Will the real Big Star’s Third please stand up? That’s a loaded question, for it’s possible that there never, in fact, was a “real” version of the album recorded at Memphis’ Ardent Studios in 1974 by Alex Chilton and Jody Stephens with producer-engineer Jim Dickinson, studio owner John Fry and engineer Richard Rosebrough. Chilton even asserted numerous times that the sessions were never intended to yield a Big Star album at all. (One potential name for the duo of Chilton and Stephens was
Review: David Bowie, "Who Can I Be Now? 1974-1976"
Who Can I Be Now? asks the title of Parlophone's second in a series of elegant, chronologically-assembled box sets dedicated to the late David Bowie's oeuvre. Indeed, Bowie might have made that query as he reinvented himself in fashion and music from album to album. The twelve discs comprising Who Can I Be Now? span the brief period of 1974-1976 during which time Bowie was riding high on both sides of the Atlantic with his genre- and gender-bending brand of theatrical rock. This set, every
Intervention Records Brings "Stealers Wheel" To Hybrid SACD/CD
Clowns to the left of me...jokers to the right...It must be Stealers Wheel! Earlier this year, Intervention Records released exquisite vinyl reissues of the first two albums from the Scottish folk-rock band. Now, the label has revisited the group's 1972 self-titled debut album (originally released on A&M Records) in the hybrid SACD format, playable on all CD players. Stealers Wheel - featuring lead guitarist Paul Pilnick, bassist Tony Williams and drummer Rod Coombes - boasts some
Review: Fleetwood Mac, "Mirage: Deluxe Edition"
When Fleetwood Mac entered the Château d'Hérouville studio outside Paris at the dawn of the 1980s, the band had one goal in mind: to create a commercial pop success in the mold of their record-breaking Rumours. Not everyone in the quintet was sold on this goal, necessarily, especially after the quantum leap forward from Rumours into the beautiful madness that was Tusk. But while Tusk sold four million copies, it couldn't help but be viewed as a disappointment after the world domination of its
Review: The Beatles, "Live at The Hollywood Bowl"
And now...here they are...The Beatles! The summers of 1964 and 1965 are now more than fifty years in the rearview mirror, yet the music made by four lads from Liverpool over three evenings at Los Angeles' famous Hollywood Bowl now sounds so fresh and so immediate, you could believe it was recorded yesterday. Such is the work of the sonic wizards on Capitol/Apple/UMe's first-time-on-CD, retitled, remixed and expanded reissue of The Beatles' Live at the Hollywood Bowl (B0025451-02,
Review: Chicago, "Quadio"
Surround yourself with Chicago! With the recent release of Rhino's immense - and immensely enjoyable - new box set Quadio, it's possible to enjoy the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame-honored band's classic 1969-1976 albums with added dimension: that of 4.0-channel quadraphonic sound. The nine Blu-ray Audio discs on Quadio (playable on all Blu-ray players) present every one of Chicago's studio albums from Chicago Transit Authority through Chicago X, plus IX: Chicago's Greatest Hits, in remastered
Moving On: Esoteric Expands The Move's "Something Else" and "Looking On"
Esoteric Recordings has recently continued its series of Move reissues with expanded editions of the band's 1968 EP Something Else from The Move, and its 1970 studio album Looking On. Something Else began life as a 5-track mono EP culled from performances at London's Marquee Club on February 27 and May 5, 1968. Between those two gigs, bassist Chris "Ace" Kefford had departed the group's roster, leaving it a four-piece consisting of Carl Wayne on vocals, Roy Wood on guitar/vocals, Trevor
Review: The Kinks, "Everybody's in Show-Biz: Legacy Edition"
When Kinks bio-musical Sunny Afternoon took home the 2015 Olivier Award for Best Musical, it must surely have been a sweet moment for composer-lyricist and band frontman Ray Davies, whose concept albums and rock operas have long bore the hallmarks of strong theatrical storytelling. (He's also written a handful of musicals over the years.) By the time of 1972's Everybody's In Show-Biz, Davies was already pushing the envelope of his quintessentially British sound, incorporating rootsy American
Hear The Grass Grow: Esoteric Expands Two From The Move
