October 1999: It was a crisp fall afternoon when I first met Stephen Sondheim. Working on a production of his 1965 musical Do I Hear a Waltz? at New Jersey's George Street Playhouse, I was asked to greet the great man at the train station and accompany him back to the theatre. "Mr. Sondheim!" I called as I extended my hand to the familiar figure heading my way. "I'm Joe from the theatre!" His look suddenly turned to one of concern, and his response took me aback: "Are you okay?" I paused,
Ace Records Round-Up: Spotlight on Petula Clark, Norman Whitfield, and "More Motown Girls"
The soundtrack of director Edgar Wright's recent film Last Night in Soho features two interpretations of Tony Hatch's classic pop hit "Downtown" performed by star Anya Taylor-Joy: one perky and uptempo, one haunting and downbeat. But the Soho soundtrack isn't the only way to hear "Downtown" as you likely haven't heard it before. The irresistible ode to that place where you can "forget all your troubles, forget all your cares" can be heard in Italian as sung by its originator, Petula Clark, as
Spirit of Salvation: Cherry Red, Esoteric Collect Spirit's Mercury Years on New 8-CD Box Set
Back in 2018, Cherry Red's Esoteric Recordings arm anthologized the early, seminal albums from Los Angeles rock band Spirit. The group spun off from The Red Roosters, a group which included Randy California (real name: Randy Wolfe) on guitars and vocals, Mark Andes on bass, and Jay Ferguson on vocals and percussion. When California's stepfather Ed Cassidy and John Locke joined on drums and keyboards, respectively, the members rechristened themselves Spirits Rebellious, and finally, Spirit.
The Magic Islands: Aloha Got Soul, Vinyl Me, Please Celebrate Exotica Pioneer Arthur Lyman's "Island Vibes"
Even today, the name of Arthur Lyman is synonymous with exotica. The late vibraphonist and marimba player (1932-2002), born in Oahu, recorded dozens of albums bringing his tropical style to everything from Broadway to folk, jazz, and pop hits. Now, Hawaii's own Aloha Got Soul label has reissued Lyman's final studio album, 1980's Island Vibes, including in a limited, foil-stamped and numbered edition from the Vinyl Me, Please record club pressed on translucent purple with pink vinyl. Arthur
I Can Make Tonight Forever: Cherry Pop Collects Bonnie Tyler's "EastWest Years" on New Collection
Back in 2017, Cherry Red's Cherry Pop imprint compiled Bonnie Tyler's Remixes and Rarities, a 2-CD collection drawing on the singer's Columbia/CBS, Epic, RCA, and Hansa recordings originally released between 1979 and 1994. Now, Cherry Pop is picking up the Bonnie Tyler story with a new 3-CD set. The EastWest Years 1995-1998 brings together her two albums for the Warner imprint plus a disc of single versions, edits, and remixes. By the time she joined East West, the distinctively
My Heart Belongs: Stage Door Collects Rare Radio Performances from Mary Martin on New "On Air" Volume
Mary Martin (1913-1990) made her Broadway debut in the 1938 musical comedy Leave It to Me! While the show was from the future Kiss Me, Kate team of composer-lyricist Cole Porter and librettists Sam and Bella Spewack, its brand of political satire didn't age well; it closed after a respectable 291 performances on Broadway but has rarely been revived since. Yet Martin's performance has kept the show's legend alive, for it was in Leave It to Me! that the coquettish young talent introduced
More Beautiful Each Day: Cherry Red's Robinsongs Collects Three Albums from The Crusaders' Joe Sample
Houston, Texas-born keyboardist Joe Sample (1939-2014) would have earned his place in the music history books alone for his work as a sideman with such artists as Steely Dan, Joni Mitchell, Marvin Gaye, and Minnie Riperton. But he also spent roughly thirty years as a founding member of soul-funk-jazz outfit The Jazz Crusaders (later, just The Crusaders) and enjoyed a solo career spanning two dozen albums in over 45 years. Now, Cherry Red's Robinsongs imprint has brought together three of those
Feel the Earth Move: Craft Recordings Reissues Carole King and James Taylor's "Live at the Troubadour"
Blossom, smile some sunshine down my way/Lately, I've been lonesome/Blossom, it's been much too long a day/Seems my dreams have frozen/Melt my cares away... - James Taylor, "Blossom" With the Summer of Love over, social and political tensions at a boil, and the specter of the Vietnam War still hovering, the tail end of the 1960s was filled with upheaval. Carole King recognized the national trauma and responded in the only way she knew how: by turning inward and sharing her emotions in
Review: The Beatles, "Let It Be" [Various Formats]
