Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles available today! Al Stewart, Songs on the Radio: The Complete U.S. Singles 1974-1981 (Second Disc/Real Gone) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Real Gone Music) This definitive, first-ever singles collection from singer-songwriter Al Stewart brings together the A- and B-side of every single during the period in which Stewart catapulted from folk clubs to the mainstream. Stewart bridged the gap
I'm the Slime: Zappa's "Over-Nite Sensation" Goes Super Deluxe for 50th
The title of Frank Zappa's 1973 album Over-Nite Sensation was, expectedly, dripping with sarcasm; the album was the prolific composer-bandleader's seventeenth overall release. But the "sensation" part was spot-on. The LP became Zappa's first of two U.S. gold-certified releases and an ideal entry point into his musical world. On November 3, Zappa Records and UMe celebrate the 50th anniversary of this landmark record in a variety of formats including a 4CD/1Blu-ray super deluxe edition, 2LP and
Amazing Journey: New Mega-Box Chronicles The Who's Path from "Life House" to "Who's Next"
What's next? How about Who's Next? On September 15, The Who will revisit their seminal 1971 masterwork in a lavish 10CD/1BD box set as well as multiple smaller formats. The Who's Next/Life House box set, by the numbers, offers 155 tracks - 89 of which are previously unissued in any version and 57 of which are brand-new remixes. This finally offers a comprehensive look at Pete Townshend's ambitious, conceptual Life House (later known as Lifehouse) project, tracing it from its roots as a
Miracles: Rhino Relaunches Quadio with Jefferson Starship, Black Sabbath, J. Geils Band, and Alice Cooper
Quadio is back! After past releases in the series including, most recently, box sets from The Doobie Brothers and Chicago, Rhino is once again taking a deep dive into the Warner Music family of labels for four reissues presenting original quadraphonic mixes of classic albums on Blu-ray Audio. This quartet of titles is shipping now exclusively from Rhino, and every release includes the original 4.0-channel quad mix and the 2.0-channel stereo mix in high resolution (192/24). Black Sabbath's
Once Again: Esoteric Reissues Barclay James Harvest's Second Album with New Stereo, Surround Mixes
Cherry Red's Esoteric imprint has overseen the catalogue of prog rockers Barclay James Harvest for some years now, revisiting their albums in various shapes and sizes. 2023 has recently seen the reissue of BJH's second album, 1971's Once Again, as a 3-CD/Blu-ray box boasting the album in its original stereo mix; a new stereo mix by Stephen W. Tayler; and a fold-down of its original 1973 quadraphonic mix on CD, plus a new 5.1 surround mix, the quadraphonic mix in true 4.0, and the new and
Release Round-Up: Week of May 12
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles available today! Daft Punk, Random Access Memories: 10th Anniversary Edition (Columbia) 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 3LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Daft Punk's final album, 2013's disco-flavored, multiple Grammy-winning Random Access Memories, welcomed such all-time luminaries as Nile Rodgers, Paul Williams, Giorgio Moroder, Paul Jackson, Jr., Nathan East, John "J.R."
Release Round-Up: Week of April 28
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles in stores today! Stephen Stills, Live at Berkeley 1971 (Omnivore/Iconic) CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP Box: Stephen Stills Webstore Omnivore and Iconic Artists are serving up a previously unreleased 14-song live album drawn from Stephen Stills' concerts at the Berkeley Community Theater in Berkeley, CA, on August 20 and 21, 1971.
