You certainly wouldn't be wrong in debating the merits of another INXS compilation on store shelves, particularly after the good job Rhino did with 2001's double-disc Shine Like It Does: The Anthology and the breezy, single-disc The Best of INXS the next year. (The band, of course, haven't released much new material worth covering since the tragic death of original frontman Michael Hutchence in 1997.) But in the U.K., new things are happening with the band's catalogue - Universal Music has
Review: Frank Sinatra, "Best of the Best"
There’s simply no getting around it: Frank Sinatra is the voice of the Great American Songbook. That’s not to discount the dozens of other significant voices that brought life to the House That George, Ira, Irving, Cole, Jerome, Richard and Lorenz Built. (Again, just to name a few.) But Frank Sinatra’s voice, as well as his persona, has become such a deeply ingrained part of the American musical fabric that it’s hard to find new ways to present it. The body of work created by Sinatra at
Intrada Has "It," Releases Two Television Scores
Intrada's latest soundtrack releases may be from television projects, but these small screen adventures are sure to be big hits for fans. The latest entry in the Special Collection series is a two-disc presentation of the score to the 1990 adaptation of Stephen King's It. The best-selling book of 1986, It was the story of a group of young friends in 1950s Maine who thwart an interdimensional child-killing monster, only to have it return when the group settles into adulthood. The two-part
Reissue Theory: Ephraim Lewis, "Skin"
Welcome to another installment of Reissue Theory, where we focus on notable albums and the reissues they could someday see. Beautiful pop-soul from an artist that should have had a much longer career is the order of the day; we present a look back at Ephraim Lewis, the best '90s soul singer time forgot. If you use reissues and expanded music titles as tools to uncover an artist's body of work or to shine a light on a forgotten musician, you doubtlessly have plenty of albums you'd like to see
Judas Priest Unfurls "Wings of Destiny" with Repressings of Early Albums
Rock legends Judas Priest have long been known for their killer blend of metal on the Columbia label in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. But two albums predating that contract - both of which are once again about to be independently reissued on CD - were fans' real first taste of the Priest. In 1974, Judas Priest, a hungry upstart rock band from Birmingham, had been together for about five years. A year before, the band's lineup had started to crystallize: lead guitarist K.K. Downing and bassist Ian
Cherry Pop Laces Up Dancing Shoes with Compilation of Rare '80s, Motown Mixes
Cherry Pop Records has a major treat next week for British club junkies of the '80s: a double-disc set of rare and unreleased remixes by noted engineer Phil Harding. If you're a British pop junkie who came of age in the '80s, you're doubtlessly familiar with three names: Mike Stock, Matt Aitken and Pete Waterman. The trio of producers hit it big with Hi-NRG pop, all clean beats and shimmering synths, from Bananarama's "Venus" to Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up." All told, the trio racked
Universal Europe Offers "Complete Masters" For Armstrong, Fitzgerald, Bechet, Parker, Holiday
If you’ve ever been looking to build a solid jazz library without spending too much coin, look no further. The European arm of Universal Music Group, through its EmArcy and Decca labels, has announced a series of Complete Masters boxes that offer considerable bang for your buck! The Complete Masters slate kicks off with five box sets devoted to Louis Armstrong (1925-1945, 14 discs), Ella Fitzgerald (1935-1955, 14 discs), Billie Holiday (1933-1959, 15 discs), Sidney Bechet (American Masters
From "Space" to "The Bottom of the Sea" in La-La Land's Penultimate Releases for 2011
La-La Land Records inched closer to the end of their 2011 reissue slate yesterday with a pair of sci-fi-oriented releases - one a reissue, and one appearing for the first time anywhere. Television fans are going to enjoy the label's newly-released three-disc set of music from the cult classic series Space: Above and Beyond. Though it only ran for one season, the scope of the show - a planned, five-year saga about a war between Earth and an alien race in the mid-21st century - anticipated the
Dreams Stay With You: Big Country's Debut to Be Expanded With Archival Demos
