If you’re a resident of the storm-ravaged East Coast, you might have recently found yourself singing, “We need a little Christmas, right this very minute! “ I know I have. As happens every year around this same time, holiday albums have already begun to fill the shelves, with new albums arriving from artists old and new as well as reissues from Christmases past. In 2011, Legacy Recordings issued The Classic Christmas Album for Tony Bennett, combining tracks from Bennett’s three holiday-themed
Reviews: Bunny Sigler and Billy Paul's Philadelphia International Classics from BBR
When Philadelphia International Records turned 40 this past year, there was no single campaign to recognize the milestone. In the U.S., Legacy Recordings offered up the sizzling rare concert Golden Gate Groove, and the U.K.'s Harmless label delivered the most comprehensive box set to date of the label's music. But a great deal of the heavy lifting has come from another U.K. label, Big Break Records. The BBR team has delivered a selection of generously expanded, beautifully designed album
Pancho and Lefty, Redux: Unheard Townes Van Zandt Coming from Omnivore
Though his 1972 album was entitled The Late Great Townes Van Zandt, that description wasn’t quite true until New Year’s Day, 1997, when a life of hard living caught up with the 52-year old singer, songwriter, poet and musician. But Texas native Van Zandt left behind a rich legacy in music consisting of ten studio albums plus singles and live recordings. The country-blues-folk-rock hero also left behind some unheard material, however, and the musical archaeologists at Omnivore Recordings have
Hear His Train A Comin': Jimi Hendrix's "People, Hell & Angels" Coming in March
Lucky for his legions of fans, Jimi Hendrix was a restless experimenter, committing to tape hours and hours of original music beyond the three studio albums released in his too-short lifetime. Posthumous albums of the songwriter/singer/guitar legend’s unheard material have been released as far back as Reprise/Track’s 1971 The Cry of Love, and as recently as Experience Hendrix and Legacy Recordings’ 2010 Valleys of Neptune. The latest addition to the Hendrix discography will arrive on March 5
Ooo Baby Baby: Two Lost Miracles LPs Arrive on CD
The times they were a-changin’. The Miracles, the group founded in 1955, by Smokey Robinson, Warren “Pete” Moore and Ronnie White, had been synonymous with Motown Records since 1960, and survived chief songwriter and lead vocalist Smokey’s departure in 1972. But despite a chart smash in 1976 with the No. 1 “Love Machine,” the group was dissatisfied with Motown. Pete Moore recalled in 2012, “Even after all of this success, we never had any calls from Smokey or Berry [Gordy].” Indeed, Miracle
The Second Disc's 2012 Holiday Gift Guide is Here!
Need a gift idea? We've got you covered! Unwrap our 2012 HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE with just a click above!
Black Friday 2012: Bob Dylan, David Bowie, Rolling Stones, Frank Zappa Lead Off Packed Slate of RSD Exclusives
Here in the U. S. of A., Black Friday is almost upon us: that unusual date following the prior day of giving thanks, in which consumers make a mad dash to the local big-box store, mall or shopping center to procure bargains for the holiday season ahead. Retailers are controversially beginning Black Friday “festivities” even earlier than usual this year, with many sales starting on Thanksgiving Day itself and not even at midnight but in the early part of the evening. For a number of recent
Pride and Joy of Austin, Texas: Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble's Debut Expanded for Legacy Edition
Double Trouble is getting double-sized from Legacy Recordings and Epic Records. 1983’s Texas Flood, the debut album of Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble, is turning 30 in 2013, and Legacy is celebrating with a two-disc 30th anniversary edition of the classic LP. Due on January 29, the 2-CD set will include one bonus track appended to the original album, and an entire second disc of unreleased live material. The late Vaughan, who tragically perished in a 1990 helicopter crash, made his
R-E-S-P-E-C-T: Ace Compiles Otis Redding Songbook, Louisiana R&B and King's Northern Soul
Ace Records has long been, well, aces where soul music is concerned. Three recent releases have arrived courtesy of the Ace and Kent labels, and connoisseurs, collectors and casual fans alike will all find plenty to enjoy on these incendiary new compilations. The rich recorded legacy of black artists has been a cornerstone of the Kent soul and R&B library. Kent launched a “Black America Sings…” series with titles dedicated to the Lennon and McCartney and Bob Dylan songbooks, a sort of
Cyber Monday Deal Week is Here: Your Music Deals Calendar and Daily Pick!
