INXS' Kick is a favorite around The Second Disc parts. We envisioned another deluxe reissue (after two on both sides of the Atlantic) in one of our first Reissue Theory posts, and its slinky, perfectly-crafted blend of pop, R&B and hard rock - combined with a host of non-LP material - makes it a perfect candidate for the growing trend of super-deluxe box sets. So when such a set was first reported and then recently confirmed, you can imagine our excitement at bringing on the news to you. So
Review: Sam Phillips, "Martinis & Bikinis"
To call the career of Sam Phillips a varied one is a colossal understatement. The singer and songwriter born Leslie Ann Phillips has played a mute terrorist opposite Bruce Willis, placed several singles in the contemporary Christian Top 10, and today can be found scoring the exploits of a headstrong dancer and her imperious mother-in-law on ABC Family’s drama Bunheads. Though Phillips has hardly slowed down in the intervening years, fans still hold close the creative period she shared with
Get Up! KISS' "Destroyer: Resurrected" Brings Classic Album to Life with New Remix
Buildings reduced to rubble. The jeering ring of electric guitars. Lots of black and white makeup. Yep, another KISS Katalogue title is koming...er, coming. Universal has set an August 21 date for Destroyer: Resurrected, a new version of what might be the band's best-known studio effort. A project for Destroyer's 35th annversary last year has been in the cards for some time, and while the final effort - a sort of teaser for the band's upcoming Monster album this fall - is certainly far shorter
The Feeling Is Right: Kent Offers Expanded Etta James LP, Clarence Carter Singles Collection
When Argo Records crowned Etta James The Queen of Soul on the cover of a 1964 LP, Aretha Franklin hadn't yet staked claim to that title. Revisiting that album today, Etta's status as royalty still seems unassailable. Thankfully, we have that opportunity thanks to Kent Records via its new expansion of Queen of Soul with fourteen bonus tracks added to the original LP's ten songs. Plus, Kent has delivered a new release from one of the undisputed kings of soul: Clarence Carter. The Fame Singles
Back to "Barcelona": Queen Frontman's Final Solo Disc Gets Super Deluxe Treatment
"I'm moving into opera now. Forget rock and roll." With those words, Queen frontman Freddie Mercury moved in on what may be the most grandiose phase in a long career full of theatrics. In 1987, with Queen not yet knowing they would have played their final live show one year before, the band's whimsical frontman ventured into uncharted waters with Barcelona, an operatic rock album featuring a talented soprano whose voice he idolized, and put one of the final great flourishes on a career (and a
Be Their Guest: "Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives" Digital Album Offers Souvenir of New Exhibition
57 years ago today, on July 17, 1955, The Happiest Place on Earth became a reality when Disneyland opened its doors in Anaheim, California! What better day to take a virtual trip to the Walt Disney Archives? Touted as “the largest Disney archives exhibit in the world,” Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives officially opened on July 5 at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley, California. At over 12,000 square feet, the exhibition boasts 500+ artifacts from every area
Release Round-Up: Week of July 17
America, Perspective/In Concert (BGO) Two out-of-print albums from Gerry Beckley and Dewey Bunnell circa 1984 and 1985 are now available as a two-for-one CD from the U.K.’s BGO label! Read more here. Donny Hathaway, Live + In Performance (Shout! Factory) The Shout! Factory label combines two of the late soul man’s live albums (the first, from 1972, and the second, a posthumous set from 1980) in one package, newly remastered by Steve Hoffman. Read more here. Elton John vs. Pnau, Good
"HELP MEEEEE!" "The Fly" Is Back! Horror Classic Joins Crime Drama "Wallander" On CD
Take a look over to your right…if you’re anything like me, it might be hard to suppress a smile at the fearsome Fly! Yes, horror pictures have changed quite a bit since 1958, and even since The Fly was remade in 1986 with Jeff Goldblum as the eponymous bug-man. But for thrills and chills, it’s hard to beat the original Fly: “Once it was human…even as you and I!” Kritzerland is revisiting the fifties classic along with its sequel, Return of the Fly (1959), on a new two-for-one CD, and is also
Heaven In Her Eyes: BBR Reissues Two From Deniece Williams
The curriculum vitae of Deniece Williams can boast some of the most esteemed names in popular music: Maurice White, Charles Stepney, David Foster, Thom Bell and George Duke, just to name a few. All of those gentlemen produced albums for, or with, Williams, whose career has been the subject of a series of deluxe reissues from Big Break Records. Earlier this year, BBR (part of the Cherry Red group of labels) added Williams' 1976 debut This is Niecy to its previous four titles from the artist:
Short Takes, International Edition: INXS Celebrates 25 Years of "Kick" Plus The Byrds Go Mono and Stereo
Welcome to the working week! This morning's Short Takes brings us to the U.K. for the 25th anniversary of a pop classic, and to Japan, where one of the 1960s' greatest bands is getting the red carpet treatment! Though we're reluctant to rush the summer away, it sure looks like this September's going to be a month with kick! Kick, that is. It appears that Universal U.K. will be giving the full, Super Deluxe treatment to Aussie band INXS' 1987 breakthrough album. The multi-platinum Kick
