Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles in stores today. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases.
B.T. Express, Non-Stop: Expanded Edition (Iconoclassic) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)
Iconoclassic follows up its definitive reissue of B.T. Express' debut Do It ('Til You're Satisfied) with a similarly comprehensive reappraisal of the funk outfit's sizzling sophomore release, 1975's R&B chart-topper Non-Stop. Walking the line between funk and disco - and doing both extremely well - the band turned to Tom Moulton for a number of mixes, and dramatically reinvented Bacharach and David's standard "(They Long to Be) Close to You" into a quiet storm duet. Not only has Donald Cleveland remastered the audio from original sources, but five bonus cuts have been added: four original single versions and the CD debut of Mike Maurro's 10-minute remix of "Peace Pipe." (Note that today is the official release date for this title while Amazon is showing February 2 for their deliveries.)
Terry Adams, Terrible: Deluxe Edition (Omnivore) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)
NRBQ founder Terry Adams' 1995 solo debut returns from Omnivore in an expanded edition with four bonus tracks, new cover artwork, new liner notes, and remastered audio. Adams welcomed his bandmates Johnny Spaminato, Joey Spaminato, and Tom Ardolino to the musical party, along with a host of other guest players. This happily eclectic set is available on CD, double LP, and digitally.
Kiki Dee, The Ariola and EMI Years (Edsel) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)
This new 4-CD book-style set follows Edsel's previous two Kiki boxes - The Fontana and Motown Years and The Rocket Years - to bring her musical autobiography into the 1980s. The label has pulled out all of the stops, presenting Kiki's two released albums from the period along with the previously unreleased Two Sides of Every Story album, fourteen bonus tracks, and three never-before-heard demos. Elton John guests on "Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever" and "True Love." Sweetening the pot, Kiki has even signed a photo card included in every set. Watch this space for a more in-depth look at this beautiful set.
10cc, 20 Years (1972-1992) (Edsel) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)
10cc's 20 Years: 1972-1982 offers 14 discs of the beloved group: all 11 studio albums issued on the U.K., Mercury, and Polydor labels between 1973 and 1992, the rare 1977 double live album Live and Let Live, and two collections of 33 additional B-sides, single versions and alternate mixes released during the same two-decade span. Liam Newton, author of the official 10cc book The Worst Band in the World, has penned a lengthy essay for this impressive set's liner notes. Read more here!
Harmony: The Cast Recording (Ghostlight) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)
Composer Barry Manilow and lyricist-librettist Bruce Sussman's musical Harmony is playing at Broadway's Ethel Barrymore Theatre through February 4. The powerful - and powerfully relevant - musical's score blends the rich, rapturous sound of classic Broadway with the melodic sweep of Manilow's finest pop songs as it recounts the true story of German musical group The Comedian Harmonists against a historical backdrop of rising intolerance and frightening anti-Semitism. Ghostlight's CD includes an exclusive bonus track performed by Manilow of "Where Does the Time Go," written for the musical's first act but ultimately cut from the score. Chip Zien, Julie Benko, and Sierra Boggess lead the cast alongside the Harmonists: Sean Bell, Danny Kornfeld, Zal Owen, Eric Peters, Blake Roman, and Steven Telsey. The moving story and beautiful sounds of Harmony are brought to remarkable life on this album produced by Manilow and Lawrence Manchester.
Various Artists, NOW That's What I Call '90s R&B (NOW Music/Legacy) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)
Mariah Carey, Bell Biv DeVoe, Toni Braxton, and Whitney Houston are among the artists featured on this '90s R&B sampler from NOW Music. Also available in a Target-exclusive vinyl edition.
Larry Davis says
Am eventually going to get the 10CC & Kiki Dee boxes...would have gotten em both today but I have the Outlaw Country Cruise #8 a week from Sunday & need as much $$$ for expenses as possible...the only things I ordered (or preordered) are NOW related...that US 90s R&B NOW release is terrible, as all US NOW releases are...the UK ones are where it's at...their 4CD Yearbooks (espesh the book deluxe editions) & supplemental 3CD Extras are amazing, just ordered the newly released 1988 Extra & preordered the 1990 deluxe, killer tracklist...and the 4CD 12" 80s series is amazing, now they are coming out by year & 1982 was just released as a part 1, so there are enough 12" goodies from 1982 to warrant more than 1 volume...again, the US NOW releases are terrible for 3 reasons...one, not creative or adventurous as the UK releases are...two, only 1 disc, not 2, let alone 3, 4 or more, like the yearbooks...and 3, the track selection is usually terrible, reflecting the dire State of the US charts then & now...unlike the UK charts...
Mark H. says
Agree strongly about UK NOW releases vs. US. Only issue is, they tend to be UK-centric in their song choices (obviously reflecting chart placement there). But they also contain rarely-anthologized artists like Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Paul Simon and Bruce Springsteen.
And the economics of UK licensing make the 3 and 4 CD sets available for less than $20 US.
Larry Davis says
The UK-centric track listings are partly why they are superior...a US one would be terrible...perfect example is the 4CD set called "Now USA", which has a terrible tracklisting, as it's about US hits...I avoided completely...