Listeners experiencing 2018 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Nina Simone’s debut recordings for the first time might be taken aback at the ferocity and determination which mark these fourteen sides, compiled for the first time in complete form on CD as Mood Indigo: The Complete Bethlehem Singles (BMG 538320282). Those qualities distinguished this remarkable artist throughout a long and fiery career, but were thrillingly present at her very first sessions. Pianist-singer Simone began her recording career at the jazz-oriented Bethlehem Records label at the age of 25 in 1958. Her…
I’ll Still Love You: Elvis Costello, Rosanne Cash, John Mellencamp, More Sing Unheard Johnny Cash on “Forever Words”
Previously unheard words of Johnny Cash are coming to new life on April 6 with Legacy Recordings’ release of Forever Words, an album of new songs built around the late Man in Black’s unknown poems and writings. In the spirit of similar projects like The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams and Lost on the River: The New Basement Tapes (setting new melodies to lost lyrics by Hank Williams and Bob Dylan, respectively), Forever Words features an all-star array of talent placing Cash’s words in an all-new musical setting. Helmed by Cash’s son…
The Chant Has Just Begun: The Alarm Expand Early Works on CD
Welsh alt-rock group The Alarm will reissue and expand their earliest recordings from the first four years of their discography next month. Eponymous 1981-1983 and Declaration 1984-1985 will hit stores March 16. Previously released in single-disc form by the group’s Twenty First Century label in 2000, these 2CD or 2LP releases paint an even clearer, more definitive picture of this era of Mike Peters and company, including their signing to I.R.S. Records and highest-charting single release (1983’s “Sixty Eight Guns,” a U.K. Top 20 hit). The band’s first recorded and released works…
La-La Land Slays Competition with ‘Buffy’ Anthology
If you’re a fan of Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Joss Whedon’s iconic horror-comedy, La-La Land Records’ latest release certainly doesn’t suck. The soundtrack label makes Buffy The Vampire Slayer Collection: Original Soundtrack Recordings available today. This 4CD set features both music from across the seven seasons of the acclaimed TV series as well as Carter Burwell’s score from the 1992 film adaptation that predated it. Whedon, a writer on Roseanne and a short-lived sitcom adaptation of Ron Howard’s Parenthood (not to be confused with the drama that ran for five seasons in…
Quiet Nights: Cherry Red Celebrates Bossa Nova On Two Collections
The beguiling Brazilian sounds of the bossa nova have long been a part of the repertoire from Cherry Red’s El Records imprint. In the second half of 2017, the label released two more slipcased double-disc collections celebrating the music that – much like that girl from Ipanema – makes you go, “Aaaaah.” João Gilberto and the Stylists of Bossa Nova Sing Antonio Carlos Jobim pairs the most famous vocalist and most famous composer of the genre in one package, while The Women of Bossa Nova Volume One highlights recordings from four artists:…
Heartbeat City: Expanded Edition
This expanded edition of The Cars’ 1984 album featuring the hit ballad “Drive” features a generous seven bonus tracks including a period Arthur Baker 12-inch remix, a B-side, and previously unreleased demos and early versions!
Shake It Up: Expanded Edition
CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada The Cars reissue their 1981 LP featuring the hit title track “Shake It Up” on CD and double vinyl, featuring eight bonus tracks including previously unreleased demos and alternate and early versions.
The Searcher: The Original Soundtrack
CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada TBD 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada TBD 3CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada TBD RCA and Legacy have the soundtrack to director Thom Zimny’s upcoming documentary on Elvis Presley coming in a variety of formats: an 18-track soundtrack CD, a 2-LP gatefold 12-inch vinyl edition, and a 3-CD collectible deluxe box set with additional music from Presley and those who inspired him. The film traces the artistic evolution of the artist from his R&B and country beginnings…
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The Essential Eric Andersen
Real Gone Music, in conjunction with Legacy Recordings, brings together 33 songs on two CDs chosen by the folk singer-songwriter which span his entire career. The Essential features recordings from eighteen albums and ten different labels including Vanguard, Warner Bros., Columbia, Arista, Gold Castle, Appleseed, Meyer, Ryko, Smithsonian Folkways and CBS Holland.
