Brian May - The Second Disc

The Weekend Stream: May 16, 2026

May 16, 2026 by The Second Disc | 1 Comment

Welcome back to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc’s review of notable catalogue titles making digital debuts, plus new works from legacy acts and even some personally curated favorites. This week has a collection of outtakes from one of the greatest albums ever made, a breezy theme song to a popular web series, fantastic new film scores, an unheard recording from Peggy Lee and a frankly stunning amount of songs about horses. Plus our tributes to those we lost recently, and a cool arts-related documentary project worthy of your…

Categories:

The Weekend Stream

Formats:

Digital Download, Digital Streaming

Genres:

Cast Recordings, Classic Rock, Country, Disco/Dance, Folk, Jazz, Latin, Pop, Popular Standards/Vocal, R&B/Soul, Rock, Soundtracks

Tags:

Bananarama, Brian May, Clodagh Rodgers, Daryl Hall, Ludwig Göransson, Missing Persons, Peggy Lee, The Beach Boys

Wired For Sound: Edsel Boxes Hank Marvin Solo Albums on “The Studio Album Collection 1982-1995”

December 11, 2025 by Joe Marchese | 1 Comment

Brian Robson Rankin of Newcastle-upon-Tyne moved to London while still a teenager, armed with a guitar and a dream. He adopted the name Hank Marvin, melding his childhood nickname of “Hank” with the first name of American country singer Marvin Rainwater, and put on a pair of glasses inspired by Buddy Holly’s. His school friend Bruce Welch joined him, and before long, the pair had met Cliff Richard’s manager. In 1959, Richard’s band then known as The Drifters became The Shadows, and Richard, Marvin, Welch, and Brian Bennett (who replaced drummer Tony…

Categories:

News

Formats:

Box Sets, CD

Genres:

Classic Rock, Rock

Tags:

Brian May, Cliff Richard, Duane Eddy, Hank Marvin, Jeff Lynne, Mark Knopfler

In Memoriam: Steve Cropper (1941-2025)

December 4, 2025 by Mike Duquette | 2 Comments

It’s a sad fact that so much of America’s musical infrastructure – the men and women whose session work powered thousands of pop chart hits and significant recordings – exists in near-obscurity. Consider The Funk Brothers, that collective of R&B musicians in Detroit who powered nearly every Motown session in the label’s golden age. Fans and collectors still sift through the vagaries of paperwork and memory to determine who lent their instruments to which song; the unofficial group’s members would be credited by name at the insistence of Marvin Gaye on his…

Categories:

Features

Formats:

Box Sets, CD, Digital Download, Digital Streaming, Vinyl

Genres:

Blues, Classic Rock, Pop, R&B/Soul, Rock

Tags:

Albert King, Bob Dylan, Booker T. Jones, Booker T. and the MG's, Brian May, Eddie Floyd, Neil Young, Otis Redding, Sam and Dave, Steve Cropper, The Blues Brothers, Wilson Pickett

Release Round-Up: Week of July 14

July 14, 2023 by The Second Disc | No Comments

Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles available today. Marshall Crenshaw, Field Day: 40th Anniversary Expanded Edition (Yep Roc) CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Marshall Crenshaw’s new reissue campaign continues with his second album, Field Day, as newly remastered by Greg Calbi. It will be augmented with bonus tracks on all formats: two non-LP B-sides (including a cover of Elvis Presley’s “Little Sister”) and four unreleased cuts including an early version of penultimate track “What Time is It?” and instrumental “TV track” versions of…

Categories:

Release Round-Up

Formats:

CD, Digital Download, Digital Streaming, Vinyl

Genres:

Classic Rock, Disco/Dance, Jazz, Pop, R&B/Soul, Rock

Tags:

Aerosmith, Brian May, Cher, Eric Dolphy, George Harrison, John Coltrane, Little Richard, Marshall Crenshaw, Ravi Shankar

Let Me Out: Brian May, Eddie Van Halen Trade Licks on ‘Star Fleet Project’ Reissue

