Holiday

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Cast Recordings, Classic Rock, Disco/Dance, Holiday, Pop, R&B/Soul, Rock, Soundtracks

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Bing Crosby, Brandi Carlile, Coldplay, Dick Van Dyke, Elton John, INXS, Jevetta Steele, Mark Mulcahy, Prince, Sky Ferreira

Release Round-Up: Week of December 6

December 6, 2024 by The Second Disc | 2 Comments

Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles out today. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Laura Nyro, Hear My Song: The Collection 1966-1995 (Madfish) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Madfish) Over three years after the release of its 8LP vinyl box set American Dreamer 1967-1978, the Madfish label is returning to the discography of late singer-songwriter Laura Nyro for the 19CD box set Hear My Song: The Collection 1966-1995. This collection includes every one of Nyro’s original studio albums, six live albums (two of which are previously…

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Formats:

Box Sets, CD, Digital Download, Digital Streaming, Vinyl

Genres:

Classic Rock, Folk, Holiday, Jazz, Pop, Popular Standards/Vocal, R&B/Soul, Rock, Soundtracks

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Al Jarreau, Bill Evans, Bing Crosby, Christopher Cross, Flamin' Groovies, Henry Mancini, Jesse Malin, Laura Nyro, Lucinda Williams, Melanie, Nancy Wilson, Roxette, The Blasters, The Rolling Stones

THE SECOND DISC’S 2024 HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE IS HERE!

December 2, 2024 by The Second Disc | No Comments

George Harrison Living in the Material World 50th SDE Cover

Well, today is Cyber Monday, which means one thing at Second Disc HQ: it’s time to launch our annual Holiday Gift Guide, featuring (more than) a few of our favorite things for the music enthusiast in your life. Sure, we might not have included raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens, but we’ve filled the guide with over 50 essential selections: sprawling box sets and deluxe vinyl editions, as well as noteworthy releases on CD from favorite artists that just might make great stocking stuffers. So just click here or visit the…

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Formats:

Box Sets, CD, Vinyl

Genres:

Cast Recordings, Classic Rock, Classical/Opera, Comedy, Country, Disco/Dance, Folk, Funk, Holiday, Jazz, Pop, Popular Standards/Vocal, R&B/Soul, Rock

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A Christopher Cross Christmas

December 2, 2024 by Joe Marchese

This Christmas album by “Sailing” and “Arthur’s Theme” vocalist Christopher Cross was originally released in 2007. It contains the yacht rock pioneer’s versions of 10 yuletide classics (“Silent Night,” “I’ll Be Home For Christmas,” and “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, among others) along with two original songs written with longtime collaborator Rob Meurer: “Does It Feel Like Christmas” and “A Dream of Peace at Christmastime.” Cross produced the album himself but has guests on the album including several instruments played by Michael Omartian (who produced Cross’ debut album in 1979). Other…

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CD, Vinyl

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Holiday, Pop, Popular Standards/Vocal

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Christmas Jollies I + II: The Extra Jolly Edition

December 2, 2024 by Joe Marchese

Salsoul Orchestra Christmas Jollies I and II Extra Jolly Edition

The Second Disc has teamed with SoulMusic Records for the definitive celebration of the Christmas disco/Philly soul classic. The Salsoul Orchestra’s Christmas Jollies I + II: The Extra Jolly Edition brings together Vincent Montana, Jr.’s original Christmas Jollies plus Tom Moulton’s complete 1992 remix and producer Patrick Adams’ rare follow-up, Christmas Jollies II. But that’s not all. The Extra Jolly Edition adds nearly a dozen bonus single versions and remixes (most of which are new to CD) spread across all three CDs. The 3CD collection, designed by Paul Bevoir and remastered by Nick Robbins, includes a deluxe 24-page full-color booklet…

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Box Sets, CD

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Disco/Dance, Holiday, Popular Standards/Vocal, R&B/Soul

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The Weekend Stream: November 30, 2024

