With the nation still fighting COVID-19, 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 three dates with Drop 1 taking place tomorrow, August 29, at your local independent record retailer. Drop 2 is September 26, and Drop 3 is October 24. 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
August 29 will mark what would have been the 100th birthday of Charlie Parker. The alto saxophonist is a pillar of jazz as we know it, transforming the genre as a leader of the bebop sound. To celebrate, Universal Music Group's UMe arm is continuing its Bird 100 campaign to include vinyl reissues of his Clef Records material, a new collection of Los Angeles sessions in the '40s and '50s, a new book of complete music scores, a graphic novel by Z2 Comics (publisher of Grateful Dead: Origins), a
As the COVID 19 outbreak continues to impact our lives, it's heartening to know that some things are returning to some semblance of "normal," or as close as we can get to it during this unpredictable impasse. As we previously reported, Record Store Day has been split into three standalone "RSD Drop" days, occurring on August 29, September 26, and October 24. That's not the only thing changing this time around. It's been reported by Georgia-based shop Comeback Vinyl that the organization is
Here at Second Disc HQ, we've been thrilled by the news of amazing releases coming from all the labels this Record Store Day 2020, and UMe's slate of 20+ titles is no exception. With a new definitive vinyl edition of Paul McCartney's debut, a tenth-anniversary celebration of Ellie Goulding's Lights, a Cat Stevens rarity making its vinyl debut, an expanded Elton John, a reissue of an impossible-to-find CTI Jazz album, and many more, fans will want to line up bright and early to secure their
For years, the El imprint of Cherry Red has been collecting all the strangest and most fascinating avant-garde classical pieces, electronic experiments, and oddball rarities for a fervent group of admirers. Though their releases can be a little esoteric, El's collections have always been able to welcome in new listeners. And now, they offer what might be the essential introduction to twentieth-century avant-garde and classical (at least for listeners tuned to popular music). It's called I'd
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! The Allman Brothers Band, Trouble No More: 50th Anniversary Collection (Mercury/UMe) 5CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 10LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada UMe is marking The Allman Brothers Band's 50th anniversary with a new 5-CD or 10-LP box set boasting 61 newly remastered tracks including classics, rarities, and seven previously unreleased tracks. Trouble No More is bookended with the band's never-before-heard
Saxophonist and bebop pioneer Charlie "Bird" Parker (1920-1955) exerted tremendous influence on his contemporaries as he pushed the envelope of jazz with his trailblazing approaches to melody, rhythm, and harmony. 2020 would have marked Bird's 100th birthday, and Craft Recordings is getting ready to celebrate. On February 28, the label will release a new four-LP box set (also available digitally). The Savoy 10-Inch LP Collection brings together Parker's sessions for the venerable label spanning
With the lead-up to Record Store Day Black Friday in full swing, it's time to take a look at what Universal Music Group has prepped for the semi-annual vinyl bonanza. The label's eight major catalog vinyl releases are familiar to longtime RSD consumers. Some celebrate an iconic anniversary (as is the case for titles by U2, Frank Sinatra and Frank Zappa), one complements a general catalog title (an unreleased live James Brown album), and some just feature great music in rare
Record Store Day 2019 is just under five weeks away. In anticipation of the April 13th celebration of vinyl, The Second Disc presents a round-up of Universal Music Group's RSD selections! The Charlatans, Us and Us Only - LP, clear vinyl - 1,000 copies Originally released in 1999, Us and Us Only was the British alt-rock group's sixth album. It will be reissued for the first time ever for Record Store Day, pressed on limited-edition transparent vinyl. Charlie Parker, Charlie Parker With
On December 7, Verve/UMe will release The Founder, a 4-CD box set in honor of Norman Granz's centennial earlier this year (August 6, 1918). The collection will also be available as a digital download and on streaming services. The set includes 44 tracks, some appearing on CD for the first time ever. It presents a chronological overview of the first two decades of the jazz impresario's impressive career by way of recordings of the musicians he recorded. The booklet includes new liner notes by
Verve/UME celebrate the career of a jazz impresario for the ages. As founder of the Clef, Norgran and Verve labels, Granz helped bring jazz to the masses and launched the careers of many of the genre's brightest stars. The 4-CD set includes 44 tracks, some appearing on CD for the first time ever. The booklet includes new liner notes by Tad Hershorn, author of Norman Granz: The Man Who Used Jazz For Justice. On the discs, you'll find incendiary performances by the likes of Coleman Hawkins
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! John Coltrane, The Atlantic Years in Mono (Atlantic/Rhino) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) Rhino's new box set, available on both CD and LP, includes original mono mixes of Trane's Giant Steps; Bags & Trane (with Milt Jackson); Ole Coltrane; Coltrane Plays The Blues and The Avant Garde (with Don Cherry) plus one disc of outtakes. All of these remastered albums are housed in replica jackets and a 32-page