1985 AGI Rock Star Concert Cards

I grew up listening to 70's and 80's rock, so I was pretty excited to come across this set last year.  It contains 108 cards and covers twenty different artists and bands, ranging from The Rolling Stones to Quiet Riot.

I ended up buying a complete set last December off of eBay for $10.50 (+ $8 shipping).  Until yesterday, I had no idea how the cards were distributed.  Then while walking around the flea market, I stumbled across a vendor who had one complete 24ct. box and another box with nineteen packs.  I ended up buying the whole lot for $30.

Each pack contains 10 cards and one "Hot Rock" sticker.  The cellophane wrapped packs are mounted onto a piece of cardboard that contains product information.  Since the cellophane wrappers are clear, collectors were able to see the top card in the pack.

I had two packs with Alan "Fitz" Gerald on the front, so I decided to bust one open for you guys.

#11

We kick of the pack with the keyboardist for Night Ranger, who had several Top 10 hits: Don't Tell Me You Love Me, Sister Christian, and Sentimental Street.  But my favorite Night Ranger song is their power ballad, When You Close Your Eyes.

#2

Next up is that guy who bit the head off a bat.  I've got to admit... Ozzy freaked me out as a kid.  But by the mid 80's, I had grown to appreciate his music... especially the stuff during his tenure with Black Sabbath.  Paranoid rules!

#70

MTV played a huge part in me rockin' out to the Scorpions.  I was obsessed with watching the video, No One Like You.  It was a combination of growing up near Alcatraz, the crazy guy with forks on his eyes, and of course the song was pretty good too.

#27

Pat Benatar always had catchy songs that were easy to memorize.  I'm sure I drove my mom crazy listening to my 45 of Shadows of the Night over and over again.  Thirty years later, I'm sure I can still sing this song word for word.  

#66

When it comes to U2, I was sort of a late bloomer.  Of course, I had heard a lot of their earlier music, but I didn't really get into them until they released their fifth album, The Joshua Tree.  From there, I worked backward.  They have so many awesome songs, it's hard for me to choose a favorite.  However the three that currently stand out are Sunday Bloody Sunday, In God's Country, and With Or Without You.

#23

I know they're one of the most popular rockabilly groups out there, but I just couldn't get into the Stray Cats.  I had several friends who went through a phase in their lives where they dove into the whole "rockabilly" and "swing" scene.  When they were done, I found myself listening to Reverend Horton Heat, Royal Crown Revue, and even the Brian Setzer Orchestra... but not the Stray Cats.

#92

I might be mistaken, but as far as I know only four of the ten cards feature artists/groups inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: Ozzy Ozbourne (Black Sabbath), U2, Daryl Hall (Hall and Oates), and AC/DC.  It's not surprising that AC/DC was the first among them to get inducted.  I haven't met many people who don't appreciate their music.  

#82

I haven't thought about .38 Special in over twenty years, but seeing this card brought back great memories.  Their songs Hold on Loosely and Caught Up In You are long lost classics.  After this post, I'm off to Amazon to see if they have a greatest hits CD.

#61

I was in middle school in the mid 80's and during that time I went through a big new wave phase.  I stopped listening to Metallica, Def Leppard, and AC/DC... and started listening to The Cure, New Order, and The Smiths.  But much like the Stray Cats, I just couldn't get into The Thompson Twins.  I knew they were popular and I even liked their hit, Hold Me Now, but I can't say I ever owned one of their albums.

#34

The final card in the pack contains one half of Hall & Oates, the duo who was recently inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  I'm sure if my mom read this post, she'd be happy with this pull.  She had several of their albums and loved their music, so even though they're not my favorite group... I wouldn't change the station if I heard one of their songs on the radio.

Wrapping things up is the "Hot Rock" sticker:

Believe it or not... as cheesy as this might look... I probably would have stuck this on my Pee Chee folder back in the day.

Well that's it for now.  If you're interested in seeing more of these cards, please check out my friend Nick's blog: Dime Boxes.  He recently wrote about these cards that once upon a time... belonged to his father.

Happy Sunday and sayonara!

2013 Topps Premier Gold

EPL is back!!

I am quite excited to see the EPL season kicking off again. Some interesting changes during the off season, along with the new teams promoted from the Championship League. I'm hoping my boys in blue can raise the cup when the season ends in a few months. Last pear Topps put out a slightly higher end of football products. It was your standard guaranteed hit release, getting either a game used or autograph in every pack.

Or should I say box. There were 10 mini boxes per box, 5 cards in each pack. Got your big 4 teams represented on the front, with Van Persie for ManU, Lampard for Chelsea, Aguero for Man City and Gerrard for Liverpool.

The box echos the base design with the washed out background behind the players. It was thought Soldado would have been moved during the off season, but so far, he's still with the Spurs.

 I love Swansea's sponsor. I have no idea who they are or what they sell, but it's so odd. Pablo is another player that may not be in the EPL soon, with a possible transfer to a club in his home country of Spain.

Everton's latest kits look odd. The stripes on the sleeve are way too thick. You may know Everton's starting keeper from his save exhibition at this year's World Cup. McCarthy is an up and coming youth with the Everton club.

