Features / The Weekend Stream

Welcome back to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc’s review of notable catalogue titles making digital debuts, plus new works from legacy acts and even some personally curated favorites. Another George Michael single is redelivered, XTC demos get delivered and a reinvented video game dance classic enters the arena – plus a whole lot of oddities and buried treasure from 1976!

George Michael, Faith (Single) (Columbia/Legacy) (Apple / Amazon)

The second of George Michael’s Faith singles to be delivered to digital with the original covers and B-sides is the effortlessly classic title track, the top single of 1988 bolstered by an era-defining video showcasing the former Wham! singer in ripped jeans, sunglasses and a killer leather jacket, strumming his guitar against a monochrome background. Extra tracks include the song’s instrumental and the Faith cut “Hard Day.”

Olivier Adams feat. Ed Boon, “Techno Syndrome 2026 (from Mortal Kombat II)” (WaterTower Music) (Apple / Amazon)

“MORTAL KOMBAT!!” With a sequel to 2021’s film adaptation of the long-running fighting video game series due next month, the filmmakers have offered a terrific throwback. “Techno Syndrome” was a single created by Olivier Adams of Belgian dance group Lords of Acid for the original game back in 1993. A year later, Adams and his Lords of Acid mate Maurice “Praga Khan” Engelen, under the name “The Immortals,” cut an entire record of tracks devoted to the game – but “Techno Syndrome” remains the classic, turning up in the original 1995 film adaptation and its 1997 sequel. Adams has newly recut the track, incorporating many of the same in-game sound effects as well as a new vocal from Kombat co-creator Ed Boon, naming the fighters who’ll feature in the new film. (There’s also an unforgettable vintage sample of Boon from the Mortal Kombat II game, screaming “Get over here!” in character as the undead, kunai-tossing ninja Scorpion.) Flawless victory!

Andy Partridge, Fuzzy Warbles Vol. 1 (Ape House) (Apple / Amazon)

Seemingly delivered to digital platforms for the first time is the first volume of Fuzzy Warbles, a nine-volume collection (counting final entry Hinges) of treasured demos cut mostly solo by Andy Partridge ahead of their final recording by British power-pop icons XTC. Released between 2002 and 2006 and not in physical print since a 2016 reissue, it’ll be quite exciting if the remainders end up available for streaming or download in the weeks to come.

David Gates, Love is Always Seventeen (Warner) (Apple / Amazon)

After 13 years largely out of the songwriting business, Bread frontman David Gates returned in 1994 with the country-rock flavored Love is Always Seventeen. It remains his last full album of original material.

Scritti Politti, Songs to Remember (2026 Remaster) (Rough Trade) (Apple / Amazon)

Scritti Politti started as a stringent, Marxist punk band until iconoclastic frontman Green Gartside had a nine-month change of heart following a debilitating panic attack. Their full-length debut, issued in 1982, drew from a rich fount of influences including disco, funk and reggae, establishing the group as one of England’s premier intellectual pop acts. The album has just been remastered physically for the first time (on CD and vinyl), so this felt like a great time to call it out here.

John Lee Hooker, That’s My Story: John Lee Hooker Sings the Blues (Remastered 2026) (Craft Recordings) (Apple / Amazon)

A singles mainstay of the Modern. Chess and Vee-Jay labels, Delta-to-Detroit bluesman John Lee Hooker’s first and third albums were recorded for Riverside. That’s My Story is the latter of those two, and ups the ante with a rhythm section borrowed from Cannonball Adderley’s group (featuring Sam Jones on bass and Louis Hayes on drums).

Abbey Lincoln, That’s Him! (Remastered 2026 / Mono) (Craft Recordings) (Apple / Amazon)

The rarer mono mix of iconic jazz vocalist Lincoln’s second LP, released in 1958, is now available to stream or download. It’s a cadre of deeply felt reads of standards backed by a murderer’s row of jazz luminaries, including trumpeter Kenny Dorham, Sonny Rollins on tenor sax, Wynton Kelly on piano, Paul Chambers on bass and drummer Max Roach.

Markolino Dimond, Brujería (Remastered 2026) (Craft Recordings) (Apple / Amazon)

Here’s the dazzling Latin jazz/salsa debut from pianist Markolino Dimond on Fania’s Vaya label. Dimond, all of 21 at the time (and sadly living only to 36 after years of drug abuse), had already built a formidable career as a sideman for Willie Colón and Hector LaVoe, and is accompanied here by singer Ángel Canales in his debut on record.

