Once he wraps up the current leg of Ringo Starr’s sold-out All-Starr Band tour, Todd Rundgren will embark on a series of solo dates billed as “An Unpredictable Evening.” But in fairness, isn’t every solo concert with Rundgren an unpredictable evening? A typical (?) night with Todd could draw upon impeccable AM pop, heavy metal, prog rock, electronica, Gilbert and Sullivan and even bossa nova – and still not present every side of the musical iconoclast. As Rundgren has amassed a back catalogue
All That I Want: Bryan Adams Expands "Reckless" for 30th Anniversary
Hot on the heels of his new studio album Tracks of My Years - a deluxe edition of which, with additional material, is due on October 27, Canadian rocker Bryan Adams is revisiting his past in another way. Tracks of My Years features Adams' recordings of classic songs from which he found inspiration as a songwriter; on November 24, he will release an expanded 2-CD/1-DVD/1-BD edition of his 1984 breakthrough album Reckless. Produced by Adams and Bob Clearmountain and originally released on the
Come See About Them: Ace Collects Rare, Unreleased Music of Motown's Contours
Forty years ago, in February 1974, The Contours reappeared on the Tamla Motown label with the single “Baby Hit and Run,” the group’s first release in seven years. But it was far from a new recording; the backing track had been cut in 1965 for Ivy Jo Hunter. At least three lead vocals were cut for The Contours: by Billy Gordon later that year, and then by Jerry Green and Dennis Edwards the following year. The Edwards version was ultimately issued in 1974, with the Gordon version surfacing in
Release Round-Up: Week of October 7
Stevie Nicks, 24 Karat Gold: Songs from the Vault (Reprise) 2-LP Vinyl + Download Card: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. Standard Edition CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. The Fleetwood Mac rock legend dips into her vault for a newly-recorded album of songs composed between 1969 and 1995. The album features co-production by Dave Stewart and guitar great Waddy Wachtel, and is also available in a deluxe edition exclusive to Nicks' website. Various Artists, The Classic Christmas Albums
Review: Spanky and Our Gang, "The Complete Mercury Singles"
Between 1966 and 1970, Spanky and Our Gang released three studio albums, one greatest-hits collection, one live set and 21 single sides. Though the gang was, in Spanky McFarlane’ s words, “eclectic as hell”– they covered John Denver and The Music Man on their first LP alone – they’re best remembered for three AM radio staples released in 1967 and 1968: “Sunday Will Never Be the Same,” “Lazy Day” and “Like to Get to Know You.” These three tunes are inextricably tied to the period in which they
Kritzerland Premieres Stereo Restoration of Jerry Goldsmith's "Rio Conchos"
Today, Kritzerland announced its latest film score restoration, and its fourth title by the late, renowned composer Jerry Goldsmith (following Breakheart Pass, Poltergeist II and Alien Nation): it’s the score to 1964’s western Rio Conchos, a CinemaScope adventure directed by Gordon Douglas and starring Richard Boone of Have Gun – Will Travel, Stuart Whitman, Tony Franciosa. Edmund O’Brien and future football legend Jim Brown. Based on the novel by Clair Huffaker (The Comancheros), Rio Conchos
"The Who Hits 50!"
Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend, the last men standing of the original Who, have confirmed that they won’t be spending their 50th anniversary lying down. The Who will be embarking on a celebratory jaunt, The Who Hits 50, beginning in November in Glasgow, and will be releasing a double-disc retrospective to tie in with the tour. The new compilation is set for U.K. release on October 27 and U.S. release one day later on October 28. The Who Hits 50 follows such past Who anthologies as 2002’s
Good Vibes: Gary Burton's First Albums Collected On "Conception"
Since his introduction in 1961 on RCA Victor as The New Vibe Man in Town, vibraphonist Gary Burton has carved out one of the most prolific careers in jazz. Today, seven-time Grammy recipient Burton is recognized as one of the pioneers of jazz fusion as well as an innovative stylist (with his four-mallet technique rather than the more typical two-mallet) and an influential educator. Following his 1961 debut, Burton made some fascinating, embryonic records – like The Groovy Sound of Music, a set
Old Friends: Legacy Collects Simon & Garfunkel Discography
Paul Simon met Art Garfunkel in the halls of Queens, New York’s P.S. 164 in the sixth grade, with both young men cast in a school production of Alice in Wonderland. They soon bonded over a mutual love of music, and by 1956, Simon and Garfunkel were performing locally as “Tom and Jerry,” modeling themselves on the Everly Brothers, with whom they would later collaborate. Though he and Simon briefly split in the early 1960s, they reunited for 1964’s Wednesday Morning 3 AM, a low-key collection of
Reviews: The Posies, "Failure" and Game Theory, "Blaze of Glory"
There’s something about power pop. In this era of EDM and songwriting-by-committee (not that there’s anything wrong with that – is there?), there’s still something about a couple of guys armed with little but guitars, harmonies, and their own imaginations, driven to create a joyful noise. In this era when radio is dominated by music that can’t be duplicated onstage without benefit of technology, there’s something about the thought of musicians just plugging in and getting
Beginning To See The Light: 6-CD Super Deluxe "Velvet Underground" Coming In November
For the third year in a row, a classic album by The Velvet Underground will receive the super deluxe treatment from Polydor and Universal Music Enterprises (UMe). On November 24, 2014, the label will release The Velvet Underground – 45th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition, a 65-track, 6-CD hardcover book-style box set, following 2012’s release of The Velvet Underground and Nico and 2013’s White Light/White Heat. The 1969 release of The Velvet Underground introduced Doug Yule to the band,
Any Day Now: Ronnie Milsap's "RCA Albums Collection" Box Coming In November
Country music superstar Ronnie Milsap is having a great year. The Academy of Country Music has recognized him with a Career Achievement Award at the ACM Honors ceremony in Nashville, and in October, the “It Was Almost Like a Song” and “Any Day Now” singer will be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame's 2014 class, alongside Mac Wiseman and the late Hank Cochran. Capping this incredible year of acclaim, however, will be the November 4 release from RCA Records and Legacy Recordings of The
All The Way To Paradise: BBR Revisits Stephanie Mills, Burt Bacharach, Hal David's Motown Gem "For The First Time"
Following the commercial failure of the big-budget 1973 movie musical Lost Horizon, Burt Bacharach retreated. Tension over the film had led to a split with his longtime songwriting partner Hal David, and their split had in turn led to a breakup of their “triangle marriage” with singer Dionne Warwick. Lawsuits ensued. Only one new Bacharach song emerged in 1974, Gladys Knight and the Pips’ “Seconds,” co-written with playwright Neil Simon for a proposed movie version of the 1968
Last Train To Clarksville: "The Monkees" Goes Super Deluxe In November
In 1967, Monkeemania was sweeping the country. "I told people I would outsell The Beatles, and they laughed at me," impresario Don Kirshner once recalled. "Then the first album sold four million." That first album which led the television foursome to outsell The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Beach Boys and, well, everybody else in 1967 is the subject of a new 3-CD Super Deluxe set arriving from Rhino Handmade on November 11. The Monkees - Super Deluxe Edition rewinds the series of box sets
Release Round-Up: Week of September 30
ABBA, Live at Wembley Arena (Polar/Universal) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. ) As part of ABBA's 40th anniversary celebration, the band unveils this 2-CD, hardcover book-style set preserving its 1979 concerts at Wembley Arena. The 25-track set features the first-ever release on record of Agnetha's "I'm Still Alive" along with perennials like "Dancing Queen," "Waterloo," "Knowing Me, Knowing You" and "Fernando." Live at Wembley is also available on vinyl. Oasis, (What's the Story) Morning
Queen & King (of Pop) Surface on New Compilation
On November 10, Queen returns with a new anthology – available in both single- and double-CD iterations with 20 and 36 songs, respectively – that intends to live up to its title, Queen Forever. While the collection eschews a traditional “greatest hits” approach (and with it, hits like “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “We Will Rock You”), it premieres three songs including a long-anticipated collaboration with the late Michael Jackson. In addition to the three “new” tracks available on both editions,