 

Green parallel from the box of deGea from ManU. All the issues from last year cannot be pinned on this guy, though I was as happy as many to see ManU finish in 7th and not make any other league play in the 2014-15 season.

You can see the deGea is serialed to 99. This is the same back as the other cards in the pack - just no numbering. For my guaranteed hit I pulled...

Only complaint is that it is a sticker auto. Otherwise, I was super excited to pull a player from my favorite team. John Terry or Frank Lampard would have been the only other guys I would have wanted to get, but I will not complain over Ashley Cole. However, his 2013-14 season was not the best and his last in Chelsea blue. His contract expired and he's now playing in Italy with AS Roma.

1978 Topps Superman: The Movie (Series 1)

The man of steel! Today, I've got a pack of 1978 Topps Superman: The Movie cards! These come from the days when Topps was printing anything they could onto bits of cardboard, and we ate it all up!

Each card features a still from the movie or a stand-alone shot of an actor. The fronts have a white border surrounding the photo. There is a Superman logo jutting into a corner of each photo.

Each card features a saying or the name of an actor and the character they portray.  There is also copyright info for DC Comics and a copyright date of 1978.

In the lower corner of the front, each card has a number and a series of stars. They are also miscut in traditional 70's  fashion as you can see in the card above!

The stars on the front tell you whether or not the back has text or a puzzle piece. If the card has one star on the front, then it is a puzzle card. If there are two, then there is some kind of text on the back.

The cards with text on the back have things like "Story Summary No. 3 of 3" or "Movie Facts" on them. The backs feature the Superman:The Movie logo, an ALL-CAPS header, a paragraph regarding whatever is being discussed, and a blue field with stars and planets at the bottom. A red "S" logo centers the bottom section. There is more copyright info as well.

The cards are perfectly 70's - from the stock to the images to the overall "quality" involved.

The card below has 70's vixen written all over it. I'm sure that was sexy then...

Superman may be leaping into action, but he looks like he is holding up a rock with one out-stretched hand. Or at least lifting it out of the way...

Margot Kidder looks like she just lost her best friend... or her dog.

In addition to the 10 cards, we get a sticker! We pulled the Man of Steel himself! As in other 70's sticker sets, this one features a bold border around the main subject.

I won an auction with four (4) of these packs, though I have only busted this one. I suppose if there is a demand for it, I could post about the other packs. If not, they will probably go in some giveaway down the road.

1975 Topps ABC's Wide World of Sports Stickers

I found this pack of sports intrigue while looking for unique things we haven't opened. This is a single pack of 1975 Topps ABC's Wide World of Sports Stickers. The right edge says "Tear carefully along perforation to open," but the bottom of the wrapper was open, so the stickers slid right out.

The stickers are a whopping 5"x7" (slightly larger, really)! They feature a large photo area depicting an action shot. This is surrounded by a colored border. Both of mine were red, but there are also blue borders.

Within the border, copyright info for ABC and Topps is printed in black. The ABC Sports logo adorns each sticker. There is a small number on each as well. The tennis player above is number 8. The relay race below is number 20.

The backs are blank and happen to be about the most pristine color of white I've seen in a long time. The stickers are also stuck to the backing very well! Not bad for something from '75.

There are 24 stickers in all, according to the back of the wrapper these came in. Very interesting. Now, where to stick them...

1975 Topps Wanted Posters

As my quest to find weird packs we haven't opened yet continues, I bring you 1975 Topps Wanted Posters. I know absolutely NOTHING about these. When I saw the pack, I knew I had to have it. Unfortunately, my self-imposed photoshop disaster (below) appears a bit weird.

There was one (1) poster in the pack. It is HUGE: 9.5 inches by 18 inches:

The poster is so big, I had to scan it in three sections. I used Photoshop Elements (a VERY old version, btw) to kinda sew things together. In retrospect, a panoramic stitching program might have worked better. Oh well, I did it "by hand," so I'm sure I get points for that.

The only actualy stain on the thing was from the dozen or so bits of gum that bled through (upper left of boy's head). The sidebar "stains" are remnants from my not-so-handiwork stitching things together.

I love that you get to fill in the blank. I say fill it in, frame it, and give it to that special someone for their birthday.

1979 Topps Buck Rogers

If you were a kid in the late 70's, you probably remember watching "Buck Rogers." If you were a kid like *me* in the 70's, you watched it for the female lead and not for Buck himself. But, we'll get to that in a minute.

Let's start with gum from 1979. It is cracked because it was stuck, nay glued, to the back of one of the cards. I pried it loose. It did not age well at all.

Each card features a still from the TV series surrounded by a red "electro-bolt" border. In each corner, the main characters from the show make an appearance. From left to right, going clockwise, we have Buck, Wilma, Princess Ardala, and Twiki.  The card's number appears next to Twiki.

The back of the cards feature information about the scene portrayed on the front.  The cards, when placed in numerical order, tell a story. These are not in that order, so you'll have to do the sequencing yourself.

Ardala was supposedly the slinky, sexy one...

 But, I watched for Erin Gray...

Hope you enjoyed this walk back through time to 1979.