VI Decades Live (This Is What We Do)
Chicago celebrates 50 years on the road with this new box set featuring 4 CDs and 1 DVD of previously unreleased live music recorded between 1969 and 2014. This set includes two complete concerts – The Isle of Wight, 1970 on CD and a Rockpalast broadcast from Germany in 1977 on DVD – plus two discs of concert highlights.
An Eye On The Residents’ Archival Reissues for 2018
For nearly 50 years, the art collective known as The Residents has challenged the sound and structure of Western pop music, a venture which began on record in 1974 with their debut LP, Meet The Residents. Now, the group has partnered with Cherry Red to undertake The Residents pREServed, a series of deluxe reissues of core albums in The Residents’ catalogue with scores of rare and unreleased material. Known for their unconventional sound and style as well as their deeply secretive though iconic appearance – the exact lineup of the band remains…
Take Me Back to Chicago: Band Celebrates 50 Years with “Chicago: VI Decades Live” Box Set
Chicago is turning 50, and the band is celebrating the landmark anniversary with a new box set looking back on its remarkable onstage history. On April 6, Rhino will release Chicago: VI Decades Live (This is What We Do), featuring 4 CDs and 1 DVD of previously unreleased live music recorded between 1969 and 2014. This exciting new collection coincides with the group’s current tour in which they’re playing the complete Chicago II every night before a lengthy encore set of greatest hits. The first two discs capture the band’s complete, raw,…
Review: Fleetwood Mac, ‘Fleetwood Mac: Deluxe Edition’
Take away all the artifice and ephemera of the new deluxe edition of Fleetwood Mac’s 1975 self-titled album (Reprise R2 559454) and you’re still left with an intriguing and endlessly challenging question: how? How did a British blues band with only fleeting chart success in their home country metamorphose into one of the greatest rock bands of the 20th century’s back half, architects of 18 Top 40 hits and eight platinum or multiplatinum records? And how did they do so with their ninth lineup? As this package – the fifth and final…
Tale As Old As Time: ‘Beauty and the Beast’ Added to Disney’s Legacy Collection (UPDATED 2/9)
After two years of dormancy, Walt Disney Records’ archival series, The Legacy Collection, swung back into stores last year with an expanded edition of the music to 1973’s Robin Hood. Now, The Legacy Collection is giving the red-carpet treatment to one of the studio’s most popular films: 1991’s Beauty and the Beast. After initial Amazon solicitations indicated that Beauty would be reissued (this revelation following a separate confirmation by engineer Bruce Botnick of his involvement in a future expansion of the soundtrack to Disney’s follow-up film Aladdin (1992)), the Disney Music Emporium…
Release Round-Up: Week of February 9
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up! Various Artists, Stax Singles Vol. 4: Rarities and Best of the Rest (Stax/Craft) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) Craft Recordings boxes up a fourth volume of rare singles from the Stax vaults. Volume Four lives up to its subtitle, collecting odds and ends from Stax and its various imprints by artists including not just the label’s usual heavy hitters but also Big Star, Billy Eckstine, Delaney and Bonnie, and others. 80 pages of liner notes accompany this 6-CD treasure trove. Watch for our…
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Hello Again: Rhino to Expand, Reissue Two Albums by The Cars
Following expansions of The Cars’ Candy-O and Panorama, the classic New Wave group (one of this year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees) will expand two more in their classic discography in the spring. Rhino Records will release 1981’s Shake It Up and 1984’s Heartbeat City with rare and previously unreleased bonus tracks on March 30. CD and double LP editions will be available, and will utilize the 2016 remasters overseen by co-lead singer Ric Ocasek as well as art direction overseen by drummer David Robinson. (For the box set The…
Take Off Your Thirsty Boots and Stay For Awhile: Real Gone Announces “The Essential Eric Andersen”
Real Gone Music has announced that, in conjunction with Sony’s Legacy Recordings, the label is adding a new title to the long-running Essential series with a volume devoted to singer-songwriter Eric Andersen. The 2-CD The Essential Eric Andersen, due March 30, features 33 songs chosen by Andersen himself which span his entire career and feature recordings from eighteen albums and ten different labels including Vanguard, Warner Bros., Columbia, Arista, Gold Castle, Appleseed, Meyer, Ryko, Smithsonian Folkways and CBS Holland. Eric Andersen moved to New York in the early 1960s and soon became…
