When the self-described "disco queen" known as Sylvester stepped on a New York stage opening for Chaka Khan, the local press was entranced. One newspaper approvingly noted that he made "David Bowie look like Lawrence Welk." Nothing was too outrageous for Sylvester. But at his core, he was serious about music and about breaking down the walls of identity. In appearance and demeanor, the unapologetically gay San Francisco star challenged the gender binary long before such discussions were in
The Weekend Stream: April 9, 2023
Welcome to The Weekend Stream, a relaxing weekly review of notable digital-only catalogue titles. There may be no CD or vinyl, but there's plenty of great new/old music to usher you into the weekend. ZTT rarities, dream pop from down under, two Michael Jackson connections, great '70s songwriters - this latest Stream has everything, plus a call to support one of our favorite music services as they take on a big challenge. Act, Snobbery and Decay (Showtime) / Leilani, Precious Treasure
The Precious Moments: Cherry Red Collects Matt Monro's "Complete EMI Recordings 1971-1984"
Thanks to the herculean efforts of Michele Monro and the Matt Monro Estate and engineer/restoration specialist Richard Moore, the music of Matt Monro (1930-1985) has been particularly well served in the CD/digital era. The late singer so closely identified with such classics as "If I Never Sing Another Song," "My Kind of Girl," and "Walk Away" was admired by Frank Sinatra, Paul McCartney, Bing Crosby, Quincy Jones, and Michael Jackson for his warm, clear baritone and direct, understated way
Review: Bob Dylan, "Fragments - 'Time Out of Mind' Sessions (1996-1997): The Bootleg Series Vol. 17"
The Oxford dictionary describes the phrase time out of mind as "a time in the past that was so long ago that people have no knowledge or memory of it." What was Bob Dylan getting at when he lifted the phrase for his 1997 Grammy Award-winning album? Critics and fans alike immediately seized on the notion of the record as some kind of dark farewell from an artist in the September of his years. Indeed, the album was filled with musings on lost love, mortality, hopelessness, and despair. But
Release Round-Up: Week of March 24
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up featuring a selection of the new titles in stores today. Elton John, Honky Château: 50th Anniversary Edition (Rocket/UMC) 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Hot on the heels of his final U.S. live performances, Elton John is looking back with a 50th anniversary edition of his 1972 LP Honky Château. The reissue will feature the original album (boasting such classics as "Rocket Man,"
Release Round-Up: Week of March 17
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! U2, Songs of Surrender (Interscope) 4CD (40 tracks): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 4LP (40 tracks): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Deluxe CD (20 tracks): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada CD (16 tracks): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP (16 tracks): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada U2 is revisiting its discography on the new project Songs of Surrender. The album takes its name from the
Don't Be Denied: Neil Young Adds Two Titles to Original Bootleg Series
The indefatigable Neil Young has announced the two latest additions to his ongoing Original Bootleg Series. On April 14, Young will release Somewhere Under the Rainbow (1973) and High Flyin' (1977) recorded, respectively, with The Santa Monica Flyers and The Ducks. Both titles will be available on vinyl, CD, and in digital formats including high-resolution audio at The Greedy Hand Store. Somewhere Under the Rainbow, OBS No. 2, was recorded live at London's Rainbow Theatre (today, an
Review: Elvis Presley, "Elvis on Tour"
When Elvis on Tour hit the big screen in 1972, Elvis Presley was no longer the frequent cinema fixture of the 1960s, when he would crank out two or even three motion pictures a year. His last movie appearance was the 1970 documentary Elvis: That's the Way It Is, chronicling the Elvis Summer Festival of 1970 at Las Vegas' International Hotel. Elvis on Tour painted with an even larger canvas. Though it had originally been mooted as a new showcase of Presley's Vegas performances, the concept
Review: Burt Bacharach and Elvis Costello, "The Songs of Bacharach and Costello"
