It's obvious you've made your decisions with RR and I will continue to make mine as a collector of hard rock, AOR and metal.

 

You've attempted to clear up some of the things I asked about and I appreciate that. I'd love to believe that the CDs of The Cauze that you sell are original pressings, but your credibility has been called into question enough that I can't spend $40 to find out for myself. Same with Galaxy Group...how about these "silver pressed" CDs for $30?? Originals from some post-Cold War storage facility in Siberia I suppose?

 

As for Strutt, I have owned that CD since the mid-1990's before anyone else knew about or cared about who they were. So I am absolutely positive that I own the "real" thing, and I'd love to compare my authentic article to the ones you sell as "legit". Even if they pass legal inspection, there will be a difference no doubt.

 

So thanks again for just plain being rude in return to my suggestion. It seems to me if you'd have started off on more honest ground with people and been willing to spend the time and money to make your products of some quality that everyone would have responded to your label better. I certainly wish things were different with you because I think we were all waiting and hoping for someone to re-issue a lot of hard to find releases from the past. We just wanted it to be better than this.

 

Oh, and a couple final thoughts in response as well. "Real" collectors of music will not all settle for a CD-R. It's a completely different animal, even to those who aren't hardcore enough to pay through the nose to get an original. A CD-R is a CD-R is a CD-R. You can buy them in stacks of 100 at Wal*Mart for next to nothing. Real CDs are more collectable and always will be. Don't believe me? Let's auction off one of your Friction - Baby Talk green-tinted swirly shit discs against the real McCoy from PA back in the day and see what happens! Collectors do have integrity and the community that buys music should (and in many cases does) demand the same from the people who make and sell it!

 

And as for waiting for my 10th or 100th or 1,000th post to make this statement? Who the fuck do some of you people think you are anyway?

 

Last you'll hear from me on this because I don't have the desire to sit around all day and post a bunch of grade school horseshit back and forth with someone who has nothing better to do all day (I noticed you were the first to reply, what an honor to be so controversial that you get your own topic board on HH so you can check it all day long...?)

 

Have fun with your life:-)

 

Chris

 

 

Hey Dan...I have a quick suggestion for you if your looking?

 

Ever think about having scans of some of the CDs themselves that are here at HH?

 

Besides the RR stuff that's controversial, there are a number of other boots (like the Black N' Blue Japan stuff for example) of which images of the various CDs available would be really helpful in determining authenticity or giving people a heads up about which one they wanted to look for.

 

No need to do this with every item, but I noticed some scans already here helping others in the forums and also some info about the legitimacy of last year's Hot Boy discovery that was instrumental in making some decisions of my own.

 

Just a thought...BTW, I have enjoyed the site for years. Not much of a chatter, so never really ventured here before now, but the library of albums and information is invaluable. Thanks a lot for keeping it up so nicely over the years:-)

 

Chris

Nicely put Chris.

My sentiments exactly. I have been reading these threads for a long while. And enjoying them immensely.It is very interesting how the tides have changed on who to "bash". (bad Sam, bad Dave, bad????)

Welcome aboard and here is looking forward to what you have to contribute to this excellent web site.

Terry

[Guest SenatorLynx]

Thanks for the kind welcome Terry. It's tough being new to any board, especially when you choose this as one of your first topics:-)

 

This guy just can't seem to figure out that I'm really only trying to help him out, and the rest of us too.

 

I have nothing against re-issues at all...in fact, I always welcome them! Even though sometimes one will come out that trashes the value of the orignal you paid good money to get, for the most part we all reap the rewards of access to a hard to find release. Not by just being able to get or afford it at all, but also with bonus tracks, booklets with rare photos and other stuff.

 

Seems like this Sam has compromised making a quality product available for the sake of money (of course) and to get a bunch of rare releases out very quickly instead of growing things over time. I know I don't have the time or the means to have a re-issue label, but if I did (and I've got my wish list too believe me...well hidden from Sam of course:-), I'd want to make everybody very happy and go all out.

 

Obviously now he's either so used to getting pressured on the issues about his label, or has such a defensive predisposition, that he has to really spout off to make it look like he's actually listening to his potential customers.

