Roy Orbison, a.k.a. The Big O, a.k.a. Lefty Wilbury, a.k.a. “the Caruso of Rock,” never did anything small. His big, booming voice gave life to a series of painfully heartbreaking yet irresistible ballads that sounded like nothing else in rock and roll or pop. Orbison brought an authenticity and urgency to the dramatic songs he wrote and recorded, but when he cut loose on an “Ooby Dooby” or “Oh, Pretty Woman,” his voice could also be the sound of freedom and lust and excitement. With the
The Return of "One-Eyed Jacks": Sold-Out Soundtrack Receives New Encore Edition
When we first reported on Kritzerland's reissue of the soundtrack to 1961's One-Eyed Jacks on Wednesday, August 25, 2010, the limited edition release had already sold out. In fact, all 1,200 copies had sold out in a matter of hours. But the label is bringing this in-demand title back as a new Encore Edition. Strictly limited to 1,000 units, the Encore Edition re-presents the contents of the deluxe restoration of Hugo Friedhofer's score. The new edition is scheduled to ship by the first week
Review: Little Feat, "Rad Gumbo: The Complete Warner Bros. Years 1971-1990"
“Well they say that time loves a hero/But only time will tell/If he`s real he`s a legend from heaven/If he ain`t he was sent here from hell...” Though Little Feat’s singer-songwriter-guitarist Lowell George wasn’t among the writers of the song “Time Loves a Hero” from the band’s 1977 album of the same name, the lyric might well describe him. Time has, indeed, told: almost 35 years after George’s death in June 1979, his legacy still resonates as does that of the band which he founded. Yet
And We Love Them: "A Hard Day's Night" Added to Criterion Collection for 50th Anniversary
Despite the insistence of punk rock saint Joe Strummer, Beatlemania seems no closer to biting the dust in 2014. Apple Corps have made quite the big deal out of this year's 50th anniversary mark of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr making their first trip to America in 1964, branding a generation with their blend of highly original, mania-inducing pop/rock. November saw the release of a second volume of recordings for the BBC and a copyright-busting,
Love Is What They Came Here For: BBR Expands Leon Haywood, Carl Carlton Albums
There was a lot more to Leon Haywood than his 1975 hit “I Want’a Do Something Freaky to You.” Texas native Haywood played keyboards for Sam Cooke, masqueraded in studio bands The Packers and The Romeos and scored his first solo pop hit with 1967’s “It’s Got to Be Mellow.” When he began incorporating funk and disco sounds into his brand of soul, however, Haywood found his niche. Big Break has recently celebrated the Haywood ouevre with expanded editions of his 1980 platter Naturally and the
Release Round-Up: Week of March 4
Little Feat, Rad Gumbo: The Complete Warner Bros. Years 1971-1990 (Warner Bros./Rhino) The eclectic rock band's near two-decade run on Warner Bros. is celebrated in this new box set, featuring all the band's original studio albums, an expanded edition of the live Waiting for Columbus and a bonus disc of recordings sourced from the band's 2000 box set Hotcakes & Outtakes. (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) The Grass Roots, The Complete Original Dunhill/ABC Hit Singles / Irma Thomas, Full Time
In A Russian State of Mind: Billy Joel's "A Matter of Trust: The Bridge To Russia" Gets Deluxe Treatment
With Billy Joel in the midst of his unprecedented concert run as a “franchise” at New York’s Madison Square Garden, the time has never been better to revisit one of the most significant concert appearances of the Long Island troubadour’s long musical career. On May 20, 2014, Columbia Records and Legacy Recordings will definitively chronicle Joel’s historic 1987 Russian concert tour on A Matter of Trust – The Bridge to Russia. A Matter of Trust will be available in a Deluxe Edition box set
Too Much Heaven: Bee Gees' "Warner Bros. Years" Box Set Premieres Unreleased Tracks, Complete Concert
Following the release of 1981’s Living Eyes, The Bee Gees effectively called it a day. The band reportedly clashed during the making of the album, and its lack of chart success convinced Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb to pursue non-band projects for a time. Solo albums and soundtrack recordings arrived, and the Barry Gibb/Karl Richardson/Albhy Galuten team worked its magic on releases by Dionne Warwick, Kenny Rogers and Diana Ross (featuring numerous songs co-written by all three brothers, of
Bruce Springsteen Remasters Announced - with a Twist
