Today, we're taking a look at three recent, stellar additions to Ace Records' long-running Songwriter Series! Teddy Randazzo (1935-2003) might have not attained the same "household name" status as some of his peers, but the prodigiously gifted composer-arranger-producer-artist nonetheless left behind a remarkable body of work in a career spanning over five decades. Ace's Yesterday Has Gone: The Songs of Teddy Randazzo is the first-ever anthology of his output, concentrating on the mid-1960s -
Review: Bob Dylan featuring Johnny Cash, “Travelin’ Thru: The Bootleg Series Vol. 15 (1967-1969)”
There's a delicious moment on the fifteenth volume of Bob Dylan's long-running Bootleg Series. The troubadour is in Columbia Records' Nashville Studio A, rehearsing a duet medley with Johnny Cash of his "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" and Cash's "Understand Your Man." Once they stop playing, The Man in Black happily observes that "the phrasing comes out just right, 'cause we both stole it from the same song!" Indeed, Dylan and Cash shared substantial musical roots, with less than a decade
Make Her Wish Come True: Legacy Celebrates 25 Years of Mariah Carey’s ‘Merry Christmas’
One of the best-selling Christmas albums of all time is getting the deluxe treatment today with Columbia Records and Legacy Recordings' 2-CD reissue of Mariah Carey's Merry Christmas in time for its 25th anniversary. Carey's fourth album and first holiday effort (the sequel Merry Christmas II You arrived in 2010) teamed the chanteuse with producer-arranger Walter Afanasieff (Barbra Streisand, Celine Dion, Johnny Mathis), among others, on a sparkling set of original songs and holiday classics.
Surprise Surprise: Cilla Black’s “Especially for You” Comes to CD with “Classics and Collectibles”
Tomorrow, November 1, Cherry Red's Strike Force Entertainment imprint will release the next title in its series of definitive reissues from Cilla Black's considerable catalogue. The 2-CD set Especially for You Revisited/Classics and Collectibles brings together a newly remixed version of Cilla's 1980 album Especially for You with a second disc of rare and previously unreleased tracks. Especially for You marked a turning point in Black's career as it was her first recording project after
Radioactive: Rave On Releases Roger C. Reale and Rue Morgue’s “Collection” Featuring Mick Ronson
The discography of Big Sound Records proves that great things often come in small packages. While the label didn't release many LPs, those that were released by the likes of The Scratch Band and Van Duren have become favorites of crate-diggers. Big Sound patterned itself on the U.K.'s Stiff Records, and its answer to Stiff's Elvis Costello may well have been Roger C. Reale. The 1978 album Radio Active, credited to Reale and Rue Morgue, was packed with compact rock-and-roll nuggets - ten on the
Review: Ramones, “It’s Alive: 40th Anniversary Edition”
Fast and furious - that was the modus operandi of Johnny, Joey, Dee Dee, and Tommy Ramone when they hit U.K. concert stages in December 1977 in the wake of the November release of their third studio album, Rocket to Russia. The New Year's Eve gig at London's Rainbow Theatre provided the basis of It's Alive, issued in April 1979, with 28 songs comfortably packed onto less than 54 minutes of vinyl. Now, that singular document of the Ramones' electrifying performance has been revisited by Sire and
That’s What I Need Tonight: Stage Door Records Premieres Howard Keel in “Ambassador” on CD
Henry James' 1903 novel The Ambassadors told the story of Lewis Lambert Strether, a Massachusetts man sent to Paris by his widowed fiancée to retrieve her son from the clutches of a woman there. Once in Paris, Strether discovers some truths about himself, shattering his preconceived notions of the situation. Don Ettingler (book), Don Gohman (music), and Hal Hackady (lyrics) saw the potential of James' novel as a musical, and enlisted director Stone Widney (an associate of Alan Jay Lerner's and
Review: Cher, “3614 Jackson Highway” [Run Out Groove Edition]
Cher's album 3614 Jackson Highway arrived midway through 1969 as the singer and her partner Sonny Bono worked furiously to re-establish themselves in a changing musical landscape and escape from mounting debt. Their first child had been born in March, a Sonny and Cher single arrived in May and was quickly followed by a Cher solo 45, and her film Chastity hit theatres in June. Sonny and Cher hadn't had a major hit single since 1967's "The Beat Goes On" and the solo Cher hadn't had a chart entry
The Hills Are Alive: “The Sound of Music” 60th Anniversary Reissue Due in December from Craft Recordings
