Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc's review of notable catalogue titles making digital debuts. This week's latest includes anniversary projects from Alicia Keys, live vault material from Bruce Springsteen, an oddity from The Alan Parsons Project and possibly the only article where Taylor Swift shares space with Minor Threat!
Alicia Keys, The Diary of Alicia Keys 20 (RCA/Legacy) (iTunes / Amazon)
Legacy Recordings celebrates two decades of R&B pianist/singer Alicia Keys' sophomore album, featuring the hits "You Don't Know My Name" and "If I Ain't Got You." The album now features nine extra tracks, including vintage remixes and live material plus the unheard outtake "Golden Child."
Bruce Springsteen, The Live Series: Songs on Keys (Columbia/Legacy) (iTunes / Amazon)
The Boss' streaming-only vintage concert collections highlight pianos and keyboards up and down E Street: 15 tracks recorded between 1975 and 2016.
Taylor Swift, You're Losing Me (from the Vault) (Republic) (iTunes / Amazon)
Nine years after she removed her catalog from Spotify, the ever-ubiquitous Swift has been crowned the platform's most-streamed artist of the year - an imperial phase with few equivalents, even in today's largely digital music world. To celebrate, she's loosed "You're Losing Me" onto digital services - a bonus track from a limited CD edition of her last new studio album Midnights that was only available on certain stops of her blockbuster Eras Tour.
The Alan Parsons Project, The Sicilian Defence / The Instrumental Works (Arista/Legacy)
Sicilian: iTunes / Amazon
Instrumental: iTunes / Amazon
Named for a regarded chess move, Alan Parsons and Eric Woolfson delivered The Sicilian Defence to Arista in 1979 as a negotiation-cum-protest in trying to gain a better contract after the release of Eve that same year. The album of instrumental sketches was binned in favor of The Turn of a Friendly Card; Parsons reluctantly allowed its release on a 2014 box set, but it's available digitally on its own for the first time, along with a more comprehensive collection of The Project's instrumental work from across their discography.
Minor Threat, Out of Step Outtakes (Dischord) (iTunes / Amazon)
The sole studio album from Minor Threat (fronted by Dischord co-founder/all-around icon Ian MacKaye), Out of Step, is considered to be one of the touchstones of hardcore punk. For its 40th anniversary, three unreleased songs from the same sessions have been released as an EP.
Keane, Love Actually (Island) (iTunes / Amazon)
Months before debut Hopes and Fears and the U.K. hit "Somewhere Only We Know" propelled Keane to mid-tempo pop heights, the group wrote and recorded a proposed title track for the blockbuster ensemble romantic comedy/holiday film Love Actually. Two decades after the film's release, the group has dusted off the track and re-recorded it as a standalone single.
Britny Fox, Britny Fox (Expanded Edition - 2023 Remaster) (Columbia/Legacy) (iTunes / Amazon)
One of the more striking glam-metal debuts of the late '80s thanks to the MTV hit "Girlschool" and rock chart single "Long Way to Love," Britny Fox's self-titled album has been redelivered not only with two bonus tracks (the single version of "Long Way" and a non-LP B-side), but has also been newly remastered to boot.
Plush, Plush (2023 Remaster) (RCA) (iTunes / Amazon)
Another out-of-nowhere new remaster is the sole album by R&B trio Plush. Though never massively successful, lead vocalist Siedah Garrett was later an in-demand studio singer who duetted with The Temptations' Dennis Edwards ("Don't Look Any Further") and Michael Jackson ("I Just Can't Stop Loving You"). Garrett and co-producer Rene Moore also would each co-write songs for the King of Pop, including (for Garrett) the No. 1 "Man in the Mirror" and (for Moore) the New Jack classic "Jam."
The Bongos, Rock the Christmas Cheer! (RCA/Legacy) (iTunes / Amazon)
Here's a cut of Christmas cheer we missed last week: New Jersey post-punkers The Bongos put out a new original holiday song to make playlists everywhere that much brighter.
Marcelo Zarvos & Michel Legrand, May December (Soundtrack from the Netflix Film) (Netflix Music) (iTunes / Amazon)
Newly released to Netflix, this striking Palme d'Or-nominated drama from director Todd Haynes (Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story, Velvet Goldmine) stars Natalie Portman as an actress studying a troubled woman (Julianne Moore) she's set to play in a film - one who made headlines in the '90s for a lengthy marriage that began when her husband (Charles Melton) was a minor. The striking, prominent film score enhances the film's eye-opening dramatic flair, and comes from a most interesting source: after playing selections from Michel Legrand's score to the 1971 British period drama The Go-Between, Haynes and composer Marcelo Zarvos adapted the themes for this picture. Expect it to get stuck in your head after the credits roll.
Jeff M says
Hi.
I've sent you a number of tips for the weekend stream, usually about U2 releases. So it's not some niche band... and not once has my tip been used.
Most recently, it was the brand-new remaster of Under a Blood Red Sky that was released last weekend to digital storefronts. I get there was a special edition of "The Stream". I was surprised there was no mention this week or in any other way.
I've sent you emails through the site "contact" form. I sent you @ Tweets on X. I've sent as a comment in a post, like this one. (No idea if you'll ever see this one...)
Please advise. Or do you just not want random emails helping with your reporting? Cuz it kinda feels that way, and thats's OK , but usually a site seeking connection and forum posts has a back-and-forth to it.
Jeff M