November 30, 2024 by Mike Duquette | 3 Comments

Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc’s review of notable catalogue titles (and some new ones, too!) making digital debuts. The Christmas season means favorites (quite) old and (sort of) new, plus Wang Chung’s first album and a rock and hip-hop packed slasher film soundtrack. Band Aid, Do They Know It’s Christmas? EP (Band Aid Trading Limited/UMC) EP: iTunes / Amazon Single Version: iTunes / Amazon Extended Version: iTunes / Amazon Just over four decades from its original recording and release, Band Aid’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas” returns for a…

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Country, Disco/Dance, Holiday, Pop, Popular Standards/Vocal, Rap/Hip-Hop, Rock, Soundtracks

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Band Aid, Bob Wills, INXS, Jody Miller, Raymond Scott, The Flaming Lips, The Olivia Tremor Control, Wang Chung, Yoko Ono

The Second Disc’s Guide to Record Store Day Black Friday 2024

November 29, 2024 by The Second Disc | 2 Comments

From all of us here at Second Disc HQ to all of you, we hope you’ve enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving in the company of beloved family and friends. (And with plenty of delicious food, too!) Now, Record Store Day’s annual Black Friday event is upon us, so we’re spotlighting a dozen of the most eagerly anticipated releases arriving to your local independent brick-and-mortar record shop! Here are our personal picks for RSD BF must-haves; visit Record Store Day’s official website for a list of participating retailers. Happy Listening, and have a great…

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Formats:

Vinyl

Genres:

Classic Rock, Comedy, Funk, Holiday, Jazz, Pop, R&B/Soul, Rock, Soundtracks

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Billie Eilish, Carl Stalling, Christopher Cross, Curtis Mayfield, Herbie Hancock, Isaac Hayes, Jack Urbont, Jesse Ed Davis, Leon Russell, Olivia Rodrigo, Phil Collins, Record Store Day, Steve Martin, Utopia, War, Whitney Houston

The Weekend Stream: November 23, 2024

November 23, 2024 by Mike Duquette | 1 Comment

Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc’s review of notable catalogue titles (and some new ones, too!) making digital debuts. We’ve got Beach Boys covers with some fascinating history related to the band, a tribute to one of the greatest musical icons we lost this year, a new single from a legend of R&B and much more – plus a call to action to help a family in need. California Music, Don’t Worry Baby EP (RCA) (iTunes / Amazon) One of the most unusual branches of the sprawling family tree…

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Disco/Dance, Everything Else, Holiday, Pop, R&B/Soul, Rock, Soundtracks

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Bartees Strange, Brian Wilson, Frantique, John Williams, Madonna, Quincy Jones, The Beach Boys

Release Round-Up: Week of November 22

November 22, 2024 by The Second Disc | 8 Comments

Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles in stores today including a Christmas classic from Second Disc Records/Real Gone Music and a whole bunch of massive box sets! As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Sings Christmas Carols (Expanded Edition) (Second Disc/Real Gone) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Real Gone Music) Over the past decade, we here at TSD have happily partnered with Real Gone Music on an array of Christmas releases from such evergreen artists as Johnny Mathis, The Supremes, Chet Atkins,…

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Formats:

Blu-Ray, CD, DVD, Digital Download, Digital Streaming, Vinyl

Genres:

Cast Recordings, Classic Rock, Country, Disco/Dance, Electronic, Everything Else, Gospel, Holiday, Jazz, Pop, R&B/Soul, Rock, Soundtracks

The Weekend Stream: November 16, 2024

November 16, 2024 by Mike Duquette | 2 Comments

Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc’s review of notable catalogue titles (and some new ones, too!) making digital debuts. Iconic Seattle punk, a new Elton John single and fresh Duran Duran remixes kick things off – plus another round of esoteric Christmas cheer! The Gits, Frenching the Bully / Enter: The Conquering Chicken / Kings & Queens / Seafish Louisville (2024 Remasters) (Sub Pop) Frenching: iTunes / Amazon / Bandcamp Enter: iTunes / Amazon / Bandcamp Kings: iTunes / Amazon / Bandcamp Seafish: iTunes / Amazon / Bandcamp Though their punk sound was much rawer and…

