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In Memoriam: Lesley Gore (1946-2015)

February 16, 2015 By Joe Marchese 11 Comments

Lesley Gore

I last saw Lesley Gore on October 4, 2010. Lesley was one of a starry assemblage of artists paying tribute to Marvin Hamlisch at New York’s Symphony Space. Though I seem to recall her making a comment about the song not being part of her current repertoire, she gamely performed her 1965 hit “Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows” for her friend Marvin, its composer. If you closed your eyes, you were back in time to a more innocent era – whether you had actually been there or not – and filled with the

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Categories: News Formats: CD Genre: Pop Tags: Lesley Gore

The Last Ride: Rhino Reissues Ride Anthology "OX4"

February 16, 2015 By Joe Marchese 2 Comments

Ride OX4

On March 31, Rhino is taking a Ride with the shoegaze band of the same name. That’s the date the label will reissue Ride’s OX4, a 2001 best-of anthology, to coincide with the reunited group’s upcoming tour. Though the Oxford band released just four studio albums and a number of EPs between 1990 and 1996, its small discography has proven an influential one. Friends and art school students Mark Gardener and Andy Bell (guitar/vocals), along with Laurence "Loz" Colbert (drums) and Steve Queralt

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Categories: News Formats: CD Genre: Rock Tags: Ride

Grapefruit Collects Rare Psych-Pop From Pre-Deep Purple Episode Six, More on "Shapes and Shadows"

February 13, 2015 By Joe Marchese Leave a Comment

Shapes and Shadows

Musical renaissance man Les Reed is responsible for some of the most beloved pop tunes of all time – “It’s Not Unusual,” “There’s a Kind of Hush,” and “The Last Waltz” among them.  His songs have been recorded by Tom Jones, Elvis Presley, Shirley Bassey, Petula Clark and Bing Crosby.  Less well known is that Reed also founded a record label.  His Chapter One Records was formed in 1968 and lasted until 1973, releasing music by a diverse collection of artists including Episode Six (a proving

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Categories: News Formats: CD Genre: Pop Tags: Deep Purple, Les Reed, Mark Wirtz, Various Artists

Jethro Tull Returns to "The Gallery" with New "Minstrel" 2-CD/2-DVD Box Set

February 12, 2015 By Joe Marchese 7 Comments

JT Minstrel

Parlophone’s deluxe series of Jethro Tull reissues continues on May 5 with a book-style 2-CD/2-DVD set of the band’s eighth studio album, Minstrel in the Gallery.  This deluxe Minstrel, celebrating the 40th anniversary of the gold-certified album, follows last November’s reissue of Tull’s album No. 7, WarChild as well as expansions of Thick as a Brick, A Passion Play, Benefit and Aqualung.  (The latter received a super deluxe box treatment.)  Both Steven Wilson and Jakko Jakszyk are involved in

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Categories: News Formats: Box Sets, CD, DVD Genre: Classic Rock Tags: Jethro Tull

Spirit in the Night: Closing Night of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run" Tour Comes To Archive Series

February 12, 2015 By Joe Marchese 20 Comments

Bruce Tower Theater 1975

Bruce Springsteen is continuing his live Archive Series of CDs which began last year with the release of the Apollo Theater, New York City concert of March 12, 2012 and the Agora Theatre, Cleveland show of August 9, 1978 (from The Darkness on the Edge of Town tour).  The newest release, for which pre-orders began Tuesday, takes fans back to the Tower Theatre, Philadelphia, on December 31, 1975 when Springsteen and the E Street Band held the stage for an electrifying night. The last night of

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Categories: News Formats: CD, Digital Download Genre: Classic Rock, Rock Tags: Bruce Springsteen

Listen, People: Bear Family Compiles Herman's Hermits Anthology, Premieres Stereo Mixes

February 11, 2015 By Joe Marchese 12 Comments

Hermans Hermits Bear Family

Bear Family Records is into something good! On March 27, the reissue specialists will unveil The Best of Herman’s Hermits: The 50th Anniversary Anthology, a two-CD, 66-song collection including all of the band’s classic hit records plus demos, B-sides, rarities and a 140-page (!) booklet. For this set which totals almost three hours of music, a whopping 56 tracks are promised to appear for the very first time in true stereo mixes. Herman’s Hermits burst onto the pop scene with their 1964

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Categories: News Formats: CD Genre: Pop Tags: Herman's Hermits

One Little Spark: New Label Launches With Kate Bush, Ben Folds, Laura Nyro, "The Sound of Music"

