Vinyl kings

Members of the band—Photoglo, Stinson, Lee, Leo, and Rhodes—have individually produced, written songs for, played on recordings by, or toured with such artists as Bob Dylan, Elton John, Neil Young, Carole King, Sting, Shania Twain, Vince Gill, Steve Winwood, Tina Turner, Mark Knopfler, Dan Fogelberg, Glenn Frey,  and so many more.

The Vinyl Kings' first album, the 2002 A Little Trip—a nod to The Beatles who inspired each of the VKs to pursue a life in music—received rave reviews and developed somewhat of a cult following. After all, it's a little hard to buy the concept of an album of Beatles-esque music, but Beatles fans who found it loved it. Intensely.

"The genius of the record is that the Kings managed to create an album of original tunes echoing the evolving sound and feel of the Beatles—neither impression, nor caricature, but a pure, loving homage," writes Dale McCurry, from his review of A Little Trip for NoteWorthy Music.

For information and interviews, please contact the Vinyl Kings at pr@vinylkingsband.com.

And in the end/ The love you take/ Is equal to the love you make.
~ Lennon-McCartney

Big New Life:
A Palindrome of Love
By Dale McCurry 

There are good bands and there are good people. Sometimes we get both. 

The Vinyl Kings, a top-shelf band of veteran songwriters, players and producers—who first played together as a long-ago Nashville-based cover band named the Del Beatles—are such a band, as evidenced by both the artistry and message of their third and, perhaps, final album, Big New Life.

The culmination of a wave of multiple solo releases during the past several months came with the early April release of “We Are All One,” an intriguing and powerful alloy of rap and anthem that drives home the simple yet elusive idea that all humankind is not only equal, but the same. 

The final solo release from Big New Life is reminiscent of the 1969 Plastic Ono Band anti-war classic “Give Peace a Chance” in its bold declaration that it is only artificial boundaries that separate and divide us from one another while challenging us to face the truth of what people have done to each other in the name of "us versus them." 

The Big New Life journey began in January 2023 when the Vinyl Kings—consisting of Larry Lee, Jim Photoglo, Harry Stinson, Josh Leo, and the late Michael Rhodes—released “Smoke Rings for Renee"—written by Photoglo—on the occasion of the passing of the wife of his bandmate, Leo. 

The lovely and powerful song—a celebration of a life … and life itself—was the impetus for the new body of work from each of these seasoned singer-songwriters. At the time, Lee described it this way: “We really want to do something positive. Something with a promise of better things to come. All revolving around love.”