Big Break Records has just boarded the B.T. Express - destination: the crossroads of funk, soul, and disco. Give Up the Funk: The B.T. Express Anthology 1974-1982 is a comprehensive, career-spanning 2-CD, 31-track chronicle of the band that scored ten U.S. R&B chart entries (including two No. 1s) and five on the Pop chart (two top 5s). B.T. Express was formed by Richard "Rick" Thompson on guitar, Bill Risbrook (tenor saxophone), Carlos Ward (alto saxophone), Louis Risbrook (bass), Dennis
Groove Is In The Heart: Cherry Red Expands Titles From Deee-Lite, Jermaine Stewart, The Adventures
Today, we're looking at three recent releases from Cherry Red and Cherry Pop! With 1990's World Clique, Deee-Lite proved that "Groove is in the Heart." The lead-off single from the house/club group's debut record became an international hit, reaching the top 5 in the United States and United Kingdom, and topping the U.S. Dance chart. Cherry Pop has expanded World Clique, a top 20 entry on the Billboard 200, into a 2-CD set with a bonus disc of remixes. Vocalist Lady Miss Kier from
Shining Stars: SoulMusic Anthologizes The Manhattans, Mother's Finest, Norman Connors
Cherry Red's SoulMusic Records imprint has continued its collection of artist-focused anthologies with another batch of releases drawn from the Sony Music family of labels. This group includes 2-CD sets for the smooth vocal group The Manhattans, jazz/R&B soul man Norman Connors, and funk band Mother's Finest. Though they were named The Manhattans, their story is actually a tri-state one. The group came together in Jersey City, New Jersey, took their name from the city across the Hudson
Release Round-Up: Week of April 21
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! Various Artists, Honeybeat: '60s Groovy Girl-Pop (Real Gone Music) CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Honeybeat: Groovy 60s Girl Pop, curated by Sheila Burgel from the Sony archives and released on Real Gone Music, features 19 songs from nine different labels, nearly a third of which have never been released on CD. While some tracks come from known artists such as Little Eva, Skeeter
You Should Be Dancing: Bee Gees Release First Compilation Under New Catalog Deal
The first Bee Gees catalog title under the group's new deal with Capitol is a new compilation due later this month, it was announced today. Timeless: The All-Time Greatest Hits collects 21 of the Australian trio's greatest hits from 1966 to 1987, all personally selected by Barry Gibb. In his introduction in the package, Barry Gibb (the group's sole surviving member) writes, "These songs, I feel, are the songs that Maurice, Robin, and I would be most proud of." While it's not terribly
The Art of Noise's "In Visible Silence" Gets More Headroom As Deluxe Edition
"Relax. You're quite safe here. Am I dreaming? No..." Indeed, you're not dreaming: In Visible Silence, the second LP by The Art of Noise, is being reissued and expanded this spring. This album found the original Art of Noise collective fragmented. Years after collaborating on megahits for ABC, Frankie Goes to Hollywood and Yes (as well as their own landmark efforts, the 1983 EP Into Battle with The Art of Noise and Who's Afraid of The Art of Noise? in 1984), there was an acrimonious split,
Got Love If You Want It: More Record Store Day 2017 Essentials
Record Store Day's 10th anniversary couldn't be anything less than big. And with articles devoted to April 22's RSD releases from David Bowie, Paul McCartney, Pink Floyd, Omnivore Recordings, Legacy Recordings, Prince, Warner Music Group and Real Gone Music, you might wonder what there's left to say before the big day. But you'd be wrong! We've scoured the list to find another 23 must-have titles hitting the vinyl racks at fine independent music stores next month. Which of these favorites are on
A Lot of Respect: Erasure to Issue PledgeMusic Box Set As Wide Release
If you missed out on Erasure's enormous box set released through PledgeMusic last holiday, it doesn't have to be--it's being made available to the general public this week. From Moscow to Mars: An Erasure Anthology is a treasury of riches from the seminal British synthpop duo, covering their first three decades together. This 12CD/1DVD set includes a variety of hits and rarities, including: Three discs of the band's complete single A-sides Two discs of the group's personal favorites,
Warner Music Plans Record Store Day Bonanza
Record Store Day has been an institution for a decade now, so leave it to this year's 10th anniversary event to be one of the biggest! We've already shone the spotlight on releases by David Bowie, Paul McCartney, Prince, Omnivore Recordings and Legacy Recordings; now, it's time to take a look at Warner Music's incredibly generous lineup. Over 30 titles will be featured from the label group at independent record stores on Saturday, April 22. There's really something for everyone: vintage 12"
