Where Yellow Turns
To Gold!
in the great music city
of Cleveland, Ohio
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The Banana Records Store
All the releases on this page are available for
purchase. We aren't a high tech e-commerce site, so here's how you can
do it: 1. We accept PayPal for all titles. Just visit www.paypal.me/BananaRecords
3. If you don't do PayPal or Venmo, we'll work it out - you could send us a check or money order. WE WILL NOT RIP YOU OFF. Just send an email to jim@bananarecords.net and we'll give you the information you need. New releases, as well as records, cd's and tapes
issued by Banana Records in its 1980s period, are available, though the
older stuff is dwindling quickly in number. Listed on this page are all
available titles, with prices. We ain't no high-tech internet commerce
site; if you want to buy a title, we do it through PayPal, which is safe
and verifiable. Basically, if you want to purchase something, send an
email to jim @ bananarecords.net and we'll work out the details.
Artist: Paul Nickels Format: CD 14-Song Album Release Date: March 1, 2024 Title: "One Hand Clapping" Catalog #: BR-119 One Hand Clapping,” like its predecessor “With Friends Like These” (2021), features original songs by both current and former musical associates of Paul Nickels. Fully half the record is comprised of original songs Nickels' first band, Cleveland's Backdoor Men, that plied the boards from the late 70s through the early 89s. Leroy Fail, a long-time friend of Cleveland songwriter and BDM co-founder Terry Hartman, contributed three tracks. “My Old Truck,” one of Hartman’s final compositions before his passing in 2021, is also included, along with “Your Renaissance Man” by Banana Records artist Jim Butterfield, and one original by Nickels and his current rhythm section partner, basist Mark Bluhm. "One Hand Clapping"
CDs are $12 including shipping (note exception for international
shipping above). The record is also available on all
streaming services.
Artist: Butterfield 8
Format: CD 10-Song Album
Release Date: October 17, 2023
Title: “Broken People”
Catalog #: BR-118
This is the 3rd album in the
Butterfield 8 “Comeback Trilogy”.
Jim Butterfield and his longtime musical friends have produced a
fitting capstone for the “comeback”.
This is not a sign that the band is going into another 31-year
hiatus, just that the “comeback” is now complete.
Bigger and better things are coming.
“Broken People” is available on all streaming services.
CD is $12 including shipping to USA addresses.
Artist:
Les Vincent & MZ7 Format: CD
8-Song Album Release
Date: June 16, 2023 Title:
“It’s Hardly Ever Just Black & White” Catalog #:
BR-117
Even though Les Vincent has been a fixture of the
music scene for decades, and he is a household name in Boston, Cleveland
and Oxford, OH, this is his FIRST EVER release.
This 8-song disc includes new tunes penned by Les, as well as a
few select covers of his favorite artists.
Discover the unique experience that is Les Vincent and MZ7.
“Black & White” is available on all streaming services.
CD is $12 including shipping to USA addresses.
The latest from Butterfield 8. "Paradise" comes hot on the heels of "Luckiest Guy," and contains some of Jim's finest writing of his career. Performed primarily by Jim, who plays all the instruments save drums, and Paul Nickels, who plays drums and co-produced with Jim. "Paradise" is also available on all streaming services. CD is $12, including shipping to USA addresses only.
Artist:
Butterfield 8 After a short 31 year hiatus, Jim Butterfield’s
concept band “Butterfield 8” has re-emerged on the music scene with
another collection of 10 “Pure Pop for Now People” gems titled “Luckiest
Guy In The World”. Produced
and recorded by 2020 Mab Zab Producer of the Year Paul Nickels at
Handsome Studio, this collection features new songs
delivered in the classic BU8 style.
Jim is joined on this disc by some of his all-time favorite
artists, including:
Of special note, every single artist that appears on “LGITW” is a past “Best Of” Zabby Award Winner! This title is available on Compact Disc for $12.00
(includes shipping to USA addresses only)
Artist: Butterfield 8/ Leisure
Set As a response to Banana Records collectors, the 10
original vinyl releases (7” and 12”) that were written by Jim
Butterfield, have been released in digital format so they can be enjoyed
by those fans that don’t have access to phonograph equipment. The songs available are:
Addtionally, all 5 songs from Butterfield 8’s “Just
Listen” EP
Unfortunately, “There’s No Teardrops” by The Leisure Set is not included in this compilation because it was written by Bob Burford, who has not yet reached a financial agreement with the streaming world for the rights to this song. This is very reminiscent of The Lennon-McCartney catalog being held up for years before they streamed. Rest assured that The Big Banana is negotiating in the best interest of all parties to get this grievous omission rectified! Because the masters for these songs are long gone,
the 10 songs were transferred from their original vinyl versions by
long-time industry professional (and Banana Artist) Mark Bluhm.
