Welcome to The Weekend Stream, a relaxing weekly review of notable digital-only catalogue titles. There may be no CD or vinyl, but there's plenty of great new/old music to discover! Truly something for everyone this week, from classic rock to live jazz and folk to...Christmas albums?
Whitesnake, Greatest Hits (2022 Remix) (Rhino) (iTunes / Amazon)
Ahead of their farewell tour, David Coverdale has yet again revisited the Whitesnake catalogue through a series of remixes, this time pertaining to most of the songs that were on the band's 1994 greatest hits collection. There's new contributions from current keyboardist Derek Sherinian and former guitarist Adrian Vandenburg, as well as a few rediscovered guitar parts by axeman John Sykes. A full post is coming soon detailing all the physical formats of this new collection (and the many dates they'll be released by territory), but you can check it out digitally right now.
Wu-Tang Clan, Triumph EP / It's Yourz EP / Reunited - The Remixes (Loud/RCA/Legacy)
Triumph: iTunes / Amazon
Yourz: iTunes / Amazon
Reunited: iTunes / Amazon
In honor of the legendary hip-hop group's sophomore album Wu-Tang Forever turning 25 this summer, three EPs featuring rare edits and remixes have made their digital debuts, including "Triumph," one of the only songs in the group's discography to feature verses from all 10 members.
Various Artists, One Night with Blue Note Preserved, Vols. 1-4 (Blue Note)
Vol. 1: iTunes / Amazon
Vol. 2: iTunes / Amazon
Vol. 3: iTunes / Amazon
Vol. 4: iTunes / Amazon
Originally released as a four-disc box set, this live tribute to Blue Note founder Alfred Lion was recorded at The Town Hall in New York in 1985, boasting performances by some of the best frontmen and players in the genre. Herbie Hancock, McCoy Tyner & Jackie McLean, Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers, Jimmy Smith, Kenny Burrell & Grover Washington, Jr. and Charles Lloyd are just some of the marquee names on this collection, now available digitally as four separate volumes.
The Format, full discography on Bandcamp (The Vanity Label)
Early '00s alt-rock duo The Format (featuring songwriter/instrumentalist Sam Means and future Fun. vocalist Nate Ruess) planned to reunite for a tour in 2020, a trek that was, sadly, ultimately delayed and cancelled. But they've still kept waving the flag for their discography; recently they put the track "Your New Name" on digital music services for the first time, and now, their whole catalogue - two albums, four EPs, a collection of rarities, two live sets and "Your New Name" - is available on Bandcamp.
George Clinton & The P-Funk All-Stars, If Anybody Gets Funked Up (It's Gonna Be You) EP (Epic) (iTunes / Amazon)
A single from Clinton's T.A.P.O.A.F.O.M. (The Awesome Power of a Fully Operational Mothership), a 1996 album that saw the funk icon reconnecting with former bandmates like Bootsy Collins, Bernie Worrell and Walter "Junie" Morrison. This batch of remixes features rap vocals from Erick Sermon and MC Breed.
Triumph, Triumph: Rock & Roll Machine (Music from the Documentary) (Round Hill) (Apple Music / Amazon)
Canadian trio Triumph flew the hard rock flag in the Great White North through the '70s, '80s and '90s, earning some acclaim in America with the 1981 album Allied Forces. A 2021 documentary chronicled the lives and careers of members Rik Emmett, Mike Levine and Gil Moore - and now, a generous two-and-a-half-hour collection of music heard in that documentary is now streaming.
Sam The Sham & The Pharaohs, Wooly Bully / Li'l Red Riding Hood (MGM/Republic)
Wooly: iTunes / Amazon
Li'l Red: iTunes / Amazon
Domingo "Sam" Samudio was one of '60s rock's great camp performers, donning a turban and performing catchy tunes that cut through the wave of the British Invasion. "Wooly Bully" was a No. 2 hit that stuck on the Billboard Hot 100 for 18 weeks in 1965; "Little Red Riding Hood," released a year later with a completely new line-up of The Pharaohs, matched the same chart position. Now, the two LPs that featured those singles are ready for rediscovery.
John Schneider, Now or Never (Scotti Brothers/RCA) (iTunes / Amazon)
Bo Duke could sing! The star of TV's The Dukes of Hazzard parlayed that success into not only a long career on television (with roles on Touched by An Angel, Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman and - perhaps most famously, to younger viewers - Jonathan Kent, the adoptive father of Superman, in Smallville), but a lengthy discography as a country singer. His debut album featured a cover of the song made famous by Elvis Presley; though it only reached the Top 5 of the country charts (he'd score four No. 1 country hits through the decade), it was his biggest pop hit, reaching the Top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100.
One Way, Wrap Your Body (Expanded Edition) (Geffen/UMe) (iTunes / Amazon)
A stalwart funk/disco group led by singer Al Hudson, Wrap Your Body was One Way's eighth album and a minor hit on the R&B charts. Single "Let's Talk" just missed the U.K. Top 40; a remix of said song constitutes the album's sole bonus track.
Ray LaMontagne, Live Session - 2008 (RCA/Legacy) (iTunes / Amazon)
A nice find from the New England folk singer: a studio session at Seattle's Avast! Recording Studio, done to promote his first Top 5 album, 2008's Gossip in the Grain.
Christina Milian, AM to PM Remixes (Def Jam/UMe) (iTunes / Amazon)
After singing the hook on rapper Ja Rule's Top 20 hit "Between Me and You," Christina Milian straddled the line between soul and '00s pop with debut single "AM to PM," written and produced by the Swedish team of Bloodshy & Avant (the masterminds behind Britney Spears' "Toxic"). This newly delivered digital EP features dance remixes by Hex Hector and E-Smoove and even a "Spanglish" version of the track.
Ernest Tubb & Red Foley, Sing a Song of Christmas (Expanded Edition) (MCA Nashville/UMe) / Burl Ives, Christmas Day in the Morning (Expanded Edition) (Geffen/UMe)
Tubb/Foley: iTunes / Amazon
Ives: iTunes / Amazon
Talk about your May-December relationship! Two early '50s 10" holiday albums - one featuring country singers Ernest Tubb and Red Foley tackling classics like "Blue Christmas," "Here Comes Santa Claus" and "Christmas Island," and one of folkier tunes by the sonorous Ives ("There Were Three Ships," "What Child is This?") - have been expanded with bonus tracks, just in time for...seven months before Christmas!
Kylie says
Would love to see the last two 1980's John Schneider albums reissued in digital too, specifically 1982's "Quiet Man" and 1983's "If You Believe" albums. Seeing "Its Now Or Never" reissued, hopefully thats a good sign the remaining albums will follow.