Tomorrow sees the release of That's Why God Made the Radio, the long-awaited studio album from Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine, Bruce Johnston and David Marks: The Beach Boys. As the favorite sons of Hawthorne, California continue their enormously successful 50th Anniversary Tour and with the promise of catalogue projects to come later in 2012, we're looking at this new album and the legacy of these musical giants in a special two-part series beginning right now! Where did our long hair
Voodoo Child (Slight Return): Full Slate of Jimi Hendrix Releases Due in July on Blu-Ray, DVD, CD, Vinyl
Believe it or not, Jimi Hendrix would have turned 70 this year. Though the groundbreaking guitarist died at just 27 years old in the fall of 1970, he continues to leave behind an invaluable legacy. You don’t have to wait till what would have been his 70th birthday on November 27 to enjoy the latest releases in the partnership between Experience Hendrix and Sony’s Legacy Recordings. The original documentary film Jimi Plays Berkeley, derived from the two concerts Hendrix performed at the
Review: Various Artists, "From the Vaults of Ric and Ron Records"
It’s rare that three labels team up for one project, but rare is From the Vaults of Ric & Ron Records: Rare and Unreleased Recordings 1958-1962. Not only is this 10-record set rare in terms of quantity (a worldwide limited edition of 1,500) but it’s rare in quality, too. Rounder Records is the force behind this excavation of the vaults of New Orleans’ independent Ric and Ron labels, and the set is being distributed in the U.S. by the Numero Group and in the U.K. by Ace Records. The Numero
Review: Albert King, "I'll Play The Blues For You"
It wasn’t that Albert King couldn’t play music other than the blues…but even when crooning in his most velvety-rich style, there was just something inherently lived-in, worldly, and commanding about that voice…in other words, something bluesy. And though that underrated voice would be enough for a lesser artist, King’s greatest gift was as a guitarist. Perhaps the best display of both of those titanic talents was the 1972 Stax album with the apt title of I’ll Play the Blues for You, just
Reviews: First Family of Soul - Rare Albums From Dionne and Dee Dee Warwick, Cissy Houston Reissued and Expanded
If there's such a thing as a First Family of Soul, it might as well be the combined Houston/Warwick clan. Born in Newark, New Jersey in 1933, Emily "Cissy" Drinkard sang gospel with her family as part of The Drinkard Singers, which counted Cissy's sister Lee Warrick among its members. Marie Dionne Warrick was born in 1940 to Lee and her husband Mancel; Delia Mae "Dee Dee" Warrick followed in 1942. Though The Drinkard Singers remain an important part of the history of gospel music, said to
Have You Checked The Children? "When a Stranger Calls" Joins Fifties Double Feature On CD
Though a holiday weekend is soon to kick off here in the U.S., the Kritzerland label isn’t resting on its laurels. The soundtrack specialists have just announced two new releases featuring three wild (and wildly different) film scores. One of the most successful thrillers of 1979, When a Stranger Calls, featured the second ever film score by Dana Kaproff (Cagney and Lacey, The Bionic Woman, Falcon Crest). Kritzerland released Kaproff’s first (1977’s Empire of the Ants) so it’s only
From Mississippi and Alabama: New Volume of "The Ace Story" Joins "Hall of Fame" Soul Rarities
Two classic labels from the American south have received the deluxe treatment from Ace Records, and for lovers of classic R&B and soul, releases don’t come much better than this. The Ace Story Volume 4 is the latest installment dedicated to Ace’s namesake, the pioneering R&B label out of Jackson, Mississippi that helped launch the careers of artists including Dr. John, Huey “Piano” Smith and Frankie Ford. Just one state over in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, Rick Hall’s Fame Studios welcomed
Review: Paul and Linda McCartney, "The Paul McCartney Archive Collection: Ram"
Paul McCartney might have taken the bull by the horns for his aggressively homemade solo debut McCartney in 1970, defying practically all expectations, but he literally took the ram by the horns on the cover photo of its 1971 follow-up, Ram. By the time of Ram's release, George Harrison had declared that All Things (including Beatles) Must Pass and John Lennon had exorcised many of his demons with the confessional Plastic Ono Band, wife Yoko at his side. With Linda McCartney co-billed as
Beam Me Up: La-La Land Boldly Expands "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" Score
