Lost & Found, Treasures from the Past

This Is My Story b/w More Peanuts (La Vienteunica) The Valentines - San Antonio, TX 1965/66 King Bee K-103     For about 3-4 years, "This Is My Story" by The Valentines was at the TOP of my want list. I searched high and low and just a week and a half ago I was able to get my very own copy of this EXTREMELY RARE record! Why the caps??? Because, the rarity of this is RIDICULOUS. Why is it so rare? Well first, let's learn a bit about this record.      FIRST OF ALL!!!! This is NOT Richard Barrett's group from NYC who were signed to Rama records.     Released around the year 1965/66, this record is virtually unknown to most people. Like myself when I first heard the song, many people don't even know it exists as a vinyl record! From the get-go, I thought to myself: "It must be an unreleased acetate!" The way the recording of the song sounded was much like that of a deteriorating acetate record. An acetate is a pre-production record meant to either be a one

King Bee K-103 Going way back to the second day of school, my very first post to this blog was talking about a Soulful Chicano Group Harmony 45 by a group known as “The Valentines.” No, this is not Richard Barrett’s group on Rama, this is a group of Chicanos out of San Antonio. Needless to say, I’ve FINALLY after SOOOO SOOO long found my own copy! This copy had sat in storage for years and looks to be never played. I will upload the audio soon; here is what I first wrote about the record.   " Pictured above is a very rare and hard to find piece of Chicano Soul history. Unknown to most collectors, this record is a very beautiful cover of the 1955 hit single by  Gene & Eunice . This single comes from San Antonio, TX - presumably from around 1962. The group sounds like a 3 part harmony backed by a strong Wind Section (comprised of Saxophones), and a marimba in the background. As a collector of rare Vocal Group Harmony, this single is at the top of my list of records to find. Tak

Military Vacuum Tubes    When it comes to quality in sound, vacuum tubes are the way to go for most audiophiles such as myself! Scrounging on the internet one morning last week - I stumbled across this NOS (Old items that are still in new condition 'New Old Stock') For $19, i couldn't handle or contain myself and immediately bought these babies. Manufactured by Mullard in March, 1980; these tubes deliver excellent sound quality. These particular "Military" vacuum tubes aren't really used for the military, in fact; they are labeled as such because they are manufactured up to the American Military standard of quality, (in other words... these guys mean business.) I am lucky enough to have these and stay tuned for a recording made with these ! 

A record with an AMAZING story      If you watch TV a lot, chances are you've seen this Bacardi House Party commercial . Initially aired in 2015, this fun looking commercial was backed up by a killer Teener / Garage sounding song, but no one knew what it was called! This is the story of "Born To Wander."     In 1966, Jack Woods began playing gigs at a bar in Grand Rapids, Michigan only making $10 a night! A frequent costumer of the bar complimented Jack on his voice and suggested he make a record; he noticed Jack's musical ability. The idea flowed nicely in Jack's head as he had already written up some songs. Around 2 weeks later on a Sunday afternoon, he wrote "Born To Wander" in around 20 minutes! Seeing potential in the song, he rehearsed it for a few hours with a local band. Jack found 2 black girls for background vocals and spent no more than a few hours practicing with them and the group.      A few weeks later, Jack booked a Sunday session at an a

ONE OF MY RAREST RECORDS!!!!! (Hear " Angel of Love ") (Hear "' Cause I Love You ")     Here is my most recent score! The record in the picture is my very own copy, and at 16 I am so fortunate to own this. I can't say too much about this record, as I myself and other collectors really know nothing abut it. It is considered to be "Rarest of the Rare!" I'm so happy to finally have it in my collection. Please hear it in the included links above, "Angel of Love" is a smooth and KILLER Doo Wop ballad. "'Cause I Love You" is a legit corner jiver any vocal group harmony enthusiast would enjoy. 

Xicano Record Co. EST 2015 In 2015 I had the idea to start a record label that would be able to represent who I am as a person and the music I love to play and seek out. Eventually, learning to love my Chicano background and my community full of Chicanos and the lowrider culture all around, I decided to name my record label "Chicano records" … but spelled with an “X” in front of it. Why so? In Nahuatl (the Mexican Uto-Aztecan language,) the “X” is pronounced “CH” and is a first generation way of spelling “Chicano.” I wanted to use the X to symbolize my love for finding ORIGINAL and hard to find oldies on their native formats - the vinyl record. For some time - the idea for this record label sat dormant; EVEN after I started to promote it and out its name out there. It was until I entered Dr. Preston’s English 3 class where he promoted a “Big Question” in our lives that revived my pursuit for building this record label. He urged me to follow my passion of music and it was th