The way culture advances nowadays, it's not surprising to realize you've forgotten certain ways you might have thought or felt about a musician in particular. For instance, when singer Bret Michaels was rushed to the hospital last week after suffering a massive brain hemorrhage, I'm sure many people (especially younger ones with less perspective) immediately thought of Michael's career as a reality show star - he's currently on NBC's Celebrity Apprentice and has spent three years on the abysmal
Boxed In
Reaction to the recently-released tracklist for John Mellencamp's On the Rural Route 7609 box set has been a bit mixed, and for good reason. It's hard to greet a four-disc box set full of album tracks and just over a dozen unreleased outtakes with a price tag of nearly $100. But it's becoming clear that there's a bigger issue here at stake than Mellencamp fans getting soaked. Friends, the entire concept of a box set is in a state of crisis. It's been a long two decades since compact disc box
Soundtrack Miracles and More
A heads-up for two brand-new releases from indie soundtrack label Intrada. This week's batch is quite eclectic: first up is Laurence Rosenthal's score to the classic 1962 film version of The Miracle Worker, available for the first time on CD. This disc is sourced from Rosenthal's own first-generation mono 1/4" tapes and produced with full support from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the film's distributor. This is a limited one at just 1,000 copies, so act fast. Intrada's other release turns to the small
Release Round-Up: Wilde and Grey Edition
We've got a few reissue notes (in case you missed them) to start off your week. First up, Cherry Pop is prepping another batch of Kim Wilde reissues. The label re-released Wilde's RAK-era LPs - Kim Wilde (1981), Select (1982) and Catch as Catch Can (1983) to a strong reaction from her fanbase, and are now prepping two-disc editions of Teases & Dares (1984) and Another Step (1986), Wilde's first two records for the MCA label. The latter is notable for being co-produced by Rod Temperton and
Back Tracks: Paul McCartney
Every now and then a catalogue-oriented story breaks into the mainstream. This week, we've had one of those moments: Paul McCartney is moving his back catalogue distribution to Concord Music Group from increasingly beleaguered EMI. Reissues will commence in August with a new pressing of Band on the Run, his high watermark with former band Wings. Of course, for someone of McCartney's caliber, this is not the first time his albums have been reissued. EMI did a massive remastering of 16
Friday Feature: "Licence to Kill"
Recent coverage of soundtracks on The Second Disc has been warmly received. To this end, we have added a the Friday Feature. Every Friday, you'll find some sort of article devoted to a soundtrack or film composer of merit. We hope you enjoy these trips through Hollywood's musical landscape! Our first Friday Feature deals with one of the oddest of the James Bond films. No, not Never Say Never Again (that's not really a Bond film, anyway). Licence to Kill was the second and final feature with
Not Quite What You Need
It might be seen as unfair to criticize the catalogue-oriented decisions of INXS. Since losing lead singer Michael Hutchence in 1997, they've tried hard to find their way - finding a new singer through a reality show, recording an album with him, prepping a new album with a rotating stable of lead singers and so on. Rhino, the label that controls their back catalogue in the U.S., has released a lot of compilations in the interim as well, plus a few reissues of their late '80s/early '90s work
La La Land Blows Up White House, Catches a Wave
Wow! Commenter ~Rupe was some sort of a prophet today when he discussed the need for soundtrack labels to repress certain out-of-print soundtracks. The second of La La Land Record's soundtrack releases today (after David Arnold's complete score to the 1996 blockbuster Independence Day) fulfills that need in spades: the label is releasing a brand-new pressing of John Williams' score to the 1972 disaster classic The Poseidon Adventure. Williams gained early mainstream recognition as the musician
Release Round-Up: Lightfoot, Queen, ID4 and More
Amazon has posted pre-order links for new remasters for folk legend (and non-dead person) Gordon Lightfoot. Wounded Bird will distribute these new releases of the LPs he recorded for Warner/Reprise, from 1970's Sit Down Young Stranger to 1998's A Painter Passing Through (pre-order links are missing East of Midnight (1983) - not sure as to why). They're due June 8. EMI has set a May 31 release date for Queen's The Singles Collection Volume 3. This replicates 13 original 7" singles (sorry dance
News Roundup: Unreleased Motown and More Coming From Ace
I’ve often described Ace Records as the “British Rhino.” If Rhino pioneered the concept of the deluxe reissue in America – containing bonus tracks, in-depth liner notes and unique packaging – Ace keeps the original Rhino tradition alive across the pond. Virtually every month, Ace and its family of labels releases a handful of titles (both album reissues and compilations) to make collectors’ mouths water. The batch arriving in the UK on April 26 and on our shores throughout May is no
Say Hey, It's Record Store Day
If today is April 17 (which it likely is) and you're reading this post and not going to your local indie record store, then stop reading and go! Today is indeed Record Store Day, a celebration of one of the best things music has to offer us - great places to find great music. As someone who works in a store that sells music (but is the antithesis of an indie store), I can comfortably say that there's nothing better than going to a real record store and coming home with a bag full of good tunes.