You've heard all of the clichés before, but La-La Land records truly will go where no man has gone before with the June 5 release of the 3-CD set Star Trek: The Motion Picture - The Complete Score. Though Jerry Goldsmith's score to the science-fiction classic has been released on CD before, this joint project of La-La Land, Sony Music and Paramount Pictures offers a luxurious view of every aspect of the film's music. Released in December, 1979, Star Trek: The Motion Picture reunited the cast
Review: A Quartet From BBR - The Pointer Sisters, Buddy Miles, Pharoah Sanders, Greg Phillinganes
Among the most recent reissues from Big Break Records is a 1974 album from Electric Flag founder and Jimi Hendrix drummer Buddy Miles entitled All the Faces of Buddy Miles. But one could easily title any given batch of music from the Cherry Red-affiliated label as All the Faces of BBR, so reliably diverse is each group of the label's releases. Today's capsule reviews look at four of the latest from the Big Break team! Buddy Miles, All the Faces of Buddy Miles (Columbia KC-33089, 1974 -
In Memoriam: Donna Summer (1948-2012)
Who among us hasn't been touched by the music of Donna Summer? One of the defining voices of the disco era, Summer has been silenced today after a brave battle with cancer. Yet the music of LaDonna Adrian Gaines, born on New Year's Eve in 1948, will doubtless continue to transport us back to a time when vivacious music blared "On the Radio." Donna Summer implored us to take that "Last Dance" on the disco floor with some very "Bad Girls" in a nearly unrivalled string of hits. She reminded us
Review: Diana Ross, "Live in Central Park"
The hair is the first thing you notice when Diana Ross emerges from a troupe of grass skirt-clad dancers on stage at Central Park in New York City on July 21, 1983. Miss Ross, as she's gotten older, is easily distinguished for that dark, curly mane, like a proud lioness. But while her hair was as resplendent as usual on this night, it was...askew. Musicologists and hardcore Diana fans know why without any explanation: Ross' Central Park concert had the unfortunate circumstance of being schedule
Reissue Theory: Squeeze, "East Side Story"
Welcome to another installment of Reissue Theory, where we focus on notable albums and the reissues they may someday see. Today marks the just-over-three-decade mark on a classic British LP of the '80s that is practically screaming for a deluxe effort. If you were brave or foolhardy enough to label Chris Difford and Glenn Tilbrook the heirs to the throne of John Lennon and Paul McCartney, 1981 was truly the year to do it. The British singer/songwriters and their little New Wave band that could,
It's A Happening World: Real Gone Announces Sixties Bonanza of Electric Prunes, Tokens, Timi Yuro, More
It will be a sixties flashback on June 26 when Real Gone Music ushers in the summer with five releases from that golden decade of music. “Complete Singles” collections are due from experimental rockers The Electric Prunes and big-voiced soul queen Timi Yuro, and the label is also anthologizing the legendary folk group The New Christy Minstrels. Last but certainly not least, two original LPs are being remastered and expanded: an outré pop classic from The Tokens and the debut of “international
Within My World: Dave Clark's "Time" Reissued, Features Freddie Mercury, Dionne Warwick, Julian Lennon, Cliff Richard, More
Today, London’s Dominion Theatre is home to We Will Rock You, a tongue-in-cheek “jukebox musical” featuring the music of Queen. That show is currently celebrating its 10th year at the Dominion, but even before the “Bohemian Rhapsody” chaps came to town, the Dominion was no stranger to mega-musicals from rock stars. In 1986, Dave Clark of the Dave Clark Five put his name above the title of a lavish spectacle called Time. Clark collaborated on the musical’s book and lyrics with David Soames;
Review: The Ad Libs, "The Complete Blue Cat Recordings"
Ooh-wah, ooh-wah, cool, cool kitty! Tell us about the boy from New York City… And indeed, much of America listened to the Ad Libs tell of that kinda tall, really fine guy in his mohair suit. The Top 10 hit turned radio’s attention from Swinging London back to New York City for a brief moment, but the group was never able to repeat the song’s success. It wasn’t for lack of trying, though, as Real Gone Music’s The Complete Blue Cat Recordings (Real Gone RGM-0500, 2012) proves. Though the Ad
Wir Lieben Bacharach! And Quincy, Too: Jazz Club Label Compiles Rare Bacharach, Jones On CD
Great catalogue music often arrives in the unlikeliest of places. Universal Music Classics and Jazz’s German division has created the budget Jazz Club label, celebrating artists from the various labels under the Universal umbrella. And though its titles may not be available at your local shop, they’re well worth seeking out, offering plenty of material not available elsewhere. Two of the most recent Jazz Club releases are of a particularly rare vintage. Wir Lieben Bacharach! collects 18