Good Rockin’ Tonight: Soundtrack to New Elvis Documentary Announced
A new Elvis Presley documentary is heading to television screens this April, and an accompanying soundtrack album will arrive in a variety of formats that same month from Legacy Recordings and RCA Records. Elvis Presley: The Searcher, directed by Emmy and Grammy winner Thom Zimny and written by author/journalist Alan Light, traces the artistic evolution of the artist from his R&B and country beginnings through his final Jungle Room recording sessions at Graceland. The three-hour, two-part movie will premiere on April 14 on HBO, but before that, The Searcher (The Original Soundtrack)…
All Sides of the Roxy
Cherry Red’s Esoteric imprint is going Back to the Bars with this new 3-CD box from Todd Rundgren. That 1978 live album drew on the artist’s concert tour of intimate venues in Cleveland, New York, and Los Angeles; this set greatly expands the L.A. material by presenting, on two discs, the complete final concert from his Roxy residency on May 23, 1978 (as simulcast to a then-record-breaking radio audience). The third disc reissues the 2011 archival collection Another Side of the Roxy, compiling songs from earlier evenings. (Rundgren and his band performed…
The $5.98 EP: Garage Days Re-Revisited
CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Longbox CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Cassette: Amazon U.S. Originally released in 1987, The $5.98 EP: Garage Days Re-Revisited found Metallica in a reflective mood, covering some of their favorite hard rock and punk groups like Diamond Head, Budgie, Killing Joke and the Misfits. The band was also looking forward: Garage Days Re-Revisited featured vocalist/rhythm guitarist James Hetfield, lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and drummer Lars Ulrich joined by 24-year-old bassist Jason…
NRBQ
The 1969 Columbia Records debut of the New Rhythm and Blues Quartet (NRBQ) finally makes it way to complete CD in this newly remastered edition from Omnivore Recordings. Featuring an eclectic array of songs by Eddie Cochran, Bruce Channel, Sun Ra, Carla Bley, and others, this reissue of NRBQ has been authorized by the band. It features new liner notes by Jay Berman as well as rare photos. Available on CD, DD, and LP.
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Artifact: The Unreleased Album
Omnivore premieres an unreleased album from pre-Raspberries group The Choir, recorded in 1969 by one of the final iterations of the popular Cleveland band. These ten ultra-rare recordings have been restored for this release by the team of Tommy Allen and Ducky Carlisle (The Raspberries’ Pop Art Live), and Choir fan Eric Carmen has provided liner notes along with Al Kaston and Choir members Denny Carleton and Phil Giallombardo.
The Asylum Years
Chris Hillman – of The Byrds, The Flying Burrito Brothers, The Desert Rose Band, and The Souther-Hillman-Furay Band fame – is celebrated with this new two-for-one CD bringing his Asylum albums Slippin’ Away (1976) and Clear Sailin’ (1977) back into print. The reissue of these country-rock classics has been annotated by Scott Schinder based on a new interview with the artist.
Can’t Be Satisfied: The Very Best of Muddy Waters 1948-1975
Can’t Be Satisfied: The Very Best of Muddy Waters 1948-1975 presents 40 classic tracks from across the singer/guitarist’s tenure on the Chess label. Featuring both studio highlights and excerpts from live performances including the bluesman’s seminal set at the 1960 Newport Jazz Festival, Can’t Be Satisfied also promises new liner notes and never-before-published photos from the Chess Records archive.
Andmoreagain: Rhino Marks 50th Anniversary of Love’s “Forever Changes” with Massive Box Set
Released just months after the so-called Summer of Love, Forever Changes was the third studio album by the group simply and boldly called Love. But more than just that four-letter word was on the mind of bandleader/songwriter Arthur Lee, who saw beyond sunshine and flowers that summer. Love traded in the punchy electric guitar sound of the group’s first two albums (and successful singles like “7 and 7 Is” and a cover of Burt Bacharach and Hal David’s “My Little Red Book”) for a denser, more orchestrated style that incorporated strings and…