Every day from Monday November 19 through Saturday December 1, Amazon.com is offering a variety of deals that steeply slash the prices on many releases we've featured right here at The Second Disc. Every morning during this period, we'll spotlight one of those deals, but you can click on the banner above NOW through December 1 to access the complete Cyber Monday Music Deals Calendar! Keep checking back as deals are updated often. Remember: any time you purchase something from Amazon after
Career Man: Franz Waxman Score to Dean Martin, Shirley MacLaine Drama Premieres on CD
Releasing vintage film scores has long been “all in a night’s work” for the Kritzerland label. In June, Kritzerland issued Andre Previn’s score to the 1962 comedy All in a Night’s Work, a Paramount Picture starring Dean Martin and Shirley MacLaine. That was hardly the first onscreen pairing between the two offscreen pals, however. Dino and MacLaine first lit up the screen together in 1955’s Artists and Models, MacLaine’s second film and the fourteenth starring the Martin and Lewis comedy
Holiday Gift Guide Review: The Chipmunks, "Chipmunks Christmas"
There’s only one “Christmas Song” – chestnuts roasting on an open fire, and all that. And there’s only one “Chipmunk Song” – in which Alvin never gets his much hoped-for hula hoop. What began as a novelty for Ross Bagdasarian, a.k.a. David Seville, led to three Grammy Awards for “The Chipmunk Song” alone and a chart-topping berth. Indeed, it remains the only Christmas song to have ever reached No. 1 on the Billboard pop chart. But that wasn’t all for Alvin, Simon and Theodore, with two
WE HAVE A WINNER! A Complete Set of BLACK FRIDAY/RECORD STORE DAY Releases from OMNIVORE RECORDINGS!
CONGRATULATIONS TO MICHAEL HOWE, WINNER OF THE BLACK FRIDAY/RSD PRIZE PACK!
Holiday Gift Guide Review: Elvis Presley, "Prince from Another Planet"
"I'm not kidding myself. My voice alone is just an ordinary voice. What people come to see is how I use it. If I stand still while I'm singing, I'm dead, man. I might as well go back to driving a truck." Though Elvis Aron Presley's vocal instrument was one of the greatest in the entirety of American popular music, the singer wasn't simply being modest. Whether threatening staid fifties culture in a pair of tight pants, shaking his famed pelvis, or taking to the Las Vegas concert stage in
Many a Tear Has to Fall: RPM Collects Tommy Edwards' "MGM Recordings 1958-1960"
Trivia time: name the only No. 1 Pop single to have been written by a United States Vice-President. If you answered “It’s All in the Game,” recorded in 1958 by Tommy Edwards, you win our Second Disc No-Prize! In 1951, Carl Sigman (“Ebb Tide,” “What Now My Love”) set lyrics to the 1912 (!) melody by Charles Dawes, Vice President under Calvin Coolidge and a Nobel Peace Prize recipient. Although the song was recorded by Nat “King” Cole, Louis Armstrong and Dinah Shore, it had its most enduring
Frank Zappa Hits the Road: First Volume of "Road Tapes" Arrives, Track Listing Confirmed [UPDATED 11/14]
It really is Mothermania. With Zappa Records' and Universal Music's campaign to reissue the Official Albums of Frank Zappa drawing to a close in December, there are still a few surprises up the Zappa Family Trust's sleeves. In our newly-updated ongoing rundown of the main campaign, we have already reported on the reissue of the Mothers of Invention's "greatest hits" Mothermania, originally released on Verve Records in 1969 and only now appearing on authorized CD. We've also passed on news of
It's Mancini! It's Disney! It's "Condorman" and It's Flying to You from Intrada! Plus: "Battlestar" and More!
