does anyone have any info on the record label called Union Pacific Records out of Great Britian? i work at a record store and have seen two records released by them. they both seem pretty bootleggy. one being an Eddie Cochran record and the other being a Link Wray record (which is mine now) they were both about 20 bucks and were released in the early 70s. gathering what they've released, they look interesting but i couldn't find anything on them on the internet. if you got any info on this label or perhaps what some of the other things they've released are, i'd love to know.

that looks great! i love that Young John Watson track. Fuzzmeister said:

The Instro compilation "Loose Ends - Rave from the Grave, Blast From the Past Series Vol.2" is pretty good.

Track list here:

http://rcs.law.emory.edu/rcs/comps/u/uni748.htm

thats awesome. thanks for all the info! i also found out (after searching for Ian Sippen's name) that him and Peter Sherster recorded some people and had a studio. i'm guessing this is where they bootlegged these recordings. The quality of the Link Wray and Eddie Cochran LPs (the next day after posting this i took home the Eddie Cochran too) aren't very good at all, but still great collections of some cool stuff. Thanks for telling me about those other records. do you know if they only put out these four LPs? i'll keep an eye out for the others if not for any other reason than just consistancy. hah.

thanks for all the info!

The Instro compilation "Loose Ends - Rave from the Grave, Blast From the Past Series Vol.2" is pretty good. Track list here: http://rcs.law.emory.edu/rcs/comps/u/uni748.htm

I believe the people behind this label were Ian Sippen and Peter Sherster, who get mentioned in Clinton Heylin's book 'Bootleg'. Said book is itself bootlegged here: http://books.google.com/books?id=saWBw9ZG2cgC&pg=PA115&lpg=PA115&dq=Ian+Sippen&source=bl&ots=wQD-cs-HXe&sig=kSpM1iWy-6m-J1TBAWZNot8H_60&hl=en&ei=tC8kSsvCIp6ktAOPrPChBA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6#PPA113,M1 The Eddie Cochran LP ('A Legend In Our Time') is (presumably) the first release on the label, as its serial number is 'U.P. 001'). It was released in 1971. Time-wise this is at a very early stage of the Rock'n'Roll reissue program. The LP contains some Cochran Brothers material, Eddie's clip from the film 'Untamed Youth' (I'm guessing they might have taped it off of a television set to a reel-to-reel recorder) and some of Eddie's live-to-air performances for BBC Radio's 'Saturday Club' show in 1960 (again, probably taped direct from the airwaves). Other than the Link Wray disc and the Eddie Cochran LP, I know of two other releases on the label. One is a compilation called 'Transfusion', released in 1972. This LP contains Rock'n'Roll and Rockabilly from the likes of Nervous Norvus (the title track), Big Al Downing, John Greer, Ronnie Self and Vince Taylor & The Playboys (the original version of 'Brand New Cadillac), amongst others. There's also a brief interview with Buddy Holly, again, taped from the radio. What's remarkable about this LP is the sleeve notes; they contain a rant where Sippen attempts to justify release of the LP by quoting then-current prices for rare rockabilly singles: "Collectors that I have spoken with recently are nauseated at having to pay outrageous prices for certain discs... 17 (pounds Sterling) for a Charlie Feathers King 45? 18 (pounds) for a Johnny Carroll Decca disc? Just what the hell is going on? These prices are common. Is any record worth that much? Certainly NOT." In today's terms 17 and 18 pounds roughly works out to about $36. (Imagine finding an original Charlie Feathers 45 for that!). The whole thing comes sleeved in a cover that features a Robert Crumb drawing, taken from the cover of a then-current issue of 'Snatch Comics', which would have been sold in head shops of the time.

Here's my copy of the LP, which I'd added some custom text etc to on the inner bag, as I used to use it for DJ'ing on radio and in clubs.

There's also a compilation of Rock'n'Roll instrumental tracks. This copy is from the collection of my friend Neil.

While these comps are interesting as they are some of the first reissues of early Rock'n'Roll and Rockabilly, they are virtually useless when it comes to sound quality etc. There are legal CD (and vinyl) reissues of many of these tracks, with vastly improved audio.