The Roches - The Roches (45th Anniversary) (RSD 2024, Red LP Vinyl)

It’s hard to remember an album that made a bigger critical splash than The Roches. John Rockwell of The New York Times labeled it “the best pop record of 1979,” Jay Cocks in Time called their music “startling, lacerating, and amusing,” Trouser Press gave it 10/10, Rolling Stone Record Guide gave it 5 stars, and so on. But all of the plaudits don’t really do the album justice…because this record has more personality pressed into every groove than any other ten you could name. It’s not ostensibly a feminist record; the unabashed joy of creation coming from these three sisters transcends all questions of gender and ideology. But it is one of the boldest and most personal albums ever made. And it’s got Robert Fripp on guitar and Tony Levin on bass! Put simply, there ain’t no album like The Roches’ 1979 debut, and for its 45th anniversary (and first US LP reissue in 40 years), we’re pressing it on ruby red vinyl limited to 1500 copies worldwide, with a printed inner sleeve featuring the compulsively readable lyrics, for Record Store Day 2024!

A1. We A2. Hammond Song A3. Mr. Sellack A4. Damned Old Dog A5. The Troubles B1. The Train B2. The Married Men B3. Runs in the Family B4. Quitting Time B5. Pretty and High