A pioneering force in the genre of darkwave and ambient music, Lycia have earned the appreciation of fans of bleak but ethereal songcraft - including famous fans like Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails and Type O Negative's Peter Steele. Now, the band are reissuing one of their most beloved albums, 1996's Cold, on limited edition vinyl. Lycia, formed in 1988, was the brainchild of Mike VanPortfleet, a singer/songwriter/guitarist/keyboardist with a penchant for building atmospheric sounds and
Hats Off To Del: Shannon Singles Compiled By Ace Records
"Runaway," "Little Town Flirt," "Keep Searchin' (I'll Follow the Sun)": the songs of Del Shannon have become an integral part of the American rock-and-roll tapestry. They're the lasting legacy of a restless, creative artist who survived the British Invasion and continued to make strong, relevant music right up until his suicide in 1990. Ace Records has just offered a new 2-CD anthology that allows Shannon's classic singles to be viewed through a new prism. The Complete U.K. Singles and More
Review: Elvis Presley, "Aloha From Hawaii Via Satellite: Legacy Edition"
Elvis Presley never did anything small. When he stepped onstage at 1:00 a.m. at Honolulu's International Center on January 14, 1973 for a scheduled 12:30 a.m. concert, satellites were beaming the most expensive entertainment broadcast ever to an audience of over one billion (yes, one billion) people around the world. The subsequent RCA album quickly was certified gold, and eventually went five times platinum. Now that world-famous LP, Aloha from Hawaii via Satellite, is the latest Legacy
Review: Duane Allman, "Skydog: The Duane Allman Retrospective"
“I ain’t wastin’ time no more,” Gregg Allman sang following the death of his brother Duane at the age of 24 in October 1971, “’cause time goes by like pouring rain…and much faster things/You don’t need no gypsy to tell you why/You can’t let one precious day slip by.” Surveying the remarkable new box set Skydog: The Duane Allman Retrospective (Rounder 11661-9137-2), it’s evident that Duane Allman’s too few days certainly were precious, filled with soulful sounds that transcended genre tags like
Release Round-Up: Week of March 19
Duane Allman, Skydog: The Duane Allman Retrospective (Rounder) A massive seven-disc box set celebrates the life and work of a guitar legend, gone far too soon. Read Joe's review here! (Amazon U.S.) Elvis Presley, Aloha from Hawaii via Satellite: Legacy Edition (RCA/Legacy) The classic best-selling live album, taken from the famed TV special, is paired with a newly-remixed version of The Alternate Aloha (a rehearsal show recorded days earlier) and rare bonus performances. You'll find Joe's
Ain't Nothin' Goin' On But Vintage R&B: Expanded Reissues Arrive From Payne, Mills, Guthrie
A recent trio of releases from Cherry Red’s SoulMusic Records imprint is sure to get the pulses racing of ’70s and ‘80s soul fans. Freda Payne’s second album for Capitol Records, 1978’s Supernatural High, followed 1977’s Stares and Whispers, also the recipient of a past SoulMusic reissue. Skip Scarborough (Earth Wind and Fire, Dionne Warwick, Phyllis Hyman) took the production helm from Motown’s Frank Wilson and wrote a few tracks for the project. Like many of Payne’s best albums,
Learning the Blues: Esoteric Remasters and Expands First Three Climax Blues Band Albums
Though the Climax Chicago Blues Band formed in Stafford, England, the band would likely have made any of the howling bluesmen from that storied Illinois city proud. Part of the vanguard of the British blues boom that also included the original Fleetwood Mac, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and even Led Zeppelin, Cream and the Rolling Stones, the Climax Chicago Blues Band made its rip-roaring debut for Parlophone in 1969 and began a legacy which continues to this very day, albeit with a wholly
Reach Out! Singles Sets for Four Tops, Martha & The Vandellas Due from Hip-O Select
We kick off the weekend with not one but two new Motown collections from Hip-O Select. This time, it's a pair of singles collections from two cornerstones of the classic Motown sound - and one is packed with rarities. The boutique label (which, if its Twitter feed is any indication, is due for a rebranding of sorts) is releasing two Singles Collection multi-disc sets from The Four Tops and Martha & The Vandellas. The classic lineup of Levi Stubbs, Obie Benson, Duke Fakir and Lawrence
Born in the AUS: New Springsteen Comp Bows for Down Under Tour
If you're a new fan of Bruce Springsteen in Australia, or a hardcore collector who wants everything ever released on behalf of The Boss, have we got a title for you. In honor of Springsteen's Australian leg of the Wrecking Ball Tour, which kicked off last night in Brisbane and continues through the end of the month, Sony Music's Australian arm is releasing a new single-disc compilation that collects all his biggest hits in advance of the next few live dates - which, if they're anything like the
Real Gone Captures David Allan Coe, Eddy Arnold, Blue Öyster Cult, Henry Mancini and More!
