Last week, there was a sort-of funny tempest in a teapot reported by The Los Angeles Times over pop singer Beyoncé's latest album, 4. The paper reported that fans were unhappy with the seemingly low stock of deluxe editions of the album at Target, the chain that was carrying the special version exclusively, as well as problems with the bonus content (an online-exclusive music video, streamed through a special portion of the singer's website when unlocked with the bonus disc) was not available
Suddenly...Cherry Pop Reissues and Expands Two Billy Ocean Albums
If you're sharing the same dream to see Billy Ocean's catalogue get some deluxe treatment, next Tuesday is your day: Cherry Pop is reissuing two of Ocean's mid-'80s pop smashes with bonus content. These will be the Cherry Red label group's second and third reissues for Ocean, following Big Break's expansion of 1982's Inner Feelings back in March. The Trinidad-born, England-raised Ocean enjoyed early success in the late '70s on the GTO label. His first single, 1976's "Love Really Hurts Without
New Links in the Chain: Deluxe 2-CD/1-DVD Sets Coming from The Jesus and Mary Chain (UPDATED)
Few album titles have been more apt than the Jesus and Mary Chain's 1985 LP debut, Psychocandy. The record took deceptively simple pop songs, influenced by the melodies of Phil Spector and Brian Wilson, and cloaked them in a noisy, fuzz-and-feedback-laden haze that took the darkness of The Velvet Underground one step further. If the group didn't exist, someone would have had to invent it. William and Jim Reid, two Scottish brothers, formed the core of the band, initially joined by bassist
Whole Hall and Oates: Famed Duo's Complete Atlantic Years Collected
Daryl Hall and John Oates made their first significant dent on the pop charts with 1976's "Sara Smile," released on RCA Records. "Rich Girl" followed as their first No. 1 single in 1977, and a few short years later, they were proclaimed the most successful duo in rock history thanks to an amazing string of ubiquitous pop singles: "Kiss on My List," "Private Eyes," "Maneater," "I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)" and so on. But those who only know Hall and Oates from those remarkable 1980s
La-La Land Plans Some Golden Surprises
Reissue enthusiasts have often felt the sting of delays. One of our favorite soundtrack labels, La-La Land Records, announced today that the same sting had fallen upon them - but in the process, teased some great gems coming from the label in the future. As previously reported, La-La Land was gearing up several special soundtrack titles for this year's San Diego Comic-Con later this month. (That same celebration gave fans expansions of the scores to Krull and Batman last year.) One of the
Release Round-Up: Week of July 5
Erasure, Wonderland / The Circus: Deluxe Editions (EMI) Vince Clarke and Andy Bell's first two albums, expanded with bonus B-sides and remixes across two CDs and DVDs full of live footage. (Official site) Jim Capaldi, Dear Mr. Fantasy: The Jim Capaldi Story (Universal U.K.) The late Traffic legend is memorialized in a four-disc box set. (Official site) Paul McCartney, Driving Rain (MPL/Concord) Another Macca remaster, this one of Paul's 2001 album. No frills, but I imagine "Freedom" will
Elmer Bernstein Classic "Drango" On Deck From Kritzerland
Had Sweet Smell of Success been the only film score written by Elmer Bernstein in 1957, the composer’s place in the pantheon would have been all but assured. Yet Bernstein remarkably found time to score four other motion pictures that very same year. The soundtracks to two of those pictures, Fear Strikes Out and The Tin Star, were reissued earlier this year by Kritzerland. A third, Drango, was announced on Monday, July 4 as the latest release from the veteran stage and screen specialist
July 4 Special Reissue Theory: "1776: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack"
Happy 4th of July! Welcome to another installment of Reissue Theory, where we take a look back at notable albums and the reissues they could someday see. In 1969, a Broadway musical about a most unlikely subject became the toast of New York. Three years later, a movie mogul in the twilight of his years shepherded it to the big screen, and while the film has lived on, its soundtrack album has all but disappeared. Today's Reissue Theory, pulled from The Second Disc archives, imagines a
Back Tracks: Sly and The Family Stone
