It finally happened. After around 20 months at the helm of The Second Disc, I think I've finally stumbled over a reissue that feels...dare I say it...misguided. Not entirely misguided, mind you, but misguided enough that it took me far longer than anticipated to bang out some thoughts on the title at hand, to understand […]
Continue Reading
With so many eyes lately fixated on the manslaughter trial of Dr. Conrad Murray, it’s perhaps appropriate that Epic Records is turning the spotlight back where it belongs for fans of the late Michael Jackson: back on his music. On November 21, the label will release Immortal, the “musical tapestry,” or soundtrack recording, to Cirque […]
Continue Reading
As if the revelation of a new U.K. compilation for today's birthday boy Johnny Mathis (with an unreleased track from the CHIC-produced I Love My Lady, no less) wasn't exciting enough, Edsel's Music Club Deluxe imprint has also announced a similar set for CHIC themselves - and rarity-seekers are going to be excited. Magnifique! The […]
Continue Reading
Though Buck Owens made his name in Bakersfield, California, his adopted hometown from the age of 21, he was a familiar face to audiences across America as co-host of Hee Haw, the country music variety show that launched in 1969 and lasted until 1992. (Owens remained with the show until 1986.) Despite the silliness of […]
Continue Reading
The rock world may be getting a bit quieter next year, with the planned hiatus of alt-metal group Disturbed. But for longtime fans and collectors, they're at least going out with a bang, releasing a compilation of B-sides and unreleased material as a going-away present. The Lost Children collates 16 tracks from the Chicago-based band, many […]
Continue Reading
How to encapsulate the career of Johnny Mathis into one compilation? John Royce Mathis of Gilmer, Texas began his recording career at Columbia Records in 1956, nearly 21 years of age, and with the exception of a 1963-1966 stint at Mercury, he’s remained at the label ever since. Mathis has embraced jazz, traditional pop, so-called […]
Continue Reading
Iowa is more than Johnny Carson and John Wayne's home state. It's also the name of one of the heaviest metal albums of the past decade, by the native sons of Slipknot. The landmark album is being reissued this fall by Roadrunner Records, adding a bonus CD of live rarities and a DVD of video […]
Continue Reading
With her striking, even fearsome, physical appearance, distinctive voice and commitment to only the most danceable of music - a commitment that's netted her scores of Top 10 hits on Billboard's dance charts - it's safe to say there is no one quite like Grace Jones. Now, thanks to the efforts of the Gold Legion […]
Continue Reading
Few disputed the title of 1976’s The First Nudie Musical. And if there’s been a second nudie musical, nobody’s told me about it. But even if a second one does exist, chances are it doesn’t have a fraction of the satirical charm of the film described by the New York Post’s Judith Crist as “the […]
Continue ReadingThe fall is upon us, and we all know what that means: the holiday shopping season is right around the corner. Like so many years in recent memory, 2011 is marked by a crowded field of super deluxe catalogue boxes, from venerable artists like Pink Floyd, Elvis Presley, Sting, The Who, Nirvana and Jethro Tull. […]
Continue Reading