Last week's revelation that American media conglomerate Clear Channel had let go of dozens of local radio DJs made music fans yearn for the simpler times of when jockeys weren't limited to playlists from on high and could shape the public's music taste in a positive way. Ironically, as the Clear Channel news spread, EMI prepares the release of a new compilation devoted to one of England's most famous radio presenters, the late, great John Peel. Peel, a jockey on BBC's Radio 1 from 1967 until
Happy Halloween! Taking a Bite Out of "Son of Dracula"
Happy Halloween! To celebrate this spookiest of holidays, we're bringing you a special holiday reprise from The Second Disc Archives in which we revisit the immortal, undead "Son of Dracula," starring Harry Nilsson and Ringo Starr! October 2010 will bring a major reissue campaign devoted to the Apple Records discography, seeing most of that storied label’s output arrive in editions remastered by the same team behind the Beatles’ catalogue overhaul last year. But one Apple-related LP is among
WHAM!'s "The Final" to Be Reissued as CD/DVD Set
In five years, George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, as the U.K. pop duo WHAM!, released two albums, one compilation and a dozen singles. Only one of those releases placed anywhere beneath their native Top 10. No matter what you think of the group's candy-coated pop stylings, those are incredible numbers in such a short period of time. We could debate the impact of WHAM! all day - and this author would certainly side with them. (Their debut album Fantastic is, at worst, throwaway pop, and
Of Wizzards and Electric Light Orchestras: Roy Wood Opens His "Music Book" and ELO Goes "Essential"
Electric Light Orchestra may not have been the first band to merge a classical sensibility with the power of rock, but the group was undoubtedly the most successful. Yet the group of “Mr. Blue Sky” and “Evil Woman” began as a decidedly different aggregation, born out of the ashes of Birmingham, England’s The Move. When lead singer Carl Wayne departed The Move, his bandmate Roy Wood invited one Jeff Lynne, of The Idle Race, to join him. This revitalized line-up of The Move produced two
Crosby, Stills and Nash, Gary Wright Get 24K Gold Treatment From Audio Fidelity
The busy Audio Fidelity label is adding two more classic rock landmarks to its growing catalogue of 24K Gold compact discs. Crosby, Stills & Nash’s self-titled 1969 Atlantic debut and Gary Wright’s 1975 Warner Bros. platter The Dream Weaver both spawned radio hits still played today and remain cornerstones of many classic rock libraries. These latest gold discs will arrive in stores on November 15. Though many have followed, the ultimate supergroup still remains that of David Crosby,
The Boys Are Boxed: Thin Lizzy "BBC Sessions" Set Coming Soon
With the recent wave of expanded reissues of the Thin Lizzy catalogue across the pond (in some cases after years of waiting), it's easy for eager fans to ask what comes next. The answer is quite a doozy: November sees the release of a massive seven-disc box set that captures the band's various live stands recorded by the BBC. The set has everything stored in the BBC archives, including sessions with the likes of Bob Harris and John Peel through the '70s, two sets at London's Golders Green
Costello's Wheel Good Tour Captured on New Live Box Set
In 1986, Elvis Costello and The Attractions did something bizarre for rock musicians: they reinvented the wheel. Okay, maybe that's pushing it, but the introduction of "The Spectacular Spinning Songbook" to Costello's tour itinerary remains among the most treasured of memories for longtime fans. Costello, who only used The Attractions once on his then-new album, King of America (opting instead for a number of other musicians, including a studio-created group, The Confederates, featuring T-Bone
Gilbert O'Sullivan "Himself" Coming Soon, Naturally
In a little while from now, if I'm not feeling any less sour, I promise myself to treat myself...and listen to a Gilbert O'Sullivan record. The quirky Irish singer/songwriter topped the charts in 1972 with "Alone Again, Naturally," proclaimed by American Top 40 as the fifth most popular song of the entire decade. But it's also one of the most unusual. As the song begins, the narrator is left at the altar and is contemplating "climbing to the top" of a "nearby tower" to throw himself off. He
La-La Land Spends "55 Days at Peking," Releases Full Golden Age Score
