These are all the Record Store Day exclusive releases you need in 2017

Saturday 22nd April is Record Store Day 2017. As usual there is a huge selection of stellar exclusive releases from artists across the genre spectrum. Here is our list of this year’s essential RSD exclusives. Get down to your local record store to pick these up, and support the industry.

1. Slick Rick – The Great Adventures Of

Slick Rick is one of the greatest Hip Hop artists of all time, so it’s only right that his magnum opus The Great Adventures of Slick Rick is getting a deluxe release on the Get On Down label. The album will be packaged as a 16-page children’s book with illustrated selections from the lyrics of “Children’s Story”, complete with a 45 of the single and a CD of the classic album in full. There has never been a more unique way to experience Slick Rick’s music.

2. Andre 3000 – ‘All Together Now’

Outkast’s Andre 3000 has been unusually prolific of late, showing up as a featured guest on songs by Frank Ocean, Kanye West, Solange, and many others. This release continues his streak of activity, though the song is over seven years old. Originally recorded for a Pepsi advert in 2010, ‘All Together Now’ is 3 Stacks’ eclectic cover version of The Beatles’ classic tune. Released on 7” for the first time, the track comes with an unreleased instrumental version on the B-side.

3. Peter Tosh – Legalize It

This year Record Store Day falls just two days after 4/20, the international celebration of marijuana. Peter Tosh’s ‘Legalize It’ is one of the plant’s most celebrated anthems, calling for the decriminalisation of the drug for recreational use. For Record Store Day the album comes on a magnificent reissue in the colours of the Jamaican flag with a scratch-and-sniff inner sleeve for added authenticity.

4. Robert Johnson – The Complete Recordings: The Centennial Collection

Robert Johnson’s 42 known recordings form the backbone of modern music. Now, they are available in one vinyl package for the first time. The remastered three LP set comes with extensive liner notes and a poster with the original labels of Johnson’s 80 year-old recordings.

5. Toto – ‘Africa’

The immortal classic ‘Africa’ is still a radio staple decades on from its original release. The track displays everything that was great about the Bobby Kimball-fronted group Toto, whose infectiously catchy pop hooks are on full display throughout the song. This year’s RSD exclusive edition is a recreation of the 1982 limited edition picture disc in the shape of the titular continent. To top it off, the B-side is another classic Toto track ‘Rosanna’ on a picture of the actress Rosanna Arquette, who inspired the song.

6. Vangelis – Blade Runner Original Soundtrack

2017 is the 35th anniversary of Ridley Scott’s Sci Fi classic Blade Runner. The film is due a follow up in October this year entitled Blade Runner 2049, but fans don’t have to wait to get another fix from the Blade Runner universe. On Record Store Day, the original 1982 film’s soundtrack, by legendary electronic composer Vangelis, will be released on picture disc vinyl.

7. Busta Rhymes – ‘Calm Down feat. Eminem’

This 2014 single saw the two Hip Hop legends go toe-to-toe on one track with blistering results. The Record Store Day release is ‘Calm Down’s first appearance on vinyl, and it comes with two alternative versions: one of them without Eminem, and one of them with House of Pain’s Everlast.

8. Hudson Mohawke – Ded Sec – Watch Dogs 2: Original Game Soundtrack

Electronic production hero Hudson Mohawke lent his production skills to the soundtrack for this 2016 game, and the tracks more than hold up on their own. Released on vinyl for the first time, fans of the Scottish producer’s idiosyncratic sounds will find plenty to enjoy with this release.