Unforgettable - I Think
For someone with such an iconic tune in "Unforgettable," there seems to be a lot of Nat "King" Cole's discography that gets lost in the shuffle. While he's known for his work as founder of The Nat "King" Cole Trio, and later a pop crooner with few equals, for Capitol Records starting in 1943 (indeed, the label's famous Hollywood offices are informally called "the house that Nat built"), he did a great deal of work for other labels - not only with The King Cole Trio, but as a piano man for other
Review: Two by Mancini
Henry Mancini would have gone down in film history had he only composed the instantly recognizable “Pink Panther Theme,” or supplied the melody to Johnny Mercer’s wistful lyric “Moon River.” But those accomplishments are mere tips of the iceberg for the man who scored over 80 films and recorded over 90 albums, garnering 20 Grammys and 4 Oscars along the way. Hardly a year goes by without a CD reissue of one of his classic scores, and 2010 is no exception, with 2 very different works given new
Something to Shout About
A few new titles coming our way from Shout! Factory. The label perhaps best known for being born of Rhino ex-pats - ex-pats who got one of the best live concert films ever out on DVD for the first time - have announced reissues of two very different titles that will please rock fans out there. First up, Concrete Blonde - the seminal Los Angeles alt-rockers of the late '80s and early '90s - had previously announced a reunion tour to commemorate the 20th anniversary of their most famous LP
Back Tracks: Cheap Trick
In reading about Cheap Trick on Web sites like the All Music Guide, one keeps finding aspects of the band's work described as "perverse." That's a weird way of defining it - not in the sexual sense, mind you, but as a means of describing how unusual they are - but I guess it fits well enough, for a number of reasons. In the Rockford, Ill.-based band are, visually, one of the most arresting bands ever; vocalist Robin Zander and basist Tom Petersson look like your typical gorgeous rockers, while
Hot Fudge Sundae!