Rodgers and Hammerstein's The Sound of Music has found a new home. The original Broadway cast recording of the beloved Broadway musical, first issued in 1959 and continuously in print since then on Columbia Records, will celebrate its 60th anniversary on a new label. On December 6, Craft Recordings will premiere on CD and 180-gram vinyl a remastered reissue of the album starring Tony Award winning stage legend Mary Martin and acclaimed actor/folksinger Theodore Bikel. The show, based on the
Na Na Na Na Na: Minky Records Celebrates East L.A. Chicano Soul and More on “Land of 1,000 Dances” Box
The sound of East Los Angeles is spreading far and wide with the November 29 release of a new 4-CD box set. Land of 1,000 Dances: The Rampart Records Complete Singles Collection, which arrives on Black Friday's Record Store Day, offers a comprehensive overview of the groundbreaking Mexican-American rock coming out of East L.A. between 1961 and 1991 on Eddie Davis' Rampart label. The Minky Records release is limited to 1,000 units. Minky has previously mined the Rampart family of labels via
Bankstatement: Esoteric Collects Genesis Keyboardist Tony Banks’ Solo Albums on “Banks Vaults”
Following the release of the career-spanning box set A Chord Too Far and the expanded reissues of the albums A Curious Feeling and The Fugitive, Cherry Red's Esoteric Recordings imprint has recently celebrated founding Genesis keyboardist (and guitarist) Tony Banks with a sprawling 7-CD/1-DVD box set. Banks Vaults: The Albums 1979-1995 brings together newly remastered versions of all of Banks' albums including the soundtrack to The Wicked Lady plus a DVD of music videos. Banks' solo career
Do You Hear What I Hear: New “Bing at Christmas” Features Crosby Backed by London Symphony
The Christmas season is almost here - that time of year when the indelible sound of the late Harry Lillis Crosby once again takes the airwaves. This year, however, there may be a twist. On November 22, Decca Records will release Bing at Christmas, melding Crosby's classic vocals with new orchestrations recorded by The London Symphony Orchestra. Nick Patrick, producer of similar symphonic albums from Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, and Roy Orbison, helmed Bing at Christmas. "White Christmas," of
Edge of the World: Run Out Groove Announces Sam Phillips’ “Fan Dance” as Next Release, Voting Open for Next Month’s Title
Run Out Groove has recently announced its latest limited-edition title. The winner of the last fan vote is singer-songwriter Sam Phillips' Fan Dance, her ninth studio album and first for Nonesuch Records. For its first worldwide release on vinyl, Fan Dance has been freshly remastered. It will be issued on 180-gram vinyl in a deluxe tip-on jacket with a booklet, and the lacquers will be cut at Sam Phillips Recording Studio (the other, Sun Records Sam Phillips, that is). It will be pressed and
Review: Lee Hazlewood, “400 Miles from L.A.: 1955-56”
400 Miles from L.A.: Phoenix, Arizona was the birthplace of Lee Hazlewood's professional career. The future writer of "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" was well-acquainted with the Greyhound bus between Phoenix and Los Angeles, making frequent trips in the hopes of selling his songs. Though he was a successful DJ in Phoenix, Hazlewood wanted more, and songwriting seemed to be his means of attaining it. Lee wrote his first songs, it's believed, in 1953; the following year, his first songs
Review: James Taylor, “The Warner Bros. Albums 1970-1976”
Over six years at Warner Bros. Records, James Taylor laid the groundwork for a career that is now in its sixth decade. The Massachusetts native's records were key exponents of the early Laurel Canyon sound, not to mention the entire confessional "singer-songwriter" movement that today is synonymous with the 1970s. The six albums he released at Warner Bros. were collected over the summer in one essential CD or vinyl LP box set, The Warner Bros. Albums 1970-1976, that's perfect for the impending
Review: Frank Sinatra, “My Way: 50th Anniversary Edition” and “Sings Alan and Marilyn Bergman”
The album was entitled My Way for the song by Paul Anka, Claude Francois, Gilles Thibault, and Jacques Revaux, but truth to tell, the moniker would have been fitting even without that famous anthem. For the ten songs on Frank Sinatra's 1969 Reprise LP were indisputably sung as only one man could: swing - his way, pop - his way, rhythm and blues - his way. Capitol Records, Frank Sinatra Enterprises, and UMe have reissued My Way in a 50th anniversary expanded edition celebrating both the song and
Peaches En Regalia: Frank Zappa’s “Hot Rats” Turns 50, Gets Expanded to Six CDs
If an upcoming box set is any indication, Zappa Records is on fire - as Frank Zappa's 1969 solo album Hot Rats is about to get a lot hotter. On December 20, the label, in association with UMe, will issue The Hot Rats Sessions, a 6CD box set exploring that seminal album from every angle. The mostly-instrumental LP came on the heels of the breakup of the original Mothers of Invention, making it clear that Zappa was a force with which to be reckoned as a composer. Described by the artist as "a
