Stealers Wheel – Stealers Wheel – Intervention Records 180g Vinyl LP

Featuring 180-gram heavyweight vinyl plated and pressed at RTI, and faithfully restored artwork printed to Stoughton Printing old-style deluxe film-lamination jackets, reissues from Intervention Records feature titles new to the vinyl reissue market, especially those that never saw a vinyl release at all or only saw a limited vinyl edition. Best of all, these Stealers Wheel releases feature 100% analog mastering by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio! The sources for Stealers Wheel and Ferguslie Park two were safety copies made directly from the original analog master tapes.

Gerry Rafferty and Joe Egan’s Stealers Wheel and its self-titled debut album launched the monster hit “Stuck in the Middle (With You).” The tune later enjoyed a revival from its inclusion in director Quentin Tarantino’s film debut “Reservoir Dogs.” AllMusic describes Stealers Wheel as “a debonair affair comprised of the kind of accomplished and polished pub pop for which impetus Gerry Rafferty would become known as he subsequently rode out the decade on the sublime radio single ‘Baker Street.’”

Worthy musical moments abound all through this record, all forever overshadowed by the clever corporate-snub “Stuck in the Middle With You,” which branded the duo — Rafferty and amigo Joe Egan — a one-hit wonder when the track took on a life of its own.

“Sadly, the song also foreshadowed the premature end of Stealers Wheel, and Rafferty and Egan continued to document the personal and professional turmoil of their short time together throughout their respective solo careers, even re-recording some of these early jewels. And though only Rafferty’s star continued to rise, Egan harbors considerable talent as well, shining brightly on his Rubber Soul-influenced tapestry ‘Another Meaning.’” — AllMusic

Any record this carefully crafted doesn’t deserve to languish in the bins of obscurity. So it’s great to have a premium vinyl reissue of this 1973 classic available once again.