Real Gone Music is moving to the sound of a disco beat! In conjunction with SoulMusic Records, Real Gone has tapped the vaults of RCA Records to present two world-premiere CD reissues, both with rare bonus tracks. Perhaps no other genre has inspired as many songs imploring listeners to suppress their inhibitions and put their dancing shoes on as disco has. “Let’s Go to the Disco/’Cause I feel like dancing tonight/Let’s go to the disco/Where the music is outta sight!” The call to arms “Let’s
Review: Nils Lofgren, "Face the Music"
I. See What a Love Can Do Nils Lofgren was just seventeen years old when Neil Young called upon him to play piano on his third solo album, After the Gold Rush. The guitarist, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and onetime child prodigy joined Jack Nitzsche and the men of Crazy Horse – Danny Whitten, Billy Talbot and Ralph Molina – on an instrument which was largely unfamiliar to him. He added the understated, stark and raw piano parts that Young and producer David Briggs were looking for, and
What's Going On: "Motown 25" Comes To DVD In New Box Set, Highlights DVDs
On the evening of March 25, 1983, the Pasadena Civic Auditorium was alive with the sound of music – the Sound of Young America, to be more specific. Motown Records was celebrating its 25th anniversary, and producer Suzanne de Passe wasn’t pulling any stops. “Once in a lifetime” was as overused in 1983 as it is today, but the galaxy of stars assembled by de Passe couldn’t be described any other way: Diana Ross and the Supremes, Marvin Gaye, Lionel Richie and the Commodores, Smokey Robinson and
Ziggy Played Guitar: David Bowie's "Sound + Vision" to Be Reissued
Ground control to Major Tom: Sound and Vision is back for a third go-round. As part of the breakup of EMI that left most – but not all - of the former monolith controlled by Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group acquired the venerable Parlophone label, founded in 1896 and onetime home to The Beatles. Though Universal kept the Fab Four, Warner obtained current artists like Coldplay and the back catalogues of classic ones like The Hollies and Matt Monro…and a certain David Bowie. Parlophone
Release Round-Up: Week of August 19
The Posies, Failure (Omnivore) CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. Omnivore expands the 1988 debut album from power-pop heroes The Posies. The new Failure restores the album’s original 12-track running order (preserved on cassette but cut down by one song on vinyl) and adds eight bonus tracks. Many of these are sourced from a long out-of-print 2000 box set and a 2004 reissue of the album proper, but one, a demo of “At Least for Now,” is being heard for the first time
Review: Lulu, "The Atco Sessions 1969-1972"
Muscle Shoals, Alabama is a long way from Glasgow, Scotland. But when Lulu took the trek in 1969, the “To Sir with Love” songbird proved that she could play with the big boys. Though neither New Routes nor its Miami-recorded, Dixie Flyers-assisted follow-up Melody Fair scaled the heights commercially, both projects proved the versatility of the vocal dynamo. In 2007, Rhino U.K. issued The Atco Sessions 1969-72 collecting both of Lulu’s lost southern soul forays in one deluxe 2-CD package. Upon
Tell Me How You Like It: Harmless Reissues, Expands Philly Disco From John Davis and the Monster Orchestra
What makes for a Monster Orchestra? For Philadelphia composer-arranger-conductor John Davis, it was an array of the best musicians the city had to offer. Between 1976 and 1979, Davis led his Monster Orchestra for four disco LPs on the SAM Records label, plucking its members from the A-Team of Philadelphia International’s MFSB and Salsoul Records’ Salsoul Orchestra. Guitarists Bobby Eli and Roland Chambers, percussionist/conga player Larry Washington, drummer Charles Collins, bassist Michael
Review: Omnivore Goes New Wave with Lost Songs of "Billy Thermal"
“Eternal Flame,” “So Emotional,” “Like a Virgin,” “True Colors” – the songs of Billy Steinberg not only nearly defined the sound of eighties pop, but have endured to the present day. Yet before Steinberg joined with Tom Kelly to pen those songs and so many others, he was fronting a power pop/new wave quartet with the unlikely name of Billy Thermal – Billy for Steinberg, Thermal for the city in which his father’s vineyards were located. The group, consisting of Steinberg, guitarist Craig Hull,
Shine Her Light: "The Midnight Special" Box Set Arrives In September with Fleetwood Mac, Bee Gees, ELO, More
