Welcome back to our Rundgren Round-Up, spotlighting the final installments in Edsel’s series of the complete Bearsville Todd Rundgren and Utopia reissues! On 1978’s Back to the Bars, Todd Rundgren was in gentle, intimate mode, feeding off audiences in New York, Los Angeles and Cleveland eager to hear his most accessible tunes on a “retrospective” tour. For this look back at a near-decade’s worth of music making, Rundgren enlisted the classic Utopia line-up of Kasim Sulton, Willie Wilcox and
Review: Big Brother and the Holding Company Featuring Janis Joplin, "Live at the Carousel Ballroom 1968"
Journey back with me to 1968, will you? Your time machine is courtesy Owsley “Bear” Stanley, visionary sound engineer and renowned LSD chemist. But you don’t need any lysergic acid to enjoy the music contained on the little silver disc known as Live at the Carousel Ballroom 1968 (Columbia/Legacy 88697 96409 2, 2012), billed as the first release from Bear’s Sonic Journals. That said, a little Southern Comfort probably wouldn’t hurt. (Or a toke or two, as per the suggestion of Stanley’s son
Release Round-Up: Week of March 12
Earl Van Dyke, The Motown Sound: The Complete Albums & More (Hip-o Select/Motown) Two discs of classic instrumentals and rare single sides from Motown's legendary Funk Brothers - their first and some of their only recordings to be credited just to them. Big Brother and The Holding Company featuring Janis Joplin, Live at the Carousel Ballroom 1968 (Columbia/Legacy) From the archives of late engineer Owsley "Bear" Stanley, an unreleased show featuring Joplin and band at the legendary San
City In His Head: Todd Rundgren's Utopia Reissues Continue From Edsel
Todd Rundgren’s tenure at Albert Grossman’s Bearsville Records label took him from his days as a singer/songwriter/self-described Runt in 1970 through his cutting-edge avant garde experiments, both solo and with his band Utopia, culminating in 1985’s A Cappella, rejected by the label and eventually released on Warner Bros. instead. The U.K.’s Edsel label has recently completed its catalogue overhaul for Rundgren, including the entirety of his tenures at Bearsville and Warner. The most recent
Natural Woman: Hear Music Unveils Carole King's "Legendary Demos" At Long Last
Some years back, I was attending a performance of Carole King’s Living Room Tour at New York’s theatre-in-the round then known as the Westbury Music Fair, its cozy environs just perfect for King’s intimate show. Midway through the set, a fan shouted to the stage, “Release your demos, Carole!” King smiled knowingly. “Talk to the publisher!” she replied. It clearly wasn’t the first time she had heard the request; indeed, legendary isn’t too strong a word for the original vocal-and-piano tracks
Wear Your Love Like Heaven: New "Essential Donovan" Arriving From Legacy
I’m just mad about Donovan, and while I don’t know whether Donovan’s mad about me, you just might be mad about The Essential Donovan! Though a single-disc compilation of that name arrived from Epic Records and Legacy Recordings in 2004, the 2012 edition does it one (or a few, actually) better. Slated for April 17, the new Essential Donovan coincides with Donovan Leitch’s long-overdue induction next month into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It features 36 songs on two discs, including every
Carefree Highway: Rhino Offers Rare "Moments" With Gordon Lightfoot
Gordon Lightfoot’s stands at Toronto’s Massey Hall have become a cherished tradition over the past forty years, with the Canadian troubadour having taken the stage more times than any other artist in the Hall’s 117 year history. Last May 25, 2011, Lightfoot performed his 150th concert there, and as he prepares for this year’s stand in November, Rhino Records is reminding fans of his rich legacy there with the April 17 release of Massey Hall Moments - All Live. Why not just plain Live?
