Strut Your Funky Stuff: Philadelphia International’s “Frantique” Comes to CD
Everything about Philadelphia International Records’ 1979 release of the self-titled album from Frantique was unexpected. The cradle of Philly soul wasn’t exactly a typical home for an LP of Eurodisco. Nor was Frantique’s benefactor someone particularly associated with disco, Euro- or otherwise – the legendary maestro of elegant and silky soul, Thom Bell. But Bell had taken an interest in songwriter-producer Jack Robinson and his collaborator David Christie, enlisting them for projects by The Spinners and Lou Rawls, among others. Robinson and Christie, a.k.a. James Bolden, composed just four lengthy tracks for…
Release Round-Up: Week of January 8
Welcome to our first Release Round-Up of 2016! The Mamas and the Papas, The Complete Singles: The 50th Anniversary Collection (Real Gone Music) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) Real Gone Music has 53 tracks on 2 CDs of pure pop pleasure from The Mamas and the Papas – as a group and solo – with this first-ever collection of their complete singles, just in time for their 50th anniversary! Full details here. J.D. Souther, John David Souther (Expanded Edition) (Omnivore) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) J.D….
Oughta Know By Now: Second Wave of Phil Collins Reissues Due in February
The first entries in Phil Collins’ long-awaited “Take a Look At Me Now” reissue campaign were delayed from November to the end of this January, but there’s even more excitement on the horizon: Rhino Records today announced the second wave of the eight-album reissue plan will hit stores February 26. The next titles are Phil’s second album, Hello, I Must Be Going! (1982) and sixth studio effort, Dance Into the Light (1996). On Hello, Collins modified the formula that made solo debut Face Value such a landmark release in his career, marrying his…
Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough: Michael Jackson’s “Off the Wall” To Be Reissued with New Spike Lee Documentary
We’re barely a week into 2016 and we’re already seeing a lot of reissue news for this new year! The latest comes from Legacy Recordings, who yesterday announced a massive Elvis Presley box set. Now they’ve got a new reissue featuring another legendary performer: Michael Jackson. Due to be released on February 26 is a new edition of Jackson’s landmark 1979 solo Epic Records debut Off the Wall. The album is being paired with Spike Lee’s new documentary Michael Jackson’s Journey from Motown to Off the Wall which is premiering at the Sundance…
Rhino Charges Into January with New Colored Vinyl Titles, CD Box Sets
Rhino Records has quite the cure for the usual January doldrums that hit the release calendar, announcing more than a dozen new and reissued titles available exclusively through participating physical stores. The “Start Your Ear Off Right” initiative, featuring titles available January 19, encompass some of the best-known names in Rhino’s back catalogue, including The Grateful Dead, The Monkees, Devo, The Cars and The Replacements. From colored vinyl variants to CD box sets, there’s virtually something for everyone here. And just what will you find? Read on and find out! Bad Company,…
Hail to the King: RCA/Legacy Announces 60-Disc Elvis Presley Albums Box Set [UPDATED WITH TRACK LISTING]
This Friday marks what would have been Elvis Presley’s 81st birthday. To coincide with this date, RCA/Legacy Recordings has just announced the first major box set of 2016: a 60-disc collection entitled Elvis Presley: The Album Collection due to be released on March 18, 2016. Presley, of course, needs no introduction. He is among a short list of performers who could be among the most influential performers of the 20th century and beyond. This new set follows similar sets Legacy has released devoted to the catalogues of Miles Davis, Tony Bennett, Johnny Cash…
The Year In Review, Part 2 – More Of The Best Of 2015
The Second Disc is continuing its celebration of 2015’s finest with today’s column by Ted Frank! Stop, do not pass GO and do not collect 200 dollars if you haven’t already read our Sixth Annual Gold Bonus Disc Awards summation of the year’s greatest releases. Here, Ted presents his very own, alternative year in review with titles new and old! I make records … I really don’t want to be about singles or anything. -Adele, The Tonight Show In recent years, the download/stream-heavy music business has seemingly become an industry of the sure-fire hit single rather…
Cherry Red’s él Label Offers Rod McKuen, Wally Stott, Bobby Scott Rarities
Cherry Red’s él imprint has a trio of recent releases continuing its commitment to truly eclectic sounds of the pre-1964 era. Two of these are musical odes to the big city life of London and New York, from arrangers Wally Stott and Bobby Scott, respectively; the third reissues and expands a compilation from the late Rod McKuen. Singer-songwriter-poet-author-renaissance man McKuen, who died earlier this year, was recently the subject of Varese Vintage’s Reflections: The Greatest Songs of Rod McKuen, an anthology for which I was proud to write the liner notes. McKuen was an…
Review: Roy Orbison, “The MGM Years 1965-1973”
The Big O is back with a big box set. The MGM Years 1965-1973, recently arrived from Roy’s Boys, LLC and Universal Music Enterprises, chronicles over the course of 13 CDs (or 14 LPs) the least well-known period of the late vocal titan’s career. Orbison joined MGM Records riding the crest of the “Oh, Pretty Woman” wave; the composition which he wrote with Bill Dees was a U.S. and U.K. chart-topper at the height of the British Invasion in 1964 for Fred Foster’s Monument Records. Enticed by MGM Records’ promise of a…
Raven Has Folk and Funk With Melanie and Mother’s Finest
Raven Records’ most recent pair of CDs certainly showcase the label’s eclectic leanings! From singer-songwriter Melanie Safka, the label has a three-for-one release of her much-loved albums Candles in the Rain, Leftover Wine and Gather Me. The Melanie release is joined by a four-for-one title from pioneering funk-rockers Mother’s Finest collecting the band’s self-titled LP plus Mother’s Finest Live, Another Mother Further and Mother Factor. Raven’s release from Melanie follows the Morello label’s recent reissues of four albums originally issued on her Neighborhood Records label. Candles in the Rain arrived on Buddah…
WE HAVE OUR WINNERS: SECOND DISCMAS PRIZE PACKS!