February 10, 2015 By Joe Marchese 3 Comments

Analog Spark

With its upcoming roster boasting titles from Kate Bush, Ben Folds Five, The Dave Brubeck Quartet, Laura Nyro and Julie Andrews, the new audiophile label Analog Spark is pulling out all the stops for its debut this spring. Yesterday, Razor & Tie announced the launch of Analog Spark, a new imprint which will focus on reissued releases on both 180-gram vinyl and SACD. Razor & Tie co-owners Cliff Chenfeld and Craig Balsam commented, “We’re very excited about the launch of Analog Spark

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Categories: News Formats: SACD, Vinyl Genre: Jazz, Pop, Rock, Soundtracks Tags: Ben Folds Five, Julie Andrews, Kate Bush, Laura Nyro, The Dave Brubeck Quartet

Wish Upon a Star: Walt Disney Records' Legacy Collection Revisits "Pinocchio"

February 9, 2015 By Joe Marchese 1 Comment

Pinocchio

Just last month, Walt Disney Records celebrated the 75th anniversary of Fantasia by releasing a new addition to the label’s Legacy Collection with a 4-CD reissue of the original soundtrack to that film.  However, Fantasia is not the only Disney classic to turn 75 this year.   1940 was a pretty good year for the animation studio, as the classic Pinocchio also saw release during those twelve months.   On February 10, 2015 (almost to the day the film premiered three-quarters of a century ago:

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Categories: News Formats: CD Genre: Soundtracks Tags: Cliff Edwards, Leigh Harline, Ned Washington, Paul Smith

Too Hot to Stop It: Funky Town Reissues, Expands The Manhattans, Phyllis Hyman, James Brown

February 9, 2015 By Joe Marchese Leave a Comment

Manhattans Theres No Me

Funky Town Grooves is planning on a busy February and March with a heaping helping of music from soul royalty including The Manhattans, Phyllis Hyman and Soul Brother No. 1 himself, James Brown. FTG recently reissued four titles from The Manhattans’ long-neglected-on-CD Columbia discography: There’s No Good in Goodbye (1978), After Midnight (1980), Black Tie (1981) and Forever by Your Side (1983). Now, the label has recently announced the addition of three more of the group’s Columbia albums

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Categories: News Formats: CD Genre: R&B/Soul Tags: James Brown, Phyllis Hyman, The Manhattans

Make Me Smile: Mobile Fidelity Brings "Chicago Transit Authority," "Chicago II" To SACD

February 6, 2015 By Joe Marchese 4 Comments

Chicago II

Does anybody really know what time it is?  Happily, it’s time for Mobile Fidelity to continue its series of limited edition hybrid stereo SACDs for the Chicago catalogue.  MoFi has previously issued 1973’s Chicago VI on SACD and 1984’s Chicago 17 on 24k Gold CD, but now the label has turned back the clock to the very beginning.  And when the very beginning is the one-two punch of 1969’s Chicago Transit Authority and 1970’s Chicago II on SACD, it’s a very good place to start, indeed. Long

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Categories: News Formats: SACD Genre: Classic Rock, Pop Tags: Chicago

A Time In Her Life: Ace Reissues Sarah Vaughan's Soul-Jazz Classic

February 5, 2015 By Joe Marchese 1 Comment

Sarah Vaughan A Time in My Life

By 1971, the expansion of the Great American Songbook was well underway. It became clear to many that the songs of Burt Bacharach and Hal David, John Lennon and Paul McCartney, Jimmy Webb, Joni Mitchell, Carole King and Gerry Goffin, Bob Dylan and their contemporaries were more than just a flash in the pan. The most prescient observers could have realized – and some did – that these songs would one day be sung in programs alongside those of Cole Porter, Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, Irving

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Categories: News, Reviews Formats: CD Genre: Jazz, R&B/Soul Tags: Sarah Vaughan

Donovan, Mick Softley, More Featured On "The Eve Folk Recordings"

February 4, 2015 By Joe Marchese Leave a Comment

Eve Folk Recordings

In 1965, Geoff Stephens and Peter Eden entered into an agreement with EMI’s Columbia label to capitalize on the folk boom Britain was then experiencing.  The deal between Stephens and Eden and EMI was to produce four LPs.  Though the fourth never materialized, the three albums released under the banner of The Eve Folk Recordings have been collected, along with bonus tracks, on RPM’s 2014 two-CD set of the same name.  Stephens and Eden’s early managerial client, Donovan, is featured, along with

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Categories: News Formats: CD Genre: Folk Tags: Bob Davenport, Donovan, Mick Softley, Vernon Haddock

More Fun In Space: Omnivore Reissues, Expands Two From Roger Taylor

February 2, 2015 By Joe Marchese Leave a Comment

Roger Taylor Strange Frontier

On the heels of 2014’s career-spanning box set The Lot and the single-disc anthology The Best, Omnivore Recordings continues to unfold the solo story of Queen’s Roger Taylor with two reissues due on March 24. On that date, the label will unveil expanded editions of Taylor’s first two solo albums, 1981’s Fun in Space and 1984’s Strange Frontier. Fun in Space found Taylor truly striking out on his own, as all of the sounds heard on the record were performed and played by him save “approximately

