[makbo]

1. Yes, Virginia, there are other download services. I got onto Lavamus (2 weeks BEFORE the latest Alltunes outage, thanx to info I read on this forum) and have been mostly satisfied. Downloading to specific folders is more tedious, and I had a technical problem that support actually responded to, but it still looks broken from here (one of many download servers unreachable). Then I also sometimes use Amazon MP3 even at the higher price (.89 - .99 US) because I can FIND things I am looking for.

2. The obscure stuff becomes less obscure. Tracks that took me YEARS to find on vinyl, and then more YEARS in digital form, sometimes pop up, unbidden, for the taking! Lowrell, the Prelude disco label, Shriekback "Jam Science" cassette, Yellow Magic Orchestra, just to name some recent ones. Even MP3Sparks/Alltunes added a lot while they were down ... such as a 38-year old eponymous album from Affinity, I couldn't believe anyone besides me had any memory of them.

3. Speaking of which, how does this old stuff get digitized? I'm assuming a number of obscure albums were never released on commercial CD. Is there a group of purists somewhere (I won't guess who their employer is!) taking analog recordings, cleaning them up and digitizing? I've done this with some of my own vinyl, but it's a pain, maybe I'm just using the wrong software.

4. I've been replenishing my AllOfMp3/MP3Sparks/Alltunes account for almost four years now, but it's been many months since the last time, I'm almost afraid to try again based on skimming some posts here. Thank goodness I've still got a decent balance left...

5. System administrators and database administrators don't like being on-call. If you don't have a service level agreement, you can't complain about downtime.

6. Having this forum is a great out-of-band communication method! I love the avatars, I tolerate the "wibble", but I don't read all of it either.

[mjehn]

this may be heretic, but music purchased from other legitimate stores online sound better played on speakers- seems more "lively". I happily pay slightly more knowing everyone involved sees what I have sent. Also, there are much more obscure sounds available if you look.

[makbo]

Now I can reply without just replying to my own post! <ha ha>

Lavamus did get the problem with one of their download servers solved.

I guess I was wrong, here are two very old, somewhat obscure albums I never thought would be released on CD, but it looks like they were. And they were both just recently added to Alltunes/MP3Sparks (they are eponymous albums)

Affinity (1970)

McDonald & Giles (1969) <- these guys were also in King Crimson.

My new goal in life is to find vinyl / cassette songs that I CANNOT find digitized anywhere, maybe they will show up! After all, the above two did, so did Horslips after a while.

Here are a few to get started:

Martha + the Muffins / Black stations, white stations

Letters to Cleo / Here & Now

Queen Latifah / Ladies First Radio Edit (the one with the female chorus that goes "ooooh... Ladies first, ladies first")

Machinations / Pressure Sway

[solaris]

Originally Posted by makbo

Now I can reply without just replying to my own post! <ha ha>

Lavamus did get the problem with one of their download servers solved.

I guess I was wrong, here are two very old, somewhat obscure albums I never thought would be released on CD, but it looks like they were. And they were both just recently added to Alltunes/MP3Sparks (they are eponymous albums)

Affinity (1970)

McDonald & Giles (1969) <- these guys were also in King Crimson.

My new goal in life is to find vinyl / cassette songs that I CANNOT find digitized anywhere, maybe they will show up! After all, the above two did, so did Horslips after a while.

Here are a few to get started:

Martha + the Muffins / Black stations, white stations

Letters to Cleo / Here & Now

Queen Latifah / Ladies First Radio Edit (the one with the female chorus that goes "ooooh... Ladies first, ladies first")

Machinations / Pressure Sway

Well, makbo - now you have to find an even newer goal in life

Take a look in your inbox

[Cornutopian]

Here and Now? That song isn't that old. Letters to Cleo released it on CD. I have it.

[solaris]

Originally Posted by Cornutopian

Here and Now? That song isn't that old. Letters to Cleo released it on CD. I have it.

It wasn't hard to find either