Everybody had a hard year/Everybody had a good time... The Beatles' twelfth and final studio LP may have been titled Let It Be, but that particular admonition has been all but ignored over the years. The album - recorded before, but released after, 1969's Abbey Road - was in some respects a step backward from the band's previous, experimental LPs as they sought a "back to basics" sound that didn't involve overdubs and studio wizardry. Ultimately, though, that approach was rejected. The
A Man For All Seasons: Cherry Red, Esoteric Reissue and Expand Al Stewart's "Time Passages"
1978's Time Passages concluded British singer-songwriter Al Stewart's trilogy of albums with producer-engineer Alan Parsons which began with 1975's Modern Times and continued with the following year's Year of the Cat. During this purple patch, Stewart earned his first hit singles in the United States, transitioning from folk troubadour at home to bona fide pop star abroad. And while Year of the Cat, the album, charted higher than Time Passages, the latter's title track was a bigger hit in the
I'll Take You Where the Music's Playing: Cherry Red Collects The Drifters' Sixties Heyday on New Box Set
Between 1954 and 1966, The Drifters notched 32 entries on the Billboard Hot 100, with a thirty-third "bubbling under." Five of those hits reached the top ten. The African-American vocal group's fortunes were even greater on the R&B chart where, of 30 entries between 1953 and 1974, 23 reached the top ten. Despite an ever-changing lineup, The Drifters remain a beloved cornerstone of American pop and soul. Now, Cherry Red's Strawberry Records imprint has chronicled one period of the group's
Lay Down My Old Guitar: Craft Recordings Preps Career-Spanning Box for Doc Watson
In a career spanning seven decades, North Carolina native Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson (1923-2012) brought the sounds of Appalachia to the world at large. A towering figure in Americana, the guitarist was dedicated to the sounds of folk, blues, gospel, bluegrass, and country. Now, a comprehensive collection will salute his remarkable legacy. On December 3, Craft Recordings will release Life's Work: A Retrospective. The anthology features 101 key tracks from his discography including
All This and Heaven, Too: BMG Reissues "Nina Simone and Her Friends" Featuring Chris Connor and Carmen McRae
BMG is following up its reissue earlier this year of Nina Simone's 1959 Bethlehem Records debut Little Girl Blue with the label's follow-up, Nina Simone and Her Friends. Like the earlier title, this newly remastered edition will be available on CD, LP, and in both high-definition and standard digital/streaming versions. The LP will be a Record Store Day Essentials emerald green 180-gram pressing available at record stores everywhere. All formats will arrive in stores on December
Dynamite! Cherry Red, Robinsongs Collect Stacy Lattisaw's "Cotillion Years" on New Box Set
Stacy Lattisaw was just twelve years old when she made her major label debut on Atlantic Records' Cotillion imprint with Young and in Love. The Washington, DC native with the pure, effervescent voice stayed at Cotillion for seven albums, maturing with each successive set. Now, her discography for the label has been collected on Cherry Red/Robinsongs' new 7-CD box set The Cotillion Years 1979-1985 featuring all seven albums plus selected bonus tracks. One of the final projects produced by
Meanwhile Back at the Ranch: Omnivore Reissues Three from Buck Owens Including "(It's A) Monster's Holiday"
Tomorrow, October 29, Omnivore Recordings will release the final three titles in its current Buck Owens reissue campaign in which nine long out-of-print Capitol albums from the late Bakersfield troubadour are making their debut on standalone CD. 1973's In the Palm of Your Hand was a comeback of sorts for Owens. While his profile was arguably higher than ever thanks to television's Hee Haw, he had failed to make the top of the Billboard Country Singles Chart since late 1969 - this, after
Flash, Bang, Wallop! Stage Door Reissues "Half a Sixpence" Studio Cast Recording featuring "Doctor Who" Veterans
The tuneful 1963 musical comedy Half a Sixpence was an instant sensation in London's West End, inspiring a subsequent Broadway production and big-screen adaptation. A musical version of H.G. Wells' novel Kipps, Half a Sixpence featured music and lyrics by David Heneker and book by Beverley Cross. It opened with Tommy Steele as Arthur Kipps, successfully transforming the pop idol into a theatrical star. In recent years, the show enjoyed a hit revival in London starring Charlie Stemp (Mary
The Beatles "Get Back" In New Hardcover Book Chronicling the "Let It Be" Sessions
A book about a film about an album? The new coffee table book from Callaway Arts and Entertainment and Apple Corps, The Beatles: Get Back, is essentially that: a hardcover, 240-page tome based on the film footage shot in the buildup to The Beatles' final album, 1970's Let It Be. Get Back was, of course, the name of the first version of Let It Be. It's also the name of director Peter Jackson's upcoming three-part, six-hour documentary (the first part of which premieres November 25 on the