 

I don't know what it closed for, but I know I saw a Spiced Ice of his (the CD-R, right?) on E-Bay about to close for 99 cents!! That's pathetic!! Eventually once everyone that is willing to settle for a CD-R from him will get it and this sort of release will have to stop because even though this stuff isn't costing him more than a nickel to make most likely, even at that rate it won't make sense to continue.

 

So in conclusion what will we learn from business administration's school of rock 101? Cheap product and lack of customer care equals eventual demise. Bad for us, bad for him.

 

Hey, we all tried to get through, right? Have you seen all the questions and demand for something as simple as pressed CDs from this guy? Wow! Talk about deaf ears!

 

Chris

[Mullethead]

And as for waiting for my 10th or 100th or 1,000th post to make this statement? Who the fuck do some of you people think you are anyway?

 

 

 

My user name is to the left.....and most people on here go and introduce themselves before they start bashing ANYBODY, not just because it's Sam.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last you'll hear from me

 

 

 

Hate to hear it kind sir...you have given so much to the site already.......

 

 

 

Have fun with your life:-)

 

 

 

Same to you my friend!

 

 

JL

[BrianJ8173]

Mr. Mullet I am with you on this one. An introduction would have been nice.

 

So SenatorLynx comments are always appreciated, but for these comments

And as for waiting for my 10th or 100th or 1,000th post to make this statement? Who the fuck do some of you people think you are anyway?

Have fun with your life:-)

 

A big is in order

 

So here is to ya

 

[chocularok]

And as for waiting for my 10th or 100th or 1,000th post to make this statement? Who the fuck do some of you people think you are anyway?

 

Well, to start with, the majority of us here have waited until we had more than 4 posts to start mouthing off. Some of your suggestions were constructive, but the one regarding silver pressing his ENTIRE catalog is idiotic. I'm sure Sam would love to silver press all his discs if you would be willing to put up the money it required. As he has stated time & time again, the costs just make that unrealistic. If you have in fact been checking out the board for a while, this shouldn't come as news to you. However, I totally agree with your statement about real collectors seeking out originals instead of CDR's when available.

[Retrospect Records]

Let's start with this CEREBUS , who doesn't know if he wants to be Dr Jeckyll or Mr Hyde.

 

 

"I think its b.s. that people jump all over David because of his frustration with a competitor that doesn't play by the rules, cheats bands and customers, and sells cds that come directly off his computer cdr drive and laser color printer."

 

Cerebus , here's a big for that statement and it shows your true ignorance. Doesn't play by the rules? Yeh , I don't play by YOUR rules (i.e. a failed record company from the 80s). Cheats bands? WTF? I don't know any bands that haven't had funds made available to them. Cheats Customers? How do you figure? Sells cd's that come off my cd-r drive? HAHAAH dude you really should STFU til you know what the hell you're talking about.

 

 

 

"Sam, you don't sell your released for more than 17 dollars?? What about the London release, which is on the Retrospect label, which is not even available on your website (for obvious reasons that you bootlegged it without the bands permission). You routinely sell if for 30 bucks plus, passing it off as a legit cd. Interestingly, you don't advertise it as a Retrospect Records cd. But you and I both know that it is."

 

Nadir D'Priest knows exactly what's going on there numbnuts , so again , shut up til you have the facts.

 

 

 

"What about the Vyper release, which is also questionable?"

 

Nothing questionable about it. It sold 100 units and is now out of print. Accept it.

 

 

"Or how about the hard rock demo series you sell on ebay (limited to 100) as per all of your other Retrospect releases?"

 

As per all my other releases? You sleeping under a rock? It is nice to know that you are watching my stuff 24/7 and for someone to hate my releases so much , you sure spend alot of time monitoring my existence.

 

 

"I recognize that your trying to go straight now, but don't pull your holier than thou BS. I wish your business the best of luck, but if you keep bootlegging and/or selling bootlegs, your eventually going to fail miserably and quite possibly get prosecuted for fraud and a number of other offenses."