June 6, 2023 by Mike Duquette | 2 Comments

Having reissued and expanded Brian May’s Back to the Light and Another World, UMe will turn fans’ attention to the Queen guitarist’s first-ever solo project, a 1983 collaboration with a collection of stellar musicians – including a team-up with another one of the most iconic guitarists of the age. Star Fleet Project, issued 40 years ago, was a three-track album clocking in at just under half an hour, but here it’s being expanded two two discs featuring the original contents of the album remixed, rare interviews, and a deep dive into the…

Categories:

News

Formats:

Box Sets, CD, Cassette, Digital Download, Digital Streaming, Vinyl

Genres:

Classic Rock, Rock

Tags:

Brian May, Eddie Van Halen, Queen, REO Speedwagon

Release Round-Up: Week of April 22

April 22, 2022 by The Second Disc | No Comments

Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles arriving in stores today! T. Rex, 1972 [Various Formats] (Edsel) 5CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 5CD Signed by Tony Visconti: Amazon U.K. 6LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 6LP Signed by Tony Visconti: Amazon U.K. 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Edsel is looking back on Marc Bolan and T. Rex’s prolific 1972 with a new box set available in 5 CD, 6 LP, and 2 LP formats. The all-encompassing 1972 includes The Slider album, Live at Wembley: The Matinee Show (plus two previously unreleased 1972 mixes from The Evening Show), an expanded Born…

Categories:

Release Round-Up

Formats:

Box Sets, CD, Digital Download, Digital Streaming, Vinyl

Genres:

Classic Rock, Jazz, Pop, Popular Standards/Vocal, Rock

Tags:

Bonnie Raitt, Brian May, Charles Mingus, Herb Alpert, Lani Hall, Rumer, T Rex

Release Round-Up: Week of August 6

August 6, 2021 by The Second Disc | 1 Comment

Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up! George Harrison, All Things Must Pass: 50th Anniversary [Various Formats] (Capitol/UMe) 5CD/BD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 8LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 5LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 3CD (contains CD 1, CD 2 & CD 5, below): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 3LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2CD (contains CD 1 & CD 2 only): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Limited Edition 3LP: GeorgeHarrison.com/uDiscoverMusic.com/Sound of Vinyl Uber Box Set: GeorgeHarrison.com/uDiscoverMusic.com/Sound of Vinyl George Harrison’s 1970 triple-album masterwork is celebrated with a variety of formats. The 5CD and 8LP super deluxe iterations are fulsome, boasting 70 tracks including the remixed…

Categories:

Release Round-Up

Formats:

Blu-Ray, Box Sets, CD, Digital Download, Digital Streaming, Vinyl

Genres:

Classic Rock, Country, Jazz, Pop, Popular Standards/Vocal, R&B/Soul, Rock

Tags:

Barbra Streisand, Bill Evans, Brian May, Colin Hay, Ellen Foley, George Harrison, Kate Taylor, Kim Wilde

Brian May Goes ‘Back to the Light’ with Expansion of Solo Debut

June 30, 2021 by Joe Marchese | 1 Comment

Almost a year after the devastating death of Freddie Mercury, Queen’s Brian May re-emerged with his first true solo album. Released in September 1992, Back to the Light was the guitarist’s mission statement after the fate of his longtime band seemed uncertain. On August 6, Back to the Light will be reissued by UMe in CD, LP, and digital formats as the inaugural release in The Brian May Gold Series. Expanded editions will include the bonus collection Out of the Light, a second disc of rare tracks. The reissue will arrive in…

Categories:

News

Formats:

CD, Digital Download, Digital Streaming

Genres:

Rock

Tags:

Brian May, Queen

Let Us Cling Together: Queen Tap Japanese Fans For New Greatest Hits Collection

January 8, 2020 by The Second Disc | 1 Comment

Imagine narrowing down your favorite band to just one song. We couldn’t do it! But some very fastidious Japanese fans of Queen did – and their choices are forming a new compilation due this month. For Greatest Hits In Japan, Queen and Universal Music opened a vote in the country where just one track from the iconic British rock group could be selected for a compilation timed to the upcoming Japanese tour by Queen + Adam Lambert. Nearly 20,000 votes were collated, and the top 12 tracks made the cut. This makes…

Categories:

News

Formats:

CD, DVD

Genres:

Classic Rock, Pop, Rock

Tags:

Brian May, Freddie Mercury, Queen

Release Round-Up: The Second Disc’s 2019 Record Store Day Must-Haves

April 12, 2019 by The Second Disc | 7 Comments

Looking for our usual Release Round-Up? Alas, there’s not much new in the way of catalogue music this Friday (and we’ve already filled you in on Billy Paul and Leon Russell!), but for a very good reason: tomorrow sees releases a-plenty as part of Record Store Day! Without further ado, welcome to our annual rundown of Must-Haves for this year’s RSD event! Once you’re through reading, let us know what you’re most looking forward to picking up tomorrow at your favorite local independent retailer! Our list features just a sampling of our…

Categories:

News, Reviews

Formats:

Vinyl

Genres:

Hey, Music Lover! Legacy Announces Record Store Day 2019 Exclusives

March 4, 2019 by Sam Stone | 9 Comments

Sony’s Legacy Recordings has announced its offerings for this year’s Record Store Day festivities, to be held on Saturday, April 13 at your local brick-and-mortar retailer! As usual, it’s an eclectic line-up with pop, rock, and R&B superstars all represented. So without further ado, here’s the label’s full list! Jeff Buckley, In Transition – 1 LP – 3,000 copies In Transition is a compilation of seven previously unreleased studio performances from 1993 during the making of Jeff Buckley’s only studio album, Grace, which will celebrate its 25th anniversary this year. Aptly titled,…

Categories:

News

Formats:

Cassette, Vinyl

Genres:

Classic Rock, Disco/Dance, Funk, Pop, R&B/Soul, Rock

Tags:

Billy Joel, Bob Dylan, Brian May, Dennis Wilson, Elvis Presley, Janis Joplin, Jeff Buckley, Pink Floyd, Prince, Record Store Day, Roger Taylor, Sly and the Family Stone, Taylor Hawkins

Three “Mad Max” Scores Head to Vinyl From Varese

February 6, 2017 by Mike Duquette | No Comments

Varese Sarabande is releasing a special limited package collecting the soundtracks to George Miller’s original Mad Max trilogy on vinyl. Miller’s dystopian sci-fi tales followed the rogue cop Max Rockatansky (Mel Gibson, in his first breakout role) as he navigated the scorching Australian outback after an energy crisis and nuclear war has thrown society into chaos. In 1979’s Mad Max, Miller’s first film, Max fought a gang of motorbiking thugs led by the vicious Toecutter (Hugh Keays-Byrne) at cost of his wife and child. Follow-up Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981)…

Categories:

News

Formats:

Box Sets, Vinyl

Genres:

Soundtracks

Tags:

Brian May, Maurice Jarre

The Stuff Of Nightmares: Varese Boxes Complete “Nightmare on Elm Street” Scores

September 22, 2015 by Mike Duquette | No Comments

“One, two, Freddy’s comin’ for you…” Varese Sarabande is making horror fans’ dreams come true with an eight-disc box set of the complete scores to the A Nightmare on Elm Street film franchise. The late Wes Craven’s 1984 horror classic introduced fans to the sleepy suburb of Springwood, terrorized by the sadistic Freddy Krueger. With a hideously burned face, a glove boasting razor sharp blades and an iconic fedora and striped-sweater combo, Krueger, “the bastard son of a thousand maniacs,” was an undead child killer who sought revenge in the subconscious, torturing…

Categories:

News

Formats:

Box Sets, CD

Genres:

Soundtracks

Tags:

Angelo Badalamenti, Brian May, Charles Bernstein, Craig Safan