Freedom...at last! Grapefruit has recently collected the five albums recorded by Procol Harum offshoot Freedom in one handsome box set. Born Again: The Complete Recordings has the band's album discography plus a handful of bonus tracks for easy, one-stop-shopping. Guitarist Ray Royer and drummer Bobby Harrison were enlisted by Gary Brooker and Keith Reid to join them in the initial lineup of Procol Harum. Royer played on their landmark debut single "A Whiter Shade of Pale," but Harrison was
Holiday Gift Guide Review: Bob Dylan, "The Complete Budokan 1978"
We're kicking off our Holiday Gift Guide Review series with a look at Bob Dylan's The Complete Budokan 1978. Long before Madonna, Lady Gaga, and Taylor Swift, Bob Dylan was reinventing himself. The artist who stepped onstage at Tokyo's Budokan arena in 1978 only bore superficial resemblance to the firebrand who was proclaimed a "Judas!" by an irate fan over a decade earlier at Manchester Free Trade Hall. That audience member was famously angry over the then-folkie's decision to plug in and
Best of All Possible Worlds: "Maestro on Record" Offers Leonard Bernstein Recordings, Photos in One Volume
Director-star Bradley Cooper's long-awaiting Leonard Bernstein biopic Maestro, featuring Cooper as the late composer-conductor (1918-1990) and Carey Mulligan as his wife Felicia Montealegre, opens next week in limited theatrical release before arriving December 20 on Netflix. Bernstein's final label home of Deutsche Grammophon (DG) has the official soundtrack album featuring the new recordings made for the film by Yannick Nezet-Seguin leading the London Symphony Orchestra as well as a 2-CD
Just Like Joe: Meek's "Tea Chest Tapes" Series Welcomes Heinz, Glenda Collins, More
In a short, tumultuous life and career, Joe Meek (1929-1967) moved pop into the space age with his innovative use of the studio. The producer-engineer experimented with overdubs, reverb, and sampling in an era when it wasn't commonplace; his 1962 composition and production of "Telstar" for The Tornados became the first record by a British rock-and-roll band to reach No. 1 on the U.S. Hot 100. The Ivor Novello Award winner crossed musical paths with such artists as Tom Jones, Petula Clark,
Short Takes: Josh Groban Expands "Closer," The Kinks Continue "The Journey," Daft Punk Goes "Drumless"
Today's Short Takes gathers news of three upcoming releases, all of which are currently scheduled for this Friday, November 17. We are an Amazon affiliate and earn on qualifying purchases. Josh Groban, currently packing houses as Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street at Broadway's Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, is looking back to his 6x Platinum sophomore album, 2003's Closer, for a new 2CD or 2LP anniversary reissue (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada). Like his self-titled debut,
Get Down with the Philly Jump: Cherry Red, Robinsongs Collect Instant Funk's Salsoul Years
Following its recent albums collection for disco-dance band Skyy, Cherry Red's Robinsongs imprint has turned its attention to another Salsoul Records group: Instant Funk. The 5-CD box, out now, chronicles Instant Funk from 1976's Get Down with the Philly Jump through 1983's Kinky plus a selection of bonus tracks for the first three albums. The Instant Funk story is intertwined with that of Bunny Sigler. The singer-songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist was a mainstay at Kenny
Hey Now Hey: Aretha Franklin's Early 1970s Albums Collected on New Box Set
Back in 2018, Rhino Records compiled Aretha Franklin's The Atlantic Records 1960s Collection, bringing together the Queen of Soul's first five, groundbreaking studio albums for the label originally released between 1967 and 1969 plus bonus material. Now, BMG is picking up where that set left off with the December 1 release of A Portrait of the Queen. The new collection, available on 5 CDs or 6 LPs, contains Franklin's first five studio sets from the new decade: This Girl's In Love With
Review: Joni Mitchell, "Archives Vol. 3: The Asylum Years (1972-1975)"
Late in 1970, Joni Mitchell took a moment while performing at London's Royal Festival Hall to announce an early retirement from the stage. She relocated to British Columbia, built a modest stone cabin in the somewhat remote area, and let inspiration guide her rather than the machinations of a manager or record executive. While in this self-imposed creative exile, Mitchell began crafting the album that became 1972's For the Roses. It would reach listeners more than a year after the June 1971
Greatest Hits Watch: New Compilations Coming from Bush, The Blasters and Johnny Marr