 

Yeh , I may just go after your back catalog and Retrospect ain't going nowhere.

[BrianJ8173]

Cerebus,

 

You are another that deserves a big . Get your facts straight before mouthing off. "I think its b.s. that people jump all over David because of his frustration with a competitor that doesn't play by the rules, cheats bands and customers, and sells cds that come directly off his computer cdr drive and laser color printer." Now that is a bunch of bullshit.

[Retrospect Records]

And now the holierthanthou SenatorLynx , who seems to know what EVERY collector wants....

 

 

"Sorry to hear these negative things about labels I enjoy(ed) like Wounded Bird or Long Island (by the way, I believe the owner got cancer or something?). That alone tells me a lot about your character that you'd be willing to take such an unprofessional approach and rip those in the same business as you."

 

Unprofessional approach? WTF? Do your homework man. TALK to bands. I don't have to rip these labels , they do a very good job of digging their own holes.

 

 

"You've attempted to clear up some of the things I asked about and I appreciate that. I'd love to believe that the CDs of The Cauze that you sell are original pressings, but your credibility has been called into question enough that I can't spend $40 to find out for myself. Same with Galaxy Group...how about these "silver pressed" CDs for $30?? Originals from some post-Cold War storage facility in Siberia I suppose?"

 

Galaxy Group originals. Yep. Accept it. It's nice to have a Russian connection.

 

 

 

"As for Strutt, I have owned that CD since the mid-1990's before anyone else knew about or cared about who they were. So I am absolutely positive that I own the "real" thing, and I'd love to compare my authentic article to the ones you sell as "legit". Even if they pass legal inspection, there will be a difference no doubt."

 

So here you are bagging me for selling a few Strutt cd's and YOU THINK the ones I am selling are frauds. Wow , that's pretty f'g rich Chris. Get your facts buddy before making assanine statements.

 

 

 

"I certainly wish things were different with you because I think we were all waiting and hoping for someone to re-issue a lot of hard to find releases from the past. We just wanted it to be better than this."

 

Well , I guess you'll never hear a lot of great music , your loss. And plenty of other people are enjoying RR releases.

 

 

 

"Oh, and a couple final thoughts in response as well. "Real" collectors of music will not all settle for a CD-R."

 

Then they aren't REAL collectors. If you are a true collector , you'll buy the music if it's on a purple , green , orange or f'g polka-dot disc. And if you care about the color of a disc , look elsewhere. If someone is stupid enough to pay $200+ for a cd , then that's not collecting , that's just dumb (IMO).

 

 

" Real CDs are more collectable and always will be. Don't believe me? Let's auction off one of your Friction - Baby Talk green-tinted swirly shit discs against the real McCoy from PA back in the day and see what happens!"

 

Yeh , and let's see how many people want to pay $500 for a cd. Don't like it? DON'T BUY IT.

 

 

"Collectors do have integrity and the community that buys music should (and in many cases does) demand the same from the people who make and sell it!"

 

HEY MORON , Collectors don't collect re-issues from 2006 , they collect oop titles from 20 years ago.

Name ONE record company that actually caters to anal 'collectors'.... YOU CAN'T , because they DON'T.

[chocularok]

"Oh, and a couple final thoughts in response as well. "Real" collectors of music will not all settle for a CD-R."

 

Then they aren't REAL collectors. If you are a true collector , you'll buy the music if it's on a purple , green , orange or f'g polka-dot disc. And if you care about the color of a disc , look elsewhere. If someone is stupid enough to pay $200+ for a cd , then that's not collecting , that's just dumb (IMO).

 

Well, I have to vehemently disagree with this one. Your logic seems almost backwards. I have a few very hard to find indie's (Rock Boulevard, Friction, White Eagle, etc) on CDR. I picked them up because I'm a FAN of the music, but I don't consider any of them part of my collection. In most instances, I've gotten a CDR of a band that I've heard people rave about to see if they were actually any good. If I liked that particular band & if I had the coin to lay out for it, I'd pick up an original. I don't think that makes me more of a "collector" than someone who has a CDR of the same title, but it doesn't make me "dumb" either. Anal, maybe...