The Move has seen no shortage of reissues over the years, but collectors can now finally embrace the definitive editions of the Birmingham band's classic self-titled album and follow-up Shazam! from Cherry Red's Esoteric Recordings imprint. Esoteric has just reissued The Move in a 3-CD edition and Shazam! in a 2-CD expansion, both of which add copious previously unreleased material. ("Highlights" versions are also available.) These two titles kick off the Move campaign from Esoteric which
Joe Jackson's "I'm the Man" Returns On Vinyl From Intervention Records
Joe Jackson appears on the cover of his 1979 sophomore album, I'm the Man, as a "spiv": a British term for a peculiar kind of petty criminal "always trying to sell you a watch or something like that, real cheap," in the artist's words. But Jackson didn't have to resort to any cheap come-ons to hawk I'm the Man, a solid follow-up to his impressive debut Look Sharp! which arrived just months after that seminal release. Despite the quick turnaround, I'm the Man hailed from the same inspired
The Many "Sides" Of Anthony Phillips: Esoteric Expands Genesis Guitarist's Albums in Stereo, Surround
Esoteric Recordings has continued its series of definitive reissues from Genesis members Anthony Phillips, Tony Banks and Steve Hackett with two new mini-box sets dedicated to Phillips' solo albums Wise After the Event (1978) and Sides (1979). These 3-CD/1-DVD-A releases follow Esoteric's 2015 box set expansion of his pastoral solo debut The Geese and the Ghost as well as the label's compendium of his Private Parts and Pieces volumes. Wise After the Event remains Phillips' only album on which
Bang The Drum All Day: Edsel Reissues Todd Rundgren's "For Lack of Honest Work"
The new 3-CD, 43-song set of live Todd Rundgren performances from Edsel is entitled For Lack of Honest Work: A Live History 1971-2006, after Todd's song "Honest Work." But all of his joking with the title aside, Rundgren's career has been all honest work - as he's doubtless remained true to himself through various musical incarnations over the past near-50 years. This set, the latest fine Rundgren release from the Edsel label, chronicles all of those "Rundgren variations" as captured between
Review: Stealers Wheel on Vinyl: "Stealers Wheel" and "Ferguslie Park"
Intervention Records launched in 2015 with a simple mission statement: "To provide archive-quality LPs of music we love," with the goal that "each record we do must be the single definitive, final version of that album, the one real music lovers will seek out." Happily, the label's early releases have all more than lived up to those lofty goals! The first two albums from Gerry Rafferty and Joe Egan's Stealers Wheel might not have been the most expected titles for vinyl reissue in 2016, but
Still Driving: America Releases "Lost and Found" On Vinyl
Last year, Gerry Beckley and Dewey Bunnell, a.k.a. America, released two significant archival collections bookending their still-thriving career. Archives Vol. 1 presented 15 previously unreleased alternate versions, early mixes, demos, rehearsals and outtakes spanning the halcyon period between America's 1971 debut album America and 1975's Hearts. These, of course, featured Beckley and Bunnell in addition to original member Dan Peek. Lost and Found pressed fast-forward on the band's history
And The Wheels Keep Turning: Esoteric Reissues Two Tony Banks Albums As CD/DVD Sets
Last year, Tony Banks went A Chord Too Far with a career-spanning box set; now, the Genesis keyboardist has teamed once more with Esoteric Recordings for a CD/DVD edition of his sophomore solo album, 1983's The Fugitive. The first disc presents a new stereo mix of the album plus two bonus tracks, while the DVD includes a DTS 5.1 surround mix, a 96/24 PCM stereo mix, and a promotional music video. The Fugitive has recently arrived alongside a new pressing of the similar 2009 CD/DVD reissue of
Review: Raspberries, "Raspberries" Vinyl Edition
When Eric Carmen and Wally Bryson of Cyrus Eyrie teamed up with Jim Bonfanti and Dave Smalley of The Choir, the result was pop bliss. The Raspberries emerged from the ashes from the two bands, and over the course of four albums - three with the original line-up, and one with just Carmen and Bryson remaining - they came to define power pop. Yet today, some might wonder: Why is the Cleveland, Ohio band so fondly remembered despite only placing one Top 5 single in the U.S. and two more Top 20s?