Hello, Carter: Cherry Red Expands Roy Budd’s “Get Carter” in 3-CD Set
The late composer Roy Budd (1947-1993) excelled in a variety of genres, from jazz to opera to motion picture soundtracks. Yet, among his many triumphs, one still stands out: his score to 1971's Get Carter. Director Mike Hodges' crime thriller starring Michael Caine and Britt Ekland proved controversial at the time of its release for its gritty depiction of violence and amorality. Looking back, it seems a forerunner of today's cinema; see no further than the current No. 1 movie in the United
Way to Go Home: Rhino Compiles Lost Grateful Dead Album as “Ready or Not”
The Grateful Dead released their final studio album on Halloween 1989. The title Built to Last was certainly appropriate, as the Dead have indeed done just that over the past decades. But the band continued writing new songs after the album's release, performing them in concert in the early 1990s. Unfortunately, with the death of Jerry Garcia in 1995, the Dead were unable to complete them in the studio. Today, Rhino announced a new release that may prove to be the closest we'll ever get to
Heaven Is: Belinda Carlisle’s “Runaway Horses” Turns 30, Gets Deluxe Edition; “Gold” Anthology Also Released
Thirty years ago, Belinda Carlisle released her third LP. Runaway Horses came on the heels of two successful albums: her 1986 IRS Records debut, Belinda (featuring the hit "Mad About You"), and 1987's Heaven on Earth (boasting the smash "Heaven Is a Place on Earth" as well as "I Get Weak" and "Circle in the Sand"). Runaway Horses completed the hat trick for the Go-Go-gone-solo when it reached the top five in the United Kingdom. Now, the U.K.'s Demon Music Group has revisited the album in a
Grand Ennui: 7a Premieres Michael Nesmith and Red Rhodes’ 1973 California Concert
Following last year's acclaimed Live at the Troubadour, 7a Records has unveiled a new live title from another period in the storied career of Michael Nesmith. Cosmic Partners - The McCabe's Tapes, due on November 15 in CD and LP formats, spotlights the artist with his longtime musical soul brother Red Rhodes and a small group of musicians. It was recorded on August 18, 1973 at McCabe's Guitar Shop in Santa Monica, California. Nesmith hit the road in 1973 for a mini-tour in support of his
Could It Be Forever: Cherry Red Collects David Cassidy’s “Bell Years” on New Box Set
When David Cassidy died in November 2017, the world didn't just lose the eternally youthful Keith Partridge. Cassidy was persuasive and versatile vocalist and a fine actor who prospered beyond the shadow of the fictional Partridge Family. Far from being simple fodder for the bubblegum crowd, the records he released as a solo artist were in many ways a continuation of the sophisticated sounds of the 1960s; indeed, enough time has passed that we can now recognize the Partridge Family records as
Song of Time: Two Folk Classics from Art and Paul Are Reissued for First Time
With a recent pair of reissues, Sony Music/Legacy Recordings has transported listeners to Greenwich Village at the dawn of the 1960s, when guitar-wielding troubadours took the stages at venues like Café Wha? to share their own "alternative" music: folk. While Connie Francis, Brian Hyland, Elvis Presley, and even Percy Faith were ascending to the top of the Pop chart, folksingers were spinning their own musical yarns that didn't involve teenage romance or itsy bitsy teenie weenie yellow polkadot
Something ‘Groovy’: New Hendrix Box Revisits The Band Of Gypsys
Jimi Hendrix's Fillmore East concerts of December 31, 1969 and January 1, 1970 have become the stuff of legend. With Billy Cox and Buddy Miles matching him in intensity and power, Hendrix pushed the envelope of heavy rock, R&B, and funk. The original 1970 release of Band of Gypsys offered a tantalizing taste of the concerts, and over the years other songs from the concerts have emerged on various releases (most recently 2016's Machine Gun: The Fillmore East First Show 12/31/69). Now,
A Good Feelin’ to Know: Cherry Red, Hear No Evil Collect Poco Albums on “The Epic Years 1972-1976”
Poco famously rose from the ashes of Buffalo Springfield, with that band's Richie Furay and Jim Messina joined by Rusty Young (who had guested on Furay's "Kind Woman" for the final Springfield LP), George Grantham, and briefly, Randy Meisner. The band's 1969 debut Pickin' Up the Pieces was an influential entry in the West Coast country-rock genre, beginning a career that would see the band score over a dozen U.S. Billboard Hot 100 hits and some AC crossovers including "Crazy Love," "Heart of the
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