Category Archives: For Sale

Sun Ra Plays the Batman Theme?

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Of all the vinyl finds I’ve had lately, one of the most surreal has to be this French repressing of this Batman and Robin album, complete with the Batman theme.

Re-issued by Klimt Records years ago in France, this record brought in some serious firepower as session musicians, namely members of the Al Kooper Blues Project and the Sun Ra Arkestra including Sun Ra himself on the Hammond B3. The original album gives no clue to the super-session nature of the album, but Klimt sets the record straight with a complete roster of players on the back cover.

That roster included Sun Ra, Al Kooper, Steve Katz, Pat Patrick, Marshall Allan, Danny Kalb and others.

According to blogger Ryan Masteller at Critical Masses, at least one of those players truly hated doing the sessions. Maybe they were underpaid, or had an angry martinet type running the show, or perhaps they were forced to do the music wearing tights and cowls? We may never know.

I’d never heard of this until I spotted it in the bins a few weeks ago. I was so amazed that I had to grab one. The album is a cash-in, made during the Adam West Batman period.

What’s really funny about that to me, at least where the actual Batman theme song is concerned, is that when you watch the end credits of any Batman episode, when they get to the music portion, there is a LYRICS credit.

Yes, somebody actually got paid to come up with “Batmaaaan. Da-da da-da- da-da-da….(repeat until your face falls off)…BAT MAAAAAAANNNNNNN”

But back to the record. The musicians are credited on the cover as “Dan and Dale”. On the flip side, the French pressing reveals that it’s actually Sun Ra and various other names (something not found on the original, heh).

All things considered, this is one super-oddball find and while some uber-collectors are no doubt tapping their foot and clucking at me finding this only years after the fact, collectors be damned. You take the weirdness where you can find it. I was quite pleased to score this and nominate it for “most mind-bending vinyl find of the month”. Sun Ra and Batman. It doesn’t come any further out of left field than that.

(Side note–I do have a copy of the Sun Ra Plays Batman & Robin on auction at eBay. When it’s gone, it’s gone!)

–Joe Wallace

Electronic Sadism: A Chicago Compilation

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Turntabling Records is at it again–this time with a brain-shreddingly unusual compilation of Chicago electronic music projects by Paisley Babylon, Savior Noise, Thelema USA, Satan’s Tea Boy and other acts featured on Electronic Sadism: A Chicago Compilation.

That link takes you to the 20-track iTunes download version of the album, but there is also a limited edition 12-song sampler available for sale on compact disc. The CD version is limited to a run of 500 and is completely hand-assembled. No more than 500 will be made and sold.

The 12 tracks available on the CD sampler are a strange mixture of Coil, Throbbing Gristle, Cabaret Voltaire and Skinny Puppy textures. There are vintage-era industrial and ambient sounds combined with soundtrack-esque interludes, mellow meanderings, and nearly hallucinatory side-trips. But the ghost of the Marquis de Sade is always lurking nearby to bring you back to attention with a sonic blast of fury and chaos.

The packaging for this CD special edition is deceptively LP-sized, right down to a poly outer sleeve.  But make no mistake, this is a compact disc full of electronics, evil and doubt (as Brian Eno would say). Going from wildly chaotic to strangely danceable, Electronic Sadism is a great birthday gift for the old-school industrial music fan in your life. Anybody who wishes for the good old days of Throbbing Gristle and Test Department should have a listen to this.

Have a free listen to the download-only track “Speaker Damage Guaranteed” from the digital version of Electronic Sadism or listen to the final track on the limited-edition Electronic Sadism CD by Thelema USA, “Robes Off”

More Rare Vinyl Finds On Sale

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Here is another selection of rare vinyl just in for sale at Turntabling. Hurry before these are gone for good! At some point they will go up for sale in the Turntabling shop at Bonanza-they’re on sale here at a discount before they go up there…all titles here are in Very Good condition at a minimum.

The Hunger soundtrack on Varese Sarabande is pretty sweet, I must say. I don’t find these too often and when I do they usually disappear–plenty of Bowie vampire fans out there. The Hunger still holds up after all this time–probably because in addition to Bowie and the unique-for-a-vampire-film plot, the special effects are still pretty awesome. Buy the vinyl LP soundtrack to The Hunger from Turntabling for $20 plus shipping.

A rarity indeed–a radio version of The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy: The Restaurant At The End of the Universe on vinyl. Can you believe the luck? This was a stunning find–I had no idea it would ever be available as I’m sure 99% of the people who own this would never part with it. But here it is…any fan of Douglas Adams should LOVE this. Can you say, “birthday present”? I knew you could. Buy the vinyl LP Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy: The Restaurant At The End of the Universe for $25.00 plus shipping.

Based on what he wrote on the liner notes at the time, Henry Rollins didn’t seem overly thrilled about the material on this spoken word album THEN, he is no doubt embarrassed by this spoken-word album by now, having released A Short Walk On A Long Pier in 1989, featuring the collected recordings of his spoken word material since 1986.

There is no music on this Rollins album–it’s all spoken word stuff that Hank fans know and love. I have never seen this floating around til earlier this year…and have seen nothing like it since. Henry Rollins spoken word completists will love this–the vinyl features a photo of Henry Rollins with long, metal-head hair. Pricelesss. Buy A Short Walk On A Long Pier on vinyl from Turntabling for $25.oo plus shipping.

These titles will hit eBay and Bonanza soon at higher prices–get these while they last at the current rate.

Rare Vinyl Finds For Sale

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Here are some of the latest new arrivals to the Turntabling collection for sale. All vinyl is in Very Good condition at a minimum.

The Golden Voyage of Sinbad soundtrack–this is the soundtrack LP from the film starring John Phillip Law of Diabolik fame, plus the one and only Tom Baker! The soundtrack was by Miklos Rozsa and is a very tasty find–especially for the cover art. Very nice indeed! A fabulous rare vinyl find for $20 plus shipping.






Sid Vicious and Eddie Cochran on one record? Yes–the McDonald Brothers Company presents “A World Title Contest Over Eight Rounds” on Sid Vicious Vs. Eddie Cochran, a vinyl LP that features Eddie Cochran originals and Sid Vicious covers of them– a fascinating artifact of the original punk era. This also includes Sid’s version of Search and Destroy and My Way, plus Eddie Cochran singing the classic C’Mon Everybody, Somethin’ Else, and Weekend. Can you really say no? $20 plus shipping and it’s yours, a piece of history!






Here’s an insanely rare find–Leonard Nimoy reading Ray Bradbury. The Illustrated Man is a classic all by itself, but to have Nimoy giving it the treatment is a rare thing indeed. This will NOT last long–there are plenty of lit geeks like me out there all too eager to own something this unique. $30 plus shipping for this title owing to its scarcity, naturally. Trust me, this is MUCH more expensive at conventions…