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Categories: News Formats: CD, Vinyl Genre: Rock Tags: Queen, Roger Taylor

You Should Be Dancing! Bee Gees' "1974-1979" Box Set Arrives in March

February 2, 2015 By Joe Marchese 7 Comments

Bee Gees 1974 1979

The legacy of The Bee Gees is stayin’ alive with the March 24 release of a new box set celebrating the group at its commercial peak. Bee Gees: 1974-1979 follows in the footsteps and basic format of 2014’s The Warner Bros. Years: 1987-1991, housing within a compact clamshell box four original studio albums plus a bonus disc of B-sides and single releases. 1974-1979 box begins with 1974’s Mr. Natural and continues with Main Course (1975), Children of the World (1976) and Spirits Having Flown

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Categories: News Formats: Box Sets, CD Genre: Disco/Dance, Pop, R&B/Soul Tags: Barry Gibb, Bee Gees, Maurice Gibb, Robin Gibb

They're Gonna Step On You Again: Esoteric Reissues Bakerloo, Gasoline Band, John Kongos

January 30, 2015 By Joe Marchese 1 Comment

Bakerloo

Esoteric Recordings closed out 2014 with a trio of typically eclectic, and yes, esoteric rock releases deserving of a spotlight – including a pair of albums produced by Gus Dudgeon and a lost horn-rock LP in the tradition of Chicago and Blood, Sweat and Tears! Before joining Colosseum and replacing Peter Frampton in Humble Pie, Dave “Clem” Clempson was a member of the blues-rock trio Bakerloo.  Though Bakerloo only released one album, its members – Clempson, Terry Poole and Keith Baker – went

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Categories: News Formats: CD Genre: Classic Rock Tags: Bakerloo, John Kongos, The Gasoline Band

Children Of The (Vinyl) Revolution: The Who, T Rex Turn To Vinyl For Upcoming Box Sets, Reissues

January 29, 2015 By Joe Marchese 2 Comments

tommy

The 50th anniversary celebration of The Who is rolling on.  The band kicked off its golden festivities with the Fall 2014 release of The Who Hits 50, a compilation available in various formats, and with the announcement of a tour of the same name.  Now, the band has confirmed a number of vinyl releases to arrive this spring. On March 24, all eleven of The Who's albums will be reissued in remastered editions pressed on 180-gram vinyl, joined by a 2-LP edition of The Who Hits 50 collection

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Categories: News Formats: CD Genre: Classic Rock Tags: T Rex, The Who

Unchained Melodies: Ace Collects "The London American Label 1965" with The Righteous Brothers, Burt Bacharach, The Vogues, More

January 29, 2015 By Joe Marchese 5 Comments

London American 1965

With the recently-released tenth volume of its year-by-year chronicle, Ace’s The London American Label series revisits 1965.  Though America was swept up in the sounds of the British Invasion, Great Britain was still interested in the music from the United States – as evidenced by the 27 selections here drawn from 72 singles.  That said, the tide was turning; London American issued 109 singles in 1964 and 177 in 1963.  Hit-wise, though, the London American label yielded 11 chart records in 1965

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Categories: News Formats: CD Genre: Pop, R&B/Soul Tags: Burt Bacharach, Lou Johnson, The Righteous Brothers, The Ronettes, The Vogues, Various Artists

Star-Spangled Rodeo: Glen Campbell's "Rhinestone Cowboy" Turns 40, Gets Expanded Edition

January 28, 2015 By Joe Marchese 3 Comments

Glen Campbell Rhinestone Cowboy

When the 87th Annual Academy Award nominations were announced on January 15, fans of legendary entertainer Glen Campbell no doubt rejoiced at his first-ever Academy Award nomination. Campbell and co-writer Julian Raymond received a Best Original Song nod for “I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” the singer-songwriter’s touching farewell from the soundtrack of the documentary film I'll Be Me. It followed news of two Grammy nominations for the song. Campbell, of course, is in the midst of a valiant and very

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Categories: News Formats: CD, Digital Download, Vinyl Genre: Country, Pop Tags: Glen Campbell

Lalo Schifrin Casts a Spell On Two New Reissues From Tabu Label

January 28, 2015 By Joe Marchese 1 Comment

lalo schifrin gypsies

It’s never been easy to pigeonhole Lalo Schifrin. The four-time Grammy-winning Argentinian composer created one of the most memorable television themes of all time with his “Mission: Impossible,” recorded jazz albums for labels including Verve and Creed Taylor’s CTI, worked with Count Basie, Cannonball Adderley and Sarah Vaughan, and scored innumerable films, racking up six Oscar nominations in the process. Now, Demon Music Group has reissued two lost gems of the Schifrin oeuvre, both originally

