Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles available today. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. The Beach Boys, Pet Sounds 60 [Various Formats] (Capitol/UMe) Pet Sounds: 1LP Zoetrope Vinyl: uDiscoverMusic.com / TheBeachBoys.com 1LP Definitive Sound Series: Capitol Records Store 2LP Mono/Stereo Vinylphyle: uDiscoverMusic.com / TheBeachBoys.com The Pet Sounds Sessions [Highlights]: 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / uDiscoverMusic.com / TheBeachBoys.com 2LP (Green and White Splatter Vinyl): uDiscoverMusic.com / TheBeachBoys.com 2LP (Black Vinyl): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / uDiscoverMusic.com / TheBeachBoys.com 2LP (Yellow Vinyl): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Link TBD Today – nearly 60 years to the day the original album first reached stores in…
We’re Havin’ a Freak Out! “Zappa ’66,” Due in May, Relaunches Vaulternative Records
Frank Zappa’s archival label Vaulternative Records was launched in 2002 by the late artist’s family to present a variety of fascinating odds and ends from his voluminous archive. Now, after a near-decade-long hiatus, Vaulternative is returning from Zappa Records and UMe to continue preserving the experimental side of the Zappa oeuvre. The newly-refreshed Vaulternative label launches on May 15 with Zappa ’66: Vol. 1 – Live at TTG Studios on one CD or two 180-gram LPs, or via digital download/streaming (including high-resolution audio) exclusively from Zappa.com, uDiscover Music, and Sound of Vinyl….
Review: Frank Zappa, Captain Beefheart, and The Mothers, “Bongo Fury: 50th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition”
The earliest known recordings of Frank Zappa and Don Van Vliet, a.k.a. Captain Beefheart, are one in the same. The pair’s “Lost in a Whirlpool,” recorded at Antelope Valley College in Lancaster, California circa 1958, is hardly auspicious but points the way towards the future musical activities of both men: Zappa, for its humorous lyrics (“about a person who was…skindiving in the San Diego sewer system, and talking about encountering brown, blind fish…It was kind of like the Cousteau expedition of its era,” per Zappa in 1989) and Beefheart, for its blues…
Release Round-Up: Week of March 20
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles available today. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Aerosmith, Aerosmith: Legendary Edition (UMe) 5LP: Official Store (Fan Pack with satin bomber jacket) 4LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 3CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 1CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 1LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Official Store (fan pack with T-shirt) The Bad Boys from Boston return to where it all began with a deluxe edition of their 1973 debut album, which featured “Mama Kin,” “Make It” and eventual Top 10 hit “Dream On.” This…
Advance Romance: Zappa and Beefheart’s “Bongo Fury” Returns as 50th Anniversary Box Set
Zappa Records is rolling out its first archival release of 2026, and in doing so, is belatedly celebrating the 50th anniversary of one of Frank Zappa’s landmark releases. Bongo Fury, The Mothers of Invention’s 1975 collaboration with fellow iconoclast Don Van Vliet a.k.a. Captain Beefheart, is returning on March 20 in a variety of formats including a 5CD/1Blu-ray box; 2LP expanded edition; and 1LP original album. Bongo Fury is notable not only as the final original album to be released by Zappa and The Mothers but also as a transitional album featuring…
Review: Frank Zappa, “Halloween 78”
“Happy Halloween, everybody!” Greeting his audience at New York’s late, lamented Palladium on October 31, 1978, Frank Zappa promised the enthusiastic crowd. “This is it…this is the big one!” He wasn’t kidding. The composer-guitarist and his band – drummer Vinnie Colaiuta, bassists Arthur Barrow and Patrick O’Hearn, keyboardists Peter Wolf and Tommy Mars, singer-guitarist Denny Walley, and percussionist Ed Mann – delivered perhaps the most epic show of their annual New York holiday residencies. That concert is the centerpiece of Halloween 78, a massive new box set from Zappa Records and UMe….
