WIWS Banner

The Second Disc

Expanded and Remastered Music News

  • Home
  • News
    • Classic Rock
    • Rock
    • Pop
    • Jazz
    • Popular Standards/Vocal
    • R&B/Soul
    • Country
    • Folk
    • Cast Recordings
    • Soundtracks
    • Everything Else
      • Classical/Opera
      • Disco/Dance
      • Funk
      • Gospel
      • Rap/Hip-Hop
  • Features
    • Release Round-Up
    • Giveaways!
    • Interviews
  • Reviews
    • Classic Rock
    • Rock
    • Pop
    • Jazz
    • Popular Standards/Vocal
    • R&B/Soul
    • Country
    • Folk
    • Cast Recordings
    • Soundtracks
    • Everything Else
      • Classical/Opera
      • Disco/Dance
      • Funk
      • Gospel
      • Rap/Hip-Hop
  • Release Calendar
    • Coming Soon
    • Now Available
  • About
  • Second Disc Records
    • Full Catalog
  • Contact

/ News

Girl You Know It's True...Don't You?

February 2, 2010 By Mike Duquette 3 Comments

A few days before the Grammys, USA Today ran a really intriguing piece on the only living person who can be described as an ex-Grammy winner. I refer, of course, to Fabrice Morvan, one-half of the dance-pop duo Milli Vanilli.

Many hardcore music fans remember the story of Milli Vanilli, the critically-loathed commercial behemoths that scored five consecutive U.S. Top 5 hits and a Best New Arist Grammy before admitting later that year that they didn't sing a note on the record. The Grammy was famously revoked and Arista deleted their album, Girl You Know It's True, from the label catalogue. Morvan's musical partner, Rob Pilatus, died in 1998 of an apparent drug overdose, but Morvan continues as a solo musician and consultant on an in-development biopic of the group.

I really related to some of Morvan's quotes in the story, notably the irony that many current performers engage in live lip-synching and overuse of vocal effects without the kind of controversy that Milli Vanilli endured. (The fact that Taylor Swift, one of the night's biggest winners, also gave one of the worst performances of the night really drives that point home.)

But as I read, a question formed in my reissue-addled brain - a question I now ask of you: should a Milli Vanilli film actually happen, in turn reviving awareness of their music, would it be prudent to bring the music out in print?

More thoughts after the jump.

There's something interesting and risky about the notion that Legacy - who would distribute such a reissue - may one day revisit these records. Copies of Girl You Know It's True (and the album's European equivalent, All or Nothing) are actually rather easy to find on Amazon.com, as well as a 2007 greatest hits record (fun fact: the album cheekily credits Pilatus and Morvan with "visual performances"). But as someone who doesn't own a copy of that compilation, I can't confirm that there are any liner notes addressing the major controversies of the band.

That might be interesting if a reissue of Girl You Know It's True (with or without additional content - there were dozens of dance remixes commissioned on both sides of the Atlantic) acknowledged the hard facts in the liner notes while still noting that Milli Vanilli's output was dangerously catchy pop that obviously appealed to the masses. The question is, would catalogue fans like you actually buy it?

Labels have reissued the work of famous flops before (Jobriath particularly comes to mind), but would this go over well with the reissue enthusiasts out there? As always, I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Categories: News Tags: Milli Vanilli, Open Forum

Avatar photo

Mike Duquette

Michael Duquette (Founder) was fascinated with catalog music ever since he discovered there was more than one version of John Williams' soundtrack to E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial. A 2009 graduate of Seton Hall University with a B.A. in journalism, Mike paired his profession with his passion through The Second Disc, one of the first sites to focus on all reissue labels great and small. His passion for reissues turned into a career, with bylines on catalog at Discogs, City Pages and Ultimate Prince and credits on titles including the Grammy-winning 'Squeeze Box: The Complete Works of "Weird Al" Yankovic.' Born and raised in New Jersey, Mike lives in Astoria, Queens with an ever-expanding collection of music.