Review: Big Star, "#1 Record" and "Radio City"
Our mini-Power Pop Festival begins here! Next, look for our reviews of new reissues from The Posies and Game Theory! O My Soul! Big Star is back! Despite an amazingly small catalogue – four studio albums, a handful of live releases, an even bigger handful of compilations, a key soundtrack, and one stunning box set – there never seems to be a shortage of releases for the biggest band that never was. Two of the most recent have arrived from Stax Records and Concord Music Group, and they’re
ELP's Keith Emerson Goes To The Movies With Box Set
In the midst of the usual catalogue activity for Emerson, Lake and Palmer, Cherry Red’s Esoteric Recordings imprint has a new treasure for fans of keyboardist Keith Emerson. The 3-CD box set Keith Emerson at the Movies collects Emerson’s scores for seven motion pictures originally released between 1980’s Inferno and 2004’s Godzilla: Final Wars. The set was originally released in 2005 on the Castle label, but has since gone out-of-print. This version features the same tracks, but adds new
Temptin': SoulMusic Reissues The Temptations' Atlantic Albums On One CD
When The Temptations departed Berry Gordy’s historic Motown label in 1977, the Motown roster was in the midst of dramatic change. The Tempts followed in the footsteps of their onetime labelmates like The Four Tops, Gladys Knight and the Pips, The Spinners and even The Jackson 5, all of whom had departed Motown. The Tempts - Otis Williams, Melvin Franklin, Richard Street, Glenn Leonard and newest recruit Louis Price – signed to R&B powerhouse label Atlantic, where they remained for two
Magic in the Night: Springsteen's First Seven Albums Finally Remastered on CD, LP Box Set
Yesterday, Bruce Springsteen celebrated his 65th birthday. Here in New Jersey, the birth date of The Boss might as well be considered a state holiday; the occasion was marked by various events including a video presentation by Springsteen's longtime collaborator Thom Zimny at Monmouth University in West Long Branch, New Jersey. (Springsteen was, of course, born in Long Branch and wrote "Born to Run" in a Long Branch cottage.) But today, Springsteen's fans are the ones receiving a gift for his
So Amazing: FTG Expands Dionne Warwick's Arista Albums With Previously Unheard Songs
In 1979, Dionne Warwick was at a crossroads. Her unprecedented string of pop and R&B hits written and produced by Burt Bacharach and Hal David at Scepter Records were in the rearview mirror. Bacharach and David had bitterly split after just one album with Warwick at Warner Bros. Records, leaving their muse feeling high and dry. One more dynamic success followed for Dionne in 1974 with the Thom Bell-produced Spinners duet “Then Came You,” unbelievably her first-ever No. 1 Pop single. But
Review: The George Harrison Remasters - "The Apple Years 1968-1975"
“Silence often says much more/Than trying to say what’s been said before/But that is all I want to do/To give my love to you…” Those lyrics, penned by George Harrison for his song “That is All,” could be directed to a female lover or to a higher power, but the sentiment rang true for the artist in any circumstance. Harrison’s lifetime of work was marked by its forward thinking, a trajectory that is eloquently expressed on the new box set The Apple Years 1968-1975. Over the six albums
Let It Snow! Legacy Has Eight New "Classic Christmas" Titles Including Unheard Sinatra, Mathis Tracks
It's that time of the year again! Legacy Recordings' Classic Christmas Album series has become an annual tradition, and the label is once again drawing on the Sony Music vaults to offer new seasonal anthologies from a group of truly celebrated artists. This year, the bona fide legends include Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, Perry Como, and Johnny Mathis, and their volumes will be joined by an entry for the classical crossover quartet Il Divo as well as by various-artists compilations
Release Round-Up: Week of September 23
George Harrison, The Apple Years 1968-1975 (Apple/Universal, 2014) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) Here, at last, are George Harrison's complete albums for Apple Records, all beautifully remastered and featuring select bonus material. These six albums are available in a deluxe box set with a bonus DVD or as individual reissues: Wonderwall Music (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) Electronic Music (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) All Things Must Pass (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) Living in the
A Well-Respected Band: The Kinks Prep "Essential," A New Deluxe "Muswell" and "Anthology" Box Set
It's going to be a Kink-sized autumn on both sides of the Atlantic. Legacy Recordings, newly-exclusive licensor of The Kinks' 1971-1985 catalogue for North America, is kicking things off on October 14 with the release of The Essential Kinks, a 2-CD career-spanning retrospective of the group's music for Pye/Reprise, RCA, Arista and Columbia. Then, on November 10, Legacy follows with a Legacy Edition CD/DVD set celebrating the band's 1971 album Muswell Hillbillies. One week later on November 17,
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