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Categories: News Formats: CD, Digital Download Genre: Jazz Tags: Lalo Schifrin

What's a Matter Baby: RPM Rounds Up Timi Yuro Rarities

January 27, 2015 By Joe Marchese 2 Comments

Timi Yuro Rarities

The late Rosemary “Timi” Yuro, a.k.a. “the little girl with the big voice,” is still fondly remembered today by music aficionados for her full-throated rendition of “Hurt,” a No. 4 Pop/No. 2 Easy Listening hit in 1961. Signed at first to Liberty Records, Timi went on to record a number of other hits including Burt Bacharach and Hal David’s “The Love of a Boy” (No. 44 Pop, 1962) and producer Clyde Otis and Joy Byers’ "What's a Matter Baby (Is It Hurting You?)” (No. 12 Pop, 1962). Through two

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Categories: News Formats: CD Genre: Pop Tags: Timi Yuro

Harmless Readies Massive 10-Disc "Northern Soul Time Capsule"

January 26, 2015 By Joe Marchese 3 Comments

Hot on the heels of the 2014 release of the film Northern Soul and its soundtrack, Demon Music Group’s Harmless Records imprint is celebrating the R&B subgenre with what’s likely its most exhaustive chronicle ever: the 8-CD/2-DVD box set The Odyssey: A Northern Soul Time Capsule. This massive set, due on February 16, has been co-compiled by Harmless’ chief and 1970s Northern Soul DJ Ian Dewhirst, and features diverse tracks from artists including The Spinners, Chuck Jackson, Gladys Knight

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Categories: News Formats: Box Sets, CD, DVD Genre: R&B/Soul Tags: Various Artists

RPM Round-Up: Label Collects Mick Fleetwood's Early Days with Bo Street Runners Plus Mark Wirtz, Pelican

January 23, 2015 By Joe Marchese Leave a Comment

Bo Street Runners

As three recent titles prove, Cherry Red’s RPM label leaves no stone unturned in its pursuit of rare pop music to issue on CD, living up to its credo “By Collectors – For Collectors.” Much like The Artwoods (also recently the subject of a compilation from RPM), The Bo Street Runners were among the exciting mod R&B revivalist bands that London had to offer in the mid-sixties. However, The Runners – like The Artwoods, The Action and so many others – never attained the top tier of commercial

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Categories: News Formats: CD Genre: Classic Rock, Pop, R&B/Soul Tags: Bo Street Runners, Mark Wirtz, Mick Fleetwood, Pelican, The Matchmakers

Something Good: Legacy Expands "The Sound of Music," Classic Soundtrack Also Comes to SACD and Vinyl

January 21, 2015 By Joe Marchese Leave a Comment

Sound of Music

The hills are alive again! On March 10, Legacy Recordings will reissue RCA Victor’s chart-topping 1965 soundtrack to Rodgers and Hammerstein’s five-time Academy Award-winning The Sound of Music in a new 50th anniversary edition to coincide with the golden anniversary release on Blu-ray.  Collectors will note that expanded CD reissues of the classic musical soundtrack starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer are as inevitable as raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens; editions have

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Categories: News Formats: Blu-Ray, Box Sets, CD, SACD, Vinyl Genre: Soundtracks Tags: Julie Andrews, Rodgers and Hammerstein

Unbroken Chain: Rhino Celebrates 50 Years of Grateful Dead with New 2-CD Anthology

January 21, 2015 By Joe Marchese 1 Comment

Best of Grateful Dead

“What a long, strange trip it’s been,” asserted the Grateful Dead on 1970’s American Beauty. It’s doubtful that the band members could have imagined that the long, strange trip would still be continuing in 2015 – 45 years after “Truckin’” and 50 years after Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Ron “Pigpen” McKernan and Bill Kreutzmann first came together. 50th anniversary plans have recently been revealed including a documentary from director Amir Bar-Lev and executive producer Martin Scorsese and

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Categories: News Formats: CD Genre: Classic Rock Tags: The Grateful Dead

Magnificent! Esoteric Revisits The Moody Blues' Debut With Lavish 2-CD Expanded Edition

January 21, 2015 By Joe Marchese 7 Comments

Magnificent Moodies

Fifty years ago this coming July, Decca released the modestly-titled The Magnificent Moodies, the first long-player from Birmingham band The Moody Blues.  It would prove to be the only album release for the original quintet, but the Moodies – including founding member Graeme Edge – are still going strong today.  The group’s landmark 50th has recently been marked by Cherry Red’s Esoteric Recordings imprint with the reissue of The Magnificent Moodies in a deluxe, 2-CD mini-box set format. The

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Categories: News Formats: CD Genre: Classic Rock Tags: The Moody Blues

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