The Gold Legion label has two expanded titles coming from a pair of disco and dance legends this fall.
Expect remastered and expanded editions of the late, great Laura Branigan's Branigan (1982) and Self Control (1984) albums, as well as reissues of Inside Story (1986) and Bulletproof Heart (1989) from Grace Jones, this September.
Branigan, the big-voiced New Yorker with a four-octave range, burst onto the scene in 1982 with the release of Branigan, a solid offering of dance-rock bolstered by a cover of "Gloria," an Italian pop hit for Umberto Tozzi in 1979. Branigan's iconic, addictive single spent an extraordinary 36 weeks on the U.S. charts, peaking at No. 2 and earning her a Grammy nomination. Branigan's embrace of European musical trends and songcraft netted her greater success as the '80s rolled on, first with a French pop song, "Solitaire," translated into English by a rising lyricist named Diane Warren; then with "Self Control," a hard-driving song co-written by Italian pop star Raffaele "Raf" Riefoli that was a Top 5 hit in 1984. The expansion of Branigan features the 12" version of "Gloria" as well as 1981 non-LP single "Looking Out for Number One," while Self Control features remixes of the title track and singles "Satisfaction" and "The Lucky One."
Gold Legion then turns its attention to an oft-overlooked period for iconic dance musician/model/actress Grace Jones. The striking Miss Jones took on her biggest film role in 1985 as the mysterious May Day in the James Bond film A View to a Kill, and would end her longtime association with Island Records with the bestselling Island Life compilation. The next year, she took up with producer Nile Rodgers (ironically, a missed encounter at Studio 54 inspired Rodgers and Bernard Edwards to write massive hit "Le Freak" during their tenue in CHIC) and released Inside Story on EMI-owned Manhattan Records. The LP spawned a sizable U.S. dance hit in "I'm Not Perfect (But I'm Perfect for You)," co-written by British songwriter Bruce Woolley (who co-wrote Jones' hit "Slave to the Rhythm"). Follow-up album Bulletproof Heart was produced by a number of dance producers, including Jonathan Elias, Jones' then-husband Chris Stanley and up-and-coming dance hitmakers Robert Clivillés and David Cole (the individual letters in the C+C Music Factory outfit). While the album was not a commercial success and would remain her last LP for nearly 20 years, it's finally getting its due on CD, with three bonus remixes to boot. (Five remixes appear on Inside Story.)
Both Branigan discs and Bulletproof Heart will be available on September 18, with Inside Story following a week later. The initial 1,000 copies of each Grace Jones album will feature a special cardboard slipcase, and all sets will have expanded booklets. Hit the jump to explore these titles and place your orders!
Laura Branigan, Branigan: Expanded Edition (originally released as Atlantic LP SD 19289, 1982 - reissued Gold Legion GLDN 56238, 2012)
- All Night with Me
- Gloria
- Lovin' You Baby
- Living a Lie
- If You Loved Me
- Please Stay, Go Away
- I Wish We Could Be Alone
- Down Like a Rock
- Maybe I Love You
- Looking Out for Number One (Midnight Mix) (12" promo single - Atlantic DMD 265, 1981)
- Gloria (12" Version) (12" A-side - Atlantic DM 4835, 1982)
Laura Branigan, Self Control: Expanded Edition (originally released as Altantic LP 80147, 1984 - reissued Gold Legion GLDN 56239, 2012)
- The Lucky One
- Self Control
- Ti Amo
- Heart
- Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow
- Satisfaction
- Silent Partners
- Breaking Out
- Take Me
- With Every Beat of My Heart
- The Lucky One (John Robie Mix) (12" B-side - Atlantic 786928-0 (U.K.), 1984)
- Satisfaction (Special Dance Mix) (12" A-side - Atlantic 0-86914, 1984)
- The Lucky One (Jack White Mix) (12" A-side - Atlantic 0-86925, 1984)
- Self Control (12" Version) (12" A-side - Atlantic 0-86954, 1984)
Grace Jones, Inside Story: Expanded Edition (originally released as Manhattan LP ST-53038, 1986 - reissued Gold Legion GLDN 56241, 2012)
- I'm Not Perfect (But I'm Perfect for You)
- Hollywood Liar
- Chan Hitchhikes to Shanghai
- Victor Should Have Been a Jazz Musician
- Party Girl
- Crash
- Barefoot in Beverly Hills
- Scary But Fun
- White Collar Crime
- Inside Story
- I'm Not Perfect (But I'm Perfect for You) (The Right on Time Edit) (12" A-side - Manhattan V-56038, 1986)
- I'm Not Perfect (But I'm Perfect for You) (The Perfectly Extended Remix) (12" A-side - Manhattan V-56038, 1986)
- Crush (Extended Remix) (12" A-side - Manhattan V-56050, 1987)
- Party Girl (Extended Remix) (12" A-side - Manhattan V-56047, 1986)
- Victor Should Have Been a Jazz Musician (The Jazzclubmillionminutemix) (12" A-side - Manhattan K060 20 2005 6 (EU), 1987)
Grace Jones, Bulletproof Heart: Expanded Edition (originally released as Capitol LP C1 91737, 1989 - reissued Gold Legion GLDN 56420, 2012)
- Driving Satisfaction
- Kicked Around
- Love on Top of Love
- Paper Plan
- Crack Attack
- Bulletproof Heart
- On My Way
- Dream (CD bonus track - Capitol CDP 7 91737 2, 1989)
- Seduction Surrender
- Someone to Love
- Amado Mio
- Don't Cry Freedom (duet with Chris Stanley) (CD bonus track - Capitol CDP 7 91737 2, 1989)
- Love on Top of Love (Killer Kisses) (The Funky Dred Dub Mix) (12" A-side - Capitol V-15508, 1989)
- Love on Top of Love (Killer Kisses) (Clivillés & Cole Garage House Mix) (12" B-side - Capitol V-15508, 1989)
- Amado Mio (The Brazilian Mix) (12" A-side - Capitol V-15551, 1990)
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With Every Beat of My Heart: Cherry Pop Reissues, Expands Laura Branigan's "Self Control"
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Looking forward to "Self Control". This has been begging for a reissue. I'm sure Gold Legion will do an excellent job with the mastering. And they added the remix of "Satisfaction" as it is a fan favorite. But I would take the release date with a grain of salt. It will probably not come out until the end of the year. GL may do a great job with their reissues but it's a long wait for them to be released - and even longer for them to be shipped!