A World of Laughter, A World of Tears: The Second Disc Remembers Robert B. Sherman
Sher ·man ·ism (sher'maniz'em) NOUN: The creation of music abundant in optimism and heart, written for kids of all ages. OTHER FORMS: sher man·ist (Noun), sher man·esque (Adjective) Okay, so that’s not really in the dictionary. But then again, neither is “supercalifragilisticexpialidocious,” “fortuosity,” “fantasmagorical” or “gratifaction.” But perhaps they should be. Have any other songwriters broadened the English language as much as Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman? The
Here They Go Again: The Hollies Reveal BBC "Radio Fun"
2011 was a good year to be a Hollies fan, and it seems that 2012 might follow in its footsteps! Last year, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees saw a plethora of releases on both CD and vinyl from labels like EMI, Sundazed and BGO, reissuing individual albums and offering comprehensive new compilations. This May, a heretofore-unreleased area of the band's history will be rediscovered when EMI issues Radio Fun, a 32-track compilation of some of the classic group's best BBC radio
I'm Sticking with You: The Velvet Underground's Moe Tucker Gets Career-Spanning Anthology
She may have been a self-described “schlep from Levittown,” but Maureen “Moe” Tucker of The Velvet Underground always beat to the sound of her own drum. Tucker shed her suburban roots when she joined with Lou Reed, John Cale and Sterling Morrison in The Velvet Underground, replacing drummer Angus MacLise. (His tenure was a brief few months.) It’s fair to say that The Velvets changed the sound of rock and roll forever, breaking long-held lyrical taboos and musically drawing from both
Details Revealed For George Harrison Film "Material World" Deluxe Edition, CD To Feature Unreleased Recordings
UPDATE 3/5/12: Our friends at MusicTAP are reporting a May 1 release date for the American video premiere of Living in the Material World on both DVD and Blu-Ray. Watch this space for details on whether the American editions will mirror the contents of the British releases, as described below! ORIGINAL POST (10/5/11): DVR Alert! Martin Scorsese’s documentary Living in the Material World premieres on American television tonight on HBO, proving that – at least for tonight – it’s not TV; it’s
Review: Mark Lindsay, "The Complete Columbia Singles"
There'll be joy and there'll be laughter/Something big is what I'm after now... As frontman, songwriter and saxophonist of Paul Revere and the Raiders, Mark Lindsay had experienced his fair share of joy and laughter, but as 1969 rolled around, the band behind such garage-pop anthems as "Kicks," "Just like Me" and "Hungry" was beginning to fracture. Jack Gold, head of A&R at Columbia Records, however, saw something big in Mark Lindsay's future. According to the singer, Gold had stumbled on
Come Rain or Shine: Legendary Diana Ross Concert Debuts on DVD
Time and taste have been kind to Diana Ross, recent recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award. From the moment The Supremes broke into the national consciousness, it was clear there was something special about that pretty lead singer with the unmistakable voice. And believe it or not, nothing can stop her - not even the elements, as a classic 1983 live event, bowing on DVD this spring from Shout! Factory, is quick to prove. On July 21, 1983, Miss Ross - at the time, two years into a
Un homme et une Femme: Classic Francis Lai Score Reissued, Plus Billy May, Maurice Chevalier and More
Johnny Mathis, Robert Goulet and Engelbert Humperdinck sang it. Ella Fitzgerald sang it. Claudine Longet even sang it in its original French! The song was “A Man and a Woman,” or “Un Homme et une Femme,” from the 1966 film of the same name. The Francis Lai composition was a favorite of pop singers and jazz musicians alike, and was quite ubiquitous; as Kritzerland’s Bruce Kimmel asks, “Is there a person anywhere in the world who was around in the 1960s and 1970s who could not instantly
Release Round-Up: Week of February 28
Pink Floyd, The Wall: Experience and Immersion Editions (Capitol/EMI) The latest Pink Floyd box, featuring live tracks and demos from the vault will make you lose your marbles! (Editor's note: I am so sorry for typing that.) The Ventures, The Ventures Play Telstar and The Lonely Bull / "Surfing" / (The) Ventures in Space / The Fabulous Ventures / Walk, Don't Run Vol. 2 (Sundazed) Five classic Ventures albums, remastered in stereo on CD and vinyl. Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings, Live at
Short Takes: New Cash, Pistols Sets Coming in 2012
Yesterday, February 26, would have been the 80th birthday of Johnny Cash, and his family tells Rolling Stone that there are quite a few festivities planned - and that includes some catalogue activity. We already know about Legacy's Bootleg IV: The Soul of Truth in April, which collects rare and unreleased gospel material from the '70s and '80s. But the RS story also hints at a possible seventh volume of Cash's American Recordings series as well as a possible PopMarket-style box of "everything
Review: Carole King, "The Carole King Collection: Simple Things, Welcome Home, Touch the Sky, and Pearls"
