April 9, 2019
Vinyl Me, Please, the premier vinyl company and record of the month club — opened sales for its exclusive, premium vinyl box set with Blue Note Records yesterday and sold out in under three hours. VMP Anthology: The Story of Blue Note Records is the first release in the new “VMP Anthology” product category for Vinyl Me, Please, which promises a more immersive and educational experience for music fans. The Blue Note release features a limited edition, 6-album, 7-LP box set, a private fan community, and an exclusive podcast series, which takes listeners on a six-week journey into the history and music of jazz’s most legendary label as it celebrates its 80th anniversary.
“This first VMP Anthology release was an opportunity for Vinyl Me, Please to gauge the demand for a new offering that blends a premium physical product with an educational experience to let music fans get deeper into the stories behind the albums, labels and/or artists that move them. While we were cautiously optimistic that vinyl collectors would see the value in this type of product, we were overwhelmed by the response and sold out of all 1,000 units in under three hours,” said Matt Hessler, Head of Marketing, Vinyl Me, Please. “This first VMP Anthology release has proven that in a world increasingly moving towards streaming, there are still fans who will gladly invest in music and this industry on a deeper level. We are excited to honor that by curating more exciting VMP Anthology releases in the near future.”
VMP Anthology: The Story of Blue Note Records features six Blue Note albums across Bebop, Hard Bop, Soul Jazz, Post-Bop, Fusion and the jazz of today with liner notes by Grammy-nominated jazz critic Ben Ratliff. Remastered from the original tapes by Kevin Gray and pressed at the legendary RTI, each album comes on 180-gram audiophile grade virgin black vinyl. To accompany each shipment, Vinyl Me, Please will release a four-part podcast and content series featuring Blue Note President Don Was and Vinyl Me, Please’s Editorial Director Andrew Winistorfer who will talk through each album’s story and its imprint on jazz.
“Great labels and artists can’t be summed up in a single album or quick spin. They require slow listening across a lifetime of work, in-depth storytelling, and space to think and discuss,” said Cameron Schaefer, Head of Music & Brand, Vinyl Me, Please. “This is more than a box set really, it’s a 6-week journey for the kind of music fan that lives for the liner notes.”
“Every one of the Blue Note VMP Anthology records shows artists in transition, moving to something different than what they did the album before and, in retrospect, you can see where it aims into where they were going next. But they are all beautiful snapshots of a significant moment of pushing the envelope and that’s what ties them all together,” said Don Was, President, Blue Note Records.
The new titles for VMP Anthology: The Story of Blue Note Records will be released bi-weekly to time with each of the three shipments. The Blue Note Anthology kicks off with Horace Silver’s Horace Silver Trio and Dexter Gordon’s Dexter Calling and will be accompanied by the final box set packaging.
VMP Anthology: The Story of Blue Note Records is the first VMP Anthology release. Only 1,000 copies were made available for purchase. Vinyl Me, Please will explore different genres and labels through future VMP Anthology releases. For more information on future VMP Anthology releases, stay tuned to anthology.vinylmeplease.com and enter your email for access to on-sale announcements and teasers. For more information on Vinyl Me, Please, go to vinylmeplease.com and follow @vinylmeplease on socials.
