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

The "Lowdown" On Legacy's Upcoming "Essential Boz Scaggs"

October 16, 2013 By Joe Marchese Leave a Comment

Essential Boz ScaggsEarlier this year, Boz Scaggs returned from a five-year absence from the studio with Memphis, a collection celebrating classic southern soul like “Rainy Night in Georgia,” “Love on a Two Way Street” and “Mixed Up, Shook Up Girl.”  In just a couple of weeks, Columbia Records and Legacy Recordings will be celebrating Scaggs’ own music with the October 29 release of the 2-CD anthology The Essential Boz Scaggs.  This 32-song set draws on Scaggs’ landmark tenure at Columbia Records which yielded 1976’s Silk Degrees but also on his recordings for Atlantic, Virgin and 429 Records right up through Memphis.

Singer-songwriter-guitarist Scaggs made a splash on the first two albums by the Steve Miller Band before departing that group’s ranks to pursue solo fame.  1969’s Atlantic Records LP Boz Scaggs wasn’t his debut; that honor actually went to the all-but-forgotten, never-reissued Boz, which received a release in Sweden only in 1965.   But Boz Scaggs (co-produced by Jann Wenner of Rolling Stone) paired the singer-songwriter-guitarist with the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and the great Duane Allman on guitar, and attracted enough attention to gain him a Columbia Records contract.  1971’s Moments began his association with Columbia, and its mellow brand of blue-eyed soul would lead to the 1976 breakthrough Silk Degrees.

Scaggs’ seventh overall album and fifth for Columbia, Silk handily bested the No. 81 chart placement of its predecessor Slow Dancer.  Silk Degrees, produced by Joe Wissert with backing from future Toto men David Paich, Jeff Porcaro, Steve Porcaro and David Hungate, peaked at No. 2 and spent 115 weeks on the Billboard chart.  Three of its singles, “Lowdown,” “It’s Over” and “Lido Shuffle” all made the Top 40.  A fourth single, “What Can I Say,” barely missed that mark, with a No. 42 berth.  “Lowdown” netted Scaggs a Grammy Award, and the album’s closing song (and the B-side of two separate singles) “We’re All Alone” went on to receive numerous cover versions of which Rita Coolidge’s Adult Contemporary chart-topper was undoubtedly the most successful.  Scaggs’ winning streak continued with the platinum sellers Down Two Then Left (1977) and Middle Man (1980) as well as the No. 3 AC/No. 14 Pop single “Look What You’ve Done to Me” from the film Urban Cowboy.  “Look What You’ve Done to Me” – with backing vocals from Don Henley, Glenn Frey and Timothy B. Schmit of The Eagles – and the Top 15 hit “Miss Sun” both appeared on 1980’s Hits! LP, and are reprised here.

What else will you find on The Essential?  Hit the jump for more details plus the track listing with discographical annotation and pre-order links!

The Essential, arranged in roughly chronological order, includes tracks from Boz Scaggs and each of Scaggs’ Columbia albums.  He remained with the label all the way through 1988’s Other Roads, though it was only his second studio album of the decade after Middle Man.   Scaggs re-emerged on Virgin Records in 1994 with Some Change, following it with a set of “unplugged” re-recordings in 1996 (Fade into Light, initially released in Japan) and then another album of new material, Come on Home, the very next year.  Both Some Change and Come on Home are represented on the new anthology, along with 2001’s Dig.  The artist again laid low for much of the early part of the 21st century save for a couple of albums of standards (2003’s But Beautiful and 2008’s Speak Low), plus live releases and compilations.  His 2013 return, Memphis, closes out The Essential with “Gone Baby Gone.”

Containing 14 Hot 100 chart singles, The Essential Boz Scaggs displays the singer’s mastery of blues, rock and roll, R&B and smooth soul.  It features a new essay by Anthony DeCurtis  which draws on new interview material with Scaggs.  The 2-CD set arrives from Legacy on October 29 and can be ordered at the links below!