Hot Thing: Seven Prince Singles Coming for Record Store Day
As faithful Prince fans await more detail about this summer's long-anticipated Purple Rain reissue, a group of Prince vinyl titles will arrive in stores for Record Store Day, a year and a day after his passing. Seven singles from The Artist's near-unstoppable run of hits in the '80s will be represented. Six are "RSD-First" titles, to be made available to general retail in the future, while one highly-collectible picture disc from Prince's early chart run is coming back just for the 10th
Intervention Reissues Erasure's Debut "Wonderland" On Deluxe LP
Intervention Records has continued its (Re)Discover series of pristine vinyl recreations of classic LPs with an album of eighties vintage that just might send you down the rabbit hole. It's possible to get lost in Erasure's Wonderland thanks to Intervention's recent 30th anniversary presentation of songwriter-keyboardist Vince Clarke and singer-songwriter Andy Bell's collection of crystalline synth-pop. Clarke was known for his work with Depeche Mode and as one-half with Alison Moyet of
Big Break Big Round-Up, Part Two: Spotlight on Karyn White, The Chimes, Hipsway
We're continuing our Big Break Records Big Round-Up with a look at another three of the Cherry Red label's recent deluxe reissues which you might have missed! For this trio, BBR has chronicled the period 1986-1990 with an underrated group of albums and artists. (You can catch up with Part One here!) In 1991, Karyn White topped the Billboard Hot 100 with the single "Romantic" off her sophomore album. But on the way to that crossover success, White established herself as a winning new voice
You Got to Funkifize: SoulMusic, Cherry Red Reissue Tower of Power, Graham Central Station, Starpoint
Over the years, Tower of Power's rip-roaring horns have enlivened a host of recordings from artists as diverse as Elton John, Grateful Dead, Poison, Neil Diamond, Santana, and Aerosmith, but the group also has had a long career as one of the most smoking outfits in R&B. Now, Bump City and Tower of Power, the group's first two Warner Bros. Records releases, have been collected as one expanded 2-CD set from SoulMusic Records and Cherry Red. 1972's Bump City marked the Warner debut of the
It Only Takes a Minute: SoulMusic Collects Tavares Remixes On "Don't Take Away the Music"
To date, Cherry Red's SoulMusic Records imprint has reissued seven of the ten albums recorded by Tavares for Capitol Records between 1974 and 1981. Late in 2016, the SoulMusic team added an eighth Tavares title to their collection. Don't Take Away the Music: The Remix Project features eleven floor-filling remixes from the Rhode Island brothers Ralph, Arthur (Pooch), Antone (Chubby), Feliciano (Butch) and Perry (Tiny) of such classic songs as "It Only Takes a Minute" (Pop No. 10/R&B No. 1,
Big Break Big Round-Up, Part One: Spotlight on Chameleon and Five Special
Welcome to Part One of our Big Break Records Big Round-Up! Today, we're looking at a pair of releases from 1979 which have newly received the BBR remastered and expanded treatment! Chameleon was the brainchild of Azar Lawrence, the saxophonist and multi-instrumentalist who had played in the bands of Miles Davis, Gene Harris, Freddie Hubbard, Elvin Jones, and McCoy Tyner. Like so many of his jazz contemporaries, Lawrence began to explore the connections between the various strains of jazz
UPDATE: Vibe On's Deluxe Reissue of Miami Sound Machine's "Primitive Love" Indefinitely Delayed
We're sorry to report that fans waiting for the eagerly-anticipated deluxe reissue of Miami Sound Machine's Primitive Love, from the fine folks at Vibe On Records, will have to wait a bit longer. The label has confirmed the unfortunate news that the title has been indefinitely delayed, as a result of Gloria and Emilio Estefan wishing to concentrate on the recording of a new Gloria Estefan album. Our friends at Vibe On have written, in part: "Until very recently, the Estefans were working with
The Way It Was: SoulMusic Reissues and Expands Gladys Knight, Natalie Cole
We filled you in recently about Cherry Red and SoulMusic Records' recent salute to songstress Vivian Reed, but the label has also offered a pair of titles from two more great ladies of song: Gladys Knight and the late Natalie Cole. Gladys Knight's The Solo Collection collects her first two Pips-less albums, from 1978 and 1979: the Buddah Records release of Miss Gladys Knight, and its Columbia follow-up, Gladys Knight. The second disc features eight bonus tracks associated with the latter
