TOMMY NEWMAN'S CHILDRENS GROUP - "FROSTY THE SNOWMAN AND OTHER CHILDREN'S FAVORITES" - 1988 Golden Circle Cassette

Hello, Sanctum Dwellers! My deepest apologies for not being able to share anything over the past few weeks as originally intended; several hardships befell my family and friends, including a death in my family. Hopefully this upload can make up for it.

First off, I hope everyone who celebrates had a very Merry Christmas weekend!

What I'm sharing today is a cassette rip (Thank You, as always, Under Design) of a children's choir singing numerous Holiday staples. The music is credited to "Tommy Newman's Childrens Group", of which I can barely find any information outside of a second album dedicated to Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.

I can't find any information on Tommy himself. There's an award-winning composer and a theatre writer both with the same name, but I don't think this Tommy is either of them.

While this album seems sweet and innocent enough, there's a tiny bit of controversy that lies within the tracklisting. You may notice that it states "Gene Autry" in parentheses next to the "Frosty" track beginning Side B. Well, that's because that track is quite literally nothing more than a muffled recording of the actual "Frosty The Snowman" performed by Mr. Autry himself!

You see, this compilation was produced and distributed by Golden Circle, who were well-known in the 1980's and 1990's to put out bargain-priced counterfeit copies of already-released albums from other record labels. Remember coming across cheap cassettes at the gas station or low-tier grocery store with super-generic covers? Yep, those are the types of albums I'm talking about.

Because of this, I am purposefully omitting Track 6 from this archived upload, since that song can be legally purchased via the copyright holder(s) of Gene Autry's catalog at a variety of places online (and in much better quality, too!).

Hopefully this small stain on the album doesn't take away from the otherwise humble and straightforward recordings of an average children's choir merrily singing their way through Christmas classics.

Enjoy, and once again Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

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192kbps CBR

"ANNABELLE'S WISH" - 1997 Soundtrack CD

It's December, and that means just like the past two years I'll be sharing something Holiday Season - related every Friday this month!

I'm kicking things off with the soundtrack to the long-forgotten TV movie "Annabelle's Wish".

Bits and pieces of this album are online, but not in its entirety, and definitely not for sale or streaming anywhere. That's a shame, because there are some great Country tunes here from Dolly Parton, Alison Krauss, Randy Travis, and more!

The entire movie is on YouTube if you'd like to watch it; it's your typical cutesy wholesome Holiday Fluff. And don't forget to grab the soundtrack afterwards! Enjoy!

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320kbps CBR

FEELING BLESSED.

This month marks my fourth decade around the Sun, and I just want to say... I feel blessed.

I'm by no means a religious person, so I don't use the term lightly. Between the success of the recent First Annual Blue Hen Comic Con, to the growth of Blog followers, to the sales I've had on eBay, and the feedback I've received from folks who've stumbled upon my Archival uploads... I'm really feeling like I've found a place in the "geek" community.

I love thrifting, I love sharing, and I love that even a fraction of what I enjoy doing becomes something that others can also enjoy.

So I just want to say THANK YOU to anyone who's ever visited the blog, my online storefronts, or interacted with me in a positive way.

As is tradition, starting next week I'll be sharing Out-Of-Print Holiday Season goodies... STAY TUNED!

"TELL-TALE HEART" & "ADVENTURE OF THE GERMAN STUDENT" - 1997 Win Phillips Audiobook

This is a post I've wanted to make for a long, long time.

Way back in 2008, I shared some of my OOP media with the Children's Records and More blog. In the collection was an audio cassette containing two classic Horror stories narrated, and featuring music by, the legendary Winifred Phillips.

This original rip was very poor (I recorded it using the Aux Out on an old cassette player), but I always figured I could update it at some point.

Years passed, I moved houses, and the cassette was seemingly lost forever. I swore I searched everything I owned, everywhere I had anything stashed, but I simply could not find the cassette.

I tried to find other copies online, but could never find one. I emailed Ms. Phillips herself, hoping I could obtain another copy, but I never received a response.

I felt all hope was lost... until one day this past week. I had moved a bucket of old papers, drawings, and magazines from my shed to my house, in the hopes of digging out a magazine I could've sworn I had still owned to possibly send to CGC for an upcoming signing.

...and there it was.