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Classic Rock, Disco/Dance, Holiday, Pop, Rock, Soundtracks

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Brandi Carlile, Duran Duran, Elton John, Gladys Knight and the Pips, INXS, Madonna, T.3, The Gits

Release Round-Up: Week of November 15

November 15, 2024 by The Second Disc | 8 Comments

Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles available today…and, with the holidays approaching, it just might be the biggest release week of the year! As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. George Harrison, Living in the Material World: 50th Anniversary (Dark Horse) 2CD/2LP/1BD/1-7″: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 1CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 1LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada As the studio follow-up to his landmark triple album All Things Must Pass, George Harrison further explored his spiritual and physical selves on…

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Formats:

Blu-Ray, Blu-Ray Audio, Box Sets, CD, Digital Download, Digital Streaming, Vinyl

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Blues, Classic Rock, Comedy, Country, Disco/Dance, Folk, Holiday, Pop, R&B/Soul, Rock

Make My Wish Come True: Vinyl, Singles, SACD to Commemorate 30 Years of Mariah Carey’s ‘Merry Christmas’

November 12, 2024 by Mike Duquette | 1 Comment

Mariah Carey Merry Christmas 30 packshot

With the run-up to Christmas approaching full speed, the holiday’s musical queen is looking to take back her crown. To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Carey’s Merry Christmas and its unforgettable, cross-generational hit single “All I Want for Christmas is You,” the Elusive Chanteuse will deliver an expanded version of the album on vinyl, featuring material from its most recent reissue and a 24-page booklet in a hardbound package with some holiday surprises. To boost “All I Want for Christmas is You” in its inevitable journey back up the Billboard Hot 100, a number…

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Ariana Grande, Jennifer Hudson, Mariah Carey

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Box Sets, CD, Cassette, SACD, Vinyl

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Holiday, Pop, R&B/Soul

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The Weekend Stream: November 9, 2024

November 9, 2024 by Mike Duquette | 4 Comments

Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc’s review of notable catalogue titles (and some new ones, too!) making digital debuts. This week brings new remixes from Pet Shop Boys, old remixes from INXS, plus rare folk, jazz and alt-rock favorites – plus another bounty of unusual Christmas albums and EPs! Pet Shop Boys, New London boy / All the young dudes EPs (x2/Parlophone) Standard: iTunes / Amazon Remixes: iTunes / Amazon A new double A-side single from Pet Shop Boys’ 15th album Nonetheless – released earlier this year – is physically due…

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Disco/Dance, Folk, Holiday, Jazz, Pop, Popular Standards/Vocal, Rock

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Al Hirt, Buffalo Bob Smith, Claude Thornill, INXS, Judy Collins, Pet Shop Boys, Rosemary Clooney, a-ha

Release Round-Up: Week of November 8

November 8, 2024 by The Second Disc | 3 Comments

Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles available today. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Whitney Houston, The Concert for a New South Africa (Durban) (Arista/Legacy) CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Legacy Recordings, in collaboration with Whitney Houston’s estate, will release the late artist’s The Concert for a New South Africa (Durban). The CD and double vinyl release chronicles Whitney’s first of three concerts in South Africa in the fall of 1994 – just a few short months after the first democratic…

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Formats:

Box Sets, CD, Digital Download, Digital Streaming, Vinyl

Genres:

Classic Rock, Folk, Holiday, Jazz, Pop, Popular Standards/Vocal, R&B/Soul, Rock

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Al Jarreau, Albert Hammond, Art Garfunkel, Art Garfunkel Jr, Judy Collins, Melanie, Miles Davis, Paul Carrack, Pete Townshend, Rachel Fuller, Steve Perry, Talking Heads, The Cowsills, Whitney Houston

The Weekend Stream: November 2, 2024

November 2, 2024 by Mike Duquette | 2 Comments

Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc’s review of notable catalogue titles (and some new ones, too!) making digital debuts. We’ve got all the usual stuff you’d expect – reissues from Usher, rarities from The Alan Parsons Project, and another unique Daryl Hall-related EP – and some stuff you might not, like truly unusual Christmas collections and a new app from one of the best places for music in video games! Nintendo Music app One genre the Second Disc team has always wished had a stronger catalog presence:…