Boz Scaggs, The Essential Boz Scaggs (Columbia/Legacy 88883 74121 2, 2013) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

CD 1

  1. I’ll Be Long Gone
  2. Loan Me a Dime
  3. Runnin’ Blue
  4. We Were Always Sweethearts
  5. Painted Bells
  6. Near You
  7. Dinah Flo
  8. Might Have to Cry
  9. You Make It So Hard (To Say No)
  10. Slow Dancer
  11. What Can I Say
  12. It’s Over
  13. Harbor Lights
  14. Lowdown
  15. Lido Shuffle
  16. We’ll All Alone
  17. Hard Times

CD 2

  1. JoJo
  2. Isn’t It Time
  3. Simone
  4. Breakdown Dead Ahead
  5. Miss Sun
  6. Look What You’ve Done to Me
  7. Heart of Mine
  8. Some Change
  9. Sierra
  10. As The Years Go Passing By (with Booker T & the MG’s)
  11. It All Went Down the Drain
  12. Miss Riddle
  13. I Just Go
  14. Thanks to You
  15. Gone Baby Gone

CD 1, Tracks 1-2 from Boz Scaggs, originally issued 1969, as Atlantic 8239
CD 1, Track 3 from Boz Scaggs & Band, originally issued November 1971, as Columbia 30796
CD 1, Tracks 4-6 from Moments, originally issued March 1971, as Columbia 30454
CD 1, Tracks 7-8 from My Time, originally issued September 1972, as Columbia 31384
CD 1, Tracks 9-10 from Slow Dancer, originally issued March 1974, as Columbia 32760
CD 1, Tracks 11-16 from Silk Degrees, originally issued March 1976, as Columbia 43920
CD 1, Track 17 from Down Two Then Left, originally issued November 1977, as Columbia 34729
CD 2, Tracks 1-4 from Middle Man, originally issued April 1980, as Columbia 36106
CD 2, Tracks 5-6 from Hits! originally issued November 1980, as Columbia 36841
CD 2, Track 7 from Other Roads, originally issued May 1988, as Columbia 40463
CD 2, Tracks 8-9 from Some Change, originally issued April 1994, as Virgin 7243 8 39489 2
CD 2, Track 10 from The Best Of The Columbia Records Radio Hour, Volume 2, originally issued 1996, as Columbia 67498
CD 2, Track 11 from Come On Home, originally issued April 1997, as Virgin 7243 8 42984 2 5
CD 2, Tracks 12-14 from Dig, originally issued September 2001, as Virgin CDVUS206
CD 2, Track 15 from Memphis, originally issued March 2013, as 429 Records FTN17889

Categories: News

Avatar photo

Joe Marchese

JOE MARCHESE (Editor) joined The Second Disc shortly after its launch in early 2010, and has since penned daily news and reviews about classic music of all genres. In 2015, Joe formed the Second Disc Records label. Celebrating the great songwriters, producers and artists who created the sound of American popular song, Second Disc Records, in conjunction with Real Gone Music, has released newly-curated collections produced by Joe from iconic artists such as Johnny Mathis, Bobby Darin, Laura Nyro, Melissa Manchester, Chet Atkins, and many others. He has contributed liner notes to reissues from a diverse array of artists, among them Nat "King" Cole, Paul Williams, Lesley Gore, Dusty Springfield, B.J. Thomas, The 5th Dimension, Burt Bacharach, The Mamas and the Papas, Carpenters, Perry Como, Rod McKuen, Doris Day, Jackie DeShannon, and Andy Williams, and has compiled releases for talents including Robert Goulet and Keith Allison of Paul Revere and the Raiders. Over the past two decades, Joe has also worked in a variety of capacities on and off Broadway as well as at some of the premier theatres in the U.S., including Lincoln Center Theater, George Street Playhouse, Paper Mill Playhouse, Long Wharf Theatre, and the York Theatre Company. He has felt privileged to work on productions alongside artists such as the late Jack Klugman, Eli Wallach, Arthur Laurents, Betty Comden and Adolph Green. In 2009, Joe began contributing theatre and music reviews to the print publication The Sondheim Review, and in 2012, he joined the staff of The Digital Bits as a regular contributor writing about film and television on DVD and Blu-ray. Joe currently resides in the suburbs of New York City.

