The Dream Syndicate, The Day Before Wine and Roses (CD)

Radio gigs are typically primitive recordings—this one is no exception, and it could probably have been mastered better. The Day Before Wine and Roses, recorded in 1982 and released properly in 1995, captures the Dream Syndicate in their peak form (right around the same time that Dennis Duck recorded Look to This with the Doo-Dooettes, strangely enough). There are excellent covers from Dylan, Donovan, and Neil Young, plus high-energy, full-on performances of some of the Dream Syndicate's early classics. Both the classic covers and the originals display the obvious influence of punk/new-wave—the Dream Syndicate merged their influences seamlessly. It's a great reissue, despite the arbitrary image chosen for the cover.