Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up!

Big Star, Complete Third (Omnivore Recordings) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

Omnivore does an in-depth vault dive into the creation of Big Star’s Third for a new 3-CD box set.  Complete Third includes every demo, rough mix, outtake, alternate take and final master from the Third sessions known to exist. The 69 tracks on this set represent the culmination of a decade-long search to assemble all extant recordings for the album originally released in 1978.  Some alternates and demos have appeared on various compilations over the years, but this first-of-its-kind collection presents every track in context – including 29 never-before-released tracks captured by producer Jim Dickinson and engineer John Fry.  The result is a journey from the album’s conception to its (delayed) release. Watch for our in-depth review soon!

Phil Collins, The Singles (Atlantic/Rhino)

2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
4LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
3CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada

Phil Collins collects some of his best singles on a new anthology.  The U.S. edition features 33 remastered tracks on 2 CDs or 4 LPs.  The 3-CD version, with 45 tracks, appears to be available digitally in the U.S., with a physical release only or as an import, at the above links.  Read more here.

Keely Smith, The Intimate Keely Smith (Real Gone Music/Keely Records) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

Real Gone Music is partnering with Keely Records to reissue the chanteuse’s Reprise oeuvre on CD.  The rollout begins with 1964’s The Intimate Keely Smith, her second Reprise-era album (and the album which some consider to be her best).  Produced by Keely’s future husband Jimmy Bowen, the LP is a representation of a part of her concert act and finds her singing such standards as “It Had To Be You” and “Somebody Loves Me.”  Two bonus tracks are added:  a duet with Frank Sinatra on “Twin Soliloquies” from a Reprise studio recording of South Pacific and the non-LP “No One Ever Tells You,” a Goffin/King/Spector song.

The Return of the Living Dead: Original Soundtrack (Real Gone Music) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

The soundtrack to this zombie classic featured many popular punk bands from around 1985 including The Cramps and 45 Grave.  Real Gone is producing four limited-edition colored vinyl editions available at different outlets: a grey “brains” vinyl version (750 copies – available everywhere, including at the Amazon links above), a black and blood red starburst vinyl version (750 copies – exclusive to independent record stores), a green and orange “pumpkin” starburst version (720 copies – exclusive to TransWorld stores including FYE) and a glow in the dark version (500 copies – exclusive to Real Gone’s website).

Bobby Darin, The 25th Day of December with Bobby Darin (Friday Music) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

Friday Music returns Bobby Darin’s heartfelt 1960 Christmas album The 25th Day of December, originally issued on the Atco label, to vinyl in this deluxe 180-gram edition remastered from the original tapes.  Features “Go Tell It on the Mountain,” “Silent Night,” “O Come All Ye Faithful,” “Ave Maria” and more, all rendered in Darin’s most tender style.

Original London Cast Recording, Maddie: 20th Anniversary Edition (Stage Door) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

The 1997 London musical Maddie (based on the Jack Finney novel Marion’s Wall, also adapted into the 1986 film Maxie) returns in a deluxe 20th Anniversary 2-CD edition featuring the Original London Cast Recording plus 25 demos and alternate takes featuring such performers as John Barrowman, Jacqui Scott, Lorna Dallas and Teddy Kempner – as well as three new 2016 recordings!  Available today in the U.K. and next week in the U.S.!

Simply Heavenly: Original Broadway Cast Recording (Masterworks Broadway) (Amazon U.S.)

Masterworks Broadway kicks off its fall slate with the first authorized digital release (on DD and CD-R) of the 1957 Broadway musical written by Langston Hughes and David Martin, and starring Claudia McNeil and Melvin Stewart.

Brian Wilson, I Am Brian Wilson: A Memoir (DaCapo) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

Following Mike Love’s recent Good Vibrations: My Life as a Beach Boy, Brian Wilson delivers his own memoir.  This book brings Brian’s story up to date and replaces his first autobiography which has since been discredited.  I Am Brian Wilson, co-written with Ben Greenman, is an engrossing, poignant, and often impressionistic journey through the life, times and mind of one of rock’s most significant musicians.