From "Sassy" to "The Matriarch of the Blues" and Beyond: PopMarket Offers New Complete Box Sets in August
Though it may be summer vacation for many of us, the folks at Sony's PopMarket have been too busy to take much of a rest! They'll be releasing three more Complete Albums boxes from a triumvirate of artists who blurred the lines between jazz, R&B, pop and rock. Box sets for The Brecker Brothers, Etta James and Sarah Vaughan will arrive at general retail as well as at PopMarket.com on August 28. Though most genres have been benefitted from the comprehensive Complete Albums series, jazz fans
Brother Love Returns: Neil Diamond's "Hot August Night" Celebrates 40 Years With Newly-Expanded Reissue
"The stage, she is the God-damnedest woman you ever saw." So said Neil Diamond on the occasion of his first Hot August Night, nearly forty years ago at Los Angeles' Greek Theatre. It was likely that the leaves were, indeed, hanging down, and the grass on the ground smelling...sweet. Diamond is caught in an odd pose on the album's cover, deep in a moment. He's in a beaded denim suit predating his famous glitter shirts, his long mane of hair wind-blown. The harsh red lighting suggests the
Review: B.J. Thomas, "The Complete Scepter Singles"
What sweeter words are there to a catalogue music enthusiast than "Complete Singles"? Thanks to the herculean efforts of the Real Gone Music team, three more artists now can boast of such a collection. And while we'll soon turn our attention to The Electric Prunes and Timi Yuro, today the spotlight is on a man for whom raindrops might keep falling...but nothing's worrying him: B.J. Thomas. Perhaps the most overdue of these sets is Real Gone's delayed, but worth-the-wait collection of B.J.
Hey, Mr. Producer: A Second Disc Interview! Talking Remastered, Remixed Edition of Stephen Sondheim's "Follies" with Bruce Kimmel
Hats off, here it comes: the Kritzerland label is unveiling a new edition of the Original Broadway Cast Recording of Stephen Sondheim and James Goldman’s Follies, but the Broadway babies and girls upstairs will likely have never sounded better. Following similar releases for Promises, Promises and Sugar, Kritzerland has completely remixed and remastered Capitol Records’ 1971 Follies, affording listeners the opportunity to hear a Sondheim masterwork anew. The label began accepting pre-orders
Review: Jimi Hendrix, "Jimi Plays Berkeley" and "Live at Berkeley"
When Jimi Hendrix asked from the stage of the Berkeley Community Theatre on May 30, 1970 that his audience of approximately 3,500 patrons “forget about yesterday or tomorrow…this is our own little world tonight,” he wasn’t making such a request idly. Just outside the walls of the intimate theatre, fans were trying to crash the gates, scale the walls and even gain entry via the roof. For many, the pure, unfiltered and raw music created by Hendrix and his Experience was much-needed escapism, as
When Worlds Collide! John Barry and Matt Monro Spy Thriller Joins George Pal Sci-Fi Flicks
His name is Barry...John Barry. And the famed film composer's score to the 1966 spy thriller The Quiller Memorandum is one of the two latest soundtrack reissues from Intrada. The film score specialists have also just released a 2-CD set of four scores drawn from the legendary films of George Pal. War of the Worlds/When Worlds Collide includes, as bonuses, The Naked Jungle and Conquest of Space. These four soundtracks are the work of Leith Stevens (War of the Worlds, When Worlds Collide),
Shadow of the Bat: Dark Knight Joins Myriad of Superheroes for La-La Land's Comic-Con Soundtrack Lineup
This evening, Preview Night kicks off 2012's Comic-Con International: San Diego, or as most of us know it, just Comic-Con! As the years have passed since the very first event in 1970, Comic-Con has broadened its scope from the world of comic books to every possible corner of pop culture, including music. A number of our friends have set up shop in San Diego, including La-La Land Records at Booth 429 and Shout! Factory at Booth 3849! Mike's checking in with a report on some of the special
Bourbon Street Parade: New Orleans' Preservation Hall Jazz Band Celebrated In New Box Set
726 St. Peter Street in New Orleans, Louisiana doesn’t look like much. But beyond its weathered, nondescript exterior, the venerable building named Preservation Hall has hosted some of the finest and most exciting music to ever emerge from the storied French Quarter. Many musicians have spread the gospel of New Orleans music as the Preservation Hall Jazz Band for 50 years, and the anniversary isn’t going unnoticed. Legacy Recordings has just announced The Preservation Hall 50th Anniversary
Review: The Beat, "I Just Can't Stop It," "Wha'ppen?" and "Special Beat Service" Expanded Editions
When the members of The Beat had the opportunity to create their own record label, the six-piece unit (“Ranking” Roger Charlery on vocals and toasting, Dave Wakeling on vocals and guitar, Andy Cox on guitar, Everett Morton on drums, David Steele on bass and Lionel Augustus Martin a.k.a. Saxa on – what else? – saxophone!) chose “Go Feet Records” as its moniker. Now, roughly 32 years after the band’s first album was released, it will still have your feet going in wild and unexpected directions.
