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
Review: Judy Garland, "Swan Songs, First Flights: Her First and Last Recordings"
"Forget your troubles, come on, get happy!" exhorts the song by Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler. Ruth Etting, "America's Sweetheart of Song," introduced the anthem in 1930 as the finale of Broadway's short-lived The Nine Fifteen Revue. But as soon as a svelte Judy Garland performed the song against a painted backdrop of white clouds on a pink sky for 1950's MGM musical Summer Stock, "Get Happy" belonged to no one else. After all, Koehler's lyrics could have been written for Garland, epitomizing her
Release Round-Up: Week of February 10
Mike + The Mechanics, Living Years: Deluxe Edition (Rhino) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) This Deluxe Edition of Mike + The Mechanics’ 1988 album arrives in the U.S. with a second disc featuring “The Living Years 2014″ and live tracks culled from the band’s 1989 tour. Read our full coverage here. Paul Revere and the Raiders, The Complete Columbia Singles (Friday Music) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) Friday Music has repackaged Collectors’ Choice Music’s 2010 three-disc collection of the
Wish Upon a Star: Walt Disney Records' Legacy Collection Revisits "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:
Too Hot to Stop It: Funky Town Reissues, Expands The Manhattans, Phyllis Hyman, James Brown
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
Reviews: Two From Omnivore - Ian Matthews, "Stealin' Home" and TV Eyes, "TV Eyes"
In Part One of our Omnivore round-up, we looked at recent releases from Big Star and Roger Taylor. Today, we're turning the spotlight on Ian Matthews and the trio of Roger Manning, Jason Falkner and Brian Reitzell, a.k.a. TV Eyes! “This album was very much a conscious attempt at something a little more AOR, without deserting my roots.” So writes Ian (or, as he’s sometimes known on record, Iain) Matthews in his introduction to Omnivore Recordings’ splendid 2014 reissue of his 1978 album
Another Side: Shedding Light On Bob Dylan's "Shadows"
With this week's release of Shadows in the Night, Bob Dylan has unveiled his buzziest album in years. On track to become Dylan's eighth No. 1 album in the U.K. - with chart success also expected stateside - Shadows in the Night is the album on everybody's lips. We can't stop talking about it at Second Disc HQ, either. Joe filed his review on Tuesday, but longtime Dylanphile Ted has "another side" to offer, too! Please join the discussion and sound off below on the latest work from one of
A Time In Her Life: Ace Reissues Sarah Vaughan's Soul-Jazz Classic
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
Donovan, Mick Softley, More Featured On "The 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
Review: Bob Dylan, "Shadows in the Night"
How does it feel, to be on your own, with no direction home, like a complete unknown, like a rolling stone? Chances are it feels much like the milieu of Bob Dylan’s newest studio album, Shadows in the Night. The characters that emerge from these Shadows have all pulled up stools at the last chance saloon, a room filled with strangers and lost souls, where idylls of romance vanish into the air as quickly as the omnipresent wisps of cigarette smoke. Regrets, they’ve had a few. The songs on
Release Round-Up: Week of February 3
Tony Joe White: The Complete Warner Bros. Recordings (2-CD Set) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) / George Jones & Tammy Wynette: Songs of Inspiration (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) / Bobby Lance: First Peace/Rollin’ Man (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. ) / Jerry Williams: Gone (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) / Various Artists: Apollo Saturday Night/Saturday Night at the Uptown (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) / John Hall: Power (Expanded Edition) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) / Ray Kennedy: Ray Kennedy (Expanded
More Fun In Space: Omnivore Reissues, Expands Two From Roger Taylor
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
You Should Be Dancing! Bee Gees' "1974-1979" Box Set Arrives in March
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
In Memoriam: Rod McKuen (1933-2015) - A Second Disc Encore Review
On January 29, 2015, we lost a true American original with the passing of Rod McKuen, 81. Poet, composer, lyricist, singer, author, artist; there were few mountains that McKuen didn't climb to great success. An Oscar and Pulitzer nominee, and a Grammy winner, McKuen also was among the earliest to champion the works of Jacques Brel, and was a longtime advocate for gay rights. "It doesn't matter who you love, or how you love, but that you love," McKuen once said. In his own recordings and
They're Gonna Step On You Again: Esoteric Reissues Bakerloo, Gasoline Band, John Kongos
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
Children Of The (Vinyl) Revolution: The Who, T Rex Turn To Vinyl For Upcoming Box Sets, Reissues
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
Unchained Melodies: Ace Collects "The London American Label 1965" with The Righteous Brothers, Burt Bacharach, The Vogues, More
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
Star-Spangled Rodeo: Glen Campbell's "Rhinestone Cowboy" Turns 40, Gets Expanded Edition
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
Lalo Schifrin Casts a Spell On Two New Reissues From Tabu Label
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
What's a Matter Baby: RPM Rounds Up 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
Release Round-Up: Week of January 27
Johnny Mathis, You Light Up My Life/Mathis Magic and The Best Days of My Life (Funky Town Grooves) You Light Up My Life/Mathis Magic: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. The Best Days of My Life: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. Funky Town Grooves has not one, but two, releases from the legendary Johnny Mathis! You Light Up My Life (1978) joins the never-before-on-CD Mathis Magic (1979) on one disc, while FTG's The Best Days of My Life expands the 1979 album with five bonus tracks, two of which are
Soul Spotlight: Linda Jones, Barbara Lynn Get Complete Treatment from Real Gone, SoulMusic
Of all the great labels famous for soul and R&B, few could boast the pedigree of Atlantic Records. Atlantic’s commitment to quality soul music extended beyond just the famous names such as Aretha Franklin or Solomon Burke. An Atlantic label on an artist was a stamp of quality. SoulMusic Records and Real Gone Music have recently released collections from two underrated artists from the Atlantic family of labels. Linda Jones scored only one hit in her too-short 28 years: 1967’s
Harmless Readies Massive 10-Disc "Northern Soul Time Capsule"
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
RPM Round-Up: Label Collects Mick Fleetwood's Early Days with Bo Street Runners Plus Mark Wirtz, Pelican
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
Review: The Kinks, "Muswell Hillbillies: Legacy Edition"
Ted’s checking in today with a look at one of the finest reissues of the last quarter of 2014: the CD/DVD Legacy Edition of The Kinks’ Muswell Hillbillies! - JM For God’s sake…Wanna have a cuppa tea with The Kinks…?! It’s the dead of winter and what better way to warm up these days then to spend some quality time with Ray Davies and company’s take on Americana, glam rock, and a touch of vaudeville on their 1971 classic album, Muswell Hillbillies? Taking its name from The Kinks’ cosmopolitan
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