A toast! A famed box set of music from The Rocky Horror Show is coming back into print, as well as a new reissue of the original film soundtrack on CD and vinyl, 40 years after the show first Time Warped into the hearts of fans.
There comes a time in many music and theatre enthusiasts' lives when they encounter The Rocky Horror Show, Richard O'Brien's raucous cult musical, which first premiered in London's West End in the summer of 1973. More than 35 years after it was adapted into The Rocky Horror Picture Show, the legacy not only survives but thrives thanks to consistent live revivals and midnight screenings of said film, heavy on costumes, camaraderie and audience participation. The enduring musical legacy of Rocky Horror includes some killer pop-rock tunes written for stage and screen ("Dammit Janet," "Sweet Transvestite" and the unforgettable "The Time Warp") - all ably performed by killer casts (famous members including Meat Loaf, "Little" Nell Campbell and, of course, Tim Curry as the cross-dressing Dr. Frank N. Furter).
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rtkdo7bOmJc]
In the early CD era, Rhino Records (prior to its acquisition by Warner Music Group) did a pretty stellar job of preserving that musical legacy, releasing a four-disc box set for the film's 15th anniversary in 1990. This box included two Rocky Horror albums released by Ode Records - the original 1975 film soundtrack and a cast album from the show's run at Los Angeles' Roxy Theatre in 1974 - and two compilations of curiosities related to the show, from solo singles by Little Nell and Curry and tracks from O'Brien's follow-up project Shock Treatment to selections from a number of international cast albums. On September 2, that box set will be reissued by Salvo, featuring the same four discs and a 24-page booklet of liner notes and photos - all packaged in a five-panel digipak with slipcase.
But the party doesn't stop there! The original film's soundtrack is slated for a reissue on CD (in a digipak) and vinyl (at least one source reports this to be a red vinyl pressing) on October 8. The exact distributor is undetermined; Amazon lists "Ode Sounds & Visuals" as the label, as Ode founder Lou Adler still retains the soundtrack's rights. (Most of Ode's catalogue is licensed and distributed through Sony Music's Legacy Recordings arm.) But the original album repertoire is intact, down to the two extra bonus tracks first released on CD in 1989.
You can pre-order the TRHPS reissue on Amazon (CD and LP), and find the full track list and pre-order links for the Salvo box after the jump!
The Rocky Horror Show: Album Box Set (originally released as Ode/Rhino R2 71011, 1990 - reissued Salvo Music SALVOSBX101 (U.K.), 2013)
Disc 1: The Rocky Horror Picture Show (originally released as Ode LP 77031, 1975)
- Science Fiction/Double Feature - Richard O'Brien
- Dammit Janet - Barry Bostwick & Susan Sarandon
- Over At The Frankenstein Place - Barry Bostwick, Susan Sarandon & Richard O'Brien
- The Time Warp - Little Nell, Patricia Quinn, Richard O'Brien, Charles Gray & The Transylvanians
- Sweet Transvestite - Tim Curry
- I Can Make You a Man - Tim Curry
- Hot Patootie - Bless My Soul - Meat Loaf
- I Can Make You a Man (Reprise) - Tim Curry
- Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch Me - Susan Sarandon
- Eddie - Jonathan Adams
- Rose Tint My World (Pt. 1: Floor Show; Pt. 2: Fanfare/Don't Dream It; Pt. 3: Wild and Untamed Thing) - Barry Bostwick, Little Nell, Peter Hinwood, Susan Sarandon, Tim Curry & Richard O'Brien
- I'm Going Home - Tim Curry
- Super Heroes - Barry Bostwick & Susan Sarandon
- Science Fiction/Double Feature (Reprise) - Richard O'Brien
- The Time Warp (1989 Extended Remix) - Little Nell, Patricia Quinn, Richard O'Brien, Charles Gray & The Transylvanians
- The Time Warp (Music - 1 = Background Track + U Mix) - Little Nell, Patricia Quinn, Richard O'Brien, Charles Gray & The Transylvanians
Tracks 15-16 are CD bonus tracks released on Ode/Rhino CD R2 70712, 1989
Disc 2: The Rocky Horror Show: Starring Tim Curry and The Original Roxy Cast (released as Ode LP 77026, 1974)
- Science Fiction/Double Feature - Jamie Donnelly
- Dammit Janet - Abigale Haness & B. Miller
- Over At The Frankenstein Place - Abigale Haness & B. Miller
- Sweet Transvestite - Tim Curry
- Time Warp - Boni Enten, Bruce Scott, Graham Jarvis, Jamie Donelly & RHS Company
- The Sword of Damocles - Kim Wolford
- Charles Atlas Song - Tim Curry
- Whatever Happened to Saturday Night? - Meat Loaf
- Charles Atlas Song (Reprise) - Tim Curry
- Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch Me - Abigale Haness