Today, we're taking a look at three upcoming greatest hits packages (and one essential related album!) from three very different artists. The Blasters formed in 1979 in Downey, California - home of Richard and Karen Carpenter - and immediately cut a striking figure on the Los Angeles club scene. Brothers Phil and Dave Alvin, drummer Bill Bateman, and bassist John Bazz blended muscular rock appropriate to the punk era with rockabilly, early rock-and-roll, and a rootsy sensibility that sounds
Blue Heartache: Cherry Red, Morello Collect Albums from Gail Davies, Neal McCoy
Cherry Red's Morello imprint continues to re-present the best of American country music, and now the label has recently looked back to the 1980s and 1990s for a pair of releases. Oklahoma-born singer-songwriter Gail Davies was born into a musical family. Her father, Tex Dickerson, was a country singer. Her brother, Ron Davies, penned songs recorded by artists including Three Dog Night, David Bowie, Dave Edmunds, The Association, and Jerry Jeff Walker. Having grown up in Washington state,
Beg, Steal, or Borrow: Stage Door Pop Launches with CD Premiere of "The Singing Nolans"
Stage Door Records is well-known for celebrating the music of Broadway and the West End on CD. Now, the label is launching a new imprint that will bring the same dedication and quality to pop repertoire. Stage Door Pop launches this Friday, October 27, with the CD premiere of The Singing Nolans, the 1972 debut album from The Nolans. Between 1978 and 2009, the girl group from Blackpool - the family had its roots in Dublin before moving in 1962 - notched four Gold albums in the U.K. as well
Slide on Down: Steely Dan's "Gaucho" Returns in December
Go back, Jack, do it again: The Steely Dan reissue campaign rolls on with the December 1 return of Gaucho, Donald Fagen and Walter Becker's final album before putting the Dan on a two-decade hiatus. Gaucho follows the previous vinyl reissues of Can't Buy a Thrill (1972), Countdown to Ecstasy (1973), Pretzel Logic (1974), and, most recently, Aja (1977). In addition to the 180-gram vinyl series from Geffen/UMe, a concurrent program from Analogue Productions is reissuing each record on SACD and
Roses in the Fire: Rosanne Cash's "The Wheel" Turns 30, Gets Expanded and Remastered
The daughter of Johnny Cash and his first wife Vivian Liberto, Rosanne Cash carved out a musical path all her own. She charted twenty-two country singles under her own name while at Columbia Records between 1979 and 1995, embracing contemporary textures while never forgetting her roots and her role in the distinguished lineage of country music. On December 15, one of her most acclaimed and personal albums, 1993's The Wheel, will return in a remastered deluxe edition from RumbleStrip
Review: Black Sabbath, Alice Cooper, J. Geils Band, Jefferson Starship In Quad
With Rhino having just announced a second batch of Quadio releases, we're taking a look at the first four titles in the relaunched series - all of which are now available on Blu-ray Disc with high-resolution presentations of the original 4.0 quadraphonic and 2.0 stereo mixes. Black Sabbath's 1970 LP Paranoid was a landmark record in the transition from "hard rock" to "heavy metal." Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and Bill Ward followed up their self-titled debut album of early 1970
Carefree Highway: Rhino Announces New Wave of Quadio Titles from Gordon Lightfoot, Spinners, America, Charles Mingus
Rhino's Quadio series, presenting original four-channel quadraphonic album mixes on Blu-ray, relaunched earlier this year with a quartet of titles from Alice Cooper, Black Sabbath, J. Geils Band, and Jefferson Starship - watch this space for a review of all four releases tomorrow! Now, the label has unveiled the next batch of Quadio titles which are all available now exclusively through Rhino.com. This group is an even more eclectic one, with R&B (The Spinners), jazz (Charles Mingus),
There When I Needed You: Sheena Easton's "Madness, Money, and Music" Returns from Cherry Pop
Sheena Easton's formidable catalogue has been enjoying an overhaul from Cherry Red's Cherry Pop imprint which has so far encompassed lavish expanded editions of Take My Time and A Private Heaven, the debut of Live at the Palace, Hollywood; an EMI singles collection; and more. Now, Easton's third album - 1982's Madness, Money, and Music - has received the deluxe CD/DVD treatment, shedding some much-needed light on this often-overlooked LP. Madness, Money, and Music, titled for the edgy lament
UPDATE 10/9 - Once Upon a Dream: "Disney100" Collection Comes to CD
UPDATE 10/9: "I only hope that we never lose sight of one thing: that it was all started by a mouse." Walt Disney was, of course, speaking of his enduring creation, Mickey Mouse. The character's debut in the 1928 animated short subject Steamboat Willie was indeed the watershed moment from which decades of entertainment in every conceivable medium followed. But the business that became The Walt Disney Company had been founded five years earlier, in 1923, by brothers Walt and Roy. That's the
