50 years ago, two of American music's greatest talents proved they were still venturing into new territories. Elvis Presley, some decade and a half after he first took the world by storm, was setting up shop in Nashville for a marathon session that saw him pulling from the new popular songbook and many songs written just for him. These sessions delivered several albums' worth of material and are now presented chronologically in a new box set, complete with exciting new mixes on From Elvis In
Holiday Gift Guide Review: Shania Twain, 'The Woman in Me (Diamond Edition)'
If there's one good thing we can pull from 2020's reissue slate, it's diversity. The end of the year's biggest box sets focused less on the typical classic-rock heavy-hitters and more on genres, eras and artists that typically don't get the red carpet treatment. It's a trend that would surely be nice to continue. The new "Diamond Edition" of Shania Twain's The Woman in Me (Mercury Nashville/UMe B0032601-02) checks off all three of those boxes, yet it's initially an odd sell. After all, isn't
Holiday Gift Guide Stax Spotlight: The Staple Singers' "Come Go with Me" and "The Gospel Truth: Complete Singles Collection"
UPDATED DECEMBER 2020: Earlier this year, Craft Recordings released The Staple Singers' Come Go with Me: The Stax Collection in vinyl and digital editions. The set compiled all of the famed gospel group's 1968-1974 albums for the Stax label plus a volume of rarities, non-LP single sides, and live recordings. Now, that box has come to CD as beautifully remastered from the original analog tapes by Jeff Powell at Take Out Vinyl. Come Go with Me: The Stax Collection features the following
Holiday Gift Guide Review: Peter Tork, "Stranger Things Have Happened"
UPDATED DECEMBER 2020: 7a Records' announcement earlier this year of a deluxe remastered and expanded edition of Peter Tork's only solo album, 1994's Stranger Things Have Happened, marked a major milestone for the label. Over the years, 7a has already delivered a treasure trove of releases from Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones, and Michael Nesmith on CD and vinyl, but with the inclusion of the late Tork, its roster of artists finally seems complete. The path to Stranger Things Have Happened was a
Holiday Gift Guide Review: The Replacements, "Pleased to Meet Me: Deluxe Edition"
The Replacements' Pleased to Meet Me marked the moment when Minneapolis met Memphis. For their second major label album, fifth overall, first without founding member Bob Stinson, and lone offering as a trio, the 'Mats called upon Jim Dickinson. The producer and Memphis mainstay entered the picture after abortive demo sessions in the band's hometown during which time Bob had been dismissed from the band, leaving Paul Westerberg to pick up the lead guitar duties, Tommy Stinson on bass, and Chris
Holiday Gift Guide Review: Tears for Fears, 'The Seeds of Love: Deluxe Edition'
Think back to your days listening to pop music in the '80s - say, for the sake of argument, 1985. Thriller's wrapped up its run of seven hit singles. Bruce Springsteen's Born in the U.S.A. is in the middle of its own seven-hit stretch. Purple Rain made Prince a juggernaut - and Tears for Fears, the British duo behind the moody, electronic The Hurting (1983) have broken into the mainstream with the progressive psych-pop of 1985's Songs from the Big Chair, including back-to-back chart-toppers
Holiday Gift Guide Spotlight: Esoteric Reissues Classics by Barclay James Harvest, Be-Bop Deluxe
As our Holiday Gift Guide continues with a fourth and final look at Cherry Red's recent box set offerings, we wanted to bring to your attention two collections that would look great underneath the tree, whether for a prog-rock enthusiast in your life or for yourself (we won't tell!). First up: Barclay James Harvest's And Other Short Stories, recently reissued as a 2-CD/DVD set. The English prog rock outfit Barclay James Harvest had already made a name for themselves as part of Harvest
Roll Your Tapes: Bruce Springsteen Releases 'Darkness' Tour Box Through Nugs
Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band's tour to promote 1978's Darkness on the Edge of Town has been lauded by casual and hardcore fans alike in the four decades since it happened, with several shows considered among the Boss' best. A myriad of official live releases through Nugs.net has helped provide evidence to the case - and now, eight of those shows are being collected in a 24CD box set. Darkness on the Edge of Town Tour 1978 features full sets from that legendary tour which took place
Holiday Gift Guide Review: U2. "All That You Can't Leave Behind: 20th Anniversary Edition"
