Kenny Rankin Mind-Dusters Genres:Folk, Jazz, Pop, Rock, Broadway & Vocalists An ideal representation of the acoustic and ethereal side of the early, winsome singer/songwriter sound, this promising debut only hints at Rankin's traditional pop and world music vision. The highlight of the album is Ran... more »kin's own composition, the inviting Peaceful, which foreshadows his later work. While this long-out-of-print album only shows glimpses of his full abilities, it has a quaint, antiquated '60s charm and even includes liner notes from none other than Johnny Carson.« less
An ideal representation of the acoustic and ethereal side of the early, winsome singer/songwriter sound, this promising debut only hints at Rankin's traditional pop and world music vision. The highlight of the album is Rankin's own composition, the inviting Peaceful, which foreshadows his later work. While this long-out-of-print album only shows glimpses of his full abilities, it has a quaint, antiquated '60s charm and even includes liner notes from none other than Johnny Carson.
CD Reviews
How does this happen
Kenny Rankin | California | 01/12/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I came upon pages like this many years ago. It has been sold on Amazon for something like 5 to 6 years, as an import for a very high price. To this day, I have not seen a nickel of any of the royalties, for my singing or the publishing, which I own as well. The Universal Music Group, who licensed it to a Japanese company, Vivid Distributors, tells me that I am not entittled to any money that is charged by a "third party." Needless to say, There doesn't seem to be any way to correct this injustice.
Yours Truly,
Kenny Rankin"
Let's get this on...
M. Basil | Canada, eh? | 10/07/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I am bothered that (a) the price is so high, and (b) Kenny doesn't get royalties. Why not make it available via an online music service like Napster? That way we could (a) undercut the gougers, (b) get Kenny his royalties, and (c) get the music to his fans!"
Give The Man His Money!!!
Tascam48 | Nashville, Tn | 07/04/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I had a beer with Kenny Rankin on my Birthday in January of 1990 or 1991 when he played at Ethels in Baltimore. I have had this album on vinyl (2 copies) for 20 years and have always enjoyed it. Amazon should be ashamed of itself for selling ANYTHING where the artist doesn't receive some payment especially for something this good. The price is ridiculous enough. C'MON...pay the man!!!"
Finally, An Official Release Worth Waiting For
Steven Springer | Roswell, GA | 02/21/2010
(5 out of 5 stars)
"As you can see by the very first review posted by Kenny himself, the only CD version of Mind-Dusters was a Japanese import, and he saw no royalties from the CD sales. Unfortunately it took until after Kenny's untimely passing last year for his family to be able to secure the rights and put out a proper release of Mind-Dusters and Family. Let me say this: it has been worth the wait. The sound quality of Mind-Dusters is superb. Kenny's guitar playing is up front in the mix, and you can almost see him picking the strings of his guitar. As for the songs themselves, they take on a whole new quality in this superior remaster. Although he didn't write it, Come Away Melinda has always been one of my favorite songs by Kenny, and to hear it now, with the orchestration more powerful than ever, is stunning. Thank you to the Rankin family and to Mack Avenue Records for putting out this, Family, Like A Seed, Silver Morning, Inside and The Kenny Rankin Album. Kenny's playing, and most especially his singing, were absolute treasures. It's so sad that he's no longer with us, but as long as these fine recordings exist, he will live on, and be...Peaceful...always.