Carole King was ready for a fresh start in 1977. She had recently split from manager/producer Lou Adler’s Ode Records, the label with which she had signed back in 1968 as the lead singer of The City. It was, of course, at Ode where King triumphed with Tapestry, and over the years introduced a parade of memorable songs like “It’s Too Late,” “So Far Away,” You’ve Got a Friend,” “Sweet Seasons,” “Been to Canaan” and “Jazzman.” Yet the four albums recorded by King at Capitol between 1977 and 1980
Weekend Wround-Up - The Diva Edition: Midler, Streisand Releases Coming Soon
Welcome to today’s Weekend Wround-Up: The Diva Edition! Nobody – no, nobody! – is going to rain on Barbra Streisand’s parade. Columbia Records, the singer’s home since 1963, has announced that Streisand will remain with the label that guided her to stardom. Speculation had arisen some months back that the singer might decamp for a new artistic residence, but those rumors have now officially been set to rest. "From the day [legendary Columbia President] Goddard Lieberson signed me almost 50
From Motown to the Bay Area! The Apollas' "Absolutely Right!" and Eddie Holland's "It Moves Me: The Complete Recordings 1958-1964" Available Now
Are you thinking you should take a chance on Ace Records’ supremely soulful duo of releases from The Apollas and Eddie Holland? If so…you’re absolutely right! For The Apollas’ Absolutely Right: The Complete Tiger, Loma and Warner Bros. Recordings (Kent CDKEND 365, 2012) and Holland’s It Moves Me: The Complete Recordings 1958-1964 (Ace CDTOP2 1331, 2012) both belong on the shelf of any serious fan of classic soul and R&B. If you haven’t heard of The Apollas, you’re forgiven. This Bay Area
Review: Judy Garland, "The Historic Concert Remastered"
The applause started even before Mort Lindsey lifted his baton to conduct the Overture. By the time Judy Garland took the stage at Carnegie Hall on April 23, 1961 for "When You're Smiling (The Whole World Smiles with You)," it didn't seem too far-fetched that the whole world was smiling, even beyond the corner of New York's 57th Street and 7th Avenue. Such was the power of Judy Garland. Only the greatest of live albums, in any genre, can translate the grip of a performer on his audience. Judy at
Goin' For High Coin: Harpers Bizarre's "Anything Goes" Returns in Expanded Mono Edition
In olden days, a glimpse of stocking was looked on as something shocking! Now heaven knows, anything goes...Good authors, too, who once knew better words now only use four-letter words writing prose! Anything goes! When Cole Porter wrote "Anything Goes" in 1934, could he have had any idea that his commentary would prove just as relevant more than thirty years later, and indeed, even today? In 1967, three years after the esteemed songsmith's passing, the members of Harpers Bizarre unleashed
Hooked on a Feeling: Real Gone Readies Complete B.J. Thomas, Frankie Avalon, The Tubes, a "Rock Messiah" and More
Raindrops might be falling on your head, but there’s one thing I know: the March slate of releases from Real Gone Music will assuredly keep those blues at bay! Featuring both returning favorites from the old Collectors’ Choice label as well as artists and recordings new to the Real Gone family, there’s something for everyone! Joining B.J. Thomas’ The Complete Scepter Singles on March 27 will be Frankie Avalon’s Muscle Beach Party: The United Artists Sessions, The Tubes’ Young & Rich/Now,
Viva Morrissey! U.K. Singer's First Album and Single Gets Reissued
Inifintely brilliant, often fickle rock icon Morrissey is reissuing one of his most beloved albums this spring - but it's another one of those situations where fans are going to want to hold on to their old copies, too. Semi-official fansite True to You posted a news release today for a reissue of Viva Hate, Morrissey's debut solo album from 1988. Released just six months after the breakup of The Smiths and featuring longtime Smiths engineer/producer Stephen Street, Viva Hate was a
Aces High! "The London American Label: 1957," "Mod Jazz Forever" and "Smash Boom Bang: Feldman-Goldstein-Gotteher" Available Now
Smash! Boom! Bang! The ace compilation experts at, well, Ace Records are offering up plenty of Smash, Boom and Bang (both in impact and in label name!) for your buck with their diverse slate of February releases. You'll find top-drawer pop, rock and soul for connoisseurs and beginners alike among the label's latest. Perhaps the most unexpected is the new entry in the label's long-running Songwriters and Producers series. Smash Boom Bang! The Songs and Productions of
So Esoteric: Todd Rundgren's Lost "Disco Jets" and a Jim Capaldi Duo Coming Soon
Longtime Todd Rundgren fans are familiar with the renaissance man’s numerous genre excursions, from pop to rock and everywhere in between: psychedelia, soul, electronica, even metal. But comparatively fewer fans have heard Rundgren’s one and only full-blown excursion into disco. Shortly after completing 1976’s Faithful LP, the iconoclastic producer took the members of Utopia into the studio to create the album known as Disco Jets. Yet the album crafted by Willie Wilcox (drums), Roger Powell
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