I have no clue how it got there, but I didn't care. I immediately sent it off to Under Design to get digitized, hoping it would be ready in time for Halloween. Talk about a miracle right at the eleventh hour!

The stories included are Edgar Allan Poe's timeless "The Tell-Tale Heart", and Washington Irving's romantic horror classic "The Adventure of The German Student". Each tale clocks in at a little under a half hour apiece.

These are excellent adaptations. Winifred's slow (and somehow sensual) narration works well in accompaniment with her lush, Gothic orchestral compositions. This is the woman who brought us the music behind "God of War", after all.

In fact, this take on "Heart" is my personal favorite, just edging out the revolutionary UPA short.

If you're a fan of either story, or a fan of Winifred's music, you must give these a listen. This cassette is as rare as it gets, and I'm proud to be able to finally share a quality copy with the world.

Please enjoy, and HAPPY HALLOWEEN! 🎃

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192kbps CBR

NOCTURNAL - 1999 Self-Titled Cassette - Kaos Music

I'm just gonna come right out and ask... if anyone, anywhere, has a shred of info about this band or this album, could you please contact me?

This is "Into The Darkness", by the band Nocturnal. Good luck finding any info on this band, or this release, aside from what's printed on the inner fold of the cassette sleeve.

I vaguely remember getting this album in 1999 via a mail-away offer. There was an ad in some sort of guitar or Rock magazine for a free cassette, so I figured "what the Hell" and asked for one. That's it. That's all I remember.

The cover art, album title, and even the band name do NOT fit the music that lies within. The songs (of which there are no titles printed anywhere, so I just call them "Tracks 1 through 4") are a hodgepodge of Classic Rock influences.

"Into The Darkness" is an unpolished, unfocused oddity... and that's basically the reason I'm sharing it here. That, and the hopes that someone out in the ether of the Web can divulge any further information about this outfit or its works.

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192kbps

"DR. SYN" - BBC Audiobook Series - narrated by Rufus Sewell - 2006-2010

art by Bret Blevins

This post is a stark reminder as to why digital archival is so damned important.

Between 2006 and 2010, BBC Radio aired abridged versions of the stellar "Dr. Syn" book series by Russell Thorndike. They were narrated by Rufus Sewell, and are above and beyond the most entertaining adaptation of the stories aside from the watered-down (yet still fantastic) Disney miniseries.

If you're unfamiliar, the stories are about Dr. Christopher Syn, a polite and courteous Parson by day, and a swashbuckling cloaked avenger called "The Scarecrow" by night. With the first book being published in 1915, one could say this type of hero predates both Batman and The Shadow; however the first book focused more on Syn's Pirate life, and the "masked vigilante" alias of "The Scarecrow" didn't come about until the 1930's with the subsequent novels.

Up until at least 2019, the Sewell recordings were publicly available via the BBC's own website. However, between then and now, they have all been wiped out. Even the reuploads on YouTube (which is where I ended up securing the third installment of the series) have disappeared.

These stories are timeless. They're exciting. They're excellent listening material for the Halloween season. And they deserve to be heard and archived.

The tales are encoded in 128kbps, which was the only way I was able to originally save them from the BBC's site. I added accompanying artwork depicting Disney's take on "The Scarecrow" drawn by the incredible Bret Blevins.

I have no idea whether or not the BBC will try to have these recordings removed - again - from the web, so I'd urge anyone who believes they may enjoy these stories to please listen to them as soon as possible. I have a feeling you won't regret it.

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128kbps CBR

ELEKTRONIKA - "NIGHT & DAY" - 2003 Electronic Gothic Synth Rock CD

Just in time for Autumn, here's an obscure little collection of dark tunes from a now-disbanded group, Elektronika, whose music combined Gothic Rock with late 1990's/early 2000's Electronic music.

Not much info exists anymore about this band beyond a woefully-outdated Indie Music site post, and a rarely-updated Facebook page. It appears that this album, "Night & Day", is the complete collection of everything the group recorded between 2001 and 2003, and after that frontwoman Dawn Wood and guitarist Dan Hoyer regrouped in 2015 for a new project, Murder Weapons.

This one isn't really my cup of tea, but I know there are people who have a soft spot for tunes that sound like they could've fit on the "Spawn" or "Matrix" soundtracks, so this one's for you. Enjoy!

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320kbps CBR