Their repertoire was pretty standard for the late 1960s: a Lennon/McCartney tune here, a Bacharach and David song there, a Motown cover for good measure, even "The Windmills of Your Mind." But similarities ended there between Vanilla Fudge and their MOR-covering contemporaries. Over the course of five albums for the Atco label, the Fudge brought a psychedelic touch to the gestating sound of so-called "heavy rock" with blues-drenched, extended takes on familiar songs. Shadow Morton, famed
Review: Chicago - "Chicago Transit Authority" Quadradisc
What is Quadio? That's the question currently being posed by the fine folks over at Rhino.com. For an answer and some fun interactivity, click here. But in short, Quadio describes the new series of four-channel audio DVDs (or "Quadradiscs") being introduced by Rhino with the reissue of 1969's Chicago Transit Authority, the first album by the band later known simply as Chicago. This release is a landmark in a number of ways. For one thing, it signals a new attempt to court the dedicated
Review: Elvis Presley - "On Stage: Legacy Edition"
When Elvis Presley took the stage of the newly-built Las Vegas International, "the world's largest resort hotel," on July 31, 1969, few predicted that a new era would start for the entertainer. Presley had been absent from the concert stage for eight years and the Vegas community still harbored memories of his poorly-received 1956 stint at the New Frontier Hotel. Despite the recent success of singles "In the Ghetto" and "Suspicious Minds," not to mention the hallowed '68 Comeback Special,
Tommy and Gina Redux
If you're from New Jersey, chances are you are (or know someone who is) a Bon Jovi fan. They were perhaps the best of the big-haired arena-rockers in the late '80s and '90s, and still know how to pack 'em in to this day. And now, it looks like they're reaching the rarified ranks of solid catalogue artists, thanks to a pretty wide series of reissues from Island and Universal Music Enterprises. Amazon is listing reissues of ten Bon Jovi albums - everything from 1984's self-titled debut to 2007's
News Roundup: Back from Hiatus Edition, Part 1
Well! After a fun weekend of sun and Easter candy, it's back to tracking the catalogue world at The Second Disc. A hearty thank-you to Joe for his contributions over the weekend, and a welcome back to our loyal readers. A few release nuggets came through the pipeline over the weekend, so let's clean house by getting some of them out of the way. More to come before the end of the day, so stick around! NME reported that a new Oasis compilation would see a U.K. release on June 14. Time Flies
Review: David Bowie - "David Bowie" Deluxe Edition
David Bowie circa 1966 was an artist in search of an identity. He had flirted with theatre, the mod movement, and even mime. When signed by Decca's Deram arm, he had already released six unsuccessful singles on three different labels and fronted a number of quickly-vanishing bands. The Decca contract came shortly after his recordings for Pye, which had been shepherded by British hitmaker Tony Hatch of "Downtown" and "Call Me" fame. The Deram album, simply titled David Bowie, was all but
In Case You Missed It: Monsieur Hathaway
A little bit of old news for you, but a must-know if you didn't already: the folks at Rhino have put together Someday We'll All Be Free, a four-disc overview of soul singer Donny Hathaway's brief but powerful career. The set includes all four studio albums, a heap of live tracks, and seven previously unreleased recordings. Here's the catch, though: it seems that it's only available - as a 5,000-copy limited edition, at that - in France. While I had little to no idea of Hathaway's apparently
Guessing Game: Devo - "New Traditionalists" (UPDATED 3/30)
It was recently announced that, not long after Devo's Duty Now for the Future reissue and upcoming new single, Warner Bros. will be continuing the reissue chain with New Traditionalists, the band's fourth LP from 1981, due back in stores on May 11. To date, no bonus tracks have been announced. Prior reissues have seen bonus tracks ranging from new live material (the 2009 live performance of Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! that accompanied the reissue of the original) to old live material
Rarities Editions: Round Two
The Second Disc did a run-through earlier this month concerning Universal Music Enterprises' "Rarities Editions," repackagings of the second discs of various Universal Deluxe Editions. Some of them were worth it if you avoided buying the Deluxe Edition before, but a few lacked the bonus tracks that were on some of the deluxe titles' first discs. However, they must have been enough of a success for UMe, because another seven in the series have been announced for April 27. Thus, it would be worth
News Round-Up: Broken Wings, Hendrix Rocks, Phish in Exile and Film Score Tidbits
A big reissue is coming from indie reissue label Friday Music: a 25th anniversary reissue of Welcome to the Real World, the 1985 sophomore LP by Mr. Mister. This record, which spawned the Top 10 hits "Broken Wings," "Kyrie" and "Is It Love," is remastered direct from RCA's original master tapes and comes in a digipak. (No bonus tracks, but outside of a dance mix and dub for "Is It Love," there were none, really.) Amazon has this one listed for an April 20 release. (Thanks to Pause & Play for