I. In Every Job That Must Be Done, There is An Element of Fun When you're a child - no matter where you're from, or how perceptive you may be about such things - it's easy to get a sixth sense about something you watch or read and just feel is different from the rest of what you've watched or seen. The Wizard of Oz is that way for many people. So too is Mary Poppins, P.L. Travers' series of books about a magical nanny that was adapted into a colorful musical film by Walt Disney Studios in 1964.
Twilights Time: The Complete 1960s Recordings
The Twilights formed in Adelaide, Australia in 1964 by guitarist Peter Brideoake, bassist John Bywaters, and Clem "Paddy" McCartney and future Little River Band co-founder Glenn Shorrock on lead vocals. Shortly after forming, lead guitarist Terry Britten (who would go on to co-write such hit songs as "What's Love Got to Do with It") and drummer Laurie Pryor would join up as replacements for Kevin Peek and Frank Barnard, respectively. Despite charting nearly a dozen successful singles in
I Like It! Anthology 1963-1966
Liverpool's own Gerry and the Pacemakers were key players in the Merseybeat and British Invasion scenes with such timeless George Martin-produced hits as "Ferry Cross the Mersey," "How Do You Do It," and "Don't Let the Sun Catch You Crying." The Gerry Marsden-led group was definitively chronicled in 2008 on the EMI box set You'll Never Walk Alone: The EMI Years 1963-1966, with 123 tracks on 4 CDs. But now, more than 15 years have passed, and that set has become long out-of-print. So Cherry
Pour a Little Sugar on It: The Chewy Chewy Sounds of American Bubblegum 1966-1971
Perhaps the most fun release of the year - and certainly the sweetest - is this entry in Cherry Red's ongoing series of themed compilations. Pour a Little Sugar on It: The Chewy Chewy Sounds of American Bubblegum 1966-1971, on the Grapefruit imprint, brings together 91 tracks from the golden age of bubblegum music. Naturally, there are plenty of songs with food allusions ("Yummy Yummy Yummy," "Candy Apple Cotton Candy," "Gingersnap," and, of course, "Chewy Chewy" among them)...and artists with
The Weekend Stream: December 6, 2024
Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc's review of notable catalogue titles (and some new ones, too!) making digital debuts. Elton John's most recent recording gets a remix, plus some rare Prince-produced '90s R&B, a comeback track from one of 2010s pop's most underrated performers, and some Christmas curios you'll have to hear to believe. There's even a tearjerker music video from...Coldplay? Check it all out! Elton John, "Never Too Late" (Acoustic Version)
Release Round-Up: Week of December 6
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles out today. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Laura Nyro, Hear My Song: The Collection 1966-1995 (Madfish) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Madfish) Over three years after the release of its 8LP vinyl box set American Dreamer 1967-1978, the Madfish label is returning to the discography of late singer-songwriter Laura Nyro for the 19CD box set Hear My Song: The
Holiday Gift Guide Review: Bob Dylan and The Band, "The 1974 Live Recordings"
Big things often come in small packages. Such is the case with Legacy Recordings' recent excavation of Bob Dylan and The Band's 1974 tour. 40 concerts took place over 30 dates and 21 cities, with Dylan, Robbie Robertson, Garth Hudson, Richard Manuel, Levon Helm, and Rick Danko even playing two shows in one day in many markets. The 1974 Live Recordings takes the form of a tiny cube, packing in 27 discs and 431 tracks (417 of which are previously unreleased). The set contains every
Holiday Gift Guide Review: The Beatles, "1964 U.S. Albums in Mono"
Any Time at All Did The Beatles save rock and roll? If John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr didn't save the still-young form, they certainly gifted it with a reinvigorating, exhilarating jolt of musical euphoria the likes of which hadn't been seen before - and hasn't been duplicated since. The scene was early 1964. Buddy Holly was long gone, and the big hits had dried up - at the moment, at least - for Jerry Lee Lewis and Little Richard. Elvis had served his
Rock Billy Boogie: Expanded Edition
CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 7a Records celebrates a late, great rockabilly revivalist with this expanded reissue of Rock Billy Boogie from Robert Gordon on both limited-edition 180-gram vinyl and CD. The 1979 album, featuring the lead guitar of Chris Spedding, marked Gordon's major label breakthrough and remains perhaps his finest (half) hour on record, featuring both original songs and energetic covers of familiar oldies
A Celebration
The full 3CD version of Judy Garland: A Celebration - Classic & Collectable Performances (also available as a 1LP "highlights" release) contains 73 tracks or more than 3 hours of music, including a dozen new-to-CD tracks, many from private collectors' archives, from the late superstar. These previously unreleased recordings include seven Capitol overdubs from her 1956 album Judy arranged and conducted by Nelson Riddle, all freshly restored from acetates; rare television performances
The Alternate "Judy" Album: Unreleased Session Takes and More
The folks at High Definition Tape Transfers have unearthed a clutch of alternate takes from Judy Garland's 1956 Capitol album, Judy. These takes from those March 1956 sessions arranged and conducted by Nelson Riddle form the basis of this new digital release (also available on CD-R). Judy remains one of Garland's master classes in vocal interpretation - aided, in no small part, by Riddle's sympathetic charts - and so it's fascinating to gain a glimpse into her process with early versions of
THE SECOND DISC'S 2024 HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE IS HERE!
Well, today is Cyber Monday, which means one thing at Second Disc HQ: it's time to launch our annual Holiday Gift Guide, featuring (more than) a few of our favorite things for the music enthusiast in your life. Sure, we might not have included raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens, but we've filled the guide with over 50 essential selections: sprawling box sets and deluxe vinyl editions, as well as noteworthy releases on CD from favorite artists that just might make great stocking stuffers.