High As The Mountains: Omnivore Collects Buck Owens and Susan Raye on "Together Again"
On October 29, Omnivore Recordings concludes its current reissue program of nine never-on-standalone-CD albums from Buck Owens with reissues of In the Palm of Your Hand, Ain't It Amazing, Gracie, and It's a Monster's Holiday. (Watch this space for more coverage of that trio soon!) But happily, the label is far from done with the Owens oeuvre. On December 10, Omnivore will release Buck Owens and Susan Raye's Together Again, a new 22-track compendium of duet and solo cuts originally issued
Life Is A Carnival: The Band Reissues, Remixes, Expands "Cahoots" For December Box Set Release
The Band and Capitol/UMe are in Cahoots for a deluxe 50th anniversary reissue of the group's fourth studio album. On December 10, a remixed and remastered Cahoots will arrive in various formats including a Super Deluxe 2CD/BD/LP/7-inch vinyl box set, 2CD, 180-gram half-speed-mastered black vinyl, limited edition vinyl, and digital download/streaming. All of these formats have been overseen by Robbie Robertson and feature a new mix of the original album by Bob Clearmountain from the original
The World Gets Better with Love: Cherry Red, 7Ts Collect White Plains' Discography
There have long been many misconceptions about White Plains, the British harmony-pop group most famous for "My Baby Loves Lovin'." Foremost among those misconceptions: White Plains wasn't a real band. (Truth: It was, despite its unorthodox origins, and had four consistent members between 1970 and 1974.) Another one: White Plains was a one-hit wonder. (Truth: the group scored five U.K. hits and a pair in the U.S., too.) White Plains was a vehicle for the ubiquitous voice of session singer Tony
Fly Me to the Moon: Vinyl Me, Please Chronicles "The Story of Quincy Jones" on New Anthology Box Set
Following the recent announcement of an Anthology box set for the Philadelphia International Records, record club Vinyl Me, Please has turned its attention to one of music's most famous multi-hyphenate talents: Quincy Jones. The multi-instrumentalist-composer-producer-arranger-conductor's credits are too numerous to mention, but VMP's Anthology - due in January 2022 - provides a career overview bookended by two of his most acclaimed jazz recordings. The 12-LP box set The Story of Quincy
Review: Bob Dylan, "Springtime in New York: The Bootleg Series Vol. 16 (1980-1985)"
Señor, señor/Can you tell me where we're headin'? Only Bob Dylan knew where he was headin'. In the fall of 1980, when Springtime in New York: The Bootleg Series Vol. 16 (1980-1985) opens, Dylan was two-thirds into his so-called "Christian trilogy" comprising Slow Train Coming (1979), Saved (1980), and Shot of Love (1981). He had wrapped up a fiery tour on May 21, 1980 in which he only performed his gospel material. Audiences and critics alike were divided on Dylan's immersion into
Sleigh Bells Ring: Michael Bublé's "Christmas" Gets Super Deluxe Expansion for 10th Anniversary
Just months after the February 2003 debut of Michael Bublé's first studio album for Reprise Records, the Canadian crooner released an EP of Christmas music. Let It Snow! reinforced the young artist's connection to the great vocalists who had inspired him as it featured such classics as "White Christmas," "The Christmas Song," and the Jule Styne/Sammy Cahn-penned title track. Eight years later, Bublé finally released a full-length seasonal set. 2011's simply-entitled Christmas, his fifth album
Joy to the World: "New" Nat "King" Cole Christmas Album Coming with Johnny Mathis, Gloria Estefan, John Legend Duets
Although he's one of the voices most closely associated with Christmas, Nat "King" Cole only recorded one full-length Christmas LP in his lifetime. Now, Capitol Records and UMe are out to change that with a "new" yuletide album from the legendary vocalist who died in 1965 at just 45 years of age. A Sentimental Christmas with Nat "King" Cole and Friends: Cole Classics Reimagined arrives October 29 on CD, vinyl, and digital platforms. In addition to reorchestrated solo performances, the album
Three Cheers and Dammit, C'est La Vie: Eartha Kitt's "I'm Still Here" and "Live in London" Reissued by Cherry Red
Good times and bum times, I've seen them all and my dear, I'm still here... Eartha Kitt certainly earned the right to sing those famous lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. The theatrical legend wrote the song for Yvonne DeCarlo to introduce in the 1971 Broadway production of Follies, but the seen-it-all anthem was later adopted by artists including Barbra Streisand, Carol Burnett, Elaine Stritch, Judy Collins, Dame Shirley Bassey, Cleo Laine, and Ann Miller. Kitt - a singer, dancer, actress,
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