Ace’s Songwriter Series and Black America Sings compilations always promise a good time, but their latest may have outdone them all: a hits and rarities packed tribute to the songs, sound and style of Stevie Wonder. Black America Sings Stevie Wonder, available March 27, collects 20 compositions by the Motown legend from across the pop and soul diaspora. From familiar tracks in less familiar versions to songs he gave others both on and off the label he was part of for more than half a century, there’s quite a bit to appreciate here,…
The Weekend Stream: October 11, 2025
Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc’s review of notable catalogue titles (and some new ones, too!) making digital debuts. This week brings some super ’70s soul, some ’80s and ’90s throwbacks on the Broadway stage and more – including a tribute to one of the original Moody Blues we lost this week. Curtis Mayfield, The Makings of: A Curtis Mayfield Collection (Rhino) (Apple / Amazon) The documentary The Makings of Curtis Mayfield – directed by Grammy-winning R&B musician H.E.R. and featuring archival footage and conversations on the Super Fly hitmaker’s craft…
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Just As Long As We Have Love: Rhino’s Quadio Series Continues with Aretha, Spinners, Curtis Mayfield, Billy Cobham
This morning, Rhino unveiled its first batch of Quadio titles for 2025 – and this time, the emphasis is on classic soul and R&B with a twist of jazz! The series, reissuing vintage quadraphonic (four-channel) surround mixes on Blu-ray Audio Discs, welcomes Aretha Franklin’s Live at Fillmore West (1971), Curtis Mayfield’s Roots (1971), The Spinners’ Pick of the Litter (1975), and Billy Cobham’s Spectrum (1973). The Queen of Soul’s Live at Fillmore West followed 1970’s Spirit in the Dark in her storied Atlantic discography. Recorded over three nights at the San Francisco…
Love Will Save the Day: Edsel’s “Disco Discharge Presents Box of Sin” Chronicles ’80s Gay Club Scene
The Disco Discharge series, dormant for over a decade, has been recently reactivated by Demon Music Group’s Edsel label for one of its boldest projects yet. The 5-CD collection Disco Discharge Presents Box of Sin (also available on 4 LPs of highlights) is a journey through the gay club scene of 1980-1989 via 54 full-length or extended tracks from artists both expected and unexpected – including Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Donna Summer, Dreamgirls Sheryl Lee Ralph and Jennifer Holliday, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Bronski Beat, Laura Branigan, Dusty Springfield, Liza Minnelli, and…
Release Round-Up: Week of December 1
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles in stores today! As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. The Sound of Music: Super Deluxe Edition (Craft Recordings) 4CD/Blu-ray: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 3LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Craft Store (picnic meadow green) This remarkable new 4CD/1BD box set invites listeners to hear The Sound of Music anew. The first two discs represent the complete musical score as heard in the film, from the orchestral prelude and Julie Andrews’ iconic “The Sound of Music” – yes, that…
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Hey Now Hey: Aretha Franklin’s Early 1970s Albums Collected on New Box Set
Back in 2018, Rhino Records compiled Aretha Franklin’s The Atlantic Records 1960s Collection, bringing together the Queen of Soul’s first five, groundbreaking studio albums for the label originally released between 1967 and 1969 plus bonus material. Now, BMG is picking up where that set left off with the December 1 release of A Portrait of the Queen. The new collection, available on 5 CDs or 6 LPs, contains Franklin’s first five studio sets from the new decade: This Girl’s In Love With You (1970); Spirit In The Dark (1970); Young, Gifted And…
Baby Let’s Swing: Rhino Celebrates 45 Years with Limited Edition Reissues from Doors, Aretha, Otis, Todd, Chicago, Ramones, More
Since its founding 45 years ago by Richard Foos and Harold Bronson, Rhino Records has established itself as the gold standard in catalogue music. Though much has changed over the decades, the label still maintains a prodigious schedule of releases which has lately encompassed such top-tier titles as Joni Mitchell’s Archives series, the Quadio line of reissues, deluxe editions from Little Feat, and a host of Record Store Day releases. Now, to celebrate its anniversary, Rhino has announced the launch of “Rhino Reds,” a series of limited-edition LP reissues all pressed on…
She Ain’t Down Yet: Stage Door Collects “Unsinkable Molly Brown” Demos and More on New 2-CD Deluxe Release
When Meredith Willson’s The Music Man made its Broadway bow on December 19, 1957 at The Majestic Theatre (today the home of Phantom of the Opera), the composer-lyricist-librettist had already enjoyed a long and prolific career. Willson, born in Mason City, Iowa – the inspiration for The Music Man‘s River City – had played flute and piccolo in the orchestras of John Philip Sousa and Arturo Toscanini; became the musical director of NBC Radio in Hollywood; received Academy Award nominations for the music of the films The Great Dictator and The Little…
The Weekend Stream: September 3, 2022