Chess (2025 Broadway Cast Recording) (Ghostlight) (Apple / Amazon)

With classic songs by Sir Tim Rice and the ABBA team of Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson including “One Night in Bangkok,” “I Know Him So Well,” “Nobody’s Side,” “Anthem,” and “Pity the Child,” it’s no wonder that the score to Chess is so beloved. Now, Ghostlight unveils the new cast recording of the smash Broadway revival (featuring a new book by Danny Strong) currently packing houses at the Imperial Theatre with stars Aaron Tveit, Lea Michele, and Nicholas Christopher. Physical formats will arrive later this year.

Paddington: The Musical (Original Cast Recording) (Decca) (Apple / Amazon)

A love letter to London, musical comedy, and everyone’s favorite marmalade-guzzling bear, Paddington: The Musical is the hottest ticket in London’s West End (thanks in part to a very lifelike combination of onstage actors and remote puppeteering to create the titular star). Now, the cast recording of the production at the Savoy Theatre has arrived, preserving Tom Fletcher’s score and the performances of James Hameed, Tom Edden, Adrian Der Gregorian, Amy Ellen Richardson, Victoria Hamilton-Barritt, and Bonnie Langford. Paddington is up for a boatload of Olivier Awards (11!) at Sunday evening’s ceremony…how many will this joyous musical take home? CD and vinyl editions are due in May.

Lucille Dumont, Mes premières chansons (RCA Victor) (Apple / Amazon)

A heroine of Québécois songwriters, Lucille Dumont earned acclaim at home for her deft takes as an interpreter of chansons; when RCA Victor issued this album in Canada in 1966, Dumont had just begun to host her own eponymous television show, bolstering her career even further.

And here’s a host of titles from 1976, making their debut from Legacy Recordings for copyright retention purposes!

Lynn Anderson, All the King’s Horses (Columbia) (Apple / Amazon)

A country-pop chestnut from the “Rose Garden” singer, featuring takes on John Prine (“Paradise”) and the Eagles (“Lyin’ Eyes”).

Chet Atkins, Best of Chet Atkins and Friends (RCA) (Apple / Amazon)

True to its name, this LP from the legendary guitar picker includes rare and otherwise unavailable team-ups with genre luminaries including Dolly Parton, Les Paul, Ray Stevens and Hank Snow.

Aztec Two-Step, Two’s Company (RCA Victor) (Apple / Amazon)

The third album from the eclectic, Boston-born folk duo of Rex Fowler and Neal Shulman.

Connexion, Connexion (RCA Victor) (Apple / Amazon)

A one-off Canadian prog release!

Lou Courtney, Lou Courtney / Buffalo Smoke (RCA Victor) (Apple / Amazon)

A soulful journeyman who’d scored Top 20 R&B hits in 1967 with “Skate Now” and “Do the Thing” (and a latter-day member of The 5th Dimension, during their Motown era), Lou Courtney formed a group of session killers under the name Buffalo Smoke for one album only. Includes turns from keyboardist Leon Pendarvis, guitarist Jeff Mironov, bassist Will Lee and Steve Gadd on drums.

Danny Davis & The Nashville Brass, Supersongs! (RCA Victor) (Apple / Amazon)

Nothing but killer country standards from this beloved session supergroup, including “He’ll Have to Go,” “King of the Road,” “Cold, Cold Heart” and “She Thinks I Still Care.”

Andre Kostelanetz & His Orchestra, Andre Kostelanetz Plays A Chorus Line, Treemonisha and Chicago (Columbia) (Apple / Amazon)

As the title indicates, longtime Columbia conductor Kostelanetz leads his group on selections from two hit ’70s musicals as well as a 1911 opera by ragtime legend Scott Joplin, virtually unknown until then-recent events, including a smash production on Broadway that snagged Joplin a posthumous Pulitzer the same year this LP dropped.

