Back to 'Back to Bedlam': James Blunt Expands Brilliant Debut

By Mike Duquette | October 3, 2024 | 0 Comments

Two decades ago, an earnest British singer-songwriter with a distinctive, keening voice had a hit that would, for better or worse, define the arc of his career as a musician. This month, James Blunt is gamely revisiting his debut album, Back to Bedlam, with a new deluxe edition and an outlandish promise of what he'll do if […]

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Quadio Spotlight: Bette Midler, "The Divine Miss M" and Bread, "Baby I'm a Want-You"

By Joe Marchese | October 2, 2024 | 0 Comments

Way back in Ye Olden Days of 2011, The Second Disc advocated for the release of the original quadraphonic mix of Bette Midler's 1973 debut, The Divine Miss M.  Well, lo these many years later, Rhino has granted our wish, and it's been released on Blu-ray as part of the label's still-growing Quadio series of […]

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Can't Wait Till Tomorrow: Cherry Red Expands Sheena Easton's 'Do You'

By Joe Marchese | October 1, 2024 | 1 Comment

With 1984's A Private Heaven, Sheena Easton successfully followed in the footsteps of Olivia Newton-John in shedding her "girl next door" persona - so much so that future U.S. Second Lady Tipper Gore's Parents Music Resource Center "honored" Sheena's Prince-penned "Sugar Walls" with a slot on its "Filthy Fifteen" list.  No wonder Gore and co. […]

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In Memoriam: Kris Kristofferson (1936-2024)

By Joe Marchese | September 30, 2024 | 9 Comments

On a Sunday mornin' sidewalk/I'm wishin', Lord, that I was stoned/'Cause there's somethin' in a Sunday/That makes a body feel alone... With songs such as "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down," Kris Kristofferson expanded the vernacular of country music, bringing realism, gritty authenticity, and a literate sensibility - he was an Oxford-schooled Rhodes Scholar -  to a […]

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Wild and Crazy: Rhino Collects Steve Martin's Comedy Albums

By Mike Duquette | September 30, 2024 | 3 Comments

There aren't many comedians funnier than Steve Martin. Though the gray-haired funnyman only spent the better part of a decade performing as a stand-up before pursuing acting, writing, and even bluegrass originals, Martin's brilliant blend of highbrow, lowbrow and absurdist humor made him one of the most head-turning entertainers of his generation. Rhino Records will […]

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