Ring Them Bells: Mike Oldfield's "Tubular Bells" Returns in Various Formats
Mike Oldfield was just 19 years old when he recorded Tubular Bells, the 1973 album consisting of just two long, primarily instrumental tracks for which he played almost all of the instruments himself. The debut album on Richard Branson's fledgling Virgin Records label, Tubular found its audience gradually. When its opening theme was used in director William Friedkin's horror film The Exorcist, sales skyrocketed. Beginning in March 1974, the LP remained in the top ten of the U.K. Albums Chart
Release Round-Up: Week of March 31
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of new titles in stores today! The Who, The Who with Orchestra Live at Wembley (Polydor/UMC) 2CD/Blu-ray: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 3LP Colored Vinyl: The Who Official Store 3LP Black Vinyl: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada The Who brings their 2019 Wembley Stadium concert to a host of audio formats. The show featured Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey, and their band including Simon Townshend and
Release Round-Up: Week of March 24
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up featuring a selection of the new titles in stores today. Elton John, Honky Château: 50th Anniversary Edition (Rocket/UMC) 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Hot on the heels of his final U.S. live performances, Elton John is looking back with a 50th anniversary edition of his 1972 LP Honky Château. The reissue will feature the original album (boasting such classics as "Rocket Man,"
Chemistry: Rush Revisits "Signals" For 40th Anniversary
Rush's ninth studio album, Signals, had the unenviable task of following up the band's 1981 commercial breakthrough, Moving Pictures. Canadian rockers Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, and Neil Peart built on the sound of Moving Pictures with their continued use of electronic instrumentation and were rewarded when the album reached the top ten in the United States as well as the top five in the United Kingdom and No. 1 in their native Canada. The album produced by Rush and longtime collaborator Terry
Review: Frank Zappa, "Waka/Wazoo"
Finally, a Zappa album that's safe for the whole family! Frank Zappa's pair of 1972 releases, Waka/Jawaka and The Grand Wazoo, stand as two of the most impressive and unusual in his sprawling catalogue. Forced to abandon live performing as a result of a crazed "fan" charging the stage and heaving him into an orchestra pit, the composer-bandleader spent nearly a year recovering from injuries to his face, head, ribs, arm, and leg. A wheelchair and a leg brace couldn't stop Zappa's prodigious
Any Colour You Like: Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon" Turns 50, New Box Set Is Coming
Over ten years after Pink Floyd celebrated Dark Side of the Moon in the expansive 3CD/2DVD/1BD Immersion Edition, the 1973 landmark album is returning for its 50th anniversary in a new box set. The Dark Side of the Moon: 50 Years, from Pink Floyd Records, carries over the original Dark Side (in various mixes) and a 1974 live concert from the previous Immersion box while adding a vinyl component and new Dolby Atmos mix. Due on March 24, the 2CD/2LP/2BD/1DVD set contains: Remastered
The Year In Review: The 2022 Gold Bonus Disc Awards, From A to Z - Part One
Happy 2023! Welcome, friends, to The Second Disc's 13th Annual Gold Bonus Disc Awards! A lot has happened in the last twelve months, but as we look to a new year with optimism and a hopeful spirit, we recognize the many roles music has played in our lives. With that spirit in mind, The Second Disc wishes to recognize 2022's cream of the catalogue music crop - those exemplary reissues and box sets, big and small, that proved to be truly outstanding for music lovers worldwide. Despite the
Holiday Gift Guide Review: Vince Guaraldi, 'A Charlie Brown Christmas (Super Deluxe Edition)'
If you've followed catalogue releases for long enough, you know some titles just do so well that you don't necessarily have to go out of your way to get people - especially new fans - to buy a new version of a classic album. Buyers - especially vinyl buyers - will always come of age and need copies of Rumours or Dark Side of the Moon in their libraries. It's this sort of thinking - perhaps a rebellion against the commercialism of reissue practices - that often gets us most interested not in the
Holiday Gift Guide Review: David Bowie, "Divine Symmetry: An Alternative Journey Through 'Hunky Dory'"
MAGNIFICENT OUTRAGE. The phrase is emblazoned on the slipcase of David Bowie's new box set Divine Symmetry (An Alternative Journey Through 'Hunky Dory'). It was derived from an ad - reprinted as the first image in the 100-page tome housing the set's four CDs and one Blu-ray Disc - which noted, "That's what they're saying about David Bowie." Happily, no one would accuse this latest Bowie archival dig of being an outrage, though magnificent comes closer. Much like its 2019 predecessor