The Intrada label is going up, up and away with their latest slate of releases – but Superman doesn’t have much to fear. No, the Intrada/Disney partnership is taking off instead with another heroic release: Henry Mancini’s original soundtrack of the zany family comedy Condorman! Last August, when prepping a Wish List of possible releases from the Disney vaults, I wrote of Condorman that “this loopy superhero comedy can count among its assets a high-flying, fun score by Henry Mancini. The
Holiday Gift Guide Review: Creedence Clearwater Revival, "Ultimate CCR: Greatest Hits and All-Time Classics"
Did John Fogerty write “Proud Mary,” or did it come to the Creedence Clearwater Revival frontman by some kind of divine inspiration? After all, the modern folk song has become such a part of the American cultural tapestry that it’s hard to believe the song’s origins were so, well, ordinary: Fogerty cobbled together a spontaneously-improvised riff at San Francisco’s Avalon Ballroom with lyrics inspired by diverse sources and experiences to create the song that anchored the band’s sophomore album
WE HAVE A WINNER! A Complete Set of IAN McCULLOCH REISSUES from EDSEL RECORDS!
CONGRATULATIONS TO PATRICK DENNY, WINNER OF THE IAN McCULLOCH REISSUES!
The Second Disc's HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE 2012
Looking for that perfect present to place under the tree this holiday season? Look no further! 2012 has been an amazing year for deluxe (and super deluxe!) box sets, so we have highlighted the creme of the crop right here to make your spirits bright, whatever your musical taste! Plus: selected holiday-themed releases and more! 10cc, Tenology (UMC U.K.) One of the more underrated bands of the '70s, 10cc finally gets their due with a multi-disc CD/DVD box set. Hits, album cuts and
From Bakersfield to You: Newly-Discovered Recordings of Buck Owens, Don Rich Arrive in January
Omnivore Recordings is bound for Bakersfield, and the honky-tonks are still open! With Fresno to the north and Los Angeles to the south, the town of Bakersfield, California might have been an unlikely candidate for Nashville West, but so it was when Buck Owens, Ferlin Husky, Merle Haggard and other back-to-basics country stars called it home. Owens made the town his adopted residence from the age of 21, and directly answered the “countrypolitan” sound coming out of Tennessee with an
Holiday Gift Guide Review: The Comedy and Music of Ernie Kovacs and Edie Adams
Welcome to 2012's Second Disc Holiday Gift Guide! We'll use these special reviews to highlight not only seasonally-themed releases, but box sets, deluxe reissues and other special titles that might make the perfect gifts under your tree this holiday season! Groucho Marx once observed that "marriage is a wonderful institution," before adding, "but who wants to live in an institution?" A few lucky couples have not only thrived in that institution, however, but also in the world of comedy:
Attention All Planets of the Solar Federation: Rush's "2112" Returns in Deluxe Editions
2011 wasn’t a bad year to be a Rush fan, with the legendary Canadian band offering a deluxe edition of 1981’s Moving Pictures and three Sector box sets covering Rush’s entire 1974-1989 Mercury Records tenure. Now, Geddy Lee (bass, keyboard, vocals), Alex Lifeson (guitar) and Neil Peart (drummer) are preparing to close out this year by celebrating 2112 (yes, 2112 in 2012!) in a variety of deluxe formats. Amazon.com has confirmed December 18 as the release date for three editions of the classic
JSP Goes Beyond the Rainbow with 4-CD Collection of "Creations" by Judy Garland
Judy Garland’s place in the annals of popular music would have been all but assured if she had only introduced Harold Arlen and E.Y. “Yip” Harburg’s “Over the Rainbow” to the world. After all, the Academy Award-winning song from The Wizard of Oz (1939) was ranked the No. 1 Song of the Century by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) and the NEA (National Endowment for the Arts) and topped a list of the 100 Greatest Movie Songs compiled by the American Film Institute. Garland
The Splendor of Alfred Newman: "Love" and "The Seven Year Itch" Due on CD
The music of Alfred Newman’s son Thomas will resound at theatres in the United States this Friday with his score to the blockbuster-in-the-making James Bond film Skyfall. But what better time to revisit two classic scores from Thomas’ dad, perhaps the all-time dean of the film score? Following its recent restoration of Alfred’s score to 1951’s David and Bathsheba, the Kritzerland label is turning its attention to two more famous titles from the vast 20th Century Fox library, both from 1955:
- « Previous Page
- 1
- …
- 315
- 316
- 317
- 318
- 319
- …
- 456
- Next Page »