Wicked: The Soundtrack
CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Target (with fold-out poster) / Barnes & Noble (alternate cover) 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Target (split green/pink) What else can we say? Wicked just might be the most highly-anticipated film of the year, and here's the soundtrack (featuring the songs heard in Act One of the long-running Broadway musical...fans of Act Two will have to wait until the next movie!). Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jeff Goldblum, Jonathan
Recording Broadway: A Life in Cast Albums
Thomas Z. Shepard is among the most celebrated of all classical and show music record producers, counting 12 Grammy Awards to his name (including four for the musicals of Stephen Sondheim). Now, Shepard (with co-author Gayden Wren) is telling his singular story of coming up through the ranks at Columbia and RCA at a most extraordinary time, and peeling the curtain back on how some of the most famous cast albums of all time - including the original Company and Sweeney Todd - were made. As an
The Man with the Golden Gun / Moonraker
La-La Land is closing out 2024 with an amazing pair of expanded releases: lovingly-restored John Barry scores to James Bond films The Man with the Golden Gun (1974) and Moonraker (1979), both reissued for their 50th and 45th anniversaries. Golden Gun, Roger Moore's second go-round as Ian Fleming's Agent 007, featured a Barry score with its now-standard pop song heard in the film's opening title sequence: a melodramatic number with lyrics by Don Black sung by "To Sir, with Love" singer Lulu.
Here We Are: Original Cast Recording
CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Here's the vinyl debut of of the most hotly-anticipated cast recordings of the season: Here We Are, the final musical to feature music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. (David Ives penned the book.) Bucking the recent trend of most cast recordings releasing digitally in advance of physical availability, both the CD and digital album arrived back in May. The album features David Hyde Pierce, Steven
A Christopher Cross Christmas
This Christmas album by "Sailing" and "Arthur's Theme" vocalist Christopher Cross was originally released in 2007. It contains the yacht rock pioneer's versions of 10 yuletide classics ("Silent Night," "I'll Be Home For Christmas," and "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, among others) along with two original songs written with longtime collaborator Rob Meurer: "Does It Feel Like Christmas" and "A Dream of Peace at Christmastime." Cross produced the album himself but has guests on the
Christmas Jollies I + II: The Extra Jolly Edition
The Second Disc has teamed with SoulMusic Records for the definitive celebration of the Christmas disco/Philly soul classic. The Salsoul Orchestra's Christmas Jollies I + II: The Extra Jolly Edition brings together Vincent Montana, Jr.'s original Christmas Jollies plus Tom Moulton's complete 1992 remix and producer Patrick Adams' rare follow-up, Christmas Jollies II. But that's not all. The Extra Jolly Edition adds nearly a dozen bonus single versions and remixes (most of which are new to CD)
Stones in the Road: Expanded Edition
In 1994, Mary Chapin Carpenter was at the pinnacle of country music. The singer-songwriter's fourth album for Columbia, Come On Come On, was the biggest seller of her career. Singles were still being released from that album in early 1994 and later in the year she released her next endeavor: Stones in the Road. While it ultimately would not sell as many copies as Come On Come On, it would have higher chart success and garner prestigious awards. Carpenter was backed by an A-list band on the
Twilley: Expanded Edition
Twilley, the power pop hero's first solo album following two acclaimed albums with The Dwight Twilley Band, originally arrived in 1979 on Arista Records in the United States. The late singer-songwriter (1951-2023) was joined by a core band including Bill Pitcock IV on lead guitar, Jim Lewis on bass and drums, and Noah Shark on percussion, with Greg Block joining on violin for "Runaway," Jerry Naifeh playing drums on "Runaway" and "It Takes a Lot of Love," and DTB's Phil Seymour guesting on
The Weekend Stream: November 30, 2024
Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc's review of notable catalogue titles (and some new ones, too!) making digital debuts. The Christmas season means favorites (quite) old and (sort of) new, plus Wang Chung's first album and a rock and hip-hop packed slasher film soundtrack. Band Aid, Do They Know It's Christmas? EP (Band Aid Trading Limited/UMC) EP: iTunes / Amazon Single Version: iTunes / Amazon Extended Version: iTunes / Amazon Just over four decades
Release Round-Up: Week of November 29
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! While most labels are concentrating today on Record Store Day's Black Friday releases, we've chosen to spotlight a few non-RSD titles out today, as well. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Tommy Steele, On Air (Stage Door Pop) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) Stage Door Records' Pop imprint celebrates The Happiest Millionaire and Half a Sixpence star Tommy Steele with On Air, a collection of 31 tracks culled
You're as Right as Rain: The Capitol Albums 1970-1980
TSD has teamed with our friends at Cherry Red and SoulMusic Records to commemorate a special decade for late chanteuse Nancy Wilson. The new 7CD box set You're as Right as Rain has 12 albums originally released between 1970 and 1980 - many of which are now hard-to-find on CD - for a total of 124 tracks including four long out-of-print bonus tracks. The set features Nancy's collaborations with such talents as Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff, Thom Bell, Eugene McDaniels, Clarence McDonald, and Gene
The Weekend Stream: November 23, 2024
Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc's review of notable catalogue titles (and some new ones, too!) making digital debuts. We've got Beach Boys covers with some fascinating history related to the band, a tribute to one of the greatest musical icons we lost this year, a new single from a legend of R&B and much more - plus a call to action to help a family in need. California Music, Don't Worry Baby EP (RCA) (iTunes / Amazon) One of the most unusual
Release Round-Up: Week of November 22
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles in stores today including a Christmas classic from Second Disc Records/Real Gone Music and a whole bunch of massive box sets! As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Sings Christmas Carols (Expanded Edition) (Second Disc/Real Gone) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Real Gone Music) Over the past decade, we here at TSD have happily partnered with Real
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