Connect With Joe: FacebookTwitter

Comments

  1. sirwalter1967 says

    October 16, 2013 at 11:05 am

    Hardly essential, i don't see "Fooled Around and Fell In Love"

    Reply
    • KDH says

      October 16, 2013 at 4:09 pm

      Wasn’t “Fooled Around...” Elvin Bishop?

      Reply
      • Chief Brody says

        October 18, 2013 at 7:11 am

        Yes, it was. With Mickey Thomas on lead vocals.

        Reply
      • sirwalter1967 says

        October 18, 2013 at 11:05 am

        Jeez -- I'm getting old! No wonder it's not in this collection! My bad!

        Reply
  2. Sean Anglum says

    October 16, 2013 at 12:34 pm

    Hail Boz! A good primer for the unenlighted, but where's "Freedom For the Stallion" and "Full-Lock Power Slide" from the fantastic "My Time" LP? That album's Deluxe CD reissue also contained a cut harkening back to the Steve Miller Band days...Boz's 1972 live take of "Baby's Calling Me Home" from the Fillmore West. Essential collections can, at times, be fun repositories of hard-to-find- gems....this one looks fairly pedestrian.

    Reply
  3. Bill Janowski says

    October 16, 2013 at 12:43 pm

    A better bet would be the Columbia 'My Time' 2-CD Anthology from 1997 - this new set duplicates most of the songs on the older one anyway. And most or all of the other CD's these selections are from should be readily available.

    Reply
  4. Bill Pitzonka says

    October 16, 2013 at 1:04 pm

    Let's hope we finally get the single mix of "Look What You've Done To Me" — which thus far has never shown up anywhere on CD …

    Reply
  5. Chief Brody says

    October 18, 2013 at 7:12 am

    Unless the mastering is radically better, I'll stick with my copy of "My Time," which, though not perfect, is overall a great collection.

    Reply
    • Bill Janowski says

      October 18, 2013 at 1:09 pm

      Me too - when I compared them, both compilations share a whopping 24 tracks!! Since I haven't seen running times on the latter yet, my guess is that most or all of those songs are the same versions.

      Reply
      • Chief Brody says

        October 18, 2013 at 1:21 pm

        Man, does Boz need a box set or what? Do you think the guy needs to accomplish anything more in music to deserve one? 🙂 I was just thinking about that when I looked at the tracklisting of both sets.

        Reply
  6. Bill Janowski says

    October 18, 2013 at 1:24 pm

    If it actually happens, I guess we should expect A LOT of repeats!! Seriously, though, such a set might be worthwhile if it includes a good amount of previously unreleased material, and keeps the repeats to a minimum..

    Reply

Leave a Reply 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

  • Pink Floyd Dark Side of the Moon SDE
    The Dark Side of the Moon / Live at Wembley 1974
    Pink Floyd
    March 24, 2023
  • Nancy and Lee Again
    Nancy and Lee Again [Various Formats]
    Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood
    March 24, 2023
  • Honky Chateau
    Honky Château (50th Anniversary Edition)
    Elton John
    March 24, 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 4,570 other subscribers

Popular

  • Thelonious Monk with John Coltrane OJC
    In Your Own Sweet Way: Craft Announces Original Jazz Classics Relaunch with Miles Davis, Monk and Coltrane posted on March 16, 2023 | under News
  • Talking Heads Stop Making Sense Deluxe 2LP
    What a Day That Was: Talking Heads' 'Stop Making Sense' Expanded for Vinyl, Film Reissue posted on March 17, 2023 | under News
  • Songs of Surrender
    Release Round-Up: Week of March 17 posted on March 17, 2023 | under Release Round-Up

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