CRUISIN
Not exactly a label, I suppose, but perhaps distinctive enough to merit
its own page. The late '70s saw a vogue for coloured vinyl, shaped
records - the first 'non-round' single, Richard Myhill's 'It Takes Two To Tango'
(Mercury / Utopia, TANGO-1) got into the Top 20 in 1978 largely on its novelty
value - and latterly picture discs. The first picture disc to come
out was, as Eddie Hutchinson has been kind enough to point out, 'My Best
Friend's Girl' by the Cars (Elektra, K-12301), which charted in that same
year. In July 1979 Lightning Records issued ten singles in picture
disc form under the 'Cruisin' banner; these had catalogue numbers from
Lightning's 'Old Gold' series (q.v.) but there was no reference to Old Gold on
the records. The matrix numbers had an extra 'P' in them, as in 'LIG
9015 P', which was lacking in those of the standard vinyl
versions. The 'A' sides ('Nearsides') were of a standard design,
while the 'B' sides ('Offsides') featured pictures of different classic
cars. The music consisted of a selection of popular songs from the
Rock 'n' Roll era, by the likes of the Everly Brothers and The
Drifters. Pressing was by Damont, distribution by
WEA. Thanks to Keith Stephens for drawing the series to my attention.
Copyright 2010 Robert Lyons.