Release Round-Up: Week of December 16
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the week's most notable new titles! As next week will see very few releases, this will be our final Release Round-Up of 2022...regular daily coverage will continue, though! See you in the new year! Frank Zappa, Waka/Wazoo (Zappa/UMe) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / uDiscoverMusic.com / Zappa Online Store) UMe and Zappa Records are chronicling Frank Zappa's 1972 in a new 4CD/1BD box set. The original
It Just Might Be a One-Shot Deal: Zappa's 1972 Chronicled on New CD/Blu-ray Box "Waka/Wazoo"
On the evening of December 10, 1971, Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention had just encored with a performance of The Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" at London's Rainbow Theatre when a so-called fan jumped onto the stage and pushed the bandleader some twelve feet into the orchestra pit. With injuries to his face, head, ribs, arm, and leg, Zappa was lucky to survive. He was forced into a near-yearlong period of convalescence in a wheelchair and leg brace, but he didn't stop creating or
Lightning Frightening: New Bowie Box Offers 'Hunky Dory'-Era Rarities
Hot on the heels of the success of the documentary Moonage Daydream (and its recently released soundtrack, currently streaming and coming soon to physical media), Parlophone has announced a major audio excavation from the David Bowie vault. On November 25, 2022, the label will release Divine Symmetry (An Alternative Journey Through Hunky Dory), a 4CD/1BD box set chronicling the twelve months leading up to the December 1971 release of Bowie's fourth studio album. Highlighted by 48 previously
Christmas Time is Here (Again): New 'Charlie Brown Christmas' Box Boasts New Remixes, Unreleased Outtakes
Reissues of Vince Guaraldi's classic jazz score to the immortal 1965 TV special A Charlie Brown Christmas are common enough for even the most faithful fan to utter "Good grief." But Craft Recordings' newest package of the classic material looks to offer a treasure trove of unheard audio that'll fill your hearts this season. Craft today announces a 4CD/1 Blu-ray deluxe edition of the classic album that features not only multiple mixes of the original LP - the original stereo mix alongside new
Pigs on the Wing: Pink Floyd Reissue "Animals" with Long-Awaited Surround Remix
Pink Floyd's Animals arrived in January 1977, after 1975's Wish You Were Here and before 1979's The Wall. Coming between those two epochal works, Animals was initially dismissed by some critics. Consisting of just five tracks (two short bookends and three lengthy compositions), no singles were released and Animals became somewhat of a hidden gem - despite having peaked at No. 2 in the United Kingdom and No. 3 in the United States. This fall, fans will have a chance to rediscover Animals as
Release Round-Up: Week of April 15
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new releases available today! Rush, Moving Pictures: 40th Anniversary [various editions] (Mercury/UMe) 3CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 5LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 3CD/5LP/1BD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Rush's seminal 1981 Moving Pictures receives a number of belated 40th anniversary reissues today including a 3CD version with the 2015 album remaster (debuting in
Review: The Band, "Cahoots: 50th Anniversary Edition"
From the first seconds of the opening "Life Is a Carnival," it was clear that Cahoots was no ordinary album by The Band. The quintet's first three albums had established them as major proponents of the rootsy genre that would later be called "Americana." But now, the sound blasting from the speakers was one of sheer funk: simultaneously dark and joyful, aggressive yet inviting. In what might have been considered a heretical move by some, the group was bolstered by three saxophones, two
The Year In Review: The 2021 Gold Bonus Disc Awards, From A to Z - Part One
Happy 2022! Welcome, friends, to The Second Disc's 12th Annual Gold Bonus Disc Awards! Once again, we've all faced unprecedented challenges over the past twelve months. A year that began with hope and promise has ended with further uncertainty for many of us. But music continues to fill a significant role in our lives, providing solace, comfort, and escape in a time unlike any other. With that spirit in mind, The Second Disc wishes to recognize 2021's cream of the catalogue music crop -
Have Yourself a Merry Little Discmas...
Wow! And just like that, another year has flown by. Just a few weeks before The Second Disc hits its 12th anniversary(!), this Christmas Eve it is our custom to look back on the last 12 months and take some time to think fondly of the music, magic, memories and friends that made our lives worth living. As if last year wasn't unconventional enough, 2021 packed more pop, clicks, skips and distortion than the most misguided vinyl pressings. We got vaccinated, we got boosted, we tentatively
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