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
Reissue Theory: Tears for Fears, "The Hurting: 30th Anniversary Edition"
Welcome to another installment of Reissue Theory, where we spotlight notable albums and the reissues they could someday see. Thirty years ago today, one of the best synth-rock bands of the 1980s released their first full-length album - as good a time as any to champion the career of Tears for Fears! "Is it an horrific dream? Am I sinking fast?" - "The Hurting," Tears for Fears From the beginning of the first side of Tears for Fears' debut LP, it's honestly kind of hard to predict where they'd
Such Things I Do to Make Myself More Attractive to You: Morrissey Re-Tools "Kill Uncle" for Reissue (UPDATED 3/6)
UPDATE (3/6): Morrissey has released the artwork for these new titles. The single cover for "The Last of the Famous International Playboys" was slated to feature an unreleased pic of Moz and David Bowie until the latter denied use of the image. Instead, the singer has cheekily used a picture of himself with pop Rick Astley backstage at Top of the Pops in 1988. No word as to whether or not the single will be intentionally mis-pressed to feature "Never Gonna Give You Up." ORIGINAL POST
Think About Direction, and R.E.M.'s Deluxe Reissue of "Green"
Not long after R.E.M.'s last 25th anniversary edition was released, they're already prepping the next archival project: Rolling Stone reports an expanded edition of 1988's Green is on its way May 14. The Athens, Georgia quartet's sixth album in as many years was a notable event for them. After a healthy run ascending to the upper echelon of the alternative rock scene on I.R.S. Records, the band took on a new contract with major label Warner Bros., with whom they'd stay for the remainder of
Razor & Tie Hires a Bunch of Stiffs (and ZTT, Too)
"If It Ain't On Stiff, It Ain't Worth a F***!" declared a famous slogan for the venerable punk and New Wave label. This month, that worth-a-f*** spirit extends to catalogue label Razor & Tie, who today announced a brand-new licensing agreement in North America with both Stiff and equally iconic British label ZTT. Stiff, of course, was best known for putting out early works by The Damned (their "New Rose" is considered by some scholars to be the first punk rock single), Kirsty MacColl (some
He Did It His Way: Paul Anka Joins Friends For "Duets", New CD Features Michael Jackson, Frank Sinatra, Leon Russell and More
Do you remember the times of your life? Paul Anka posed that musical question in 1975, taking Roger Nichols and Bill Lane’s onetime Kodak film jingle all the way to the Top 10 Billboard pop chart and No. 1 Easy Listening. At that point, Anka could rightfully reflect on the times of his own storied life, nearly two decades in the music business. But could he have imagined that he would still be going strong almost forty years after “Times of Your Life” hit? The Canadian-born singer,
Review: Jimi Hendrix, "People, Hell and Angels"
The Jimi Hendrix reclamation project continues. The partnership between Experience Hendrix and Legacy Recordings began in early 2010 with the release of Valleys of Neptune, a 12-track collection of previously unreleased material from the late guitar hero. Since then, CDs, DVDs, Blu-rays and box sets have all arrived to keep the Hendrix flame burning bright. And now Valleys of Neptune receives a proper follow-up in the form of People, Hell and Angels (88765 41898 2), a “new” collection of
Release Round-Up: Week of March 5
Jimi Hendrix, People, Hell & Angels / The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Are You Experienced (200-Gram Mono Vinyl) / Axis: Bold As Love (200-Gram Mono Vinyl) (Experience Hendrix/Legacy) Not only does today see the release of a new posthumous Hendrix compilation, comprised of newly unearthed outtakes from the vaults, but the original mono mixes of his first two LPs (including both U.S. and U.K. editions of Are You Experienced) make their first appearances on vinyl since their initial releases.
Review: Otis Redding, "Lonely and Blue: The Deepest Soul of Otis Redding"
Please, let me sit down beside you…I’ve got something to tell you, you should know... From the very first elongated cry of “please,” Otis Redding’s voice drips with pain, the kind of pain rendered impossible to keep underneath the surface. The singer of “I Love You More Than Words Can Say” pleads, prods and cajoles, all the while at an utter loss. This woman who haunts him, who lingers in his mind, seemingly can’t understand the depth of his affections. Yet we the listeners certainly can
Ashes to Ashes: Dust, Legendary Proto-Metal Band, Returns with Remastered "Dust" and "Hard Attack"
Think of Kama Sutra Records, and chances are you’ll think of The Lovin’ Spoonful, or maybe The Trade Winds or even Sha Na Na. The label wasn’t solely dedicated to sunny pop, however, as evidenced by the two albums released by the band Dust. Richie Wise (guitar/vocals), Kenny Aaronson (bass) and the future Marky Ramone, Marc Bell (drums) joined with producer/songwriter Kenny Kerner to create two albums for Kama Sutra in the early 1970s that still rank among the most incendiary hard rock,
Breeders' Second LP Makes Quite a "Splash" on New Box Set
Two decades after its original release, indie rockers The Breeders will reissue a 20th anniversary edition of their breakthrough LP, Last Splash, that may turn out to be one of the year's most grandiose packages. The Breeders started as a side project for Kim Deal, bassist for the Pixies. Debut album Pod (1990) featured Deal on guitar alongside Tanya Donnelly of Throwing Muses, Perfect Disaster bassist Josephine Wiggs and Slint drummer Britt Walford. Though sales were slight, critics praised
Rilo Kiley Wraps It Up with "RKives"
While indie-rock fans might be rightly bummed about the demise of L.A.-based Rilo Kiley, the members are at least delivering their fans a fine parting gift in the form of a new compilation that collects much of their rare and unreleased material. The quartet, comprised of frontwoman Jenny Lewis, guitarist Blake Sennett, bassist Pierre de Reader and drummer Jason Boesel, fortunately never relied on their easiest gimmick to raise outside interest: both Lewis and Sennett were former child actors,
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