Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles available today.  As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases.  

Also, don't miss out on today's eclectic slate of releases from Real Gone Music; click here to find out what's new from Jefferson Airplane, Grateful Dead, Firehouse, Azar Lawrence, Charlie Nothing, and 3 Inches of Blood!

Elvis Presley, Memphis (RCA/Legacy)

5CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada

This new 5CD set (also available as a double vinyl album of highlights) showcases five crucial periods in which The King of Rock and Roll recorded in his adopted city of Memphis: the fiery 1953-1955 sessions at Sun Studio that first proved his worth as a singing sensation; a restorative 1969 session at American Sound Studios that remains to many his career highlight; a trek to Stax Studios in 1973; a celebrated show at the city's Mid-South Coliseum recorded for a 1974 live album; and Presley's final studio-quality recordings from 1976, taped from RCA's mobile recording truck fed into the plush "Jungle Room" of his Memphis mansion Graceland.  Though none of the tracks are previously unreleased, four of the five discs - everything except the Sun sessions, for which no multitrack tape exists - have been restored and revisited by engineer and longtime Elvis catalogue associate Matt Ross-Spang. These new mixes present rawer versions of the original tracks without overdubs and sweetening that ended up on the final albums and singles - a "you are there" approach to the work. Like all of The King's archival titles going back decades, this box was produced by Elvis authority Ernst Mikael Jorgensen; Memphis author Robert Gordon (a two-time Grammy winner for production and notes on last year's Written in Their Soul: The Stax Songwriter Demos) contributes liner notes. Read more here!

Little Big Town, Greatest Hits (Capitol Nashville)

CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada

Streaming may have rendered the traditional "greatest hits" album obsolete, but Little Big Town is bucking the trend with this new collection.  In addition to nine of the Alabama foursome's most enduring hits, their Greatest Hits includes two re-recorded versions of songs from 2010's The Reason Why: "Little White Church" (now featuring guest vocals from Miranda Lambert) and "Shut Up Train" (with a featured turn from Kelsea Ballerini), plus a new cover of Phil Collins' "Take Me Home" recorded with longtime friends and this year's tourmates, Georgia country-pop outfit Sugarland. (Both bands first played the track at the CMT Awards earlier this year.)  Available on CD, LP, and digitally. Read more here.

The Soul Searchers, Salt of the Earth (Iconoclassic) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

Iconoclassic has the first-ever U.S. CD reissue of this 1974 Sussex Records release from The Soul Searchers - just in time for its 50th anniversary. The Washington, D.C.-based group formed in the early 1970s and released two albums on Sussex.  Led by the "Godfather of Go-Go," guitarist and singer Chuck Brown, the other members of the band included John "J.B" Buchanan (trombone, piano, synth, percussion), Donald Tilley (trumpet, percussion), John Euwell (bass guitar), Kenneth Scoggins (drums, percussion), Lino Druitt (congas, bongos, percussion), Lloyd Pinchback (flute, saxophone, percussion), and Bennie Braxton (organ).  Salt of the Earth, their second album for Sussex, is composed mostly of original material written by Buchanan, Brown, Tilley, or Pinchback.  The one cover featured is Bacharach and David's, standard "(They Long to Be) Close to You."  The album has become known for being heavily sampled by hip-hop artists over the years.  Performers including Run-D.M.C., Eric B. & Rakim, Lloyd featuring Lil Wayne and LL Cool J, among others, have sampled "Ashley's Roachclip."  Eve and Public Enemy have used parts of "Blow Your Whistle" and 2Pac sampled "We Share."  Iconoclassic's newly-remastered reissue also boasts new liner notes by Justin Richmond.

Paul Weller, Fly on the Wall: B-Sides & Rarities (Polydor/UMR) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

Paul Weller, late of The Jam and The Style Council, began his solo career in 1991 with a self-titled album on the Go! Discs label.  He remained on the label for three albums, before moving to Island Records for 1997's Heavy Soul and 2000's Heliocentric.  Weller would return to Island in 2008, but five years earlier, in 2003, Universal Music drew upon both his Go! Discs period and two Island albums to compile Fly on the Wall: B Sides and Rarities.  The 3CD iteration presented 39 tracks, while the 3LP box cut that down to 29 selections.  Over time, the vinyl version has commanded top dollar on the secondary market, and so, UMR and Polydor are reissuing it at a much more affordable price point.  For those who missed out on the original CD pressing, the set is also being released to digital services with the full 39 songs.​ Get more details here.