And so this had to be/painted from memory... The news broke on the morning of February 9, 2023 that Burt Bacharach had died at the age of 94. That evening, his longtime friend and musical partner Elvis Costello opened a 10-evening residency at New York's Gramercy Theatre which ultimately saw him perform 239 unique songs from every far-flung corner of his wide-ranging catalogue. The residency became a grand tribute to Bacharach. The pre-show music piping throughout the theatre each night
Release Round-Up: Week of March 3
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles in stores today. Elvis Costello and Burt Bacharach, The Songs of Bacharach and Costello (UMe) 4CD/2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / ElvisCostello.com 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP with Lithograph: ElvisCostello.com Elvis Costello is looking back at his 25 years of music with the late Burt Bacharach on this lavish new
Turn Your Radio On: Real Gone's March Lineup Includes John Hartford, Don Cherry, Saigon Kick, "The Devil Wears Prada," and More
Once again, Real Gone Music's March slate offers up an eclectic selection of genres ranging from bluegrass to funk to jazz to alt-country to hard rock to soundtrack music, all spanning the years 1971-2006. All of these six vinyl reissue titles are due out tomorrow, March 3. Read on for more details about each title. John Hartford moved to Nashville in 1965 and signed with RCA Victor the next year. The songwriter and multi-instrumentalist would record six studio albums for the label. The
First Time: 7a Records Reissues Macy Gray's Jazz Gem "Stripped" on CD and Vinyl
In April 2016, Macy Gray entered an old church in Greenpoint, Brooklyn to record one of the most distinctive albums of her career. Stripped, originally released on the Chesky Records label, matched the R&B diva with a jazz quartet. On original songs, favorites from her discography, and unexpected covers alike, Gray's smoky rasp took full flight. On March 17, 7a Records - the label best-known for its deep dives into the world of The Monkees - reissues Stripped for the very first time on
Holy Mackerel! Hanky Panky Collects Early Paul Williams on Two New LPs
He might have been born a someday man, but Paul Williams has proven himself to be a forever artist. A modern-day renaissance man, the Nebraska native tried his luck as an actor, a songwriter, and a singer from his earliest days in Los Angeles. A brief three-month stint peddling his tunes at The Turtles' home of White Whale Records ended in disappointment when Williams was shown the door. But he didn't have to wait long for a new opportunity. A friend played his songs for Herb Alpert and
Goodness Gracious Me: Cherry Red Collects Early George Martin Productions on "A Painter in Sound"
Late producer Sir George Martin is described as A Painter in Sound on Cherry Red/El's new collection of his Pre-Beatles Productions and Classical Influences. While Martin has been anthologized in the past, most notably on the unparalleled 6-CD set Produced by George Martin in 2001, there's always room for another one - in this case, an eclectic 4-CD journey that's largely far-removed from the rock which made Martin famous. The title of the set is derived from a Martin quote repeated in its
Get Back to the Woods: Elton John's 'Honky Château' Gets New Deluxe Edition in March
Though Elton John lavishly retired from touring with a run of shows at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles last year - part of a tour that's set box-office records - you'd be right that it wouldn't be a long, long time before we heard from him in some way, shape, or form. Indeed: now comes word that his 1972 album Honky Château will be reissued just past its 50th anniversary with a trove of rare session demos and live tracks. If Madman Across the Water - reissued and expanded last year by UMe - was
Review: Frank Zappa, "Waka/Wazoo"
Finally, a Zappa album that's safe for the whole family! Frank Zappa's pair of 1972 releases, Waka/Jawaka and The Grand Wazoo, stand as two of the most impressive and unusual in his sprawling catalogue. Forced to abandon live performing as a result of a crazed "fan" charging the stage and heaving him into an orchestra pit, the composer-bandleader spent nearly a year recovering from injuries to his face, head, ribs, arm, and leg. A wheelchair and a leg brace couldn't stop Zappa's prodigious
The Weekend Stream: January 28, 2023
Welcome to The Weekend Stream, a relaxing weekly review of notable digital-only catalogue titles. There may be no CD or vinyl, but there's plenty of great new/old music to usher you into the weekend. Today, there's some newer KISS, some obscure Duke Ellington, and a few rare cast albums - plus a way you can help out some writers in need. KISS, Sonic Boom (UMe) (iTunes / Amazon) After a mid-'90s reunion of the classic KISS line-up, the band dynamics began to shift again In the early 21st