Release Round-Up: Week of October 24
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles out today. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Bruce Springsteen, Nebraska ’82 (Columbia/Legacy) 4CD/Blu-ray: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 4LP/Blu-ray: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada It’s no surprise that, as Hollywood recounts the story of Bruce Springsteen’s most striking solo release with the film Deliver Me from Nowhere (out today), a box set tells the tale of the (literal) tape. Columbia Records and Legacy Recordings are releasing Nebraska ’82, a new box set showcasing the start-to-finish journey of Bruce’s most…
Happy Halloween, Everybody: Frank Zappa’s “Halloween 78” Presents Epic NYC Concert, More
Frank Zappa’s annual Halloween concerts in New York City were far more treat than trick. Now, following similar releases for his shows in 1973, 1977, and 1981, Zappa Records and UMe are releasing Halloween 78 on October 24 in a variety of formats. The nearly four-hour long, marathon October 31, 1978 show at the late, lamented Palladium (now the home of a New York University dormitory) will be available as part of a 5CD set also including a bonus show from the beginning of the Palladium run, on October 27, 1978. The…
Release Round-Up: Week of September 26
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles available today. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases.’ Spike Jones in Stereo: A Spooktacular in Screaming Sound! (Omnivore) CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Omnivore Recordings LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Omnivore Recordings The late, great Spike Jones’ side-splittingly spooky 1959 album In Stereo: A Spooktacular in Screaming Sound! returns from Omnivore Recordings in time for Halloween as freshly remastered from the original tapes. Led by an illustrious company including Paul Frees (Boris Badenov, The Haunted Mansion’s Ghost Host), Thurl Ravenscroft (“You’re…
John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s New Live Box Set Showcases ‘Sometime in New York City’ and Elsewhere
One of the most incendiary periods of John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s life together is about to be re-explored in a new 9CD/3Blu-ray box set coming on October 10 (one day after what would have been Lennon’s 85th birthday) from Capitol Records/UMe. Power to the People features 123 tracks (90 of which are previously unreleased) to tell the full story of Lennon and Ono’s political activism, spanning the prolific period between 1969’s anthem “Give Peace a Chance” and 1972’s controversial live album Sometime in New York City as well as that year’s…
Can’t Afford No Shoes: Frank Zappa’s “One Size Fits All” Gets Expanded for 50th
Following last year’s deluxe expansion of 1974’s Apostrophe (‘) and the recent restoration of the same year’s concert film Cheaper Than Cheep, Frank Zappa’s archival team is turning the page to 1975 and expansively revisiting One Size Fits All in time for its 50th anniversary. The guitarist-songwriter-bandleader-producer’s twentieth album (and fourteenth with The Mothers of Invention), it featured the by-then-familiar lineup of keyboardist George Duke, drummer Chester Thompson, percussionist Ruth Underwood, bassist Tom Fowler, and saxophonist Napoleon Murphy Brock. One Size Fits All continued their jazz-rooted satirical explorations, and reached No. 26…
Review: Frank Zappa, “Cheaper Than Cheep”
The latest archival release from the Frank Zappa camp may be called Cheaper Than Cheep, but rest assured, this concert program is actually an embarrassment of audiovisual riches. Available in a variety of formats including 2CD+Blu-ray, 3LP, and 2CD/3LP/1BD configurations, Cheaper Than Cheep preserves a long-lost concert recorded on June 21, 1974 at a rehearsal studio on Sunset Blvd. in Hollywood in the wake of the Mothers of Inventions’ tenth anniversary tour. Zappa was joined by a Mothers line-up including Chester Thompson (drums), George Duke (keyboards, vocals), Jeff Simmons (guitar, vocals), Napoleon…
Release Round-Up: Week of June 27
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles available today. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Bruce Springsteen, Tracks II: The Lost Albums 1983-2018 (Columbia/Legacy) 7CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 9LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Lost and Found: Selections from the Lost Albums (Columbia/Legacy) 1CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada More than a quarter century after releasing his first major vault project, Bruce Springsteen is back with a sequel that’s even bigger. True to its name, Tracks II: The Lost Albums 1983-2018 promises not just a wealth of…
Wowie Zowie: Frank Zappa’s “Cheaper Than Cheep” Premieres Lost Concert Film, Soundtrack
All has been quiet on the Frank Zappa front since the release last fall of the 50th anniversary super deluxe edition of his album Apostrophe (‘). That lull ended today, though, with the announcement of a multi-format release filled with audio and video goodies. Cheaper Than Cheep arrives May 9 as an online exclusive release available at Zappa.com, uDiscoverMusic.com, and Sound of Vinyl, presenting audio and video from a long-lost television special that’s been housed in the Zappa archives for over five decades. [UPDATE: Amazon links are now available for a release…
Review: Frank Zappa, “apostrophe (‘): 50th Anniversary Edition”
