And Legacy’s Essential train just keeps on rolling along. Upgrades to Essential 3.0 have been announced for two popular volumes in the long-running series, The Essential "Weird Al" Yankovic and The Essential Barry Manilow. The new editions will expand the 2-CD releases with a third disc containing 6 and 7 tracks, respectively. While none of the tracks on the third discs appear to be rare, Essential 3.0 titles are usually priced very similarly to the original 2-CD sets (retailing for approximately $25, they can often be found as inexpensive as $15) and therefore a terrific bargain for fans who didn’t already buy the first release.

The tracks on Al’s Disc 3 encompass 20 years of the musical humorist’s career, from his 1983 debut (“Ricky”) to his second-to-last studio album, 2003’s Poodle Hat (“Wanna Be Ur Lovr” and “Genius in France”). Manilow’s 8 tracks are likewise eclectic. The heartfelt “All the Time” and showstopping “Sweet Heaven” were notable omissions from the original set, so they’re particularly welcome. Legacy has seen fit to include the too-little-known early gem “I Am Your Child” while Manilow’s latter-day patriotic anthem “Let Freedom Ring” might sit oddly in this collection. Fans will be happy to know that 1982’s hit Four Seasons cover “Let’s Hang On” is included, but the same year’s charting “Oh, Julie!” still isn’t making a long-awaited appearance on CD. In its original form, The Essential Barry Manilow was notable for including some rare and new-to-CD mixes; it’s disappointing that Disc 3 doesn’t appear to be following suit.

Even in 2-disc form, The Essentials remain the best one-stop shopping for both the Yankovic and Manilow catalogues. In 3-disc form, the deal is even sweeter for those who haven’t bitten yet.  You can pre-order The Essential “Weird Al” Yankovic 3.0, due on August 31, here and The Essential Barry Manilow 3.0, set for October 12 release, here.

You know the routine: click on the jump for full track listings and complete discographical information for all 3 discs of both releases!

Barry Manilow, The Essential Barry Manilow 3.0 (Arista/Legacy, 2010)

Disc 1

1. Mandy
2. It’s a Miracle (Single Edit)
3. Could It Be Magic
4. I Write the Songs (Single Edit)
5. Bandstand Boogie
6. Tryin’ to Get the Feeling Again
7. Beautiful Music
8. This One’s for You
9. Weekend in New England
10. Jump Shout Boogie
11. Looks Like We Made It
12. Daybreak (Live)
13. New York City Rhythm (Live)
14. Can’t Smile Without You
15. Even Now
16. Copacabana (At The Copa)
17. Ready to Take a Chance Again

Disc 2

1. Somewhere in the Night
2. Ships
3. When I Wanted You
4. I Don’t Want to Walk Without You
5. One Voice
6. I Made It Through the Rain
7. Lonely Together
8. The Old Songs
9. Somewhere in the Night
10. Memory
11. Some Kind of Friend
12. Read ‘Em and Weep
13. When October Goes
14. I’m Your Man (Club Mix)
15. Brooklyn Blues
16. Hey Mambo
17. I’d Really Love to See You Tonight (Up-Tempo Mix)

Disc 3

1. Let’s Hang On
2. You’re Lookin’ Hot Tonight
3. Keep Each Other Warm
4. All the Time
5. Let Freedom Ring
6. Sweet Heaven
7. I Am Your Child