It’s that time of the month again! Real Gone Music has just announced its April 30 slate of releases, a typically full complement of nine reissues crossing all genre lines. For rock enthusiasts, Real Gone reinvents Blue Öyster Cult’s 1988 album Imaginos in a 2012 remix, enhancing the band’s controversial Columbia Records swansong with Scott Schinder’s new liner notes. Schinder also annotates a two-fer from Allman Brothers offshoot band Sea Level, containing Cats on the Coast and On the Edge.
Kritzerland Goes "Green" with Broadway's "A Time For Singing" and Vintage Newman Score
Kritzerland is going Green just in time for St. Patrick’s Day. Richard Llewellyn’s 1939 novel How Green Was My Valley was an immediate sensation, winning the 1940 National Book Award and attracting Hollywood’s attention. Set in South Wales, the story of the Morgan family’s struggles during the reign of Queen Victoria struck a chord with readers and spawned three sequels and numerous adaptations. The 1941 Twentieth Century Fox film version, directed by John Ford, is certainly the most
Numero Serves Up "Dynamic" Soul From Deep In The Heart Of Texas
The very first release from the musical archaeologists at The Numero Group was an Eccentric Soul compilation focusing on the small Capsoul label of Columbus, Ohio. Subsequent volumes have turned their attention to other regional labels including Deep City, Big Mack and Bandit, and producers and collectives like Mighty Mike Lenaburg and The Young Disciples. The latest Eccentric Soul release arrived from Numero on March 12, focusing on the Dynamic Records label. No. 043 in the Numero series,
Kickstart Our Hearts? Thoughts on Crowd-Funding Catalogue Music
In a move guaranteed to enter the history books in entertainment for 2013, Rob Thomas, creator of the cult-classic television show Veronica Mars, surprised fans with an idea for a cinematic continuation of the long-cancelled series. What made it worth noticing, regardless of one’s opinion for the show, was the method in which it was funded: with a script in hand and a cast ready to block out time for a theoretical production, Thomas got Warner Bros.’ blessing to approach fans to fund the project
Review: The O'Jays, "Ship Ahoy: 40th Anniversary Edition"
James Barkley’s rear cover artwork for The O’Jays’ 1973 Philadelphia International LP Ship Ahoy depicts a mighty vessel sailing on the sea, but the reflection in the water isn’t of the boat itself. Rather, ghostly figures of abandoned souls populate these waters. The setting is the Middle Passage, the infamous crossing in the “triangular trade” that saw Africans shackled and shipped as slaves to the Americas. Those spectral presences loom over the visages of Eddie Levert, Walter Williams and
Reviews: Real Gone Reissues A Lost Jimi Hendrix Production, All-Girl Rock Pioneers and Mime-Rockers
We’re taking a look at three of the latest pop-rock rarities from the crate-diggers at Real Gone Music, including two albums from bands with a Todd Rundgren connection! Fanny, Fanny (RGM-0118) Maybe the tongue-in-cheek cover didn’t do the band a great service. The band was called Fanny, and the album cover showed the all-female band’s four members, their backs to the camera, their fannies for all to see. For good measure, Alice De Buhr grabbed June Millington’s fanny. But beyond the goofy
"Essential Oils" Collects Greatest Hits Of Aussie Rock Legends On New 2-CD Set (UPDATED WITH PRE-ORDER LINK!)