It looks like we've got the first deluxe edition of 2012 locked down - at least across the pond. Scottish band Big Country today announced the details for a new expansion of their fantastic debut, The Crossing, to coincide with a 30th anniversary tour across the United Kingdom. (The band reunited first in 2007 and again in 2010, both times with new vocalist Mike Peters of The Alarm, replacing late lead singer/guitarist Stuart Adamson, who died in 2001.) Released in 1983, The Crossing was a
Hell Yeah: "The Very Best of Neil Diamond" Set For December
Neil Diamond announced himself to the world in 1966 with the lyrics to his song “Solitary Man." He sang with both defiance and resignation, “I’ll be what I am, a solitary man…” At no time, then, was that more evident than Diamond’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in March 2010. His old friend Paul Simon pointed out in his introduction that Diamond had first been eligible for the Rock Hall in 1991 and asked, "What took so long?" Simon then, a bit devilishly, answered his own
Kritzerland Goes "Inside Out" with Jan Maxwell and Ann Crumb
The Kritzerland team would be forgiven for slowing down after such an exciting fall, what with the sold-out, 2-CD deluxe edition of Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman's Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (read our interview here!) and the expanded release of Elmer Bernstein’s score to Summer and Smoke. But the label isn’t slowing down, at all, but barreling towards 2012 with a full slate of more exciting releases. Today, Kritzerland announced not one, but two, new titles. In addition to the
Hip-o Select Gets on the Good Foot with Lost Fred Wesley Album
Hip-o Select's James Brown singles sets may be done with the recent release of Volume 11, but the Godfather of Soul's catalogue has a lot of uncovered treasures, and a new release from the boutique label continues to uncover the legend of Brown and his crack team of musicians - in particular one Fred Wesley. Wesley, Brown's longtime trombonist, arranger and musical director in the 1960s and 1970s, is best known to casual J.B. fans as the credited force behind the funky No. 1 soul single "Doing
Soundtrack Round-Up: Intrada Cuts to "The Core," Music Box Goes "Overboard," FSM Inches Toward the Finish Line
With the release of another major holy grail in the world of soundtrack collecting yesterday, it's worth pointing out another four awesome archival titles that may have been lost in the shuffle this past week. First, Intrada's latest batch of catalogue soundtrack releases, announced Monday, bring to light two underrated gems from two very different composers. First up, after years of waiting, is an official release to the score to the 2003 sci-fi cult-classic The Core. Composer Christopher
All In Good Time: Final Brubeck Quartet Concert Arrives From Legacy
Time has been very good to Dave Brubeck. The legendary jazz pianist and composer, 90 years young, has both a Kennedy Center Honor and Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award under his belt, and his 1959 Time Out remains one of the biggest-selling albums jazz of all time, not to mention the genre’s first million seller. Alto saxophonist Paul Desmond’s sinuous, sophisticated “Take Five” became a signature song for the Dave Brubeck Quartet and one of the most recognizable pieces of music, anywhere.
New Diana Ross Compilation "Coming Out" in the U.K.
Miss Diana Ross - arguably the Queen of Motown both with The Supremes and on her own, varied solo ventures - easily has one hit for every one of her 67 years on Earth. A new U.K. compilation, The Greatest, packs 44 tracks onto two discs, providing the market with a new way to discover her. The Greatest brings together just about all the facets of Ross' career: ten tracks from The Supremes, the Motown label's white-hot girl group supreme, a healthy helping of tracks from Diana's solo years on
Review: The Beach Boys, "The Smile Sessions" Part Three: It's In Great Shape
Welcome to the third and final part of our review series celebrating the release of The Beach Boys’ The SMiLE Sessions. In Part 1, we revisited the history of the album, and in Part 2, we examined the music and lyrics of Brian Wilson and Van Dyke Parks that created the legend. In today’s concluding chapter, we explore "the sessions" of The SMiLE Sessions and compare the various releases! What’s the biggest surprise of The SMiLE Sessions? It’s the sound of five young men optimistically
Review: The Beach Boys, "The Smile Sessions" Part Two: Surf's Up, At Last
Today sees the first release, after 47 years, of The Beach Boys’ SMiLE. The Second Disc celebrates this event with a three-part review series dedicated to what was once the greatest lost album of all time. In Part 1, we looked back at the story of SMiLE. In today’s Part 2, we explore the most legendary aspect of the album: the music itself, created by Brian Wilson and Van Dyke Parks, as recorded by The Beach Boys. The SMiLE Shop is finally open for business! It’s only taken some 44