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4G861C3J9ms] Today being the Fourth of July, there are few better reasons to give a spin to Sly and The Family Stone's Greatest Hits, arguably one of the best single-artist compilations in pop history. Those danceable grooves will get you moving at any barbecue, family reunion, pool party or whatever you might be celebrating this holiday weekend. But revisiting Sly has another purpose as of late: to get set up for one of the most unexpected comebacks in
Friday Feature: "The Transformers: The Movie"
That crunching, crashing sound you hear is another Transformers movie rolling out into theaters. The series' third installment, Dark of the Moon, features Autobots and Decepticons yet again pummeling each other into scrap metal with the fate of the Earth at stake. While it remains to be seen - at least by this author - if the new film is any worse than the abhorrent Revenge of the Fallen from 2009 (which featured an enemy with a crotch made of wrecking balls, hereafter referred to as
Patti Smith Still "Outside Society" On New Legacy Comp
October 30, 2009. Electricity was in the air at the second evening of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25th Anniversary Concerts at New York’s Madison Square Garden. In a crowning irony, quintessential downtown icon Patti Smith had taken the uptown stage in this most mainstream of venues. She was on hand to sing her 1978 hit “Because the Night” with its co-writer and the unofficial ringleader for the two marathon shows, Bruce Springsteen, and pianist Roy Bittan. The song required a couple of
Masterworks Broadway Announces Three More CD Debuts Including "Divine Hair"
In a recent Wall Street Journal column, Scott Farthing, Sony Masterworks' Senior Director of Marketing, estimated that the Sony vaults house 80-85% of all [American] cast recordings ever made. Largely built on the combined catalogues of Columbia Records and RCA Victor (and their associated labels), the Masterworks Broadway label has gradually been making that immense library available once again in the digital domain. Masterworks has just announced its summer line-up, and as usual, it’s a varied
Review: The Left Banke, "Walk Away Renee/Pretty Ballerina" and "The Left Banke Too"
After listening to The Left Banke's two original albums, just reissued by Sundazed, I have only one question: what took so long? The group's recorded output was collected back in 1992 by Mercury on There's Gonna Be A Storm: The Complete Recordings 1966-1969. Besides getting my vote for Best Rhino Album Not Actually Produced By Rhino (Bill Inglot produced and Andrew Sandoval annotated...'nuff said!), the single disc compilation offers a remarkable view of the group that soared with 1966's
Review: Marvin Gaye, "What's Going On: 40th Anniversary Edition"
Close your eyes and think of your favorite childhood vacation destination. That familiar locale, perhaps a constant lake house where you dreamt of the perfect summer and did your best to achieve it. The silly family rituals, the bonds you made with others, the warm feeling that comes with those kind of memories. Now picture that same destination, revisited as a luxurious, all-expenses-paid package. There's not a worry in sight, no shortage of requests to be fulfilled by servers and staff - the
Some Kind Of Wonderful: Carole King's "Music" Set For SACD and LP Release
Fronting a band called The City in 1968, Carole King titled her first full-length LP Now That Everything's Been Said. Thankfully, King actually had much, much more to say. She began her solo career, proper, in 1970 with Writer, and had the breakthrough the following year with Tapestry. But how to follow an album that spawns three number one pop hits and wins four Grammy Awards, not to mention igniting the entire female singer/songwriter movement? King wasted no time, and less than one year
Barbra Streisand's Latest Offers Bonus Disc Of Bergman Classics
It should come as no surprise that Barbra Streisand has dedicated her newest studio album to the lyrics of Alan and Marilyn Bergman. Streisand began her association with the husband-and-wife lyricist team in 1969, recording their "Ask Yourself Why," with music by Michel Legrand, on What About Today?, her very first stab at the contemporary pop market. (She actually had recorded one Alan Bergman/Lew Spence song, "That Face," as part of a medley on 1966's Color Me Barbra.) Though Streisand would
Reissue Theory: WHAM! "The Final: Live at Wembley"
Welcome to another installment of Reissue Theory, where we take a look back at notable albums and the reissues they could someday see. Twenty-five years after one of pop's guiltiest pleasures said goodbye to a packed live audience, we wonder what a release of that show would look like. On June 28, 1986, twenty-five years ago today, WHAM! became a past-tense pop act. It wasn't your typical pop meltdown, however; it was a breakup for the ages. What other group bids their fan base (80,000