CONGRATULATIONS! The following entrants have been randomly selected to win one of our Second Discmas surprise CD grab bags! If you see your name on the list below, sit back and relax – your prize pack will shortly be on the way to the address you provided! Please let us know when your package arrives – and ENJOY! We were completely overwhelmed by the amount of responses to Second Discmas 2015. Thanks to all of you who entered – and to all of you reading this – for making The Second Disc one of…
The Year in Review – The 2015 Gold Bonus Disc Awards, From A to Z
Happy New Year, and welcome to The Second Disc’s Sixth Annual Gold Bonus Disc Awards! As with every year’s awards, our goals are simple: to recognize as many of the year’s most essential reissues and catalogue titles as possible, and to celebrate as many of those labels, producers and artists who make these releases happen in an increasingly-challenging retail landscape. The labels you’ll read about below have, by and large, bucked the trends to prove that there’s still a demand for physical catalogue music that you can purchase in brick-and-mortar stores. And…
Santa Claus is Comin’ To Town: Bruce Springsteen Gifts Free Unreleased Concert Tracks from 1980 Tempe, Arizona Show to Fans as Addition to Box Set
Bruce Springsteen is giving a Christmas gift to his fans. Earlier this month, Springsteen released The Ties That Bind: The River Collection box set which contained The River, an alternate version of the album and disc of outtakes. Also included in the box set was a filmed concert from Tempe, Arizona, recorded on November 5, 1980. However, not all of the concert was filmed, so the complete show was not in the box set. Fortunately, the entire audio from the concert was preserved. Now, Springsteen is releasing the audio from the missing…
Here Comes The Sun! Beatles Catalogue to Stream Worldwide
While some Beatlemaniacs will be eagerly anticipating the newly revised 1+ compilation under the tree, with remixed audio and hours of rare video performances, The Fab Four have one more present to give the world: starting December 24, the band’s bestselling catalogue will be available for streaming across nine major services. The Beatles’ entry into the digital landscape is, like so many events befitting the most popular rock band of all time, often an event unto itself. In 2010, a year after the first-ever remastered versions of the band’s original studio albums, Apple Corps and Apple, Inc….
YOUR CHANCE TO WIN A CD PRIZE PACK! IT’S TIME FOR SECOND DISCMAS!
Christmas is almost upon us! And here at The Second Disc, Mike, Randy, Ted and I would all like to thank you, our readers, for making our fifth year our most spectacular yet! In 2015, we redesigned our website, welcomed new writers and new readers, and launched Second Disc Records. And our plans for 2016 are even bigger! We believe that the holiday season is the perfect time to do what we love to do best: share the gift of music. We call our annual tradition – what else? – Second Discmas!…
How Long: Omnivore Reissues and Expands Three Albums by JD Souther
Omnivore Recordings is kicking off 2016 with a trio of titles from one of The Second Disc’s favorite singer-songwriters, the one and only JD Souther. The label will celebrate the Michigan-born, Texas-raised and California-associated Songwriters Hall of Fame member with deluxe, expanded reissues of three unjustly-neglected classics of the SoCal scene: John David Souther, Black Rose and Home by Dawn. Though best known for the string of classics he co-wrote with his Eagles friends, including “Best of My Love,” “Heartache Tonight” and “New Kid in Town,” as well as “Faithless Love” and…
Three Cheers and Dammit, C’est La Vie: Elaine Paige Celebrates 50 Years on “I’m Still Here”
Each evening from the first preview on August 7, 2011 to the closing performance on January 22, 2012, audiences at Broadway’s Marquis Theatre were treated to the sight of one of the First Ladies of the London stage making a rare appearance across the Atlantic belting one of Stephen Sondheim’s most famous songs. The show was Follies, the star was Elaine Paige, and the song was “I’m Still Here.” Now, that anthem of showbiz survival provides the title for the superstar actress-singer’s new live CD/DVD release on Cherry Red’s Strike Force Entertainment label. …
Sister Golden Hair Surprise: America Opens Its “Archives” On New Release
The vaults are open! The legacy of the enduring band America has received a long-overdue celebration with the recent release on compact disc and digital download of Archives Vol. 1. Featuring the versatile, original trio of Gerry Beckley, Dewey Bunnell and the late Dan Peek (as well as the talented musicians and producers who contributed mightily to the band’s earliest albums), Archives is a 15-track, non-chronological collection of previously unreleased alternate versions, early mixes, demos, rehearsals and outtakes spanning the period between America’s 1971 debut album America and 1975’s Hearts. In other…