Review: The Beach Boys, "The Smile Sessions" Part One: What's Past is Prologue
Tomorrow, November 1, marks the release of The Beach Boys’ SMiLE, the most legendary lost album of all time. In recognition of this landmark, The Second Disc is launching a three-part series looking at the SMiLE mythos, including a review of the various editions of The SMiLE Sessions. Before we begin to explore these collections, however, we’d like to offer a bit of perspective and back story on SMiLE: what was, what is, and what might have been. Welcome to Part One: What’s Past is
Happy Halloween! Taking a Bite Out of "Son of Dracula"
Happy Halloween! To celebrate this spookiest of holidays, we're bringing you a special holiday reprise from The Second Disc Archives in which we revisit the immortal, undead "Son of Dracula," starring Harry Nilsson and Ringo Starr! October 2010 will bring a major reissue campaign devoted to the Apple Records discography, seeing most of that storied label’s output arrive in editions remastered by the same team behind the Beatles’ catalogue overhaul last year. But one Apple-related LP is among
WHAM!'s "The Final" to Be Reissued as CD/DVD Set
In five years, George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, as the U.K. pop duo WHAM!, released two albums, one compilation and a dozen singles. Only one of those releases placed anywhere beneath their native Top 10. No matter what you think of the group's candy-coated pop stylings, those are incredible numbers in such a short period of time. We could debate the impact of WHAM! all day - and this author would certainly side with them. (Their debut album Fantastic is, at worst, throwaway pop, and
Of Wizzards and Electric Light Orchestras: Roy Wood Opens His "Music Book" and ELO Goes "Essential"
Electric Light Orchestra may not have been the first band to merge a classical sensibility with the power of rock, but the group was undoubtedly the most successful. Yet the group of “Mr. Blue Sky” and “Evil Woman” began as a decidedly different aggregation, born out of the ashes of Birmingham, England’s The Move. When lead singer Carl Wayne departed The Move, his bandmate Roy Wood invited one Jeff Lynne, of The Idle Race, to join him. This revitalized line-up of The Move produced two
Review: Phil Spector, "The Philles Album Collection" and "The Essential Phil Spector"
Whoa-oh, a-whoa-oh-oh-oh! Think of The Ronettes' wail, every bit as iconic a cry as a-whop-bop-a-loo-a-whop-bam-boom. Doesn't rock and roll have a way of elevating onomatopoeia to poetry? And no label made sweeter poetry in the first half of the 1960s than Philles Records. The voices of Ronnie Spector, Darlene Love, La La Brooks, Barbara Alston and the rest spoke directly to America’s teenagers. These women, alternately vulnerable and defiant, were little more than girls when they began
Lost Highway, Found on Vinyl: 10th Anniversary Box Coming Next Month
With a name like Lost Highway Records, it might be tough to parse the mission statement of such a company - unless, of course, you know your Hank Williams. In fact, they've been supplying fans with some of the best in alternative rock and country. And now, to celebrate a decade in business, next month sees the release of a mega-vinyl box set highlighting some of the label's best output. Lost Highway, founded in 2000 by Luke Lewis, started their existence off with a bang, distributing the
Release Round-Up: Week of October 24/25
It's Tuesday, but most of the new music this week has already been out for a day. But assuming you were too busy to get out to the shops, here's a look at what's new. And there's quite a bit! Various Artists, Phil Spector Presents The Philles Album Collection (Phil Spector Records/Legacy) Six of the first seven Philles albums presented in mono, along with a bonus disc of those delightfully out-there instrumental B-sides. Seriously, have you heard any of them? They're crazy. In a good way, that
Review: Paul Simon, "Songwriter" and Expanded, Remastered Albums (1980-1990)
It's 1971, and Aretha Franklin has just introduced the world to "Bridge Over Troubled Water," a rousing, spiritual anthem that could have been written decades if not centuries ago. She takes the song to the top of the charts. Its notoriety leads to the rise of jobbing songwriter Paul Simon, who no longer needs to kick around the Brill Building in its waning days. Simon's career kicks off in earnest the following year with the release of his self-titled solo album. It's a quirky, offbeat
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