- Once in a While - Abigale Haness & B. Miller
- Eddie's Teddy - Meat Loaf & RHS Company
- Planet Schmanet Janet - Tim Curry & RHS Company
- I'm Going Home - Tim Curry
- Super Heroes - Abigale Haness, B. Miller & RHS Company
Disc 3: Songs from the Vaults: A Collection of Rocky Horror Rarities (all tracks exclusive to this compilation except where noted)
- The Rocky Horror Picture Show Trailer
- Baby Love - Tim Curry (single A-side - Ode 66117, 1976)
- Radio Commercial - Richard O'Brien
- See You 'Round Like a Record - Little Nell (B-side to "Fever" - A&M single AMS 7374 (U.K.), 1978)
- Radio Commercial (Belt You About the Mouth)
- Just 14 - Tim Curry (single B-side - Ode 66117, 1976)
- Denton U.S.A. - Shock Treatment Cast (from Shock Treatment: Original Sound Track - Warner Bros. LLA 3615, 1981)
- Do The Swim - Little Nell (from The Musical World of Little Nell: Aquatic Teenage Sex & Squalor - A&M EP AMS 7351 (U.K.), 1976)
- Biting My Nails - Tim Curry
- Shock Treatment - Richard O'Brien (single A-side - Warner Bros. LAS 49799, 1981)
- Fever - Little Nell (single A-side - A&M AMS 7374 (U.K.), 1978)
- We Went As Far As We Felt Like Going - Tim Curry
- Little Black Dress - Shock Treatment Cast (from Shock Treatment: Original Sound Track - Warner Bros. LLA 3615, 1981)
- Beauty Queen - Little Nell (single A-side - Pre Records PRE-004 (U.K.), 1980)
- The Time Warp (Live on June 15, 1990) - The Laker Band
Disc 4: Rocky Horror International: A Collection of Tracks from Around the World
- Un Relato Bien Extraño y Muy Pasado - Mexican Cast *
- Dammit Janet - New Zealand Cast **
- Altid Lys Hos Frankenstein - Norwegian Cast ***
- The Time Warp - Original London Cast #
- Sweet Transvesite - Original London Cast #
- The Sword of Damocles - Peter Hinwood & The Rocky Horror Picture Show Cast ##
- I Can Make You a Man - New Zealand Cast **
- ¿Que Le Ha Pasado El Sabado? - Mexican Cast *
- Muskellmann Sangen (Reprise) - Norwegian Cast ***
- Toca Toca Toca Toca - Mexican Cast *
- Once in a While - Barry Bostwick & Susan Sarandon ##
- Eddie's Teddy - Rocky Horror Show Audience ###
- Planet Schmanet Janet - Tim Curry & The Rocky Horror Picture Show Cast ##
- Rose Tint My World (Pt. 1: Floor Show; Pt. 2: Fanfare/Don't Dream It; Pt. 3: Wild and Untamed Thing) - Original London Cast #
- I'm Going Home - Original London Cast #
- Super Heroes - Original Australian Cast ^
- Un Relato - Mexican Cast *
* from El Show de Terror del Rocky - Orfeon Videovox LP-13-2277 (MX), 1976
** from The Rocky Horror Show Featuring Gary Glitter: Original New Zealand Cast - Stetson Records SRLP-6 (NZ), 1978
*** from The Rocky Horror Show: Norsk Versjon - Talent Records TLS 3032 (NO), 1977
# from The Rocky Horror Show: Original London Cast - U.K. Records UKAL 1006 (U.K.), 1973
## from original The Rocky Horror Picture Show film - previously unreleased on CD
### from The Rocky Horror Picture Show Audience Par-Ti-Ci-Pa-Tion Album - Ode Records ODE 1032, 1983
^ from The Rocky Horror Show: Original Australian Cast - Festival Records L-35231 (AUS), 1974
galley99 says
I used to have a boxed set which included two "Audience Participation" CDs. It was the sounds of the audience while the film was playing in the background.
Brian from Canada says
An expanded edition of the soundtrack, including "Planet Schmanet Janet," was also issued on iTunes in between. Sadly, THAT should be the edition being released now — with even more expansion, since RHPS' whole film soundtrack only exists on bootlegs.
Amihay says
Extremely disappointed. There was a reissue coinciding with the 25th anniversary, titled 25 years of absolute pleasure. It had dialogue bits, and 5 songs that aren't on the earlier releases: The Sword of Damocles, Once in a While, Planet schmanet Janet, Don't Dream It Be It, and Wild And Untamed Thing. The reissue doesn't have them. That's a shame. The sound wasn't good enough on the 25 anniversary edition, and it's a shame they haven't remastered this edition this time. So nothing new here, actually.
Dave says
I still have my box set from 1990... which I rarely listen to. "Songs from the Vaults" is interesting (although I'd swear there's another version of the title song from "Shock Treatment" out there. The sound quality on "Rocky Horror International" gets pretty rocky itself at times as I remember.
Kelly Bentley says
I'm not actually sure what yr mine comes from but I still listen to the 1975 cast often. Ppl now adays think I'm a little crazy that I know each and every word and action pertaining to the song. I just figure going to the Roxy Theater, Toronto, ON Canada 115 times to watch and of course participate in the movie warrents my knowing...