Turtles in Time: Waxwork Completes John Du Prez's "Ninja Turtles" Film Score Trilogy with Debut Release
While Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fever may have been cooling a bit by the release of the green gang's third film in 1993, the music to their motion pictures was still going strong. Waxwork Records, which debuted composer John Du Prez's scores to the first two films in 2018 and 2021, now offers the premiere release of his work for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III. For the third go-round, the space-time continuum goes wild when an enchanted scepter makes April O'Neil (Paige Turco, reprising
Release Round-Up: Week of January 27
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles available today. BUY NOW FROM AMAZON.COMBob Dylan, Fragments - Time Out of Mind Sessions (1996-1997): The Bootleg Series Vol. 17 (Columbia/Legacy) 5CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 10LP: Bob Dylan Store 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 4LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada The seventeenth volume of
Deep in the Motherlode: Genesis Detail 'BBC Broadcasts' Box
Though the exhaustive archival work that accompanied Genesis' 2007 touring did not extend to the group's latest (and likely last) outing in 2021 and 2022, this year brings a new box set for fans of the prog-turned-pop/rock icons: a collection of their live material as recorded by the BBC. BBC Broadcasts, curated by founding keyboardist Tony Banks and longtime engineer Nick Davis, offers a trove of concert audio from all the major eras of Genesis from 1970 to 1998. The earliest material, taken
Vinyl Box Watch: Clapton, a-ha, Neutral Milk Hotel All Prep Big Sets on LP
For nearly no other occasion would you see these three bands in the same sentence, but it's true: vinyl box sets are all forthcoming from blues-rock legend Eric Clapton, Norwegian popsmiths a-ha, and '90s indie-folk darlings Neutral Milk Hotel. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wdl2I1spS8M This week, on January 13, Clapton readies The Complete Reprise Studio Albums - Volume II from Rhino Records. This 10LP set picks up where last year's first set left off, offering new remasters of Clapton's
The Sweetest Punch: "The Songs of Bacharach and Costello" Box Celebrates "Painted from Memory," More
Elvis Costello has sung jazz with The Charles Mingus Orchestra and pianist Marian McParland, explored hip-hop textures with The Roots, recorded with classical artists The Brodsky Quartet and Swedish mezzo-soprano Anne Sofie von Otter, penned an album with R&B titan Allen Toussaint, and written and recorded with Paul McCartney. Yet of his many rich, felicitous collaborations, the most celebrated may well be with legendary composer Burt Bacharach. Now, that partnership which has spanned over
The Year In Review: The 2022 Gold Bonus Disc Awards, From A to Z - Part Two
Happy 2023! Welcome, friends, to The Second Disc's 13th Annual Gold Bonus Disc Awards! A lot has happened in the last twelve months, but as we look to a new year with optimism and a hopeful spirit, we recognize the many roles music has played in our lives. With that spirit in mind, The Second Disc wishes to recognize 2022's cream of the catalogue music crop - those exemplary reissues and box sets, big and small, that proved to be truly outstanding for music lovers worldwide. Despite the
Holiday Gift Guide Review: David Bowie, "Divine Symmetry: An Alternative Journey Through 'Hunky Dory'"
MAGNIFICENT OUTRAGE. The phrase is emblazoned on the slipcase of David Bowie's new box set Divine Symmetry (An Alternative Journey Through 'Hunky Dory'). It was derived from an ad - reprinted as the first image in the 100-page tome housing the set's four CDs and one Blu-ray Disc - which noted, "That's what they're saying about David Bowie." Happily, no one would accuse this latest Bowie archival dig of being an outrage, though magnificent comes closer. Much like its 2019 predecessor
Shock Your Mama: Cherry Pop Reissues, Expands Debbie Gibson's "Body Mind Soul"
Debbie Gibson began 1992 by stepping into the role of Eponine in Broadway's Les Miserables, inaugurating a stage career that's since encompassed three more Broadway shows and many more regionally and abroad. While appearing nightly at the Imperial, the singer-songwriter was still juggling the demands of a pop career. In June, three months after wrapping up her stint in Les Mis, Gibson was back in the studio. Her fourth and final album for Atlantic Records, Body Mind Soul was released in
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