La-La Land Records yesterday took a break from contemporary film score reissues and presented an expanded version of a classic score by Dimitri Tiomkin from 1963: 55 Days at Peking. A dramatization of the Boxer Rebellion in 1900 China, 55 Days at Peking depicts the Battle of Peking from the perspective of a group of foreign diplomats protected by the Chinese government in Peking's legations district. Charlton Heston stars as an American major defending the ambassadors, and David Niven and Ava
Propiniquity: The Monkees' "Instant Replay" Box Set Is Finally Here
You've probably seen the hints on Twitter, and the clues on Facebook. Now the real deal has been announced. The Monkees' 1969 Instant Replay is following in the footsteps of The Birds, The Bees and The Monkees and Head and receiving a 3-CD deluxe box set from the fine folks at Rhino Handmade. It could represent one disc for each Monkee, as Peter Tork had already departed the band by the time of the album's release in February 1969. Instant Replay is a veritable grab-bag of tracks recorded
Review: Phil Spector, "The Philles Album Collection" and "The Essential Phil Spector"
Whoa-oh, a-whoa-oh-oh-oh! Think of The Ronettes' wail, every bit as iconic a cry as a-whop-bop-a-loo-a-whop-bam-boom. Doesn't rock and roll have a way of elevating onomatopoeia to poetry? And no label made sweeter poetry in the first half of the 1960s than Philles Records. The voices of Ronnie Spector, Darlene Love, La La Brooks, Barbara Alston and the rest spoke directly to America’s teenagers. These women, alternately vulnerable and defiant, were little more than girls when they began
Lost Highway, Found on Vinyl: 10th Anniversary Box Coming Next Month
With a name like Lost Highway Records, it might be tough to parse the mission statement of such a company - unless, of course, you know your Hank Williams. In fact, they've been supplying fans with some of the best in alternative rock and country. And now, to celebrate a decade in business, next month sees the release of a mega-vinyl box set highlighting some of the label's best output. Lost Highway, founded in 2000 by Luke Lewis, started their existence off with a bang, distributing the
Release Round-Up: Week of October 24/25
It's Tuesday, but most of the new music this week has already been out for a day. But assuming you were too busy to get out to the shops, here's a look at what's new. And there's quite a bit! Various Artists, Phil Spector Presents The Philles Album Collection (Phil Spector Records/Legacy) Six of the first seven Philles albums presented in mono, along with a bonus disc of those delightfully out-there instrumental B-sides. Seriously, have you heard any of them? They're crazy. In a good way, that
Review: Paul Simon, "Songwriter" and Expanded, Remastered Albums (1980-1990)
It's 1971, and Aretha Franklin has just introduced the world to "Bridge Over Troubled Water," a rousing, spiritual anthem that could have been written decades if not centuries ago. She takes the song to the top of the charts. Its notoriety leads to the rise of jobbing songwriter Paul Simon, who no longer needs to kick around the Brill Building in its waning days. Simon's career kicks off in earnest the following year with the release of his self-titled solo album. It's a quirky, offbeat
A Fantasmagorical Second Disc Interview! Bruce Kimmel Talks New, Expanded 2-CD "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang"
When Richard M. Sherman introduces his Academy Award-nominated song “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” in concert, he often has to remind his audience that the film of the same name wasn’t a Walt Disney production. Producer Albert R. Broccoli, best-known for the James Bond series of films, signed Richard and his brother Robert M. Sherman for their very first film score outside of the Disney sphere. Like the Bond films, United Artists’ Chitty was based on the writing of Ian Fleming. For Fleming’s story
Dead News Round-Up: Of Road Trips and Blu-Rays
It's been a good year to be dead - well, The Grateful Dead, anyway - thanks to a handful of deep catalogue projects catered to the most undying of Deadheads. In the coming weeks, there are a trove of projects around and beyond Rhino's enormous Europe '72 box set, some of which indicate a bit of transition for longtime fans and collectors while still keeping an eye toward the future of preserving the band's legacy. First of all, for those who might want less than the dozens of discs in Europe
Miles Ahead: Davis' 1986-1991 Warner Years Boxed
Could anyone ever truly offer The Last Word on Miles Davis? Warner Bros. and Rhino attempted to do just that back in 2001-2002, with the planned release of a box set of the same name. Of course, the set was planned to be the last word on the trumpeter's Warner Bros. years, the last period of his lengthy career. The Last Word began as a 6-CD set, and a little sleuthing around the ‘net will yield a fascinating track listing of a 77-track comprehensive box, loaded with previously unreleased