It's one of the biggest headlines catalogue music fans have been waiting decades to hear - if not necessarily in the context they'd like. Today, Bruce Springsteen announced ten of his albums from across his entire discography have been newly remastered from the original analogue tapes by Bob Ludwig. The list includes five classic LPs - Springsteen's first four albums Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. (1973), The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle (1973), Born to Run (1975), Darkness
Billy Paul Is "Feelin' Good" On BBR Reissue Of His First Studio Album
Big Break Records and Billy Paul - they've got a thing going on. The label, an imprint of the Cherry Red Group, has just returned to the soul titan's catalogue for the sixth time - and with this release has gone back to the very beginning. BBR's previous reissues from the "Me and Mrs. Jones" singer have explored his Philadelphia International discography as well as his Neptune release Ebony Woman and a post-PIR album for Total Experience Records. Now, the label has turned its attention to
Return To Itchycoo Park: Small Faces' "Here Come The Nice" Deluxe Box Set Arrives In January [UPDATED 12/3]
The culmination of the recent Small Faces reissue series from the Charly/Snapper label is set for arrival in January: Here Come the Nice: The Immediate Years Box Set 1967-1969, a lavish 4-CD, 3-EP box set containing “every [one of the band’s] worldwide hit single A & B side on Immediate Records” plus rare and previously unreleased material, “remastered from recently-discovered original master and multi-track tapes.” The set has been produced under the supervision of surviving band
Review, "Released! The Human Rights Concerts 1986-1989" On DVD and CD
Sex, drugs and rock and roll have been closely linked since, well, the dawn of rock and roll itself. But those who have been lucky enough to make a living in the rough-and-tumble world of rock have also frequently given themselves over to more noble pursuits. George Harrison’s 1971 Concert for Bangla Desh wasn’t the first time a rock superstar had performed for charity, but The Quiet Beatle’s star-studded event is rightfully considered the first benefit concert of such stature. Since then,
Review: Paul Simon, "The Complete Albums Collection" and "Over the Bridge of Time"
I. Hello Darkness, My Old FriendMore than 45 years ago, Paul Simon dramatized a journey “to look for America” in the song boldly and simply called “America.” Over 3-1/2 gorgeously elegiac minutes beginning with hymn-like vocalizing, Simon abandoned conventional song structure and rhyme to portray two young people searching for the heart of this promised land. The conversational lyric is both deceptively simple and densely packed. Optimism (“Let us be lovers, we’ll marry our fortunes
They Shall Be "Released": Bruce Springsteen, Sting, Joni Mitchell, U2, Peter Gabriel, Miles Davis on Amnesty International Box
Since its founding in 1961, Amnesty International has endeavored “to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated.” The Nobel Peace Prize-winning international human rights organization has, naturally, attracted a number of high-profile supporters over the years. In 1988, a number of those men and women took the road to spread Amnesty’s message and raise funds via the Human Rights Now!
Ava Cherry Takes A Ride On A "Streetcar Named Desire"
“Black people don’t do new wave. She’s supposed to be doing soul,” Ava Cherry recollected of radio’s reaction to her 1982 Capitol Records single “Love to Be Touched.” Yet not only did Cherry – the former model, stalwart background vocalist and onetime muse to David Bowie - do new wave, but she did it with fervor and flair. With production from Bob Esty (Donna Summer’s “Last Dance,” Barbra Streisand’s “The Main Event”), Cherry’s sophomore solo album Streetcar Named Desire, produced by Bob
In His "Reality": Philly Soul Meets Jazz On Monk Montgomery Reissue
UPDATE 9/10/13: Just yesterday, we published the following review of Monk Montgomery's 1974 album Reality, produced, arranged, and co-written by a true legend of soul music and architect of The Sound of Philadelphia, Mr. Bobby Martin. Today, word has arrived that Martin, 83, has passed away following a brief illness. A masterful orchestrator of horns and strings with a background steeped in jazz, Martin created music that was sweet and sophisticated, romantic and wrenching. and always
Legacy Plans Jimi Hendrix Bonanza With "Miami Pop Festival" and "Hear My Train A Comin'"
There continues to be plenty to experience from Jimi Hendrix. On August 20, Legacy Recordings and Experience Hendrix restored the original 2000 “purple box” to the catalogue in a new reissue adding four bonus tracks (B-side “The Stars That Play with Laughing Sam’s Dice,” “Peace in Mississippi” from the “Valleys of Neptune” CD single, and live versions of “Burning of the Midnight Lamp” and “Like a Rolling Stone”) to the original 4-CD configuration. On November 5, the ongoing Hendrix campaign