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Cast Recordings, Classic Rock, Disco/Dance, Everything Else, Holiday, Latin, Pop, R&B/Soul, Rap/Hip-Hop, Rock, Soundtracks

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Alan Parsons, Daryl Hall, INXS, The Alan Parsons Project, The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Usher, a-ha

A Cool Yule: Verve Expands Ella Fitzgerald’s ‘Swinging Christmas’ for Vinyl, Plans Gift Set with Louis Armstrong’s Christmas Collection

November 1, 2024 by The Second Disc | 1 Comment

You’ve hung up your costumes and sorted through all your Halloween candy – now it’s time to get excited for the holiday gift-giving season, packed with great reissues under your tree and spirited carols on the stereo. Two new vinyl products from Verve Records feature both: some of the most beloved holiday hits from two of the label’s most iconic voices. Verve will release a special gift set this season: Ella & Louis Wish You a Swinging Holiday – a 2LP set that brings together a bona fide Christmas classic LP from The First…

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Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong

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Box Sets, Vinyl

Genres:

Holiday, Jazz, Popular Standards/Vocal

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Release Round-Up: Week of November 1

November 1, 2024 by The Second Disc | 1 Comment

Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles out today. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Elvis Costello, King of America and Other Realms (UMe) 6CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 140-gram Black LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 140-gram Gold Nugget LP: Official Store / uDiscover Music / The Sound of Vinyl Elvis Costello is looking back on his tenth studio album King of America – and its effect on his future live and studio work – on a lavish new box set. The remastered 1986 album is paired with…

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Formats:

Blu-Ray Audio, CD, Digital Streaming, Vinyl

Genres:

Classic Rock, Country, Folk, Holiday, Pop, Popular Standards/Vocal, R&B/Soul, Rock

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Carly Simon, Carpenters, Chicago, Elvis Costello, Kelly Clarkson, Melanie, Ronnie Milsap, Seal, The Flaming Lips, Todd Rundgren, Uncle Walt's Band, Weezer, Willie Nelson

The Season 3

October 29, 2024 by Joe Marchese

CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada True to its name, The Season 3 is the third iteration of Steve Perry’s 2018 holiday album, this time from Dark Horse Records. The original eight tracks are joined by two previously-digital-only bonus tracks (“What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve,” “Maybe This Year”) and another six cuts, from the light holiday fare of “Jingle Bell Rock” and “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” to a recitation of “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas.” There’s even a pair of feel-good pop standards in the mix: “What…

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Holiday

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Maybe This Year: Steve Perry Plots Third Reissue of Holiday Album ‘The Season’

October 28, 2024 by Mike Duquette | No Comments

Until a few years ago, fans wondered if Steve Perry – the best known voice of blockbuster rock band Journey – would ever sing again after a lengthy absence from the public eye. After a celebrated comeback album in 2018, Perry ended his shortest gap between solo releases three years later, with the holiday album The Season; this Christmas, it’s being reissued a third time on a new label, with even more new material. True to its name, The Season 3 is the third iteration of Perry’s holiday collection, which followed third…

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Genres:

Holiday

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Journey, Steve Perry

The Weekend Stream: October 26, 2024

October 26, 2024 by Mike Duquette | 4 Comments

Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc’s review of notable catalogue titles (and some new ones, too!) making digital debuts. We’re positively packed this Saturday: posthumous tracks from Van Halen, Luther Vandross and DMX; a great deluxe live set from Linda Ronstadt; plus some Halloween and Christmas surprises…and, to top it all off, a call to action to aid one of our favorite power-pop acts of the last 40 years. Edward & Alex Van Halen, “Unfinished (Between Us Two)” (self-released) (official site) Alex Van Halen just released Brothers, a heartfelt…

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Genres:

Cast Recordings, Classic Rock, Country, Disco/Dance, Gospel, Holiday, Jazz, Poetry, Pop, Popular Standards/Vocal, R&B/Soul, Rap/Hip-Hop, Rock, Soundtracks