Pink Floyd, Beatles, Nirvana, Doors Lead Off Record Store Day Exclusives On "Black Friday"
For those of us who still savor the experience of shopping in a physical environment, Record Store Day has become a yearly tradition. It’s sometimes frustrating and sometimes exciting, but few could argue with an event that spotlights the hard-working independent music retailers out there who believe that brick-and-mortar retail can still thrive in the iTunes era. (Amen to that!) A more recent offshoot of Record Store Day has been the mini-event held each Black Friday, or the day after
To the Edge of Glory and Back: Gaga Reissues "Born This Way" with Extra Discs for Holidays
It wouldn't be the holiday season without a few reissues of recent works, and we've got a big one coming up in just a month: a sprawling three-disc version of Lady Gaga's monster hit album Born This Way. Love her or hate her, the New York girl born Stefani Germanotta has gone from Madonna-aping pop singer to bizarro pop-cultural force since her 2008 debut. The release of this year's Born This Way, her second studio-length effort (following 2009's excellent EP The Fame Monster and a throwaway
Reissue Theory: Aerosmith, "Box of Fire II: The Geffen Years"
Welcome to another installment of Reissue Theory, where we focus on notable albums and the reissues they may someday see. As Aerosmith come ever closer to finishing another new album, we imagine a box set that celebrates their first great, entirely unexpected comeback. If all goes according to plan, by next spring you could be hearing the first new, original Aerosmith album in more than a decade. Frontman Steven Tyler anticipates a March release date on the new disc, to be produced by Jack
Shattered, Again: Rolling Stones Unveil Complete "Some Girls" Track Listing For Box Set, Deluxe Edition (UPDATED)
Well, the wait is over. Universal Music has revealed the complete details for the November 21 reissue of the Rolling Stones' 1978 Some Girls across multiple formats. Following in the footsteps of last year's Exile on Main Street set, Some Girls will offer a number of previously-unreleased songs, recently completed by the Stones, as Jagger told German network ZDF last month: that "I've just been in the studio finishing some outtakes from 1978 ... They're going to be released [on] a rerelease of
Seger Takes Old (and New) Records Off the Shelf on New Hits Set
As if getting some of Bob Seger's albums back on CD wasn't exciting enough this year, a new double-disc compilation puts some of his greatest hits (and a few rarities) back on shelves, where they belong. Ultimate Hits: Rock and Roll Never Forgets, boasts 26 tracks of Bob Seger on his own, with The Silver Bullet Band and - most exciting of all - with The Bob Seger System. The original mono single version of "Ramblin' Gamblin' Man" will feature on this set alongside classics like "Old Time Rock
Stephen Sondheim, Angela Lansbury, Mary Martin Feature in Latest Masterworks Line-Up
Some of The Great White Way's brightest stars will be on the receiving end of the latest reissue bonanza from Sony's Masterworks Broadway label. Leading the pack is the 1985 Original Cast Recording of Stephen Sondheim's Follies in Concert. Lee Remick, Barbara Cook, Mandy Patinkin and George Hearn star in the 1985 recording of Sondheim's 1971 musical currently enjoying a critically-acclaimed, hit revival on Broadway. Follies in Concert will arrive at general retail on CD in a new eco-friendly
Short Takes: Beatles May Finally "Let It Be" on DVD, Big Country Goes Back to "The Crossing"
Could a release of Let It Be, The Beatles' harrowing 1970 documentary/epitaph, finally be happening? Director Michael Lindsay-Hogg says so. In an interview with WNYC-FM, Lindsay-Hogg discussed the film, saying, "we have been been working on it pretty much every year for the last couple of years. And the plan is, at the moment, to have it come out, I think, in 2013." A premiere release of the DVD, featuring outtakes and additional footage highlighting the making of the film, would follow a
Legacy Orders Another Round of "Playlist"
It feels like it's been a long time since the last batch of Playlist titles from Legacy (by our records, it's been five months), but a bunch of new titles are on shelves as of yesterday. There's a lot of country and modern rock in this batch, including titles from Gene Autry, Phil Vassar and Joe Diffie (on the country end) and Say Anything, Coheed and Cambria and Mudvayne (on the rock end). There's also one from rap/reggae artist Matisyahu (surely you recall the Orthodox Jewish musician, whose
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