Between August 1972 and May 1981, late night television was a little more rockin'. Producer Burt Sugarman's The Midnight Special followed Johnny Carson's Tonight Show on Friday evenings, welcoming viewers with Johnny Rivers' rousing rendition of the traditional tune (a Top 20 hit for Rivers in 1965). Over the course of 450 episodes, The Midnight Special presented a staggering array of music's top talent on network television with most songs performed live for the majority of its run. The
Beyond "Taxi": Robinsongs Pairs Two LPs From Fender Rhodes Hero Bob James
Cherry Red’s Robinsongs label, which has recently been responsible for reissues from jazz greats like Hank Crawford, Richard Tee and Ramsey Lewis, has turned its attention to producer-arranger-composer Bob James with the two-for-one release of his 1980 and 1981 albums, H and Sign of the Times. The electric piano master has been making records as a leader since 1963 – his most recent is 2013’s Quartette Humaine with saxophonist David Sanborn – and this pair comes from the early years of his own
Try To Forget Him: Ace Continues "The Jack Nitzsche Story" With The Righteous Brothers, Jackie DeShannon, Darlene Love
The credit “Arranged and conducted by Jack Nitzsche” should be familiar to any collector of those little black vinyl platters we used to call 45s. Such a credit – or a similar one - graced records by Frankie Laine and Doris Day, The Paris Sisters and The Righteous Brothers, The Tubes and The Crystals, Graham Parker and Bobby Vee. Jack “Specs” Nitzsche (1973-2000) made his mark across multiple genres and many decades, the common factor being the quality of his work. Nitzsche the orchestrator
Release Round-Up: Week of August 12
Billy Thermal, Billy Thermal (Omnivore) Before Billy Steinberg co-wrote with Tom Kelly a host of pop classics (“Like a Virgin,” “True Colors,” “So Emotional,” “Eternal Flame"), he fronted a little-heard band on Richard Perry's Planet Records: their original five-track EP is expanded to a 12-track compilation with demos and outtakes! (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) The Guess Who, Power in the Music: Expanded Edition (Iconoclassic) The final Guess Who studio album for RCA (and last with
Rhiannon Rising: Stevie Nicks Dips Into The Vault For "24 Karat Gold"
On September 29, Fleetwood Mac kicks off its sold-out On with the Show tour in Minneapolis, Minnesota, marking the band’s first tour with returning member Christine McVie in sixteen years. The same day, Stevie Nicks will unveil her latest solo album, but it’s one with a twist. 24 Karat Gold – Songs from the Vault features songs penned by Nicks between 1969 and 1995, but rather than presenting archival recordings of the tracks, all have been newly recorded by the singer in Nashville and Los
Review: Elvis Presley, "That's The Way It Is: Deluxe Editions"
In 1992, American voters were asked to vote on not one, but two, matters of national importance: who should be the next President of the United States – and which image of Elvis Presley should grace a postage stamp. Bill Clinton won the former with roughly 43% of the popular vote, and as for the latter decision? It was “young Elvis” by a reported 75% landslide. The lithe, “Heartbreak Hotel”-era image of the pelvis-swiveling icon had triumphed over the jumpsuit-clad “old Elvis” – who, in fact,
Friday Feature: Roy Budd's "Phantom of the Opera" Score Premieres For Classic Film
Welcome to the return of the Friday Feature, in which we turn the Second Disc spotlight onto classic film soundtracks and their various releases! Today, the Friday Feature is the 1925 Universal horror classic The Phantom of the Opera, and the rarely-heard score is by the late Roy Budd! Cue Mr. Budd's music of the night... When author Gaston Leroux introduced Le Fantôme de l'Opéra as a serialized novel in the pages of newspaper Le Gaulois in 1909, it was hardly likely that the former
Get Up and Boogie: A Big Break Bounty, Part One
With a monthly release slate averaging six titles, Cherry Red’s Big Break Records label is at the vanguard of classic soul, R&B and dance reissues. Each of the label’s deluxe releases is aimed at collectors, with copious liner notes and more often than not, a selection of rare bonus cuts. It’s been a busy summer for the Big Break team, and in this first of a two-part series, we’ll look at some of the label’s latest offerings! Silver Convention, Get Up and Boogie (1976): Earlier this
Right As Rain: "Free Soul" Compiles Hits, Deep Cuts For The Stylistics
In just three albums recorded between 1971 and 1973, The Stylistics positioned themselves at the vanguard of Philadelphia soul, introducing future pop and R&B standards such as “You Are Everything,” “People Make the World Go Round” and “You Make Me Feel Brand New” with multi-hyphenate Thom Bell (serving as producer, arranger, conductor, and composer!) and lyricist Linda Creed. Though Bell parted ways with the group to turn his attentions to The Spinners, ending their hit streak, The