Do That Conga Beat: Vibe On Expands Miami Sound Machine's "Primitive Love" to 2 CDs
This March, Vibe On Records will be going Primitive. The label is following its recent reissue of Cher's I Paralyze with another lavishly expanded Deluxe Edition - this time from Miami Sound Machine featuring the one and only Gloria Estefan. On March 31, Vibe On will reissue MSM's 1985 breakthrough Primitive Love as a 2-CD edition featuring a full 23 bonus tracks - four of which are previously unreleased, and six of which have never previously appeared on CD. Primitive Love, Miami Sound
Tighten Up! Big Break Tells "The Archie Bell and The Drells Story" On New Anthology
Let's Groove! Big Break Records has recently made that enticing invitation as the title of its new anthology dedicated to the 50+-year career of one of America's favorite party bands, Archie Bell and the Drells. Let's Groove: The Archie Bell and the Drells Story, charts on two CDs the group's journey from Houston, Texas to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and all stops in between. It includes album tracks, singles, and extended mixes from the Atlantic, Glades, and Philadelphia International
Turn Them Loose! BBR Reissues Philly Classic From People's Choice
"Come on everybody, let's jam with The People's Choice!" goes the lyric to the funky title song which opens 1978's Turn Me Loose, the third album from Frankie Brunson's Philly outfit. People's Choice was a bit different from the other groups populating the roster at Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff's Philadelphia International Records, being a self-contained band rather than a vocal group. (Instant Funk was another such band, though that unit found greater success after migrating to Salsoul
Doin' It: Cherry Red Reissues, Expands Three Fusion Classics From Herbie Hancock
Cherry Red's Robinsongs imprint recently paired Herbie Hancock's 1978 and 1979 albums Sunlight and Feets Don't Fail Me Now on one 2-CD set. Now, Robinsongs has looked back to bring three original Hancock albums for Columbia Records together as one 2-CD package: 1974's Thrust, 1975's Man-Child, and 1976's Secrets. All three of these albums were Jazz No. 1 records; these reissues sweeten the deal by adding rare single versions to the track line-ups. Thrust was the American follow-up to
This Is It: SoulMusic Collects Melba Moore, Ramsey Lewis, George Duke On New Anthologies
SoulMusic Records, in association with Cherry Red, has recently launched a series of new 2-CD anthologies designed to give a comprehensive look at one period of an artist's career. The initial group of releases is dedicated to three artists whose talents span multiple genres - Melba Moore, George Duke, and Ramsey Lewis. Melba Moore's Standing Right Here: the Anthology - The Buddah and Epic Years devotes one disc to each one of those labels. Moore's first major-label contract was actually
Spicks and Specks: Bee Gees' Catalogue Moves to UMe
Second Disc HQ always buzzes when new catalog acquisitions are announced, and last week had us feeling like bees...Bee Gees, that is! Last Tuesday, it was announced that distribution of the legendary Australian trio's discography (including 22 studio albums, the bestselling Saturday Night Fever soundtrack, compilations and unreleased material) would transition from longtime home Rhino to Capitol/Universal Music Enterprises. Barry Gibb, along with his late brothers Robin and Maurice, guided
You Know How Good It Is: BBR Expands Vincent Montana's "Goody Goody" For CD
It's that time of year again when radio stations everywhere turn to the sounds of the holiday season. One of the tunes always in frequent rotation is a bit of light swing from The Salsoul Orchestra's 1976 disco classic Christmas Jollies: "Merry Christmas, All." The voice of that perennial belongs to Denise Montana, daughter of its composer-arranger-conductor, the late, great MFSB vibraphonist and Salsoul Orchestra leader Vince Montana. Now, another project uniting Vince and Denise Montana has
Good Times! The Second Disc's Essential RSD Black Friday 2016 Release Guide
From all of us here at Second Disc HQ to all of you, we hope you're enjoying a wonderful Thanksgiving in the company of family and friends. Of course, from this day which conjures nostalgic and warm feelings comes a celebration of a different kind with this year's annual Black Friday - the day for consumers to start off the holiday shopping season on a mad, frenetic note. But 2016 is just in the latest year in which numerous retailers in the U.S. have made headlines by blackening Thursday, or
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