With their seminal first two albums, Music from Big Pink and The Band, the group consisting of Garth Hudson (keyboards, piano, horns), Levon Helm (drums, vocals, mandolin), Richard Manuel (keyboards, vocals, drums), Rick Danko (bass, vocals, fiddle) and Robbie Robertson (guitar, piano, vocals) had earned the right to call themselves, simply, The Band.  They effortlessly fused folk, country, blues, gospel, soul, and a dash of rock to create an organic, back-to-basics sound that reverberated with musicians around the world.  The road to their third album, Stage Fright, was a bit rockier but no less rewarding.  Now, Stage Fright is receiving a (slightly belated) 50th anniversary edition from Capitol Records and UMe, following similarly expansive sets for Music from Big Pink and The Band.  The multi-format reissue will arrive on February 12.

The group had originally considered hosting a concert to premiere the new songs they'd been working on, and rented out the Woodstock Playhouse in their home base of Woodstock, New York for that purpose.  But after the famous festival held at Yasgur's Farm 40 miles away in Bethel, The Band had second thoughts.  Their little town was becoming a tourist attraction, and there were fears the concert would draw the same oversized audience as the Festival.  The townspeople made their fears known, and The Band ended up recording Stage Fright at the Playhouse without an audience.

While The Band self-produced the album, behind the console as engineer was wunderkind producer-singer-songwriter Todd Rundgren, an unfamiliar (and some have said unwelcome) presence to them.  Levon Helm recalled "a dark mood" settling upon The Band, and Robertson later remembered drugs taking more of a hold among the members.  Various mixes were made - one by Rundgren, one by Glyn Johns, and a third hybrid one overseen by The Band.  Nobody could seem to confirm exactly whose mixes ended up on the final record.  But in any mix, the strength of songwriting and performances on "Stage Fright," "The Shape I'm In," "The W.S. Walcott Medicine Show," and the rest found The Band in top form.  Still, perhaps owing to the rapturous reaction accorded the past two releases and the impossibly high bar they set, critics were mixed on Stage Fright.  It did reach the top five of the Billboard Top LPs and Tapes chart and over time has been recognized with a Gold sales certification.  Now, there's a chance to revisit and reappraise it in a new mix approved by Robbie Robertson.

The newly remixed, remastered and expanded 50th Anniversary Editions are as follows:

• A multi-format Super Deluxe 2CD/Blu-ray/1LP/7-inch vinyl box set;
• Digital release of all CD audio from box set;
• 2CD standalone edition of all CD audio from box set;
• 180-gram black vinyl of remixed album only; and
• Limited edition 180-gram split-color vinyl LP of remixed album only.

All of the Anniversary Edition releases were supervised by Robbie Robertson and premiere a new stereo mix by Bob Clearmountain from the original multi-track master tapes. The album is also being resequenced in the originally planned song order.  "On the album, we used a different sequence to feature and encourage Richard and Levon's songwriting participation," Robertson comments in the press release. "Over time, I pined for our first song order, because it pulls you right into the Stage Fright scenario."

The box set, CD, and digital configurations boast a host of unreleased recordings, including Live at the Royal Albert Hall, June 1971, a full concert captured in London; alternate versions of "Strawberry Wine" and "Sleeping;" and seven newly-discovered field recordings, Calgary Hotel Recordings, 1970, featuring Robertson, Danko, and Manuel jamming on the Stage Fright material while the album was being mixed.

Exclusively for the box, Clearmountain has also created a new 5.1 surround mix and a hi-resolution stereo mix of the album, bonus tracks and the live show.  All of these will be presented on Blu-ray. The new audio mixes have been mastered by Bob Ludwig at Gateway Mastering. The box also includes an exclusive reproduction of the Spanish pressing of The Band's 1971 7-inch vinyl single for "Time To Kill" b/w "The Shape I'm In" in Clearmountain's new stereo mixes and a photo booklet with liner notes by Robbie Robertson and touring photographer John Scheele, who recorded the Calgary Hotel Recordings; plus a reprint of the original Los Angeles Times album review by Robert Hilburn; three photo lithographs; and an array of photographs from Scheele and other photographers.

The new Clearmountain stereo mix of "The Shape I'm In" is available now as an appetizer for the full collections.  All of the versions are out on February 12 from Capitol/UMe.  You'll find the track listings and pre-order links below!

The Band, Stage Fright (Capitol SW-425, 1970 - reissued Capitol/UMe, 2021)

2CD/1BD/1LP/1-7" single: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
2CD (CD 1 & 2 of box set): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Links TBD
1LP (Remixed Album Only): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
1LP Variant (Remixed Album Only): The Band's Official Store

CD 1 (also available digitally): Original Album - 2020 Remix

1. The W.S. Walcott Medicine Show
2. The Shape I'm In
3. Daniel And The Sacred Harp
4. Stage Fright
5. The Rumor
6. Time To Kill
7. Just Another Whistle Stop
8. All La Glory
9. Strawberry Wine
10. Sleeping

Bonus Tracks

11. Strawberry Wine (Alternate Mix) *
12. Sleeping (Alternate Mix) *

Calgary Hotel Room Recordings, 1970 *

13. Get Up Jake (#1) *
14. Get Up Jake (#2) *
15. The W.S. Walcott Medicine Show *
16. Rockin' Pneumonia And The Boogie Woogie Flu *
17. Calgary Blues *
18. Before You Accuse Me *
19. Mojo Hannah *

CD 2 (also available digitally): Live at Royal Albert Hall, June 1971 (*)

1. The Shape I'm In
2. Time To Kill
3. The Weight
4. King Harvest (Has Surely Come)
5. Strawberry Wine
6. Rockin' Chair
7. Look Out Cleveland
8. I Shall Be Released
9. Stage Fright
10. Up On Cripple Creek
11. The W.S. Walcott Medicine Show
12. We Can Talk
13. Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever
14. The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
15. Across the Great Divide
16. The Unfaithful Servant
17. Don't Do It
18. The Genetic Method
19. Chest Fever
20. Rag Mama Rag

Blu-ray:

• Stereo and 5.1 Surround mixes of CD 1 & CD 2 audio except for Calgary Hotel Recordings, 1970
• High Resolution Audio: 96 kHz/24 bit

1LP (33 1/3 RPM) - Original Album 2020 Remix

• 180-gram black vinyl (included in the box set and available individually)
• Limited edition 180g multi-colored vinyl (available individually)

Side One

1. The W.S. Walcott Medicine Show
2. The Shape I'm In
3. Daniel And The Sacred Harp
4. Stage Fright
5. The Rumor

Side Two

1. Time To Kill
2. Just Another Whistle Stop
3. All La Glory
4. Strawberry Wine
5. Sleeping

"Time To Kill" (Original 1971 7" Capitol Single, Spanish Pressing)

1. Time To Kill
2. The Shape I'm In

(*) denotes previously unreleased track