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Donnie & Joe Emerson – Dreamin’ Wild (LP album)
31,00 €
CONDITION: Second hand – Mint, new (M)
Unsealed vinyl, listened to for review
Edition includes a black vinyl and a booklet of approximately twenty pages
Important note: On the vinyl’s obi (a strip of paper surrounding the vinyl cover), there are two stains at the top and bottom (see photos opposite).
In rural America in the late 1970s, two teenage brothers, Donnie and Joe Emerson, recorded an album on their family farm in Washington State. Supported by their father, a passionate farmer, they converted a barn into a recording studio. They had no producer, no label, no marketing plan. Just an unwavering belief in their music. The result? A profoundly original album, somewhere between soul, funk, soaring pop, and introspective ballads.
Like many marginal artists, Donnie and Joe Emerson didn’t achieve success upon their album’s release. Dreamin’ remained a local curiosity, selling only a few copies. The dream seemed buried… until, more than 30 years later, enthusiasts unearthed the album from its shadow. The Light in the Attic label, a specialist in precious reissues, reissued the album in 2012, giving it a second life and worldwide recognition.
It was thanks to the track “Baby” that the story resurfaced. In 2012, upon its reissue, this soft and sensual song, carried by Donnie’s fragile but sincere voice, was rediscovered by vinyl diggers and DJs from the contemporary indie and soul scene. It quickly became a cult classic.
Donnie & Joe Emerson didn’t become stars. And that’s just as well. Their story, their music, their sincerity would likely have been distorted by the industry. By staying away, they left a more lasting, more precious mark: that of a teenage dream captured on tape, rediscovered at a time when the world needed raw beauty.
Dreamin’ is a record you don’t listen to in the background, but you feel it. An album that speaks to the soul, that evokes youth, freedom, and the power of believing in your vision, even when no one else does.
Label: Light in the Attic – LITA 082-1
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Description
Donnie & Joe Emerson – Dreamin’ Wild: A Forgotten Gem of Psychedelic Funk Rediscovered
At the intersection of dreams, teenage innocence, and vintage groove, Donnie and Joe Emerson‘s Dreamin’ Wild album has established itself as a long-forgotten cult classic, now revered by lovers of rare vinyl and hidden gems of American music. Brothers from Washington State, Donnie and Joe Emerson recorded this masterpiece in 1979, far removed from the mainstream music industry. Rooted in raw sincerity and a pioneering DIY aesthetic, Dreamin’ is a sonic capsule from another era, blending psychedelic funk, blue-eyed soul, soft rock, and soaring synth-pop.
A handcrafted work born of rural isolation
What makes Dreamin’ so unique is, first and foremost, its creative context. Donnie and Joe Emerson lived on a remote farm in Fruitland, Washington. Supported by their father, who firmly believed in his sons’ talent, they built their own recording studio in a barn, named Sunnyside Studio. This absolute independence allowed them to give free rein to their creativity, unfiltered and uncompromising. The album Dreamin’ is the fruit of this total artistic freedom.
Recorded with modest means but sincere ambition, the project blends influences as diverse as Prince, The Isley Brothers, Hall & Oates, and the first echoes of the nascent new wave. Each track resonates like a fragment of a teenage dream, with palpable emotional intensity and warm lo-fi production.
Rediscovery of a Hidden Gem
For decades, “Donnie & Joe Emerson – Dreamin’ Wild” remained a secret, ignored by the general public and even the most discerning collectors. It wasn’t until the early 2010s that the album was rediscovered, thanks in part to the Light in the Attic label, which specializes in reissues of forgotten records. In 2012, their iconic track “Baby” was brought back into the spotlight, becoming a cult anthem for a whole generation of music lovers seeking authenticity.
This hypnotic track, with its languid bassline, dreamy synth layers, and Donnie’s youthful yet soulful vocals, embodies the album’s aesthetic. It’s a timeless track, capable of thrilling both vintage funk fans and downtempo electronic music enthusiasts.
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