All Together Now: The Beatles' "Yellow Submarine" Remastered Songtrack and Blu-Ray to Bow in June [UPDATED]
Last Tuesday saw the American release on Blu-Ray and DVD of Martin Scorsese's 2011 documentary on the life of George Harrison, Living in the Material World. That notable title, however, isn't the only Beatles-related film coming to home video. On June 5, the Fabs' delightfully trippy 1968 animated film Yellow Submarine will be reissued on DVD and make its Blu-Ray debut in a brand-new transfer. That same day, the 1999 Yellow Submarine Songtrack CD will also see a remastered reissue. Directed
Digging in the Dirt: Peter Gabriel's "Secret World Live" to Be Released on Blu-Ray
While you count down the months until Peter Gabriel's 25th anniversary reissue of So later this year, we have another catalogue project of his to anticipate this year: an expanded Blu-Ray release of 1993's Secret World Live. After the much-anticipated release of Us in 1992, Peter Gabriel had a big surprise up his sleeve: his (arguably) most ambitious solo tour, a multimedia event so big it took two stages to perform. (For pop trivialists out there, it was also the first major appearance by
An Omnivore's Appetite: Tasty Treats From Jellyfish, The Knack, Buck Owens and Ernie Kovacs Coming Soon
Nobody could accuse the fine folks at Omnivore Recordings of not living up to the label's name! After all, "omnivore" is derived from the Latin for "all" and "everything." And Omnivore's recently announced slate of upcoming releases certainly qualifies as encompassing music from an incredibly wide variety of genres and eras. The label's packed line-up for May, June and July takes in legends from the world of comedy and country-and-western plus new wave and power pop pioneers! Two releases
Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living on Cherry Red's El Label
The English-speaking world was let in on a secret when, early in 1968, it was revealed that Belgian songwriter/actor Jacques Brel was Alive and Well and Living in Paris. The musical revue opened at New York’s Village Gate and counted among its cast Mort Shuman, the Brill Building-era composer of “Viva Las Vegas,” “This Magic Moment” and “Save the Last Dance for Me,” all co-written with Doc Pomus. Shuman had become enchanted with Brel’s hauntingly dramatic music, and in addition to performing
Funk Soul Brothers: Ace Collects "Royal Grooves" From King, "Southern Soul" From Stax
If you prefer your soul with a twist of funk, the Ace family of labels has two offerings that should get your fingers clicking and your feet dancing. Both Royal Grooves: Funk and Groovy Soul from the King Records Vaults (BGP CD BGPD250) and Nobody Wins: Stax Southern Soul 1968-1975 (Kent CDKEND 370) cover roughly the same turbulent period of music history, with the former compilation drawing on tracks recorded between 1967 and 1973, and the latter taking in the “Second Golden Age” of Stax
La-La Land Takes Flight on an Incredibly Vintage Title
The latest offering from La-La Land Records may be among the oldest music we've ever covered for the site! The label is releasing a new recording of J.S. Zamencik's score to Wings, a 1927 silent picture forever noted by trivia buffs as the first film to take home an Academy Award for Best Picture (or as it was known then, Most Outstanding Production). Wings, which starred Charles "Buddy" Rogers and Richard Arlen as rival pilots in World War I and Clara Bow as the small-town girl in love with
Let the Good Times Roll: Dr. John, Barbara Lynn, Johnny Adams Featured On New Box Set
When it comes to two of the most influential labels in New Orleans music history, the vinyl renaissance (celebrated just this past weekend with another successful Record Store Day) is definitely in full swing. Ric Records and its sister label Ron Records were founded in 1959 by Joe Ruffino, based in New Orleans. Though the labels were only active for roughly three years, some of New Orleans’ greatest talents passed through the company’s doors. Mac Rebennack, or Dr. John, served as a writer
Step Inside Love: Cilla Black's Historic Recordings with George Martin Collected In Complete 5 CD/1 DVD Box Set [UPDATED 4/23]
What's it all about, Cilla? Though "Alfie" and "Anyone Who Had a Heart" are very much the property of Ms. Dionne Warwick in the United States, Liverpool's Cilla Black can fairly stake claim to them across the pond. Born Priscilla Maria Veronica White, the protégé of Brian Epstein and close Beatle pal scored a string of beloved hit singles at the height of Swinging London, though her profile has long remained under the radar in America. Well, not if The Second Disc has anything to say about
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