Review: Carly Simon, "Spoiled Girl: Expanded Edition"
The title of Spoiled Girl had a knowingly ironic resonance for Carly Simon. A scion of the Simon and Schuster publishing firm (her father was founder Richard L. Simon), Carly was considered by some to be a "spoiled girl." In fact, that couldn't have been further from the truth, despite a somewhat privileged upbringing. Yet here she was, mockingly singing of a woman who "thinks of nothing but herself," the kind of gal who sends her chauffeur to supply more bubbles for her bath! 1985's Spoiled
Don't Save It for Later: Shout! Factory's "The English Beat Live at The US Festival" Detailed
When we reported on the dueling reissue campaigns by Edsel and Shout! Factory over the catalogue of The (English) Beat, it was pretty clear that each had its own distinct advantages. Shout! Factory's The Complete Beat box set lacked some of the bonus content and all of the video footage in Edsel's 2CD/1DVD expansions of each of the ska band's three albums. On the other hand, they were going to include The Beat in its burgeoning series of live shows from the fabled US Festival. Now, we have some
Friday Feature: "JAWS"
It wouldn't be summer without cold beers, meat on your barbecue, kids splashing in swimming pools...or a 25-foot-long, three-ton great white shark intent on devouring your local bustling summer community. Okay, that last one's a stretch in literal practice, but the 1975 blockbuster film JAWS, based on Peter Benchley's best-selling novel, is a summertime staple, in fact kicking off the notion of huge crowd-pleasing flicks grabbing for audience members as the temperature heats up. The movie was
I Feel Good (All Over): Dance All Weekend Long with Kent's "Cleethorpes Northern Soul Weekender"
Though we've come to expect delightful and deeply soulful compilations from Ace's Kent label, one of Kent's latest is a particular trip: a trip, in fact, to the Cleethorpes Northern Soul Weekender. The 6Ts Rhythm and Soul Society has been throwing these bashes on a yearly basis since 1993, offering up plenty of dancing and some of the best names in soul music, among them Doris Troy, Barbara Lewis, Tommy Hunt, Bettye LaVette and Maxine Brown. Kent's The Cleethorpes Northern Soul Weekender,
The Long and Short of Sparks: Two Compilations Coming from Pop Icons
Calling all fans of eclectic rockers Sparks: two compilations are coming from Repertoire Records, both collecting their late '70s and early '80s single output in two different ways. On August 13, the German label will release Shortcuts: The 7 Inch Mixes (1979-1984) and Extended: The 12 Inch Mixes (1979-1984), a pair of two-disc sets chronicling every side released by the group, in every size, on every label the band were signed to around the world. The brothers Mael - Ron and Russell, from
A Heart in New York: Art Garfunkel Anthology "The Singer" Due In August with Two Unreleased Tracks
When the singer’s gone, let the song go on… Jimmy Webb wrote those words for the unlikely rock star by the name of Arthur Garfunkel, a former architecture student endowed with a purity of tone and the ability to pierce the heart. And thankfully, both the singer and the song remain very much alive today. Garfunkel, of course, was the yin to Paul Simon’s yang, the Tom to his Jerry. It’s most appropriate, then, that he will bookend his old friend with a new anthology coming on August 28 from
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