Annie McLoone, Fast Annie (RCA Victor) (Apple / Amazon)

The sole album by a country-rock singer who’d previously been in a group, Sageworth, with a pre-fame Walter Egan. This is mostly covers of unexpected tunes from tremendous acts, including Bob Dylan (“If You See Him, Say Hello”), Fleetwood Mac (“Spare Me a Little of Your Love”) and Jimmy Cliff (“The Harder They Come”).

The Earl Scruggs Revue, Volume II (Columbia) (Apple / Amazon)

A stellar platter of bluegrass interpretations of country and rock tunes by legendary banjo picker Earl Scruggs and his sons Gary and Randy.

Gary Stewart, Steppin’ Out (RCA Victor) (Apple / Amazon)

Fresh from a country chart-topper the year before (“She’s Actin’ Single (and I’m Drinkin’ Doubles)”), here’s a fine selection of honkytonk numbers from the late Stewart.

Cedar Walton, Beyond Mobius (RCA Victor) (Apple / Amazon)

A hard-bop pianist formerly of Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers as well as a member of Prestige Records’ house band, Walton led large groups for two projects for RCA: Mobius and Beyond Mobius, which, true to its name, interprets some decidedly non-jazz titles like War’s “Low Rider” and the Bee Gees’ “Jive Talkin’.”

Freddy Weller, Liquor, Love and Life (Columbia) (Apple / Amazon)

Not far removed from his tenure as the lead guitarist in Paul Revere and The Raiders, Freddy Weller had already enjoyed some Top 10 action on the country charts with singles like “Games People Play,” “These Are Not My People” and a cover of Chuck Berry’s “Promised Land.” Weller would record for Columbia through 1980, but Liquor, Love and Life was his last album to make the Billboard charts.

PASSINGS

Many of the best producers rise to the top with the help of a good engineer. For Ted Templeman, that was Donn Landee (1947-2026), who’d lent his talents for great producers in the family of Warner labels, including Templeman, Lenny Waronker and Russ Titelman. It was Templeman, of course, that led Landee to his greatest success, working on records by Van Morrison and Little Feat before a lengthy association with The Doobie Brothers and Van Halen. Guitarist Eddie Van Halen’s unique tone and Landee’s studio wizardry made for a powerful combination, and VH eventually promoted him to co-producer of the recently-reissued 5150 and follow-up OU812.

Keith Wood (1948-2026) got his start in music by helping paint signage for the Isle of Wight Festival in 1970, but is today best known for a long tenure working as an executive for plenty of great labels, including Virgin’s reactivated Caroline (who put out the Smashing Pumpkins’ 1991 debut Gish and distributed Sub Pop during the ’90s alt-rock explosion) and a revival of Rough Trade as it worked on re-entering the American marketplace in the ’00s. He later served as LCD Soundsystem’s manager during their most artistically successful period from 2004 to 2012. Variety has a solid, more in-depth tribute to Wood, who recently passed away after a years-long battle with ALS.

Lance Taylor was a Bronx gang member so profoundly changed by a visit to Africa that he rechristened himself Afrika Bambaataa (1957-2026) and utilized hip-hop to more actively build community. His interest in rap and electronic music yielded groundbreaking singles in collaboration with groups like the Jazzy Five (“Jazzy Sensation”) and the pop crossover “Planet Rock,” built around a Kraftwerk sample and putting its producer, Arthur Baker, on the map as one of the decade’s most original engineers of dance music. The awareness of Bambaataa’s influence on the genre is, of course, strongly tempered by accusations in 2016 of sexual abuse of young boys and men involved with his organization, the Universal Zulu Nation; he resigned from the group ahead of even more shocking reporting on the subject by Vice, and in 2025 lost a civil suit bought by a victim abused during his teenage years.

Finally…help out a legend. Avant-garde bassist/producer Bill Laswell has contributed to a wide variety of stunning recordings, including works by Brian Eno, John Zorn, Swans, Mick Jagger and Herbie Hancock (most famously the groundbreaking hip-hop/electro-funk hybrid “Rockit”). He’s been bedridden for several years after complications from an infection (and currently hospitalized), and while the 71-year-old is hoped to recover, the loss of income and lack of insurance for musicians puts him in a precarious financial state. A GoFundMe has been organized in his name with a call to action welcoming donations “if his music has ever meant something to you…if his work has ever inspired you…if you believe in supporting artists who have given so much”; it is happily close to its goal, and we present it to our treasured readers if you’re interested in contributing.