Last year, The Second Disc had nothing but good things to say about Dearly Beloved: A Prince Songbook, Cherry Red's triple-disc tribute to the music of Prince. The set told a story of The Artist's massive impact on pop, rock and soul by way of songs he gave others to record and a galaxy of genre-bending covers. In a year of considerable challenges in Prince fandom, it was a veritable oasis in a desert. Earlier this year, I had the pleasure of speaking with Adam Mattera, the curator and
Between the muted 40th anniversary celebration of Purple Rain and the bizarre drama over an estate-sanctioned Netflix documentary on his life and career, Prince fans could probably use a win lately. A new compilation from Cherry Red looks like it might finally offer one. Dearly Beloved - A Prince Songbook is an unexpectedly robust-looking 3CD set that will pay tribute to the Minneapolis icon as a songwriter - one whose classic hits have become pop standards, with so much talent overflowing
Welcome to The Weekend Stream, a relaxing review of notable digital-only catalogue titles. There may be no CD or vinyl, but there's plenty of great new/old music to float you into the weekend. This week's latest brings you a classic country centennial, remixes from Luther Vandross & Janet Jackson and The Art of Noise, a rare album from a songwriter moonlighting as a singer, hard-to-find Olivia Newton John songs and so much more! Hank Williams, Hank 100: Greatest Radio Hits (BMG Rights