Ira Kantor’s Vinyl Confessions: The Kings Are (Still!) Here

Photo Courtesy of Deborah Samuel The Kings The Kings Are Here They had the attitudes of punks and the chops to be a Canadian Beatles. The story of how I discovered The Kings...

Ira Kantor’s Vinyl Confessions: America’s Second Coming (“Yes, I’m Back To Stay”)

America photo courtesy of MSO PR Gerry Beckley photo courtesy of Joe Beckley Ten years after taking home the Grammy for Best New Artist, perennial folk-rock group America found itself at a...

Ira Kantor’s Vinyl Confessions: Royal Orleans

Photos Courtesy of Lance Hoppen In 1976, the group Orleans came within reach of superstardom. With two tender Top Five singles under its belt — “Dance with Me” and “Still the...

Ira Kantor’s Vinyl Confessions: White Punks With Hope – The Tubes ~ What Do...

Photo Courtesy of John Staley Photography The Tubes What Do You Want From Live On their second album, they sang about the glories of being “young and rich,” but by 1977, the...

Ira Kantor’s Vinyl Confessions: ‘Did I Hear You Say That This Is Victory’ –...

It’s doesn’t matter that it’s been 50 years; Blue Öyster Cult remains one of rock music’s most underappreciated bands. Here we have a powerhouse collective where democracy (at least for...

Ira Kantor’s Vinyl Confessions: Snake Eyes, Seventh Heaven ~ The Alan Parsons Project ‘The...

Photo Courtesy of Lenny Zakatek The Alan Parsons Project The Turn Of A Friendly Card In 1980, the Alan Parsons Project opted to make gambling the core concept of its fifth album....

Ira Kantor’s Vinyl Confessions: Driven To Sniff ‘n’ the Tears

Photos Courtesy of Paul Roberts Their lone U.S. hit begins simply enough until nine seconds in — a few acoustic guitar strums and then POW, the musical gas is punched...

Ira Kantor’s Vinyl Confessions: The Jon Butcher Axis – Bold As Hell

Photos courtesy of Jon Butcher When I’m not in full-blown public relations mode at my day job, I’m usually conferring with colleagues throughout the country about the bands and artists...

Ira Kantor’s Vinyl Confessions: Bird On A Desire Wire

There’s a notable omission from the acclaimed documentary 20 Feet from Stardom. Cidny Bullens should qualify for cast inclusion simply based on the fact he launched his career backing up...

Ira Kantor’s Vinyl Confessions: The Sweetest Victory (“No Pain!”)

“It ain’t about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward.” – Rocky Balboa I don’t want to be a statistic. That’s...