Dickey Betts, Live from the Lone Star Road House, New York City 1988 (Liberation Hall/RockBeat)

2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada

This set from the late Allman Brothers Band guitar hero was originally broadcast on classic rock radio station WNEW-FM in New York City and released on vinyl in 2018.  The concert found Betts supported by Govt Mule and ABB guitarist Warren Haynes along with Nashville keyboard player Johnny Neel, bassist Marty Privette, and drummer Matt Abts as well as special guests Rick Derringer ("Rock and Roll Hoochie Koo"), Jack Bruce ("Spoonful"), and Mick Taylor ("Southbound").  Other tracks include classics "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed," "Jessica," "Statesboro Blues," and "One Way Out."  The re-pressed 2LP set is pressed on "marijuana green" splatter vinyl; the new CD version includes seven exclusive tracks to comprise the entire 120-minute concert.  The CD, housed in a jewel case, includes an insert with liner notes by Cory Frye, and Randy Perry has mastered.

The Judy Garland Show: 1962 (Sepia) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

Sepia releases the soundtrack to Judy Garland's four-time-Emmy-nominated 1962 television special (which preceded her weekly series) with guest stars Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin.  The album is rounded out with selections from Judy's appearance as guest host on an earlier General Electric radio show.  This release is made possible via current U.K. public domain laws.

Various Artists, Classic British Film Themes & Songs 1940-1944 (Sepia) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

This 2CD set takes listeners back to wartime England, recreating the experience of attending a British cinema during that period.  Sepia promises that the songs and themes included have been largely drawn from studio acetates, playback discs, pre-recordings, and rehearsal discs which were recorded and used at various stages of film production. These tracks were not intended for commercial release and are appearing on CD for the very first time here.  Artists include Dame Vera Lynn, Anne Shelton, Anna Neagle, Pat Kirkwood, and others.

Jim Peterik and World Stage, Vol. 2: Roots and Shoots (Frontiers) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

The one and only Jim Peterik (Ides of March, Survivor) is back with an all-new album featuring collaborations from Jason Scheff, Neil Donell, Toby Hitchcock, Cathy Richardson, and others. Don't miss Jim's songwriting and production, too, on Iconoclassic's upcoming release of Jimmy Wayne Jamison from Peterik's Survivor bandmate Jimi Jamison!

Al Stewart and The Empty Pockets, Live (Wallaby Trails) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

Singer-songwriter Al Stewart may have retired from the studio, but he's still making music live - and now, on his first standalone concert album since 2009.  He's joined by guitarist Josh Solomon, keyboardist Erika Brett, bassist Nate Bellon, and drummer Adam Balasco, a.k.a. The Empty Pockets, for this special set.  Al also welcomes longtime collaborator Peter White on nylon guitar, Elliot Scozzaro on sax and flute, Chase Huna on sax, and Marc Macisso on harmonica. Tracks include "Time Passages," "Year of the Cat," "On the Border," "Carol," and more.

Bill Wyman, Drive My Car (BMG) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

Founding Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman is back with a new album featuring original songs (including the title track) and covers of songs by Bob Dylan ("Thunder on the Mountain"), John Prine ("Ain't Hurtin' Nobody"), Taj Mahal ("Light Rain"), Chuck E. Weiss ("Two Tone Car"), and others.  Available on CD, LP, and digitally; the CD and digital editions have two additional tracks ("Sweet Baby" and "Tell You a Secret").

Milton Nascimento and Esperanza Spalding, Milton + Esperanza (Concord) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

The legendary Brazilian singer-songwriter-multi-instrumentalist Milton Nascimento teams with the multiple-Grammy-winning singer-songwriter-bassist for a new collaborative album available on CD, LP, and digitally.  The album comprises originals by Spalding, classic Nascimento songs, and covers; special guests include Paul Simon and Dianne Reeves.