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Sony Music U.K. is unearthing a Tomb of Memories – but this isn’t a dusty tomb but rather one filled with the vital, vibrant sound of eighties hitmaker Paul Young.  Over 4 CDs and 64 tracks, this new box set subtitled The CBS Years will present an overview of Young’s tenure with CBS and Columbia Records including new-to-CD tracks and previously unreleased alternate mixes, outtakes, demos and more.

Between 1983 and 1993, Paul Young released five albums on Columbia.  His solo debut (also his label debut) No Parlez topped the U.K. chart as well as that of other European countries, eventually going 3x platinum in the U.K. and yielding the hits “Wherever I Lay My Hat (That’s My Home),” “Come Back and Stay” and “Love of the Common People.”  Young only had to wait a little longer for U.S. success; his sophomore album The Secret of Association reached No. 1 in the U.K., went Top 20 in America, and achieved double platinum status in the U.K. and gold in America.  More hit singles ensued: a rendition of Daryl Hall’s “Everytime You Go Away” (No. 1 in the U.S. and No. 4 in the U.K.), “I’m Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down” (No. 9 U.K., No. 13 U.S.), “Everything Must Change” (No. 9 U.K., No. 56 U.S.), and the track which lends this new box its title, “Tomb of Memories” (U.K. No. 16).

1986’s Between Two Fires continued Young’s success streak at home (No. 3 on the British album chart) but found him cooling considerably in the United States (No. 77).  His fourth album, 1990’s Other Voices, peaked at No. 4 at home and like Two Fires, went gold there; it contained four more hit U.K. singles including a cover of The Chi-Lites’ “Oh Girl” that also reached the U.S. Top 10 and topped the AC chart, his first single to do so since “Everytime You Go Away.”  1993’s The Crossing concluded Young’s tenure with Columbia.  Though it placed in the U.K. Top 30, it failed to chart in America despite some typically strong material.

The new box set’s first disc is chock full of No Parlez-era rarities including the original single version of Young’s first 45 “Iron Out the Rough Spots,” the complete Japan-only live album The Live Edition and new-to-CD tracks including the original album version of “Come Back and Stay.”  The second disc focuses on the beloved The Secret of Association and among its treasures is the extended version of “Everytime You Go Away,” four never-before-released alternate mixes, and the outtake “Find One Voice.”  CD 3 addresses Between Two Fires and Other Voices, including the previously unreleased outtake “Coralie” and new-to-CD mixes of “Oh Girl” and “Between Two Fires.”  The final disc of the set focuses on both 1991’s hit singles collection From Time to Time as well as The Crossing.  Previously unreleased material includes a Young solo version of “Don’t Dream It’s Over” and Steve Bolton’s song “Souls Unknown.”  The box concludes with tracks from a 1994 acoustic session held at Abbey Road.  All told, you’ll find 8 new-to-CD tracks and 12 previously unreleased cuts (9 versions of familiar Young songs, and 3 completely unheard tracks).

This book-style box set has been newly remastered save a couple of tracks pulled from the 2013 compilation Remixes and Rarities.  Paul Young, who worked with Paul Sinclair to compile the set, provides the foreword in a book also containing new liner notes by Daryl Easlea.  Tomb of Memories is due from Sony’s U.K. arm on August 21 and should be available the following week in the U.S.!  It will also be released as a digital download.  You’ll find an active U.K. link below, and watch this space for an Amazon U.S. link once it becomes available!

Paul Young, Tomb of Memories: The CBS Years (Sony U.K., 2015) (Amazon U.S. TBD/Amazon U.K. )

CD 1

1. Iron Out The Rough Spots (7-Inch Mix) (new to CD)
2. Tender Trap (Demo) (previously unreleased)
3. Oh Women
4. Love Of The Common People (1982 7-Inch Mix) (new to CD)
5. I’ve Been Lonely For So Long
6. Ku Ku Kurama
7. Wherever I Lay My Hat (That’s My Home) (Extended Club Mix)
8. No Parlez
9. Come Back And Stay (Full-Length LP Version) (new to CD)
10. Yours (7-Inch Mix) (new to CD)
11. Sex (Demo)
12. Pale Shelter (Demo)
13. Behind Your Smile (Live at the Royal Court Theatre, 1983)
14. I Close My Eyes And Count To Ten (Live at the Hammersmith Odeon, 1983)
15. Wherever I Lay My Hat (That’s My Home) (Live at the Royal Court Theatre, 1983)
16. Oh Women (Live at the Royal Court Theatre, 1983)
17. Broken Man (Live at the Royal Court Theatre, 1983)

CD 2

1. Find One Voice (previously unreleased)
2. Tomb Of Memories (Alternate Mix) (previously unreleased)
3. This Means Anything (B-side Mix) (new to CD)
4. Every Time You Go Away (Extended Version)
5. I’m Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down (Remixed US Dance Floor Smash)
6. Standing On The Edge (Alternate Mix (previously unreleased)
7. Soldier’s Things
8. Everything Must Change (Alternate Mix) (previously unreleased)
9. Give Me My Freedom
10. One Step Forward (B-side Mix) (new to CD)
11. I Was in Chains (Alternate Mix) (previously unreleased)
12. Man in the Iron Mask
13. Bite The Hand That Feeds (Live at the Hammersmith Odeon, 1985)
14. No Parlez (Live at the Hammersmith Odeon, 1985)

CD 3

1. Between Two Fires (B-Side Mix) (new to CD)
2. Some People
3. In The Long Run
4. Wasting My Time
5. Wonderland (7-Inch Mix)
6. Why Does A Man Have To Be Strong (Alternate Mix)
7. Trying To Guess the Rest
8. Right About Now
9. Heaven Can Wait (7-Inch Mix)
10. Oh Girl (7-Inch Mix) (new to CD)
11. You’re The One
12. ‘Til I Gain Control Again
13. Softly Whispering I Love You (Alternate Mix) (previously unreleased)
14. Leaving Home
15. Lovers Cross
16. A Little Bit Of Love (Part II)
17. Coralie (previously unreleased)

CD 4

1. Don’t Dream It’s Over (Solo Version)(previously unreleased)
2. Senza Una Donna (Without a Woman) (Zucchero featuring Paul Young)
3. Come On In (Masayuki Suzuki and Paul Young)
4. Thinking About You
5. Now I Know What Made Otis Blue
6. Half A Step Away
7. Cold Sweat
8. Hope In A Hopeless World
9. It Will Be You
10. Man Of Steel
11. The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter (Alternate Mix) (previously unreleased)
12. Souls Unknown (previously unreleased)
13. Follow On (Acoustic)
14. Long Distance Love (Acoustic)
15. Don’t Let Me Be Lonely Tonight (Acoustic)
16. Everything Must Change (Acoustic)
17. Love Has No Pride (Acoustic) (previously unreleased)
18. Wherever I Lay My Hat (That’s My Home) (Acoustic)