Various
The Vinyl Series, Volume Two

Listening notes

Island Records issued The Vinyl Series, Volume Two in 2021 under catalog number B-0033339-01. The compilation brings together nine tracks drawn from the label's catalog, spanning genres catalogued as Folk, World, & Country, Reggae, and Rock.

Side A opens with Cat Stevens's "Lady D'Arbanville," followed by Nick Drake's "River Man" and John Martyn's "Solid Air." The fourth track, "I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight," is credited to Richard and Linda Thompson. The sequencing places four artists associated with the folk and singer-songwriter strands of the Island catalog across the first side.

Side B moves across a broader tonal range. Free's "All Right Now" opens the side, followed by Traffic's "Feelin' Alright?" Jimmy Cliff's "Many Rivers To Cross" appears third, with The Heptones' "Book Of Rules" and Toots and the Maytals' "Pressure Drop" closing the record. The back half of the compilation draws on both the rock and reggae portions of the label's holdings.

As the title indicates, this release is the second entry in a series, suggesting Island structured it as part of an ongoing vinyl program rather than a standalone issue. The compilation does not carry individual track durations in the available documentation.

The track selection represents a cross-section of Island's recorded output without concentrating on any single era or genre, drawing instead from multiple points across the label's history. Collectors and researchers consulting this entry should verify personnel, matrix, and pressing details through physical inspection of the release, as those specifics are outside the scope of the information available here.