Release Round-Up: Week of December 18
Well, Christmas is almost upon us, and the onslaught of new releases has turned into a trickle as we head right into last-minute shopping territory! Still, selections are choice! Enjoy, and remember – you’ll see our next Release Round-Up in the New Year! John Williams, Star Wars: The Force Awakens – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Walt Disney Records) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon Canada) Today is all about Star Wars…and we’re just as thrilled as could be about a brand-new score by the legendary John Williams! Maynard Ferguson, Storm / Live from San Francisco…
Review: “International Pop Overthrow: Volume 18”
We’re welcoming back Ted Frank to The Second Disc for a look at the latest offering – Volume 18 – from the fine folks at International Pop Overthrow! Producer/curator David Bash, graphic designer Steve Stanley and their team have created another instant classic with their latest and greatest collection of the best, most diverse and most delicious pop music circa 2015! In the year that saw the Numero Group’s superb Ork Records Collection, Omnivore Recordings’ immediately indispensible Power Pop Christmas celebration of The dB’s & Friends’ Christmas Time Again! (side note: Skylar Gudasz’s “The…
May the Force Be With You: Sony Re-Releases “Star Wars” Soundtracks in CD and LP Box Sets, “The Force Awakens” Soundtrack Out Today
Today sees the release of the hotly-anticipated Star Wars: The Force Awakens in theaters (well, technically, yesterday at 7 PM). As the film seems poised to break several box office records, a deluge of Star Wars products has hit the shelves. Among these offerings released today is the soundtrack CD featuring John William’s seventh score for the iconic franchise. To tie in with all of the Star Wars happenings, Sony Masterworks recently announced that the label will be releasing two box sets on January 8, 2016: Star Wars: The Ultimate Soundtrack Collection and…
Won’t You Dance With Me: Real Gone Goes Country with Barbara Mandrell, Ralph Stanley, Marty Robbins and Doug Sahm with Bob Dylan and Others
Real Gone is in a country mood this February, with the majority of their slate devoted to the country and western genre. But that is not all you will find on the label’s mix of CDs and vinyl for the month. Kicking things off is collection drawn from Barbara Mandrell’s tenure at Columbia Records: This Time I Almost Made It – The Lost Columbia Masters. This CD features liner notes by our very own Joe Marchese based on a fresh interview with Mandrell, and is centered around Mandrell’s final album at Columbia – 1974’s…
The Year of Al Stewart: Esoteric Reissues Three Early Albums
Al Stewart attained soft rock immortality with his 1976 Top 10 Pop and AC hit “Year of the Cat.” But the Glasgow-born, Bournemouth-raised artist and writer had been recording as a leading light of the British folk revival scene for a full decade by the time of his radio breakthrough. Cherry Red’s Esoteric Recordings imprint has recently restored to print Stewart’s third, fourth and fifth albums for the U.K.’s CBS Records label in newly remastered editions. CBS had been Stewart’s home since his 1967 debut album Bedsitter Images. (Prior to that, he…
It Happened Today: Concord Acquires R.E.M.’s Warner Bros. Albums for Future Reissues
That’s Concord Bicycle Music in the spotlight: Billboard exclusively reports that the indie label will handle distribution for R.E.M.’s bestselling Warner Bros. Records catalogue, spanning from 1988 to their 2011 dissolution. Beginning in 2016, Concord will be the home for the band’s Green (1988), Out of Time (1991), Automatic for the People (1992), Monster(1994), New Adventures in Hi-Fi (1996), and Up (1998). Reveal (2001), Around the Sun (2004), Accelerate (2008) and Collapse Into Now (2011) have not been confirmed as part of the pact. The Athens, Georgia quartet moved to the Warner Bros….
Along Comes “1966”: Ace Anthology Features The Supremes, The Who, Velvet Underground, Bowie, More
Was 1966 the greatest year ever in popular music? The case could certainly be made for its significance – and Jon Savage has done just that in his new book 1966: The Year the Decade Exploded. Savage’s book looks at the events and culture of the year in twelve essays, each one built around one 45 RPM record. Naturally, such a book deserves a soundtrack, and Ace Records has seen to it that it receives one with the companion volume of the same name. Jon Savage’s 1966: The Year the Decade Exploded…