Prepare to elevate your soul with this 20th anniversary box set edition of U2's All That You Can't Leave Behind. Twenty years into their career, U2 rang in the new millennium with a career-redefining recording that saw them return to the upper echelons of the Billboard charts, with Grammy nominations and worldwide hits to boot. With enduring instant classics like "Beautiful Day," "Walk On," "Elevation," and "Stuck in a Moment That You Can't Get Out Of," it's no wonder the album remains a
Holiday Gift Guide Spotlight: Cherry Red Box Set Bonanza - Rhinoceros, Jerry Jeff Walker, Fumble
Welcome to the third part of our Holiday Gift Guide Spotlight - Cherry Red Box Set Bonanza! Click here for Part One, featuring Evelyn "Champagne" King, and here for Part Two featuring Graham Bonnet! When one thinks of bands assembled by audition, The Monkees usually spring to mind. Davy, Micky, Peter, and Michael had been assembled by Screen Gems for the purposes of starring in a new television sitcom, and by sheer force of will became a "real" band making some of the era's most
Release Round-Up: Week of December 18
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! Tom Jones, The Complete Decca Studio Albums Collection (Decca/UMC) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Link TBD) This long-awaited box from Sir Tom Jones - counting 17 discs, including 15 studio albums and two CDs of non-LP single and EP sides - boasts over 200 tracks and 10+ hours of music from Jones' classic Decca period of 1965-1975. It includes hits such as "What's New Pussycat?," "It's Not Unusual," "Help Yourself," "Green, Green
Soundtrack Watch: Everybody's Talkin' About Quartet's Score Reissues
As we approach the end of 2020, soundtrack labels are working overtime to put out some great archival score presentations. Not to be ignored this time of year is an impressive line-up from European label Quartet Records: last week they announced three incredible expanded releases and a new re-recording. Additionally, they recently issued another two expanded releases that are absolutely worth fans' time. Those recent releases are a pair of acclaimed scores from 1990: Jerry Goldsmith's work on
Stir It Up: Bob Marley's 75th Anniversary Celebration Continues with Two Box Sets, Vinyl Reissues
Nearly 40 years after his passing, Bob Marley's music, image and message continue to fascinate audiences the world over. The end of this year has seen some considerable activity around his classic '70s and '80s catalogue for Tuff Gong/Island Records, including a new career-spanning box set and some vinyl reissues - and another box set, a new version of an old collection, is due early next year. Five years from its original vinyl release in 2015, a CD edition of The Complete Island Recordings
Holiday Gift Guide Spotlight: Cherry Red Box Set Bonanza - Graham Bonnet's "Solo Albums 1974-1992"
Perhaps no label this holiday season has offered such a bonanza of box sets as Cherry Red. Yesterday, we looked at Evelyn "Champagne" King's The RCA Albums 1977-1985. Today, we're turning the spotlight onto Graham Bonnet's Solo Albums 1974-1982! Cherry Red's Hear No Evil (HNE) imprint has long been a home for archival releases from singer Graham Bonnet of Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow, Alcatrazz, and The Michael Schenker Group. Now, HNE has brought together Bonnet's first four solo albums,
So Much Love: Real Gone Music Collects Dusty Springfield's "Complete Atlantic Singles," Expands Norma Tanega's Debut Album
For several years in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Dusty Springfield was romantically linked to singer-songwriter Norma Tanega. On February 5, 2021, the late, talented duo will be linked once more with a pair of new releases from our friends at Real Gone Music. Real Gone has previously surveyed Springfield's remarkable career on releases including Faithful (premiering her complete, lost album with producer-songwriter Jeff Barry in standalone form), A Brand New Me: The Complete Philadelphia
Holiday Gift Guide Spotlight: Cherry Red Box Set Bonanza - Evelyn "Champagne" King, "The RCA Albums 1977-1985"
Perhaps no label this holiday season has offered such a bonanza of box sets as Cherry Red. Today we kick off a three-part feature on five of these sets (any of which just might make the perfect stocking stuffer!) with a Holiday Gift Guide spotlight on Evelyn "Champagne" King's The RCA Albums 1977-1985. Bronx-born, Philadelphia-raised vocalist Evelyn "Champagne" King came from a showbiz family including her uncle Avon Long - perhaps best known as Sportin' Life in multiple productions of Porgy
Holiday Gift Guide Review: Kiki Dee, "The Fontana and Motown Years"
UPDATED DECEMBER 2020: Kiki Dee rocketed to worldwide stardom (no pun intended) on Elton John's Rocket Records in 1976, imploring "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" to John on the chart-topping duet. She had been recording for Rocket since 1973, scoring such U.K. hits as "Amoreuse" and "I've Got the Music in Me," the latter of which also went to the top 20 of the U.S. Hot 100, as well. Anyone familiar with Dee's Rocket recordings knows her to be a singer of both power and sensitivity, and last year,
