Makaya McCraven: Highly Rare Vinyl LP Makaya McCraven

“Highly Rare is a new mixtape produced & arranged by Makaya McCraven. It’s titled Highly Rare not only for the format of its initial release (a limited-edition run of cassettes packaged in screen-printed, string-sealed, firecracker red envelopes), but foremost for the context of the source material’s capture. The sounds were recorded to four track cassette tape at a DIY show packed into the confines of Chicago dive Danny’s Tavern, a place definitely not known for having live bands, let alone live recordings. It’s a place known to vinyl heads both locally and globally as a legendary hub in the crate digger diaspora. It’s the place where Jeff Parker learned how to DJ. It’s the place where Dante Carfagna held down a rare soul party for over a decade; where DJ Shadow still does sets on the low when he rolls through town. And on one highly rare night in November 2016 Danny’s was the place where we invited an ‘International Anthem All Stars’ type of improvising ensemble (McCraven, Junius Paul, Nick Mazzarella and Ben Lamar Gay) to play in support of DJ sets by LeFtO, who was in transit from Belgium, hitting local spots under the direction of Chicago scene sage King Hippo. Damn-near 0 degrees and just days after the death sentence of the American presidential election, the sounds the musicians conjured were thick with the bitter cold darkness that hung heavy in the air, punctuated with moments of joyful determination – the kind that can only be accessed when such impending doom triggers passionate adrenalized bursts by creators in survival mode.” – International Anthem

• 2017 album recorded live at Dannys’ Tavern in Chicago in 2016
• first time on vinyl in 5 years
• black vinyl pressing
• includes obi strip
• original release year: 2017
• music label: International Anthem Recording Company 2022