Intense Records

L.A.M.F. - the found '77 masters (LP)

Jungle
TRACKLP77
Punk, Record Store Day, Rock
12"

£17.49 (£20.99 incl. VAT)

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On release in 1977, Johnny Thunders & the Heartbreakers' 'L.A.M.F.' had a mastering fault, widely condemned as a 'muddy mix'. Track Records went bust and the master was lost - so subsequent releases were compiled from outtake or re-mixes. Forty-four years later, the master has been found in an attic, and the classic punk album 'L.A.M.F.' can at last be heard as the band and producers intended! FOUND IN AN ATTIC - a punk rock archaeological discovery - a copy master of the original 1977 Track Records tape, without 'mud'! This classic punk album, recorded in London by the New York band featuring two New York Dolls, was always controversial - and not just for the acronym. Upon release on Track Records in 1977, it was widely condemned for having a 'muddy mix' - later found to be a mastering fault. When Track went bust the following year, manager Leee Black Childers burgled the office and liberated the tapes - he found everything except the master-tape. Subsequent releases were remixed from the multi-tracks or compiled from outtake mixes - the 'lost '77 mixes' in 1994 being well-received and the version most known ever since. A lift from the vinyl didn't achieve much clarity. Meanwhile, fans found the '77 cassette version didn't have the infamous 'mud', nor did certain European vinyl matrixes. In 2020 a chance meeting led to Daniel Secunda's archives. He was an old-school music biz pioneer who became a Track Records director - and the Heartbreakers 'L.A.M.F.' co-producer. In amongst his many tape boxes were two with no artist name, marked 'Copy Master 12.7.77'. They turned out to be a crystal-clear 'L.A.M.F.', just as the band and producers intended it. Sadly, in August 2020 the Heartbreakers co-lead vocalist, guitarist and songwriter Walter passed away. He was the last of the Heartbreakers 'L.A.M.F.' line-up - Johnny Thunders died in 1991, Jerry Nolan in 1992, and Billy Rath in 2014. Walter's punk memoir autobiography is to be published in paperback in May 2021. A limited edition in transparent purple vinyl. Inner bag with new notes by Simon Wright, plus a 12' poster with Roberta Bayley cover outtake pic Tracks: Born To Lose, Baby Talk, All By Myself, I Wanna Be Loved, It's Not Enough, Chinese Rocks, Get Off The Phone, Pirate Love, One Track Mind, I Love You, Goin' Steady, Let Go, Can't Keep My Eyes On You, Do You Love Me.