...If shipped at all, which as been the experience of many of their patrons. As for the Branigan re-issues, there was never really a decent remix released for any of her excellent singles. In place of quality extended versions (as were Gloria, Self Control, and Shattered Glass 12") were typically choppy edits of single/LP versions. In their places I'd much rather hear unreleased tracks I'm sure are still in the vault and b-sides that are still waiting for their debut digitally.
Laura Branigan early works are long overdue for a remaster and reappraisal for what a great vocalist she is.
Anyone know why GL did not include her second album in this reissue?
Would love to have her first three albums remastered and expanded!
I will second the comment by Tom about Gold Legion's spotty release record. I am still waiting for two releases I ordered that were charged to my credit card last December that keep having their release dates pushed back. I refuse to order anything else from them until I receive that order and will only order in-stock items after that. Attempts to contact them by email go unanswered and there is a whole thread at the forum at http://www.discomusic.com forum devoted to their poor service. The sad part of all this is the titles that do get released are really nice and usually come with very informative liner notes.
I ordered both Branigan reissues in September because their website indicated the CDs were in stock. But I never received anything, even though my card was charged at the time of purchase. I tried to contact Gold Legion on several occasions, but they did not respond. Their phone number is also disconnected. My credit card wouldn't reverse the charges after the 90 days, so I filed a complaint with the Department of Regulatory and Economic Resources, Consumer Protection in Miami, Florida, where Gold Legion is based. After 7 months, Gold Legion finally complied with my request for a refund. They also have an F rating on the Better Business Bureau with numerous non-delivery complaints.
Lucky you got your money back!
I've order from them twice , they charged my card and never released the cds. Beware...order them from Amazon if available not directly from them.
For anyone thinking about ordering from GOLD LEGION directly- DON'T. They take your money, may answer your emails a few times on the non delivery, then just ran away and refuse to answer you. Like others, I have had to get my refund off Amex. What they say they have in stock are NOT, and i wonder if a large amount of their in-stock cds actually exist. Many of the cds are not even available from anyone from Amazon or elsewhere so it's clear they have issues with distribution, and worse still, scamming people for money. Tread with great caution on sending orders to them.
The "Self Control" remaster with extended 12" mixes is exactly what I've been wanting for my favorite album of Laura's for a very long time. She was an amazing singer who should have had many more big hits. Gold Legion's customer service, or lack of it, is terrible though. When I thought I wouldn't get "Self Control" from them after unanswered e-mails, I ordered one through Amazon. I received both copies the same day, with no explanation from Gold Legion. The "Branigan" remaster keeps getting pushed back, but with none of this information from them about it, found out on LB Online site. Will be awesome when it comes out, with all those pre-first album tracks Atlantic had released as singles finally on CD. Would love a whole LB catalog makeover (and yes, there must be unreleased tracks, too) but I'm afraid GL will shut down (or get shut down) before that happens!
I've given up on Gold Legion. The Grace Jones "Inside Story" and "Bulletproof Heart" dics have been delayed for going on 2 years now. I've sent them a couple of emails during that time period asking why do they keep changing the release dates and since these long delays are common with their company, why even announce the titles until they have been pressed and ready to ship? Of course, they never respond to any of my emails. They just keep the titles on their website and change the release dates periodically. I would like to have the Grace Jones titles as well as Laura Branigan's first album but I refuse to support a company that is not at all customer-friendly and post blatant lies and products that don't exist on their site. And they don't care!. I really don't see how they have stayed in business for as long as they have. Someone needs to shut those scammers down. Maybe BBR or Funkytown Grooves will release the Grace Jones titles. They release excellent remasters and, with some rare exceptions, stick to release dates.
Seems Gold Legion has finally given up the ghost completely?
You know, it's a damn shame about Gold Legion. They had a ready and waiting customer base. But even from the start there were problems. One of the Munich Machine cds had terrible liner notes. Ripped directly from a Wikipedia entry. I paid for the repressed liner notes, but they never showed up. Wotupski by Jellybean had one of the mixes several times instead of multiple versions. I ordered the Limahl cd and it finally arrived, 2 years late. Everytime I emailed them about a release I'd get, oh we're waiting on the artwork or waiting on the mastering. Nothing but excuses. I'm not even sure if all their cds were released. They best way to get your cd was to order from Amazon. Then he had to send them out. The cds I got sounded great, but customer service was terrible. I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't open shop under another name.