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays: Chicago Collects "Greatest Christmas Hits"
Does anybody really know what time it is? On November 3, the answer from Chicago will be "Christmas time," as that's the day the band releases a new collection of its happiest holiday tracks. Greatest Christmas Hits arrives on CD, vinyl, and digital formats from Rhino Records. On the same date, the label will reissue 2011's O Christmas Three and bundle together all three of Chicago's Christmas albums in one slipcased edition. Chicago - then consisting of founding members Robert Lamm, Lee
Here Goes: Frank Sinatra's "Platinum" Offers Retrospective of His Capitol Recordings
70 years ago, in 1953, Frank Sinatra made the move from Columbia Records to the Capitol label. Having chafed under the direction of Columbia's pop guru Mitch Miller, the future Chairman of the Board sought - and received - creative freedom at the Tower on Hollywood and Vine. Co-founded by songwriter Johnny Mercer, Capitol provided an artist-friendly environment in which Sinatra could, and would, thrive. On October 27, the label will release Frank Sinatra: Platinum, a 2CD, 4LP, or digital
Say Yes: Prog Band's Rare Single Edits Collected on Rhino's "Yessingles"
Think of Yes, and chances are you're not thinking of three-minute compact pop nuggets. The progressive heroes and FM rock mainstays did court the AM (and later, FM pop) radio market, though, from their early days through the crossover hit "Owner of a Lonely Heart" and beyond. On October 6, Rhino will round up a dozen of Yes' rare single versions for the compilation YESSINGLES. The compilation, which features various personnel and line-ups of the group from 1971-1983, will be available on
Life After Love: Cher's "Believe" Returns for 25th Anniversary with Bonus Remixes
Following the recent reissue of Cher's It's a Man's World, the superstar is once again revisiting her back catalogue - this time, with a deluxe edition of 1998's Believe. A 25th anniversary of the quadruple platinum seller arrives November 3 from Warner Records on 2 CDs, 3 LPs, or digitally. That's just a couple of weeks after her very first yuletide album, Christmas, hits stores on October 20. Cher professed to have no interest in a dance-oriented album when the Warner brass approached her
The Hills Are Alive! 'The Sound of Music' Goes Super Deluxe for the Holidays
By any standard, Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein II, Howard Lindsay, and Russel Crouse's The Sound of Music was a bona fide success from the moment the curtain rose at Broadway's Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on November 16, 1959. The production starring Mary Martin and Theodore Bikel was described by The New York Times' Brooks Atkinson as a "bountiful musical drama" with an "endless fund of cheerful melodies." It won five Tony Awards (besting stiff competition from Arthur Laurents, Jule Styne, and
Groovy Party at Jimmy's Magic Pad: Andrew Gold Extends "Greetings from Planet Love"
Greetings from Planet Love! So was titled the one and only album from The Fraternal Order of "The All." Who was The All? It turns out The All was rock-and-roll's favorite one-man band, the late Andrew Gold (1951-2011). In 1997, the singer-songwriter behind "Lonely Boy" and "Thank You for Being a Friend" - also a multi-instrumentalist, producer, and arranger who supported such friends as Linda Ronstadt and Art Garfunkel over the years - released this pseudonymous celebration of the
Wild Thing: The Jimi Hendrix Experience's "Hollywood Bowl 1967" Chronicles Never-Before-Released Gig
On August 23, 1967, Reprise Records would issue The Jimi Hendrix Experience's debut album, Are You Experienced, in North America. U.K. audiences had been hipped to the incendiary group consisting of Hendrix, drummer Mitch Mitchell, and bassist Noel Redding a couple of months earlier, when the album (with a unique track listing) arrived on the Track Records label. Five days before that auspicious U.S. record debut, on August 18, the trio took the stage of the Hollywood Bowl in front of a
I'm a Believer: Micky Dolenz Opens Up His Archive for "I'm Told I Had a Good Time"
It's often been said that if you remember the 1960s, you weren't really there. Well, Micky Dolenz has incontrovertible proof that he was there, and as he says, I'm Told I Had a Good Time. That's the title of the remarkable new tome from Beatland Books which chronicles the singer-drummer-actor's life from 1945-1978 via previously unpublished photographs, artwork, scripts, lyrics, and assorted miscellany. I'm Told I Had a Good Time, now available for pre-order with a December 6 ship date,
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