Show Us the LOVE! Rhino Gives Arthur Lee and Love Another Spin

Every October, Rhino Records reminds record collectors that apparently we haven’t bought enough records yet. This year’s Rocktober campaign brings 54 limited-edition vinyl albums to participating independent retailers throughout October, and tucked into that tempting pile are three albums by Love: Love, Da Capo, and Four Sail, arriving October 16 on transparent red, orange, and light-blue vinyl.

I’m happy to see Arthur Lee and Love getting some attention. Love was a major presence on Los Angeles’ Sunset Strip in the 1960s, yet somehow never became as universally remembered as the Doors, Beatles, or Rolling Stones.

Da Capo alone is worth the trip, with “7 & 7 Is,” “Stephanie Knows Who,” and “Orange Skies.” The orange vinyl seems almost too perfect considering the song title. Maybe it’s a coincidence, but I’ll take it. Rhino itself calls Da Capo a brilliant snapshot of the Sunset Strip in 1966.

Then there’s Four Sail, another chapter in Arthur Lee’s Love. If you’ve never listened to the band, these three albums are a pretty damn good place to begin.

But there is one glaring omission: Forever Changes. It isn’t part of this year’s Rocktober Love releases, but if you’re discovering Arthur Lee, I’d put it at the front of the line. Lee once explained why he wasn’t interested in simply recreating it: “There’s one Mona Lisa, there’s one Forever Changes.”

And maybe that’s the perfect answer to today’s vinyl collector culture.

Limited editions and colored vinyl can turn an album into a triple-digit purchase pretty quickly. I understand the appeal, but I tend to shy away from it. If the same music is available on CD for considerably less, I’m buying the music, not the orange plastic.

So if Rhino really wants to Show Us the LOVE!, make Arthur Lee’s music easier to buy at a reasonable price. If you’re new to Love, start with Forever Changes, then explore Love, Da Capo and Four Sail.

You don’t need four different colors sitting on the shelf.

You need to hear them.