Disc 1, Track 1 from Barry Manilow II (Bell 1314, 1974)
Disc 1, Track 2 from Arista single 0108-A, 1974
Disc 1, Track 3 & Disc 3, Track 7 from Barry Manilow I (Bell 1129, 1975)
Disc 1, Track 4 from Arista single 0157-A, 1975
Disc 1, Tracks 5-7 from Tryin’ to Get the Feeling (Arista 4060, 1975)
Disc 1, Tracks 8-11 & Disc 3, Track 4 from This One’s for You (Arista 4090, 1976)
Disc 1, Tracks 12-13 from Barry Manilow Live (Arista 8500, 1977)
Disc 1, Tracks 14-16 & Disc 2, Track 1 from Even Now (Arista 4164, 1978)
Disc 1, Track 17 from Foul Play: Original Soundtrack (Arista AL-9501, 1978)
Disc 2, Tracks 2-5 from One Voice (Arista 9505, 1979)
Disc 2, Tracks 6-7 from Barry (Arista 9537, 1980)
Disc 2, Tracks 8-9 & Disc 3, Track 1 from If I Should Love Again (Arista 9573, 1981)
Disc 2, Tracks 10-11 from Here Comes the Night (Arista 9610, 1982)
Disc 2, Track 12 & Disc 3, Track 2 from Greatest Hits, Vol. II (Arista 8102, 1983)
Disc 2, Track 13 from 2:00 a.m. Paradise Café (Arista 8254, 1984)
Disc 2, Track 14 from RCA single 14397, 1986
Disc 2, Tracks 15-16 from Swing Street (Arista 8527, 1987)
Disc 2, Track 17 from Hot Summer of ’78 – The Mixes (Arista UK 74321-56666-2, 1996)
Disc 3, Track 3 from Barry Manilow (Arista 8570, 1989)
Disc 3, Track 5 from The Complete Collection…and Then Some (Arista 07822-18714-2, 1992)
Disc 3, Track 6 from Manilow (RCA 7044, 1985)

"Weird Al" Yankovic, The Essential “Weird Al” Yankovic 3.0 (Way Moby/Volcano/Legacy, 2010)

Disc 1

1. Another One Rides the Bus
2. Polkas on 45
3. Eat It
4. I Lost on Jeopardy
5. Yoda
6. One More Minute
7. Like a Surgeon
8. Dare to Be Stupid
9. Dog Eat Dog
10. Lasagna
11. Melanie
12. Fat
13. UHF (Single Version)
14. The Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota
15. Trigger Happy
16. Smells Like Nirvana
17. You Don’t Love Me Anymore
18. Bedrock Anthem
19. Frank’s 2000” TV
20. Jurassic Park

Disc 2

1. Since You’ve Been Gone
2. Amish Paradise
3. Gump
4. Everything You Know is Wrong
5. The Night Santa Went Crazy (Extra Gory Version)
6. Your Horoscope For Today
7. It’s All About the Pentiums
8. The Saga Begins
9. Albuquerque
10. eBay
11. Bob
12. Hardware Store
13. I’ll Sue Ya
14. Canadian Idiot
15. Pancreas
16. Don’t Download This Song
17. White and Nerdy
18. Trapped in the Drive-Thru

Disc 3

1. Ricky
2. Midnight Star
3. Living with a Hernia
4. Good Old Days
5. Wanna Be Ur Lovr
6. Genius in France

Disc 1, Track 1 & Disc 3, Track 1 from “Weird Al” Yankovic (Scotti Bros. 38679, 1983)
Disc 1, Tracks 2-4 & Disc 3, Track 2 from “Weird Al” Yankovic in 3-D (Scotti Bros. 39221, 1984)
Disc 1, Tracks 5-8 from Dare to Be Stupid (Scotti Bros. 40033, 1985)
Disc 1, Track 9 & Disc 3, Track 3 from Polka Party! (Scotti Bros. 40520, 1986)
Disc 1, Tracks 10-12 & Disc 3, Track 4 from Even Worse (Scotti Bros. 44149, 1988)
Disc 1, Track 13 from Scotti Bros. single ZS-68992-A, 1989
Disc 1, Track 14 from UHF/Original Motion Picture Soundtrack and Other Stuff (Scotti Bros. 45265, 1989)
Disc 1, Tracks 15-17 from Off the Deep End (Scotti Bros. 72392-75256, 1992)
Disc 1, Tracks 18-20 from Alapalooza (Scotti Bros. 72392-75415, 1993)
Disc 2, Tracks 1-5 from Bad Hair Day (Scotti Bros. 72392-75500, 1996)
Disc 2, Tracks 6-9 from Running with Scissors (Way Moby/Volcano 61422-32118, 1999)
Disc 2, Tracks 10-12 & Disc 3, Tracks 5-6 from Poodle Hat (Way Moby/Volcano 61422-32194, 2003)
Disc 2, Tracks 13-18 from Straight Outta Lynwood (Way Moby/Volcano 82876-89951, 2006)