Review: Neil Young, "A Treasure"
Are you ready for the country? In 1984, Neil Young certainly was. His Geffen Records debut, Trans, had just a couple of years earlier plunged Young into a “high tech” world of vocoders, synthesizers and dance beats while the singer ruminated about “The Computer Age,” “Computer Cowboy” and “Transformer Man.” 1983’s Everybody’s Rockin’ was an exercise in recreating rockabilly, with Young’s band billed as The Shocking Pinks. Originals like “Kinda Fonda Wanda” blended right in with covers of
Release Round-Up: Week of June 28
Queen, News of the World / Jazz / The Game / Flash Gordon / Hot Space: Deluxe Editions (Island/UMC) The next wave of Queen remasters are out this Monday in England. If you don't want to get them as imports, you'll have to wait until September to get these as domestic reissues - by which point I'd imagine the third wave will be out in the U.K. (Official site) Alice Cooper, Old School 1964-1974 (Bigger Picture) This desk-sized box includes not pencils, not books, not black eyeliner, but four
BREAKING NEWS! Great, Big, Beautiful Tomorrow Brings First Disney-Intrada Releases
71 years ago, a little cricket named Jiminy reassured children everywhere that "when you wish upon a star, your dreams come true" in Walt Disney's film Pinocchio. Well, the dreams of many film score collectors and Disney enthusiasts are indeed coming true thanks to tonight's announcement by Intrada Records. The California label, a 25-year veteran in the soundtrack business, put to rest weeks of rumors and tonight confirmed a new partnership with The Walt Disney Company. The inaugural title in
Sonic Youth Comp Goes from Starbucks to Stores Everywhere
Anyone who missed Sonic Youth's last compilation, 2008's Hits Are for Squares (released exclusively through Starbucks stores), have another chance to get it beyond last year's vinyl release on Record Store Day. It's being released to general retail this summer, reports MusicTAP. The collection collates hits and favorite tracks from the New York City band's extensive catalogue, stretching back from 1984's EVOL to 2004's Sonic Nurse. All the tunes were selected by famous fans of the band,
Benson, Hubbard, Turrentine On June Slate From CTI Masterworks
Earlier this year, Universal and Hip-o Select released a bold orange box set containing the first 6 LPs on the Impulse! label, all of which were produced by Creed Taylor. The ambitious producer didn't stay long at Impulse!, however, departing for the greener pastures of Verve, then A&M, where he founded his CTI label. Following a highly successful series of CTI albums under the A&M imprimatur, Taylor's mini-kingdom went the independent route and along the way practically defined the
He Shall Be Levon: Helm Two-Fer Brings Together Rare Solo LPs
Though The Band remains a likely candidate for Group Least Likely to Reunite, Levon Helm hasn’t been resting on his laurels. After a 25-year year hiatus from his career as a solo artist (during which time he participated in the recording of three Band albums sans Robbie Robertson and successfully underwent treatment for throat cancer) Helm returned to recording with 2007’s acclaimed Dirt Farmer. Since then, he’s maintained a busy live schedule, and last month’s Ramble at the Ryman preserved a
People All Over the World! A New "Soul Train" Comp Rolls Your Way
For most of its 35-year run, there was no better outlet for soul music on television than Soul Train. Featuring a diverse palette of R&B artists and the commanding presence of creator/producer/host Don Cornelius, Soul Train has become an institution, the longest-running, nationally syndicated show in American history - albeit one that modern audiences would be slow to appreciate, were it not for the efforts of Time-Life Entertainment in releasing several official DVDs of content from the
Reissue Theory: Michael Jackson, "Bad: The Remixes"
Welcome to another installment of Reissue Theory, where we focus on notable albums and the reissues they could someday see. As the world reflects on the two-year anniversary of the loss of the King of Pop, we take a look at some of Michael Jackson's most accessible vault material and envision a simple way of getting some of that material into the awaiting arms of the public. It's hard to believe Michael Jackson's been gone two years this Saturday. We've all mourned together, and we've all
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