For those unaware, lovingly restored and presented in a deluxe Rolapak fold-out card sleeve featuring the original UK cover art and rare archival images, The Alternative Chirping Crickets (Remastered and Remixed Collector’s Edition) offers an unprecedented glimpse into the true sound of Buddy Holly and The Crickets.

This edition includes a 36-page booklet with detailed notes by John Beecher, Chris Hopkins, and Crickets drummer J. I. Allison, whose insight and support helped bring this historic project to life.

By August 1957, The Crickets were rock’s hottest new act - That’ll Be The Day had just broken through on the charts, and the band embarked on a relentless U.S. tour that lasted through November. Meanwhile, Brunswick Records demanded a debut LP. With several songs already recorded in Clovis, New Mexico, four additional tracks were captured at the Officers Club, Tinker Air Force Base, in Oklahoma City during a late-night session using a portable Ampex recorder.

Norman Petty, the group’s producer, later took these tapes back to Clovis and, under tight deadlines, overdubbed background vocals by The Picks - a move that surprised the band and created a more polished sound than they had intended.

When The Chirping Crickets was released in November 1957, its overdubbed harmonies didn’t fully reflect the raw, close-knit style the band had originally rehearsed with friends. For decades, fans and historians wondered what those undubbed recordings might have sounded like.

Now, for the first time, they can finally hear the unvarnished energy of the sessions as they truly occurred - stripped of later embellishments and truer to the sound of the band in its prime.

This brilliant, feel good flashback collection opens on the roustabout I’m Talkin’ About You, the robust Bertha Lou, the jangly pop of I Can Tell and the hop-stop floor vibe of Leave My Kitten Alone, and they are backed by the melodious Some Other Guy, the pleasing bounce of Lookin’ For My Baby, the drum-led rocker Ride Your Pony and both the boisterous alt-pop of See That My Grave Is Kept Clean and the laidback The Ferris Wheel.

Along next from the Kings Of Medway Beat is the rambunctious Stupidity, the jangly rocker My Baby Left Me and the free-flowing rock of brilliance of Nothin’ Shakin’ (But The Leaves On The Trees) and they are in turn followed by the guitar rocker Killing Floor, the rhythmic poppy gem Thirty Days (To Come Back Home), the grounded alt-rock of Blue Beat and the Beatles-esque The Girl Can’t Dance, the set rounding out on the atmospherically-charged Clarabella, coming to a close on an alternative version of Some Other Guy.

In addition to the full mono and stereo album versions, this edition includes the complete undubbed stereo masters - a total of 36 remixes of the original 12 tracks - all restored with remarkable clarity and warmth. The result has been hailed by audiophiles and rock historians alike. Hi-Fi News calls it a watershed moment in recording technology... and one of the most important rock albums ever, now sounding better than you could imagine, while trackingangle.com praises it as an outstanding sounding CD and Goldmine magazine declares, If you love Buddy Holly, you will love this release. Packaging A+. Sonics A+. My highest recommendation.

A landmark restoration and one of the most important archival releases in recent memory, The Alternative Chirping Crickets (Remastered and Remixed Collector’s Edition) stands as both a tribute to Buddy Holly’s genius and a technical triumph that reveals, for the first time, the pure sound that shaped rock & roll’s earliest heartbeat.

Tracklisting:
1. Oh Boy! (mono) 2. Not Fade Away (mono) 3. You’ve Got Love (mono) 4. Maybe Baby (mono) 5. It’s Too Late (mono) 6. Tell Me How (mono) 7. That’ll Be The Day (mono) 8. I’m Looking For Someone To Love (mono) 9. An Empty Cup (and a broken date) (mono) 10. Send Me Some Lovin’ (mono) 11. Last Night (mono) 12. Rock Me My Baby (mono) 13. Oh Boy! (stereo) 14. Not Fade Away (stereo) 15. You’ve Got Love (stereo) 16. Maybe Baby (stereo) 17. It’s Too Late (stereo) 18. Tell Me How (stereo) 19. That’ll Be The Day (stereo) 20. I’m Looking For Someone To Love (stereo) 21. An Empty Cup (and a broken date) (stereo) 22. Send Me Some Lovin’ (stereo) 23. Last Night (stereo) 24. Rock Me My Baby (stereo) 25. Oh Boy (undubbed stereo) 26. Not Fade Away (undubbed stereo) 27. You’ve Got Love (undubbed stereo) 28. Maybe Baby (undubbed stereo) 29. It’s Too Late (undubbed stereo) 30. Tell Me How (undubbed stereo) 31. That’ll Be The Day (undubbed stereo) 32. I’m Looking For Someone To Love (undubbed stereo) 33. An Empty Cup (and a broken date) (undubbed stereo) 34. Send Me Some Lovin’ (undubbed stereo) 35. Last Night (undubbed stereo) 36. Rock Me My Baby (undubbed stereo)

Official Purchase Link

www.thecrickets.com