Rhino Records adds to its holiday/year-end box set season a new entry in the form of a deluxe edition of Seal's classic 1991 debut.
Available November 4, the reissued Seal will include the British singer's first album, remastered for the first time on CD and three sides of vinyl in one package. A further three bonus discs collect rare B-sides and remixes (including the original "premix" versions of key songs from early pressings) plus an unreleased concert recorded in Ireland in the wake of the album. The 12" x 12" package contains rare photos and new liner notes from journalist Jim Farber. Original album producer Trevor Horn has also created a Dolby Atmos mix, to be exclusively available digitally alongside the album.
Born Henry Olusegun Adeola Samuel to a Nigerian mother and Afro-Brazilian father in London, Seal was one of the most arresting figures in British music as the '80s turned into a new decade. Accented by facial scars from a rare form of lupus, Seal possessed a look that would turn heads - and had a sound to match. His voice recalled the great soul singers of the '60s, but he matched it to the burgeoning house and rave scene in England; debut single "Killer," an original composition originally recorded with DJ/producer Adamski, surged to the top of the U.K. charts in 1990.
By the end of the year, Seal would split from Adamski - feeling he wasn't properly credited or marketed despite the single's success - and would sign to ZTT Records to work alongside Horn and his crack crew of players. Though the pair had a difficult relationship in the studio, with Horn's perfectionism sometimes threatening to derail the sessions, Seal became a certified smash in England. It would go platinum or multi-platinum in the U.K., the U.S. and Canada; the album's first single "Crazy" became a Top 10 on both sides of the Atlantic (even Seal's own version of the already-popular "Killer" reached No. 8 in England); and the artist would pick up three BRIT Awards, including trophies for British Album of the Year and British Male Solo Artist.
Seal would continue a decade-plus of chart supremacy: the Horn-produced "Kiss from a Rose" became a worldwide smash when included on the soundtrack to Batman Forever in 1995 (a year after its release), and even a cover of The Steve Miller Band's "Fly Like An Eagle" for another soundtrack (the Michael Jordan-Looney Tunes mash-up Space Jam) became a stateside Top 10. But Seal is the album that started it all - and now it has a deluxe set to match. Check out the full track listing and pre-order links below.
Seal (Deluxe Edition) (Warner/Rhino R2 654317, 2022) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)
CD 1/LP 1-2: Remastered album (originally released as ZTT 9031 74557-2 (U.S.)/Sire/Warner Bros. 26627 (U.S.), 1991)
- The Beginning
- Deep Water
- Crazy
- Killer
- Whirlpool
- Future Love Paradise
- Wild
- Show Me
- Violet
CD 2: Rare
- Crazy (Acoustic Instrumental)
- Crazy (Premix)
- Killer (Premix)
- Violet (Premix)
- Wild (Premix)
- Deep Water (Premix)
- Whirlpool (Premix)
- Future Love Paradise (Reprise)
- A Minor Groove
- Sparkle (Extended Version)
- Deep Water (Acoustic)
CD 3: Single Edits and Remixes
- Killer (Single Edit)
- Killer (William Orbit Remix)
- Killer (William Orbit Dub Mix)
- The Beginning (Single Remix)
- The Beginning (Giro E Giro Mix)
- The Beginning (Round the Underground Dub)
- The Beginning (Round the Underground Mix)
- The Beginning (Roundabout Mix)
- Crazy (Single Mix)
- Crazy (Acapella Mix)
- Crazy (Do You Know the Way to L.A. Mix)
- Crazy (Chick on My Tip Mix)
- Krazy
CD 2, Tracks 1 and 10 and CD 3, Tracks 9-13 from "Crazy" U.S. CD single - Sire/Warner Bros. 41003, 1990
CD 2, Tracks 2-7 from original U.K. pressings of the album
CD 2, Tracks 8-9 from Future Love EP - ZTT ZANG11CD (U.K.), 1991
CD 2, Track 11 and CD 3, Tracks 4-8 from "The Beginning" U.S. CD single - Sire/Warner Bros. 40200, 1991
CD 3, Tracks 1-3 from "Killer" U.S. CD single - Sire/Warner Bros. 40230, 1992
CD 4: Live at The Point, Dublin, Ireland - 12/16/1991 (previously unreleased)
- Deep Water
- The Beginning
- Future Love Paradise
- Violet
- Show Me
- Hey Joe
- Killer
- Whirlpool
- A Minor Groove
- Crazy
- Wild
- Hide
BillyD says
Overpriced, bloated set.
Why not include some of the additional tracks on side 4?
And why is the atmos mix not included?
(I tire of these atmos mixes being streaming only)
This was a missed opportunity for a truly great sde.
David B says
Fully agree it's a worrying trend. Beatles, Beach Boys, Talking Heads, and Seal. No doubt there will be more atmos streaming only. Not good...
A. Vogt says
People are up in arms over at the Superdeluxeedition site over this set, since it has all the things that readers of that site (and this one!) complain about: vinyl combined with CDs (or vice versa) with no other option, and especially the Atmos mix streaming only! Also, still missing some mixes despite 4 CDs. As for me, this has always been one of my favorite albums but I won't be getting this, too expensive and I don't need the vinyl.
Ish says
Totally want this but not paying a high price for vinyl that I’m uninterested in.
Timothy Arthur Apwisch says
Should have put other unreleased tracks on the empty side 4 of the vinyl, including cuts from Seal 2 , 4, Commitment and Human Beings. 1 of the cds could have been other live tracks from other not so common albums, making this truly rare and not so many multiple versions of the same songs. Since we're wishing here, follow all this old stuff up with a NEW ALBUM OF NEW MATERIAL! PLEASE.....