Connect With Mike:

You Might Also Like

  • Best Laid Best Laid "Van"s: Do Artists' Opinions on Their Catalogue Titles Influence Your Purchases?
  • screen shot 2013 07 16 at 11 24 54 amWaxing on Universal's New Vinyl Project Initiative
  • kickstarter badgeKickstart Our Hearts? Thoughts on Crowd-Funding Catalogue Music
  • amoebaAmoeba Records Becomes Digital Archivist

Comments

  1. ray judson says

    February 3, 2010 at 9:38 pm

    I have both the original album and the remix album on CD and would love to have them both in one place. Add on a DVD with videos or maybe the Behind the Music and I would definitely pnoy up the cash for it. Interested to see how many people feel the same....

    Reply
  2. Jupiter 8 says

    February 5, 2010 at 2:08 pm

    I can remember a couple years after the "scandal" broke and the cd had been deleted, people were asking (and maybe getting) silly money for this on eBay ($30 and up). Of course, it's a cd that sold in the millions that most people got rid of, so it's hard to believe it's scarce, yet I never stumble across it like I do the endless used copies of "Pocket Full of Kryptonite" or "Jagged Little Pill".

    I would imagine if there was ever a movie the CD would get a reissue unless of course the movie creates new versions of the songs (now there's a mind trip-fake versions of fake songs!)

    Reply
  3. Bill Kopp says

    February 5, 2010 at 6:13 pm

    So if Morvan appears in this film -- speaking about Milli Vanilli -- who will dub his speaking voice? 😉

    Reply

Leave a Reply to ray judson Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Upcoming Releases

  • Carole Bayer Sager Sometimes Late at Night
    Sometimes Late at Night: Expanded Edition
    Carole Bayer Sager
    February 03, 2023
  • Carole King Home Again
    Home Again: Live in Central Park
    Carole King
    February 10, 2023
  • Robert Palmer Island Years
    The Island Records Years
    Robert Palmer
    February 17, 2023
See Full Calendar

Connect

  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 4,545 other subscribers

Popular

  • Bob Dylan Fragments Bootleg 17 Cover
    Release Round-Up: Week of January 27 posted on January 27, 2023 | under Release Round-Up
  • Nancy and Lee Again
    Got It Together: "Nancy and Lee Again" Debuts on CD in March posted on January 27, 2023 | under News
  • Honky Chateau
    Get Back to the Woods: Elton John's 'Honky Château' Gets New Deluxe Edition in March posted on February 1, 2023 | under News

Comments

  • small faces here come the nice2
    Return To Itchycoo Park: Small Faces' "Here Come The Nice" Deluxe Box Set Arrives In January [UPDATED 12/3] 84 comments | by Joe Marchese | posted on December 3, 2013 | under News
  • the beatles u s albums box2
    British Invasion! The Beatles Unveil "The U.S. Albums" Box Set in January 69 comments | by Joe Marchese | posted on December 12, 2013 | under News
  • Rolling Stones in Mono
    Out of Their Heads: Stones Plan Mono Box Set 47 comments | by Mike Duquette | posted on August 10, 2016 | under News

Music Resources

  • Addicted to Vinyl
  • Crap from the Past
  • Discogs
  • Film Score Monthly
  • IMWAN Forum – From the Vaults
  • MusicTAP
  • Musoscribe
  • Pause & Play
  • Popblerd
  • Popdose
  • Record Racks
  • Slicing Up Eyeballs
  • Steve Hoffman Music Forums
  • Ultimate Classic Rock
  • Vintage Vinyl News
  • Viva La Mainstream
  • Wolfgang's Vault

Labels of Note

  • Ace Records
  • Analog Spark
  • Bear Family
  • BGO Records
  • Big Break Records
  • Blixa Sounds
  • Cherry Red Label Group
  • Craft Recordings
  • Demon Music Group
  • Friday Music
  • Funky Town Grooves
  • Iconoclassic Records
  • Intervention Records
  • Intrada
  • Kritzerland
  • La La Land Records
  • Legacy Recordings
  • Light in the Attic
  • Masterworks Broadway
  • Now Sounds
  • Omnivore Recordings
  • Real Gone Music
  • Resonance Records
  • Rhino Entertainment
  • Rock Candy Records
  • SoulMusic Records
  • Sunset Blvd. Records
  • Supermegabot
  • Varese Sarabande
  • Vinyl Me, Please
  • Wounded Bird
Copyright © 2023 The Second Disc. All rights reserved. · Site by Metaglyphics

The Second Disc is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com, amazon.ca and amazon.co.uk.

Terms and Conditions - Privacy Policy