Return Trip: Rick Wakeman Releases Box Set of "Return to the Centre of the Earth"
Rick Wakeman's 1974 opus Journey to the Centre of the Earth was a landmark effort from the Yes keyboardist. The orchestral rock adaptation of Jules Verne's 1864 novel was narrated by actor David Hemmings (Blowup, Gladiator) and featured the London Symphony Orchestra, the English Chamber Choir, and a rock group later to be known as the English Rock Ensemble. Wakeman's progressive sci-fi fusion went all the way to No. 1 in the U.K. (the first album by A&M Records to do so there) and No. 3 in
Holiday Gift Guide Review: The Doors, "Morrison Hotel: 50th Anniversary Edition"
For The Doors, 1970 should have been a new beginning. Upon the February 1 release of the band's fifth album, Morrison Hotel, Jim Morrison, Ray Manzarek, Robby Krieger, and John Densmore were still recovering from the events of the prior year. On March 1, 1969, Morrison famously (or infamously?) exposed himself onstage in Coconut Grove, Florida. The Lizard King's "indecent exposure" led to the cancellation of over two dozen concerts and some radio stations' refusal to play The Doors' music.
In Memoriam: Charley Pride (1934-2020)
Before Darius Rucker or Lil Nas X, there was Charley Pride. The fourth of eleven children born to sharecroppers in Sledge, Mississippi didn't just break the race barrier in country music; he positively shattered it. Pride wasn't the first African-American performer in the genre - DeFord Bailey's success in country and blues dated back to the 1920s - but he earned the same level of stardom accorded his white contemporaries such as Willie Nelson or Glen Campbell. With Pride's death today of
Short Takes: David Bowie, Burt Bacharach and Melody Federer, Willie Nelson, and Frank Sinatra
An unusual amount of news broke this morning, so another installment of Short Takes is here to cover it all in bite-sized nuggets! The third volume of David Bowie's Brilliant Live Adventures series is now available for pre-order in 1CD and 2LP editions. Liveandwell.com was culled from performances in New York, Amsterdam, and Rio de Janeiro during Bowie's Earthling tour and first issued in 2000 as a website-exclusive release for subscribers to Bowienet. This expanded and remastered edition
Holiday Gift Guide Reviews: Cat Stevens, "Mona Bone Jakon" and "Tea for the Tillerman" 50th Anniversary Editions
1970 was a defining year for pop music, and few stars ascended to quite the same heights as Cat Stevens, whose Mona Bone Jakon and Tea For the Tillerman re-introduced the songwriter and singer to audiences. Gone are the production excesses of his late-'60s pop recordings. Here, Stevens' songs are stripped-down as he looks inward and embraces a soulful sound. Fifty years on, these two albums have been revisited by Yusuf through his aptly titled Cat-O-Log Records imprint, in coordination with
Release Round-Up: Week of December 11
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! Neil Young, After the Gold Rush: 50th Anniversary Edition (Reprise) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) The 50th Anniversary Edition of Neil Young's classic album features new art based on Gary Burden's original album cover design. The CD is out today while the vinyl edition will be released in March, 2021 and presented in a box set with the LP and a bonus 7″ single in a newly designed picture sleeve. This set includes two different
Holiday Gift Guide: Vinyl Me, Please - A Year in Review
Over the past few months you've probably heard us mention Vinyl Me Please. The subscription-based record club frequently partners with the major labels to create exclusive pressings from across genres. They also curate Records of the Month for subscribers - available in three tracks: Classics, Essentials, and Hip Hop - specially selected by their staff to spotlight albums of importance in pop, rock, soul, world music, jazz, and beyond. This year, the offerings ran the gamut from The Stooges,
Play It Again: Esoteric Salutes The Moody Blues' Ray Thomas with Anthology, Surround Mix
As a founding member of The Moody Blues, Ray Thomas (1941-2018) played the haunting flute solo on the band's 1967 hit "Nights in White Satin." He also was responsible for writing many of the Moodies' most beloved songs including "Twilight Time," "And the Tide Rushes In," and "Legend of a Mind." A multi-instrumentalist and singer, Thomas recorded two solo albums for the group's Threshold Records label: 1975's From Mighty Oaks and 1976's Hopes, Wishes, and Dreams. This fall, Cherry Red's
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