Record producer/music marketeer Antone DeSantis spoke in early 2025 with former Rhino colleague Stephen K. Peeples detailing the restoration and reissue of The Blasters’ classic catalog, which DeSantis is spearheading for the Liberation Hall music and movies reissue company.
The campaign includes an expanded version of the Los Angeles roots rock/Americana band’s full-tilt “Over There” EP recorded live in London at The Venue in 1986, reissued in November 2024, and “The Blasters: An American Music Story: The Complete Studio Recordings 1979-1985” box set.
Liberation Hall released the latter – collecting all four of The Blasters’ original studio LPs plus a new collection of rarities – on vinyl for Record Store Day on April 12, 2025.
The box set marks the first LP release of the first four Blasters albums with their original cover art since their original 1980s pressings: “American Music” (Rollin’ Rock, 1980), “The Blasters” (Slash Records, 1981; distributed by Warner Bros. Records in 1982), “Non Fiction” (Slash/Warner Bros., 1983), and “Hard Line” (Slash/Warner Bros., 1985).
The set’s fifth LP, the 14-track “Rare Blasts,” features studio outtakes and a pair of tracks (“One Bad Stud” and “Blue Shadows”) recorded for the 1984 film “Streets of Fire” starring Diane Lane and Michael Pare. Randy Perry remastered all the music.
The set’s 24-page booklet includes a 10,000-word essay about the band and these albums, penned by veteran L.A. music journalist, author, and box set co-producer Chris Morris.
Illustrating Morris’ text are rare photos and memorabilia from the band members’ personal archives, plus historical images by photographers Gary Leonard, Michael Hyatt, Joel Aparicio, and Ed Colvet. As a bonus, there’s a 11″x17″ replica of the poster Slash/Warner Bros. Records created in 1983 to promote “Non Fiction.”
Fans and critics on both sides of the Atlantic consider The Blasters one of the bedrock Americana groups. The band formed in 1979 in Downey, California (south of East Los Angeles and north of Long Beach), and cross-pollenated roots rock with country, blues, R&B, and L.A. greaser street culture delivered with a punk-rock attack.
Throughout their 1980s heyday, the lineup featured Phil Alvin (vocals, rhythm guitar); his brother and Grammy-winning songwriter Dave Alvin (lead guitar); Bill Bateman (drums); John Bazz (bass); Gene Taylor (keyboards); and Lee Allen and Steve Berlin (saxophones).
Available only in the U.S., “The Blasters: An American Music Story: The Complete Studio Recordings 1979-1985” is packaged in a hard-cover slipcase and limited to 1,000 hand-numbered sets.
Watch the video interview with Antone DeSantis with all the box set details and reissues background:
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Bonus since you read this far: The Blasters’ “American Music,” interview with Dick Clark, and “I’m Shakin'” live on “American Bandstand” in 1983.
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Stephen K. Peeples was raised in Miami and Los Angeles in the ’50s and ’60s by career newspaper journalists and music lovers. Based in Santa Clarita, California, he celebrates his 50th year in media in 2025. Along the way he earned numerous awards and honors, including a Grammy nomination in 1994 as co-producer of the “Monterey International Pop Festival” box set. A first-generation Blasters fan, he and DeSantis were colleagues at Rhino Entertainment in the 1990s. For more info, see the “About” page on Peeples’ website. You’ll find more of his original stories and exclusive interviews posted on his site and on his YouTube channel.
Article: ‘The Blasters: American Music Story’ Vinyl Box Rocks RSD 4/12/25
Category: News and Reviews
Author: Stephen K. Peeples
Article Source: stephenkpeeples.com