Welcome to The Weekend Stream, a relaxing weekly review of notable digital-only catalogue titles. There may be no CD or vinyl, but there’s plenty of great new/old music to discover! From a Prince-ly duo of two queens to a Beach Boy gone solo and more, you’ll find some great picks for the holiday weekend. Wendy & Lisa, B-Sides / Instrumentals / Edits / Extended Versions (Virgin) B-Sides: iTunes U.K. / Amazon U.K. Extended: iTunes U.K. / Amazon U.K. An exciting treat for fans of Wendy & Lisa, the killer pop/rock guitar/keyboard duo…
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The Year In Review: The 2021 Gold Bonus Disc Awards, From A to Z – Part One
Happy 2022! Welcome, friends, to The Second Disc’s 12th Annual Gold Bonus Disc Awards! Once again, we’ve all faced unprecedented challenges over the past twelve months. A year that began with hope and promise has ended with further uncertainty for many of us. But music continues to fill a significant role in our lives, providing solace, comfort, and escape in a time unlike any other. With that spirit in mind, The Second Disc wishes to recognize 2021’s cream of the catalogue music crop – those exemplary reissues and box sets big and…
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Review: Aretha Franklin, “Aretha”
R-E-S-P-E-C-T. Otis Redding may have written the song, but Aretha Franklin owned it. The singer was only in her mid-20s when she left Columbia Records after five years and seven albums but she wasted no time in making music history when she signed with Atlantic Records in December 1966. By the middle of 1967, she’d had long-sought-after hits with “I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You)” and “Respect” and was proclaimed The Queen of Soul by a Chicago disk jockey. Some reports indicate the “crowning” as having happened in…
Release Round-Up: Week of August 13
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up! Various Artists, Rip It Up: The Best of Specialty Records (Craft Recordings) CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Craft Recordings’ 75th anniversary campaign for groundbreaking R&B label Specialty Records kicks off with Rip It Up: The Best of Specialty Records on CD, LP, and digital platforms. The 18 tracks on Rip It Up spotlight the incendiary R&B and, later, rock-and-roll that put Specialty on the map. (Perhaps Specialty’s gospel offerings will be recognized on a future release.) Little Richard, Sam Cooke, Lloyd Price, Larry Williams,…
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Release Round-Up: Week of July 30
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up! Toomorrow: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Second Disc Records/Real Gone Music) Purple Vinyl: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Real Gone Music Clear with Copper and Red Swirl Vinyl: Real Gone Music [SOLD OUT] Clear with Red, Blue, and Green “Freak” Swirl Vinyl: Rough Trade [PRE-ORDERS SOLD OUT, MAY BE AVAILABLE AT ROUGH TRADE RETAIL LOCATIONS] Second Disc Records and Real Gone Music are proud to present the first-ever vinyl reissue of the 1970 soundtrack to Toomorrow, the groovy sci-fi musical starring Olivia Newton-John, Ben Thomas, Karl…
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The Second Disc Guide to Record Store Day Drop 2 TOMORROW!
Once again, Record Store Day here in the U.S. looks a little – make that a lot – different this year. The usual offerings have been split among two dates in 2021 with Drop 1 having taken place on June 12 and Drop 2 happening tomorrow, July 17. Every retailer is handling the Drop a bit differently thanks to the necessary accommodations for social distancing, smaller crowds, and better safety precautions. So please check in with your favorite store to find out more information. Below, you’ll find a list of the TSD…
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UPDATE: Jump to It! Rhino Confirms New Release Date for Career-Spanning “Aretha” Box Set
It was late in 2015 when audiences across the country watched Aretha Franklin take the stage at The Kennedy Center Honors to salute honoree Carole King. The undisputed Queen of Soul tore into King, Gerry Goffin, and Jerry Wexler’s “(You Make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman” with blazing intensity and thrilling authenticity. She had not just sung these lyrics but lived them. Nearing the song’s finale, she simply but defiantly dropped her fur coat to the floor, creating an instant viral moment that elicited tears and cheers in equal measure. That…
Rhino’s Record Store Day Slate Features John Prine, Steely Dan, Joni Mitchell, CSNY, Donny Hathaway, Lou Reed, More
At 1:00 pm EST/10:00 am PST today, the list of Record Store Day’s annual offerings was made public. As was the case in 2020, this year’s RSD festivities will take place over more than one day. The two RSD Drops are scheduled for Saturday, June 12, and Saturday, July 17. We’ll be sharing periodic announcements of various labels’ releases, including this look at Rhino’s whopping array of over 30 titles from heavy hitters including Black Sabbath, Donny Hathaway, Grateful Dead, Joni Mitchell, Steely Dan, Tom Petty, CSNY, Lou Reed, John Prine, and…
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Release Round-Up: Week of March 5
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up! Neil Young, Archives Vol. 2: 1973-1976 (Reprise) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) Neil Young’s second Archives box set arrives in a wide commercial release, dropping the oversized packaging and expansive book in favor of a slimmer package. The 10-CD box is sequenced chronologically to spotlight the astonishingly prolific period lovingly referred to as the Ditch Years. The box contains 131 tracks from Neil’s personal archive. Of those, 12 songs have never been released by Neil in any form before, a further 49 songs are presented in previously unheard versions. And…