Listen closely for the retro sound of the needle being placed on
the vinyl before the beginning of each 7” 45 side, and before “Where the
Girls Are” and “In L.A.” from the 12” “Just Listen” EP. These 10 tunes are available on all streaming
services. All 10 songs, plus “There’s No Teardrops” are still
available in vinyl format.
Artist: Paul Nickels Thisd Banana Release is the first solo album by former Backdoor Men, Inner Ring Conspiracy, and Clifton Beat -- and current drummer of The Old Brown Shoe Revue -- Paul Nickels. Read all about it here. Includes 20 original power pop and pop folk songs by Nickels and a slew of other Cleveland writers with whom he's worked, including the legendary Dan Cook and Terry Hartman of The Backdoor Men - not to mention Jim Butterfield of Banana Records and Butterfield 8 fame! CD's are $12, including shipping to USA addresses
only
Artist: The Leisure Set This first record on the Banana label is actually two
artists on one record. Mab
Zab founding members Jim Butterfield and Bob Burford wanted to release a
record, but they lived in two separate cities at the time (Cleveland and
Cincinnati). Not one
musician appears on both sides, but in order to save money, Jim and Bob
decided to combine their resources and release two totally separate
projects on one 7-inch 45.
The result is a band they called “The Leisure Set”. The two offerings
sound remarkably similar in style, so Banana Records was “born”. Videos for each song were produced by the Mab Zab
team of Gallagher & Gallagher Productions, and act as historical
tributes to the founding days of the label. A few copies are still available for $12 including
shipping to USA addresses only.
Artist: The Leisure Set In 1983, The Leisure Set became a “real” band,
playing in northeast Ohio 3 nights/week, and gaining a loyal following.
The lineup of the band was:
Released on yellow vinyl, the “A” side, "Eddie and
His New Girlfriend" features La Farrell in a “Waitresses-like” vocal
that received a fair amount of local radio play.
Both tunes were penned by Jim Butterfield.
The disc was produced by long-time Butterfield friend, Kevin
McMahon (Prick, Lucky Pierre). This record is so rare that we consider it
out-of-print, but if you are some kind of a collector, email us and we
would consider selling a copy from our personal collection.
Artist: Butterfield 8 By 1984, Jim Butterfield had set out on his own
decided to release a “solo” record.
Wanting to release his future music under the name of a band (ala
“Plastic Ono Band”) he settled on the name “Butterfield 8 (after the
1960 movie….which was named after a telephone exchange in Manhattan).
The songs were produced by Jim and his friend Pete Bell at Jim’s
apartment and Pete’s studio “Tube Layout Studios”. Eva Dilcue (The Generators, Bunji Jumpers) provided
the lead vocals on the “A” side and backing vocals on the “B” side.
Long-time friend Kevin McMahon (Lucky Pierre, Prick), who had
recently produced The Leisure Set’s 45, provided backing vocals on
“Matter of Fact”. This record is still available for $20.00 including
shipping to USA addresses only.
Artist: Lucky Pierre Released as the “Spring” offering of Kevin McMahon’s
4-record seasonal series of releases, this 45 was released in 1984 and
contains two of Lucky Pierre’s most upbeat, fun songs ever released.
By this time, Kevin McMahon was releasing his solo material under
the name “Lucky Pierre”, even though he played virtually all of the
instruments himself. “Muchacha” tells the story of finding love via the
U.S. Mail, and “Birdman” tells a story that only Kevin McMahon can
recollect. Each cover is uniquely hand-colored.
A few copies of this record are still available for $17.00 including shipping to USA addresses only.
Artist: Butterfield 8 In early 1985, long time friend Kevin McMahon (Lucky
Pierre, Prick) visited Jim Butterfield in New Jersey and convinced him
to record an album of his new material.
Kevin listened to about 20 of Jim’s recent tunes and they
selected five to record at Cleveland’s premier studio, Suma Recording
Studio, home of recordings by Grand Funk, Wild Cherry and Pere Ubu. Kevin gathered a group of his Cleveland music friends
to form the “new” Butterfield 8, and the result was this 5-song 12” EP.
The band features Rick Christyson on guitars, Dave Pichler on
bass and Dave Zima on drums.
Additional backing vocals are provided by Les Vincent (Les
Vincent & The Tree Toads) and Eva Dilcue (The Generators, Bunji
Jumpers). This record is still available for $10.00 including
shipping to USA addresses only.
Artist Bunji Jumpers When the popular Cleveland band “The Generators”
split up in 1985, Eva Dilcue (Vocals, Keys) and Jimmy Lee (drums) set
off on their own to form Bunji Jumpers.