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Brenda Lee, Bruce Springsteen, DMX, Danny Elfman, Linda Ronstadt, Liz Story, Luther Vandross, Matthew Sweet, Outkast, Prince, Robert Lamm, Sade, Simple Plan, Stephen Sondheim, The Beatles, Van Halen, Wendy & Lisa

The Mormon Tabernacle Choir Sings Christmas Carols: Expanded Edition

October 23, 2024 by Joe Marchese

Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas Carols

Over the past decade, we here at TSD have happily partnered with Real Gone Music on an array of Christmas releases from such evergreen artists as Johnny Mathis, The Supremes, Chet Atkins, Connie Smith, and Robert Goulet. But our newest yuletide title is from our biggest ever group – bigger than Mitch Miller and His Gang or Eugene Ormandy and The Philadelphia Orchestra! Now, we’re proud to reissue the very first Christmas album from a group numbering 360 members: The Mormon Tabernacle Choir. The original mono version of The Mormon Tabernacle Choir…

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Classical/Opera, Holiday

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Christmas Once More

October 23, 2024 by Joe Marchese

CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Official Store (Gold Vinyl) Curated and remixed by Richard Carpenter, Christmas Once More presents highlights from both of Carpenters’ original Christmas albums as well as “Merry Christmas Darling” from the duo’s 2018 album Carpenters with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. It offers both secular favorites (“Sleigh Ride,” “The First Snowfall/Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!,” “(There’s No Place Like) Home for the Holidays” featuring a newly-recorded drum track) and timeless carols (“Little Altar Boy,” “Christ Is Born,” “Ave Maria”). Available on CD, LP, and…

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Holiday, Pop, Popular Standards/Vocal

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A Special One for You: ‘Christmas Once More’ Offers New Mixes of Carpenters Holiday Classics

October 22, 2024 by Joe Marchese | 3 Comments

Christmas music was a vital part of the Carpenters canon from the very beginning. In 1970, Richard and Karen contributed their own standard to the yuletide canon with “Merry Christmas Darling,” the first of three holiday singles released by the brother-and-sister duo. Richard set to music the lyric written by Frank Pooler, choir director at the Carpenters’ alma mater of California State University – Long Beach (today the home of the Richard and Karen Carpenter Performing Arts Center), and in the process created the rare holiday perennial written in the second half…

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Holiday, Pop

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Carpenters

The Weekend Stream: October 19, 2024

October 19, 2024 by Mike Duquette | 1 Comment

Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc’s review of notable catalogue titles (and some new ones, too!) making digital debuts. A brief week offers some unusual soundtracks, an even more unusual Beach Boys homage – and plenty of Christmas curiosities! Various Artists, Pulp Fiction (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (Geffen) (iTunes / Amazon) This weekend, the iconic songs-and-dialogue album for Quentin Tarantino’s classic film Pulp Fiction – featuring favorites like Dick Dale’s rapid-fire, guitar-driven instrumental “Misirlou” and a cover of Neil Diamond’s “Girl, You’ll Be a Woman Soon” by Urge Overkill…

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Country, Holiday, Popular Standards/Vocal, R&B/Soul, Rap/Hip-Hop, Rock, Soundtracks

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Alicia Keys, Deborah Cox, Dick Dale, Grandma Moses, Lil Kim, Luther Vandross, Sammy Kaye, Slim Whitman, Snoop Dogg, Urge Overkill

Release Round-Up: Week of October 18

October 18, 2024 by The Second Disc | No Comments

Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles in stores today. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers, Long After Dark: Deluxe Edition (Geffen/UMe) 2CD/Blu-ray Audio: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2CD/Blu-ray Audio (with Amazon-exclusive stickers): Amazon U.S. 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Tom Petty Store (Exclusive) Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers’ fifth studio album has gotten a deluxe makeover. Geffen/UMe have revisited 1982’s oft-overlooked Long After Dark, originally released on Backstreet Records, in various formats including 2LP and 2CD+Blu-ray. The bonus disc, featuring outtakes…

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