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By the Forces of Nature: Rhino Celebrates Black History Month With Limited Edition Vinyl and New Digital Releases
Black History Month is on the way in February and to celebrate, Rhino will release a number of limited-edition colored vinyl reissues along with a digital initiative to bring legendary recordings to digital service providers for the first time ever. The Rhino Black initiative begins on February 5, with the vinyl reissue of George Benson’s multi-platinum Breezin’ (issued on blue and beige vinyl) and a the first-ever vinyl issue of the Donny Hathaway compendium, A Donny Hathaway Collection, which arrives as a double-LP set on purple vinyl. The same day, Rhino will…
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’60s ROCK, POP AND SOUL: New Treasury Collection DVD Set Offers Over 100 Favorites
Earlier this year, The Second Disc shared news of Rock, Pop and Doo Wop, a 7-DVD collection from Treasury Collection and executive producer-director TJ Lubinsky. Now, with the holidays upon us, a new set featuring dozens of classic hit-makers has just been released: ’60s Rock, Pop and Soul. This 4-DVD package has been culled from two decades of Lubinsky’s historic television concerts, with 130 hit songs from a “Who’s Who” of legendary performers including Frankie Valli (“Can’t Take My Eyes Off You”), Jackie DeShannon (“What the World Needs Now Is Love”), John…
Jump to It! Rhino Collects Aretha Franklin’s Hits, Rarities, Never-Before-Released Tracks on New Box Set
It was late in 2015 when audiences across the country watched Aretha Franklin take the stage at The Kennedy Center Honors to salute honoree Carole King. The undisputed Queen of Soul tore into King, Gerry Goffin, and Jerry Wexler’s “(You Make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman” with blazing intensity and thrilling authenticity. She had not just sung these lyrics but lived them. Nearing the song’s finale, she simply but defiantly dropped her fur coat to the floor, creating an instant viral moment that elicited tears and cheers in equal measure. That…
A Second Disc Interview: TJ Lubinsky Shares Details on New “Rock, Pop, and Doo Wop” DVD Set
“Be My Baby.” “Can’t Take My Eyes off You.” “Stand by Me.” “You Don’t Own Me.” Songs such as these not only defined the era in which they were first written and performed, but continue to resonate today. They’re just four of the classic songs included on an upcoming 7-DVD set from Treasury Collection that serves as a definitive concert anthology of classic American R&B music. Rock, Pop, and Doo Wop has been curated by executive producer and director TJ Lubinsky from his acclaimed onstage reunions of original artists performing their biggest…
Hey, Look Me Over! Lucille Ball, Anthony Perkins, Aretha Franklin, Bobby Darin Featured on “Lost Broadway 1960”
Stage Door Records is turning back the clock – 60 years, to be precise – with the latest volume in its Lost Broadway series. Lost Broadway 1960, out now in the U.K. and this Friday, April 3, in the U.S., once again spotlights the lesser-known shows that played the Great White Way that year (in both the 1959-1960 and 1960-1961 seasons). So while there’s no mention of Bye Bye Birdie, Camelot, or Oliver!, you will hear tracks from Wildcat, Do Re Mi, and Christine. (The Unsinkable Molly Brown is featured here, though…
Let’s Do It Again: Playback Records Returns with Curtis Mayfield, Timi Yuro Collections
Australia’s Playback Records label returned to the scene in 2019 with a pair of new releases and the promise of more to come. Today, we’re looking at those new titles from Curtis Mayfield and Timi Yuro! As a writer, producer, and artist – both solo and with The Impressions – Curtis Mayfield (1942-1999) was one of the foremost exponents of Chicago soul. He penned such favorites as Jan Bradley’s “Mama Didn’t Lie” and Major Lance’s “The Monkey Time,” not to mention such Impressions hits as “Gypsy Woman.” But his deep social conscience…
The Right Time: Vinyl Me Please To Release “Aretha Now” on Mono LP
Record club Vinyl Me Please has announced their latest Record of the Month: Aretha Franklin’s 1968 landmark, Aretha Now. The album will be pressed on 180-gram black vinyl and uses the classic mono mix, remastered by Ryan Smith at Sterling Sound and pressed at QRP. Prior to this VMP edition, the mono mix of Aretha Now was only available on highly sought-after U.S. promos, or on rare U.K. or Brazilian original pressings. Now, Aretha’s classic – featuring “I Say A Little Prayer,” “Think,” and so many more – returns in a stunning presentation. The…
The Second Disc’s Picks for Record Store Day Black Friday 2019
From all of us here at Second Disc HQ to all of you, we hope you’ve enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving in the company of beloved family and friends. Record Store Day Black Friday is now almost upon us, so we thought we’d spotlight a few particularly exciting releases arriving to your local brick-and-mortar record shop! Here’s our round up of RSD BF must-haves! We’re kicking off with Sam’s list, and then we’ll follow with Randy and Joe’s! Aretha Franklin, The Atlantic Singles Collection 1968 (Atlantic/Rhino) Last year, fans were treated to a singles…
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