Both songs, written by Eva, are a new direction from the
Generator “Garage Pop” and showcase the creativity of this duo.
The “Regal Drum Machine” referred to in the liner notes is
actually Jimmy Lee pounding on an old car seat.
This single was the forerunner to their debut Banana
EP “A TWO Z”. This record is still available for $8.00 including
shipping to USA addresses only.
Artist: Bunji Jumpers This debut EP features Eva Dilcue and Jimmy Lee of
the popular Cleveland band “The Generators”.
Eva and Jimmy decided to go in a slightly more avant-garde
direction with this offering, and Eva’s songwriting talents shine
through. The disc features
the song “These Days” which Eva sang regularly at Generators shows.
“Eva Dilcue” is “Euclid Ave.” spelled backwards. This record is still available for $10.00 including
shipping to USA addresses only.
Artist: Jinni Fontana This debut EP features one of Cleveland’s finest
singer-songwriters. The
title track received so much play in dance clubs internationally that a
follow-up “mix” version was soon released.
Jinni still performs with Cleveland’s ultra-cool “Vanity Crash”. Jinni is a multiple winner of Zabby Awards for “Best
Female Vocalist”, and The Big Banana is constantly urging her to release
a new record. It may be
difficult though because she once, during a record contract dispute,
blurted out at a Mab Zab party “who do I have to sleep with to get off
of this label?”. This record is still available for $10.00 including
shipping to USA addresses only.
Artist: Jinni Fontana Success of Jinni’s debut EP prompted Banana to
release this 4-mix version for dance clubs.
The mixes are:
This record is still available for $10.00 including
shipping to USA addresses only.
Artist: Lucky Pierre A crowning achievement by Kevin McMahon as “Lucky
Pierre” before he moved on to become “Prick”.
This is Kevin at his best as he issues the definitive version of
“Communiqué,” a song that he released numerous times.
The EP features Kevin’s friend Trent Reznor (before
Nine Inch Nails) on backing vocals and saxophone.
A very few copies of this record are still available
for $75.00 including shipping to USA addresses only.
Artist: Butterfield 8 Jim Butterfield’s concept band “Butterfield 8”
delivers 10 garage/pop/Beatle-esque tunes that are infectious and
pop-smart. The band only
performed the album live one time, and then Jim went into
semi-retirement until 2014 where he re-surfaced in a new original band,
”The Clifton Beat.” Nine of the ten tunes were written by Butterfield,
with “I Feel Better” written by long-time friend Kevin McMahon (Lucky
Pierre, Prick). The disc
also features noteworthy Cleveland musicians on backing vocals,
including:
This title is available on CD or Cassette for $10.00
including shipping to USA addresses only. All ten songs are also available on-line for
streaming. By Special Arrangement with
Banana Records...
Artist: Generators The Generators were one of the most popular bands in
Cleveland in the early 80s.
The band consisted of:
This 7” 45 was the follow-up to their debut single
“T.V. Set”, and was released on their own “Big Noise Records” label.
The band had a distribution agreement with Banana Records, and we
still have a few copies left in our vault. Both songs are penned by Mark Addison.
The “A” side features Eva on lead vocals, and the “B” side (a fan
favorite and set-ender, features the high-energy vocals of Mark. This is
a true piece of Cleveland music scene history.
This record is still available for $8.00 including
shipping to USA addresses only.
Artist: Nation of One After “The Generators” Mark Addison formed “Nation of
One” to perform his prolific catalog of material, and the band played
the club circuit in Cleveland.
The band consisted of:
The disc was released on the “No Label” label, and
both songs were written by Mark Addison.
The band had a distribution agreement with Banana Records, and we
still have a few copies left in our vault. This record is still available for $8.00 including
shipping to USA addresses only.
Artist: Nation of One After “The Generators” Mark Addison formed “Nation of
One” to perform his prolific catalog of material, and the band played
the club circuit in Cleveland.
This cassette contains some of Mark’s best writing work, with
“Night Vision” being a “Generators” classic that Eddie Money was
supposed to record, but, alas, that never materialized. Of special interest to Mab Zabbers, long-time Zabber
Mike Kotnik is credited on the liner notes.
The band consisted of:
Chris Hart – Drums The 10 Addison-penned songs are:
The Cassette was released on the “No Label” label,
and all songs were written by Mark Addison.
The band had a distribution agreement with Banana Records, and we
still have a few copies left in our vault. This cassette is still available for $10.00 including
shipping to USA addresses only.
All Contents © Mab Zab Ltd.,
2023. Content may be reproduced or shared with permission only.
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