Columbia Records and Legacy Recordings are burning the midnight oil with the April 30 release of Essential Oils, a 2-CD, 36-song chronicle of one of Australia’s favorite bands, Midnight Oil. This new survey of the rockers’ long career takes in all twelve of Midnight Oil’s studio albums in addition to two rare EPs. Midnight Oil had its roots in the band Farm. Founded in 1972, Farm performed familiar classic rock as part of its repertoire and evolved to touch on the burgeoning sounds of
Andre Cymone's "AC" Gets Double-Disc Treatment from Funkytowngrooves
Way back in January 2012, The Second Disc reported on Funky Town Grooves’ planned reissue of former Prince bassist André Cymone’s 1985 Columbia breakthrough record A.C., which yielded the Top 10 R&B hit “The Dance Electric.” This long-aborning reissue from FTG finally arrived last week in an edition expanded from its original planned track listing. A.C. received its first-ever CD reissue from the U.K.’s Big Break Records label in 2011; BBR’s deluxe edition appended a generous five bonus
Special Review: David Bowie, "The Next Day"
Welcome to today's special review of David Bowie's twenty-fourth studio album and first in ten years, The Next Day. As you likely know, The Second Disc rarely reviews newly-recorded albums, but the return of this iconic artist to the recording studio simply couldn't be ignored. In 1980's "Ashes to Ashes," David Bowie famously revealed "Major Tom's a junkie, strung out in heavens high, hitting an all-time low." This continuation of the story begun in 1969's "Space Oddity" was as definitive a
Release Round-Up: Week of March 12
Various Artists, Motown the Musical - Originals: The Classic Songs That Inspired the Broadway Show (Motown/UMe) The Sound of Young America is now the sound of The Great White Way, with a new musical entering previews this week. This new compilation presents all the original versions of the songs that feature in the show! 1CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. TV Mania, Bored with Prozac and the Internet? (Tapemodern) Completed by Duran Duran keyboardist Nick Rhodes and
FSM's "Wild Bunch" Marks the End of an Era
After more than 15 years as one of the most reputable and trailblazing film soundtrack reissue labels, Film Score Monthly unveiled its 250th and final release today with a triple-disc expansion of Jerry Fielding's score to the iconic Western The Wild Bunch. Sam Peckinpah's gritty tale of a gang of aging outlaws (including William Holden, Ernest Borgnine and Warren Oates) angling for one last score in the last days of the Old West is known for both its shocking (for its time) bloody violence and
Coming Up Roses: Sepia Reissues Ethel Merman's "Greatest" On CD
When Ethel Merman opened on Broadway in 1930’s Girl Crazy, introducing the world to George and Ira Gershwin’s “I Got Rhythm,” The New Yorker described her, precisely and accurately, as “imitative of no one.” She was only 22 at the time, but already Ethel Merman was recognized as having a tone unlikely any before or since. The actress-singer with the booming, clarion voice called the Great White Way her home for the next forty years with regularity, going from triumph to triumph via the likes
"ICON" is Now a Capitol Idea
Another few batches of Universal's eye-rolling ICON series are on the way - and while they offer a few genuine surprises, there's a lot, perhaps even more than usual, to shake one's head over. The big surprise right off the bat is that the mid-price compilation series will now chronicle not only Universal-controlled catalogue artists, but EMI-controlled ones as well. This is hardly a surprise, given the past year's big story of music business restructuring that's leaving the world with three
Songwriters Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil Are "Born to Be Together" on New Ace CD
Born to Be Together: could a more apropos title have been devised for a collection of the songs of Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil? Married since 1961, the team both defines and defies the phrase “unsung heroes.” Without hit records as recording artists, Mann and Weil have never had the name recognition of their Brill Building-era compatriots like Carole King or Neil Sedaka, but these Grammy Award-winning Rock and Roll Hall of Famers are hardly unsung. If all they’d ever written was the most
Turn It Up! Public Enemy Reissued on Vinyl in England
With a production team that lived up to their explosive name and a pair of unique vocal stylists at the helm, even the most seasoned rock purist might be able to give in to rap group Public Enemy's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this spring. While fans pine for deluxe editions of Public Enemy's hard-hitting discography on CD, Universal's U.K. arm is releasing a box set of all six of their Def Jam albums on 180-gram vinyl next month. Public Enemy was a deft combination of two
Put Your Hands Together: The O'Jays, Delegation, Black Slate, Donna Allen, George McCrae Arrive from BBR
The many varied strains of soul and R&B have long found a home at Cherry Red’s Big Break Records imprint, and this week's offerings from the label are no different, with five albums having just arrived from five very different artists on both sides of the Atlantic. The most well-known release in this batch is The O’Jays’ 1973 opus Ship Ahoy, produced and largely written by Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff for their Philadelphia International label. Though it yielded the hit singles “Put Our
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