Cowboy In Sweden, And Everywhere Else: LITA Boxes "Lee Hazlewood Industries"
If you’ve been following Light in the Attic’s ongoing Lee Hazlewood Archive Series, you’ve discovered a treasure trove of wild ‘n’ wooly music from the country-pop maverick. But the past releases in the series are proving to be delicious appetizers for the just-announced main course. On November 26, Light in the Attic will unveil There’s a Dream I’ve Been Saving: Lee Hazlewood Industries 1966-1971. This seven-years-in-the-making deluxe box set will be available as a 4-CD/1-DVD/1-flexidisc
Review: "The Muppet Movie: Original Soundtrack Recording"
I'm a pretty sensitive person, but there are few things that trigger my emotions easier than The Muppets. Searching through Muppet clips yields almost a 100% guarantee on being moved to tears; just finding the link to this ciip from the 1990 special The Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson made me start tearing up, and my last trip to Walt Disney World began with me leaving the plane to Orlando, choking back my emotions over a screening of 2011's The Muppets. (For the record, this is the scene that made
Steven Wilson Prepping Surround Mixes for Yes and XTC, More King Crimson On the Way (UPDATED 8/6)
UPDATE (8/6/2013): After the jump, you'll find full specs on the newly expanded and remixed Close to the Edge, due out in October! And don't forget our post on Nonsuch from earlier this week. ORIGINAL POST (6/24/2013): Porcupine Tree’s Steven Wilson has been one of the most prominent proponents of surround sound in recent memory. The singer/songwriter/guitarist/producer has spearheaded deluxe editions of classic albums from Hawkwind, King Crimson, Jethro Tull and Emerson Lake and Palmer with
All of Us Under Its Spell: Disney Reissues "Muppet Movie" Soundtrack to Coincide with Blu-Ray Release
It begins so simply, as all immortal songs do: a hopeful melody, plucked on a banjo by the versatile flippers of a frog. "Why are there so many songs about rainbows / And what's on the other side?" sings Kermit the Frog, in one of the unmistakable voices of his creator Jim Henson. If Henson and Sam Pottle's theme to The Muppet Show is the national anthem of those long-running, lovable fur and felt characters, "The Rainbow Connection" is its "God Bless America." Kermit's ode to "the lovers, the
Release Round-Up Special: James Taylor, CSN, "Blade Runner" Released by Audio Fidelity
In lieu of a standard Release Round-Up this week, here's a look at the major three titles that are out today: the latest gold discs and SACDs from Audio Fidelity. The titles released today are Crosby, Stills & Nash's CSN, James Taylor's Gorilla and Vangelis' soundtrack album to Blade Runner. The third studio album by the folk-rock supergroup Crosby, Stills and Nash, released in 1977, is crucially different from the ones before - this time, there's no contribution from Neil Young. (Young
Wherever He Lays His Hat: Cherry Pop Collects Paul Young's "Remixes and Rarities"
For Daryl Hall, "Every Time You Go Away" might have been "the one that got away." Hall recorded his song on Hall and Oates' 1980 album Voices, where it languished as an album track in the shadow of hit singles "Kiss on My List," "You Make My Dreams," "How Does It Feel to Be Back," and "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'." But you can't keep a great blue-eyed soul ballad down. In 1985, Hall's composition became the centerpiece of British-born Paul Young's sophomore album The Secret of
Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun: Red Temple Spirits' Post-Punk Albums Return To CD
Words like “unique” and “singular” are thrown around far too often, but they truly apply to the Red Temple Spirits. The Los Angeles quartet, described in 1989 by one pundit as “enigmatic,” recorded two albums in the waning days of the 1980s, Dancing to Restore an Eclipsed Moon and If Tomorrow I Were Leaving for Lhasa, I Wouldn’t Stay a Minute More... The post-punk group toured in 1990, and even gained airplay on MTV, but before 1992 was out, Red Temple Spirits had gone quietly into the night.
Review: ZZ Top, "The Complete Studio Albums 1970-1990"
"My friends, they all told me Man there's somethin' gonna change your life..." -ZZ Top, "Brown Sugar" I hate to play favorites, but from day one, I've been a fan of Legacy Recordings' "complete albums" concept. The slick packaging of an artist's classic albums in one package, with nicely-crafted mini jackets, replicated label art on disc and the always promising idea of bonus content is often too good to pass up. I'm probably not the typical target buyer - really, when am I ever - but as
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