Ned Doheny - Hard Candy Vinyl LP

Appetites whetted by the recent Ned Doheny compilation, Be With Records present Ned’s Hard Candy in its complete album form so his fans can now appreciate the songs in the context they were designed to be heard. Originally released in 1976, this record is widely considered the finest blue­ eyed soul album of all time. It is has long been a source of great frustration then, that this perfectly ­formed Southern California masterpiece has been unavailable on vinyl for almost 40 years. Previously bootlegged in derisory fashion, original copies are rarely found for less than $100.

Be With Records, a new vinyl ­only reissue label, continues apace by marking its third release with the first officially licensed reissue of Doheny’s nautical classic. Perhaps most famously, this impeccably smooth set features the timeless Get It Up For Love, a wonderful example of mid ­70s mid ­tempo white­ (hot)­funk.

Produced by the legendary Steve Cropper, it featured a veritable who’s­ who of the Laurel Canyon soft­ yacht sound (JD Souther, The Eagles, Linda Ronstadt, the entire horn section for Tower of Power!) yet bombed mysteriously. It’s been a cult record since.