Review: JD Souther, "Black Rose" and "Home By Dawn" Expanded Editions
Omnivore Recordings continues to mine one of the great underrated catalogues in contemporary pop-rock with two more titles from singer-songwriter JD Souther. Black Rose (1976) has been joined on compact disc by Home by Dawn (1984) with both titles splendidly remastered and featuring previously unreleased bonus tracks. These definitive reissues aren't to be missed. The wide-ranging Black Rose, originally released on Asylum Records, remains Souther's most diverse and expansive musical
Review: JD Souther, "John David Souther (Expanded Edition)"
In 2007, a new song from the Eagles blazed onto the radio airwaves, climbing to a Top 10 AC/Top 25 Country berth on the Billboard charts. But the infectious, breezy "How Long," with its classic Eagles sound, wasn't new at all. The song was written by JD Souther and included on his 1972 Asylum Records debut John David Souther. When the Eagles included it on Long Road Out of Eden, the band's first studio album since 1979, it rekindled the creative relationship with Souther, an "honorary Eagle"
Sister Golden Hair Surprise: America Opens Its "Archives" On New Release
The vaults are open! The legacy of the enduring band America has received a long-overdue celebration with the recent release on compact disc and digital download of Archives Vol. 1. Featuring the versatile, original trio of Gerry Beckley, Dewey Bunnell and the late Dan Peek (as well as the talented musicians and producers who contributed mightily to the band's earliest albums), Archives is a 15-track, non-chronological collection of previously unreleased alternate versions, early mixes, demos,
Along Comes "1966": Ace Anthology Features The Supremes, The Who, Velvet Underground, Bowie, More
Was 1966 the greatest year ever in popular music? The case could certainly be made for its significance - and Jon Savage has done just that in his new book 1966: The Year the Decade Exploded. Savage's book looks at the events and culture of the year in twelve essays, each one built around one 45 RPM record. Naturally, such a book deserves a soundtrack, and Ace Records has seen to it that it receives one with the companion volume of the same name. Jon Savage's 1966: The Year the Decade
Review: Fleetwood Mac, "Tusk: Deluxe Edition"
Can an album that sold four million copies be fairly called a cult classic? If the answer is yes, that album would certainly be Fleetwood Mac's Tusk. One of the most willfully unconventional albums ever made, the follow-up to Rumours nonetheless went multi-platinum. Nobody expected the band that had already morphed from blues-rock to the epitome of California pop-rock (and everything in between) to defiantly go the "art-rock" route, yet that's precisely what Mick Fleetwood, John McVie,
Do You Know What I Mean: Lee Michaels Celebrated On New Box Set, Anthology
The enigmatic Lee Michaels is back. No, the cult favorite singer-songwriter who once graced the rosters of A&M and Columbia Records hasn't recorded a new album; he's been happily retired from the music business since the early 1980s. But Michaels has given his blessing to a definitive new compact disc box set collecting all seven of his A&M albums originally released between 1967 and 1973 as well as a new single-disc anthology drawing on the same period. Manifesto Records' The
Review: Bob Dylan, "The Cutting Edge 1965-1966: The Bootleg Series Volume 12"
I. Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan On Wednesday, January 13, 1965, Bob Dylan recorded "Love Minus Zero/No Limit," destined to become the fourth track on the first side of the troubadour's fifth studio album, Bringing It All Back Home. The album, released on March 25, would effectively alter the course of both Dylan's career and of pop music itself, featuring one electric side and one acoustic side. When he "plugged in" at the Newport Folk Festival months later on July 25 to the sound
Review: Beatles, "Beatles 1+" (Various Editions)
Yeah, yeah, yeah! That's the only logical response to the release of Beatles 1+, the modestly-named collection available today in a host of audio, video and combined formats. By presenting a newly-remixed and remastered edition of the familiar Beatles 1 album with a collection of remarkably-restored short films and video clips for each song (numbering 27 for the standard editions and 50 for the deluxe editions), also in newly-mixed 2.0 stereo and 5.1 surround sound, 1+ offers an
Review: Faces, "1970-1975: You Can Make Me Dance, Sing or Anything"
On September 5 of this year, Rod Stewart, Ronnie Wood and Kenney Jones reunited publicly for the first time in 22 years as Faces, paying tribute to their fallen comrades Ronnie Lane and Ian McLagan with a seven-song set benefiting a prostate cancer charity. The performance came on the heels of the release by Rhino of 1970-1975: You Can Make Me Dance, Sing or Anything... (Rhino R2 550009), a box set-in-miniature collecting all four of Faces' long players in expanded editions plus a bonus disc of
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