Now-Again Records

Essential 90s Memphis Rap On Vinyl

BUY THE COLLECTION AT RAPPCATS » MEMPHIS RAP – RAPPCATS
BUY THE COLLECTION AT BANDCAMP» MEMPHIS RAP – THE NOW-AGAIN BANDCAMP

We are reissuing six essential albums from the ’90s Memphis Rap scene, each licensed directly from the artists. These albums were originally released on rare tapes, only distributed in and around Memphis. This is the first time they appear on LP; each album is pressed on limited edition colored vinyl, and comes in an OBI wrapped jacket that contains an oversized 12 page book that details the historical precedent, genesis and arc of this important American musical scene. This series follows the sold-out box set The Story of Memphis Rap.

R.A.N. – Gotta Be Lyrical (1993) is out now. Others in the series will be released throughout the year.   

• Skinny Pimp – Vol. 1 (1993) coming Aug. 20, 2024
• Shawty Pimp & MC Spade – Vol. 2 (1994) – Sep. 17
• MC Money & Gangsta Gold – Da Hard Ov Frayser (1995) – Oct. 15
• Carmike – Comin’ At Yo Ass (1994) – Nov. 12
• Gangsta Blac – Breakin Da Law (1994) – Dec. 10 MORE

The Definitive Reissues of Paul Ngozi and the Ngozi Family’s Zamrock Albums

BUY THE COLLECTION AT RAPPCATS » ZAMROCK – RAPPCATS
BUY THE COLLECTION AT BANDCAMP» NGOZI FAMILY – THE NOW-AGAIN BANDCAMP

A late period hard-rock, proto-punk entry in Zambian guitarist and bandleader Paul Ngozi’s extensive catalog. Featuring drummer Chrissy Zebby Tembo. 1LP, including oversized 8 page booklet detailing Ngozi’s arc, rare photographs, discography and annotations. Each album released under license from the Estate of Paul “Ngozi” Nyirongo.

We restarted our campaign with celebrated Zambian guitarist and bandleader Paul Ngozi’s 1977 concept album The Ghetto – an album delving into the struggles of those living in Africa’s townships.

Zamrock was a bona-fide rock scene, with albums released through independent labels based in Zambia. This music scene was complete, encompassing the genres of rock, acid folk, fusion, Afro-beat, South African jazz and traditional Zambian melodies. It quickly became a uniquely Zambian movement, befitting of its name. The Ngozi Family,WITCH and Amanaz sound nothing like other rock music from the African continent or elsewhere. MORE

Pale Shades Of Grey – Heavy Psychedelic Ballads And Dirges – 1969-1976

Pale Shades Of Grey- Heavy Psychedelic Ballads And Dirges – 1969-1976, the third release in a trilogy.

More info and links to this psychedelic trilogy at our Rappcats webstore.

With Pale Shades Of Grey, we complete the trilogy Egon started with Forge Your Own Chains and followed with Tickets for Doomsday – another batch of rare, largely uncompiled – and sometimes barely heard – heavy psych-rock. Pounding drums, scathing fuzz guitar and morose, contemplative lyrics will bring you up on a downer.

Pale Shades Of Grey, as the title hints, is and perhaps the most contemplative of the series, ruminations dark themes of love, death, pain and triumph, as performed by high school and college bands, Nigerian rockers an Irish pub band from Michigan and, above, a group of somber land-locked Nebraskans dreaming about being by the ocean. A unique and compelling listen, and surely a worthy companion for these times.

The Definitive Vinyl Reissues of Joe Bataan’s Legendary Ghetto Records Catalog

BUY THE ALBUMS NOW AT RAPPCATS » THE GHETTO RECORDS COLLECTION
BUY THE ALBUMS NOW AT BANDCAMP» THE NOW-AGAIN BANDCAMP

Joe Bataan’s Ghetto Records catalog includes 7 landmark albums of Latin jazz, deep soul, raucous boogaloo, and heavy salsa. The albums are now available in stand-alone LP format via our Rappcats store and at the Now-Again Bandcamp and can also be purchased as a value-priced bundle.

Ghetto Records was Joe Bataan’s way to get over on The Man and out of the ’hood, a bold move by an artist looking for independence and creative control in an industry that had exploited his talents and treated him like chattel.

As Bataan puts it today, “Ghetto Records was part of my journey, a stepping stone to everything else that I’ve done. I learned enough that it enabled me to get out of the box with my thinking, it showed me how to deal with adversity.” Like many dreams and schemes born of the street, this one was audacious, perhaps even reckless to a fault.

Hatched from desperation yet full of hope Ghetto Records came crashing down shortly after its inception. The seven albums in the Ghetto discography languished out of print – until now. These are the definitive reissues of these albums, licensed from Joe Bataan, with his oversight and input into a 15 page oversize book by Pablo Yglesias that details Bataan’s larger-than-imagination life and his little Latin label that could.

“There’s a reason that it took nearly half a century for Joe Bataan to allow these records to be issued again – his label was born out of rebellion and frustration with the music industry. He refused to be burned a second time,” says Eothen “Egon” Alapatt, Now-Again’s founder and president. “It took years to gain his trust, and I knew I would finally earn it – because I, too, wanted to know the true Story of Ghetto Records.” MORE

Now-Again Acquires Jazz Legend Gene Perla’s PM Records

A Landmark Meeting And Transfer in Easton, Pennsylvania – PM Records Founder Gene Perla Thinks Now-Again Records Is The Perfect Home For His Label’s Future.

On November 16th 2023, Eothen “Egon” Alapatt traveled from Los Angeles to Easton, Pennylvania to conclude a historic moment: the transfer of Gene Perla’s PM Records – the record company known for its issues of albums by Perla’s Stone Alliance, Elvin Jones and other jazz luminaries over a five decade run – to Alapatt’s care at Now-Again Records.

Starting January 1, 2024, PM Records’ musical legacy will be overseen and protected by Now-Again.

Alapatt’s connection with PM Records dates back to the early 1990s, when he first heard a sample of master percussionist Don Alias’s “Sweetie-Pie” which appeared on the Stone Alliance album of the same name. It was through this opening that he discovered the breadth of the PM Records catalog, which is still active, with over 60 releases to date.

Alapatt has already helped bring PM’s catalog to Spotify, Apple Music and all other digital service providers. After he receives the catalog of PM’s master tapes in Los Angeles, his first project will be a vinyl re-release of the Stone Alliance album, cut in an all-analog transfer by Bernie Grundman – the first time such has been done since this sought after album was first pressed in 1975.

The Stone Alliance LP package will also include an oversized booklet written by Perla, providing an overview of the PM Records arc, as well as detailed information about the Stone Alliance band and vignettes from Perla’s life in music.

Alapatt also plans to offer out original, “dead-stock,” sealed vinyl copies of classic PM Records to record retailers alongside the Stone Alliance reissue. MORE