The package includes an original liner notes + photo booklet, as well as an exclusive art print. Our reissue of John Prine as was pressed all-analog (AAA) with lacquers cut from the original analog tapes by Ryan Smith, Sterling Sound on 180g Orange Marble Vinyl. It’s absurd how much humanity that young man could pack into just a handful of chords, some humble melodies, and the lyrical products of his own wandering mind.” “His debut is Prine at some of his rawest songwriting, and holds some of his most time-honored classics. In that respect alone, the John Prine record is a no-brainer for our Essentials track, but it also feels notable and special that we can kick off what will be - with any luck - a year of hope and optimism with tribute to a beautiful soul and creator that we lost this past year to COVID,” said VMP Senior Editor Amileah Sutliff. “Anyone who could possibly turn their nose up at any John Prine record is suffering from a case of severe tiny grinch heart, and is certainly no friend of mine - but this is especially true of his debut. John Prine was recorded just a handful of months after in 1971 at American Sound Studio in Memphis (except “Paradise,” which was recorded in New York), produced by the esteemed Arif Mardin, and released the same year. He began playing regular gigs at a small Chicago club and garnering regional accolades, but when he caught his break after a friend convinced Kristofferson and Paul Anka to come see him play, he was quickly signed to Atlantic. In fact, he wrote many of the songs that appear on the album not for the world to hear, but to pass the time as a young, unknown USPS worker on his daily delivery route. “John Prine is so good, we may have to break his thumbs.” But we all know that probably wouldn’t have stopped Prine songs came out of him like breath.
“No way somebody this young can be writing so heavy,” Kris Kristofferson, who is partially credited for discovering Prine, once said.
January: John Prine’s John Prineįirst up, our Essentials track will feature the self-titled debut album from big-hearted storyteller and deeply beloved country singer-songwriter John Prine. If you’re a member of VMP Essentials, or sign up now, here are the three records you’ll receive with a subscription in January, February, and March. With the new year on the horizon, we’re giving you an advanced sneak peek at what’s coming in our VMP Essentials subscription for the next three months, not just what’s up next month.