Once Upon A Dream: Walt Disney Records Unveils Legacy Collection's "Sleeping Beauty"
Earlier this year, Walt Disney Pictures scored a runaway hit with its unlikely reinvention of one of the studio’s most frightening villains as an unlikely heroine. Maleficent enchanted audiences to the tune of a $234 million-plus gross with its retelling of the fairy tale Disney first dramatized in 1959’s Sleeping Beauty. A highlight of the 2014 film’s soundtrack was Lana Del Rey’s haunting rendition of “Once Upon a Dream,” penned for Sleeping Beauty by tunesmiths Sammy Fain and Jack Lawrence
Splish Splash! Bobby Darin's "The Milk Shows" Premieres Two Discs of Never-Before-Heard Recordings
Bobby Darin knew he was in a race with time. If it was a race he would inevitably lose as a result of the heart condition he fought for his 37 years, Darin accomplished more in that short period of time than many artists who lived twice as long. A master of reinvention, Darin successfully transformed himself from teen idol to sophisticated hipster to folk troubadour and back again before his death in 1973. He also left behind a catalogue of impressive size at Atlantic, Capitol, Motown and his
Release Round-Up: Week of August 5
Elvis Presley, That's the Way It Is: Deluxe Editions (RCA/Legacy) The King regained his crown with a 1970 stint at the International Hotel in Las Vegas, as depicted in the acclaimed documentary of the same name. A new box set features the original album on CD along with seven recorded live shows plus that documentary in two separate cuts on DVD; the documentary bows on Blu-ray next week. 8CD/2DVD box set: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. 2CD Legacy Edition: Amazon U.S. / Amazon
Morales Preps the (Dance) Sound of Young America on "Club Motown"
Calling all '80s Motown fans! Universal's U.K. arm has issued a double disc set of 20 classic club mixes from the label, curated by noted remixer John Morales. Motown of course crafted the sound of young America throughout the '60s and created some deeply affecting funk and soul in the '70s, but the '80s was still a prolific time, thanks to popular R&B/dance acts including Rick James and DeBarge as well as established acts like The Temptations and Commodores frontman Lionel Richie.
Varese Treks "Into Darkness" for Latest Expanded Score
Last week, Varese Sarabande boldly went with yet another deluxe edition of a Star Trek soundtrack: the most recent film, 2013's Star Trek Into Darkness, featuring music composed by Michael Giacchino. Following 2009's astounding film reboot, Into Darkness pits Kirk (Chris Pine), Spock (Zachary Quinto) and the crew of the USS Enterprise against a rogue Federation officer, John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch), part of a traitorous plot to engage in a war with the Klingon Empire. We won't spoil the
You Get What You Deserve: Classic Big Star Albums to Be Reissued
For years, fans of power pop have had their Magna Carta of a CD: Fantasy Records' two-fer of Big Star's #1 Record and Radio City, the primary records issued by the legendary Memphis band. On September 2, that configuration changes with the release of both albums newly remastered on individual discs. Both albums will be newly remastered from the original analog tapes (approved by original engineer/Ardent Records founder John Fry and allowing for Mastered for iTunes/24-bit hi-res downloads) and
Love Is: Carol Williams, The Salsoul Orchestra Make Sweet Music on "'lectric Lady"
Carol Williams signed to New York’s Salsoul Records label in 1975 for one single, but stuck around for one memorable album. That lone long-player, titled ‘lectric Lady, paired the New Jersey-born vocalist – Salsoul’s first female contract signing – with the label’s premier musical outfit, The Salsoul Orchestra, for an alluring blend of disco and sleek soul. Cherry Red’s Big Break Records imprint is now feeling electric with an expanded and remastered reissue of ‘lectric Lady. Williams came to
Razor and Tie Revisits Emerson Lake and Palmer's "Brain Salad Surgery" For 40th Anniversary
For Emerson, Lake and Palmer, the fourth time was the charm. Keyboardist Keith Emerson, vocalist/bassist/guitarist Greg Lake and drummer/percussionist Carl Palmer were innovators in the progressive rock genre, fusing classical, jazz and heavy rock on a regular basis since their 1970 self-titled debut album. ELP was an answer both to the compact, three-minute pop songs that dominated the airwaves and to the blues-rock genre epitomized by the likes of Led Zeppelin, and the group pursued a
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