Strictly commercial? Not quite. Though Frank Zappa earned his first top ten record and first Gold record with apostrophe (‘) – the same LP that spun off his first single to make the Billboard Hot 100 – it would be difficult to argue that the singer-songwriter-bandleader had dramatically altered his art in an effort to hit the charts. Sure, the material was a bit more focused and the album rather tight at 32 minutes in length. Yeah, the cover artwork, with its instantly recognizable, tightly-cropped image of the long-haired artist, looked much…
Release Round-Up: Week of September 13
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. Louis Armstrong, Wonderful World: The Best of Louis Armstrong (Verve/UMe) CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada This 13-song sampler draws on Satchmo’s 1951-1967 recordings for the Decca, Verve, Kapp, and ABC-Paramount labels and includes many of his most beloved songs as both a vocalist and trumpeter such as “Hello, Dolly!,” “What a Wonderful World,” “A…
Don’t Eat the Yellow Snow: Zappa’s “Apostrophe (‘)” Gets 50th Anniversary Expansion
Hot on the heels of the recent box set celebrating Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention’s 1968 concert at the Whisky a Go Go, Zappa Records and UMe are turning the clocks forward to revisit the composer-guitarist-bandleader’s most commercially successful LP. On September 13, the labels will mark the 50th anniversary of Apostrophe (‘), originally released in March 1974, with a 5CD/1Blu-ray Super Deluxe Edition as well as vinyl and digital editions. 1973’s Over-Nite Sensation gave Zappa his highest chart placement on the Billboard 200 chart since 1968, poising him for…
Review: Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention, “Whisky a Go Go 1968”
Frank Zappa didn’t open his first set on the evening of July 23, 1968 at Hollywood’s Whisky a Go Go with a power chord or a blues beat. Instead, the band – Ray Collins (vocals, percussion), Ian Underwood (alto sax), Bunk Gardner (tenor sax, flute), Don Preston (keyboards, gong), Motorhead Sherwood (baritone sax, percussion), Roy Estrada (bass, vocals), Art Tripp (drum set, percussion), and Jimmy Carl Black (drum set, percussion) – opened with a clattering improvisation that was sure to separate the real fans from the casual onlookers (if there, in fact, were…
Release Round-Up: Week of June 21
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles available today. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Joni Mitchell, The Asylum Albums 1976-1980 (Rhino/Asylum) 5CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Rhino.com 6LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Rhino.com The Asylum Albums (1976-1980) arrives on 5 CDs, 6 LPs, and digital formats, completing the Asylum period of Mitchell’s extraordinary career. Whereas 1972-1975 represented the peak of Mitchell’s hitmaking years, 1976-1980 captured her in innovative, experimental mode. Following the tour for 1975’s The Hissing of Summer Lawns, she embarked on a period of personal rediscovery…
Hungry Freaks, Daddy: Zappa and The Mothers of Invention’s 1968 Whisky A Go Go Show Arrives in June
Fans of the early days of Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention have good reason to, well, freak out! On June 21, Zappa Records and UMe are heading back to those heady days on the Sunset Strip for Whisky A Go Go, 1968, a new collection available on three CDs or five 180-gram black vinyl LPs as well as in 2LP “highlights” form. The complete release will also be available digitally in high-resolution. Even in the relatively early days of his recording career, Frank Zappa was thinking ahead. An advertisement in…
Mind Games: Universal’s Record Store Day Lineup Includes Beatles, Elton, The Who, John Lennon, Charlie Parker, U2, Ringo Starr, “Wicked”, Frank Zappa, More
Continuing our look through this year’s Record Store Day list, here is a glance at twenty-one releases from the Universal family of labels. All descriptions are taken from the labels. If you are interested in any of these titles, they will be available at your local record store on April 20. Head over to recordstoreday.com for a list of participating retailers. U.K. readers, please visit recordstoreday.co.uk and Canadian readers, please visit recordstoredaycanada.ca. The Beatles, “I Saw Her Standing There”/”I Want To Hold Your Hand”/”She Loves You”/”Til There Was You” (4 Individual 3″…
Holiday Gift Guide Review: Frank Zappa, “Over-Nite Sensation: 50th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition”
Had Frank Zappa gone commercial? Surely the artist who proudly embraced the slogan “No Commercial Potential” hadn’t sold out to the masses. Yet, with 1973’s Over-Nite Sensation, the composer-guitarist-bandleader found himself in a particularly purple patch that resulted in two consecutive Gold albums and four straight top 40 entries on the Billboard 200. The title of Over-Nite Sensation was, of course, sarcastic; the record was Zappa’s seventeenth overall and twelfth with The Mothers of Invention. But the new fans he picked up with the LP might have believed it was a rebirth. …
Release Round-Up: Week of November 17
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the many titles available today in the final “big week” of the holiday release season. We are an Amazon affiliate and earn on qualifying purchases. We’re kicking things off with our two Christmas releases from Second Disc Records and Real Gone Music! While Amazon’s orders are unfortunately delayed, both of these titles are shipping now from Real Gone’s webstore! Arthur Fiedler and The Boston Pops, The Ultimate Pops Christmas Party! (Second Disc Records/Real Gone Music) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Real Gone Music) Arthur Fiedler…
I’m the Slime: Zappa’s “Over-Nite Sensation” Goes Super Deluxe for 50th
The title of Frank Zappa’s 1973 album Over-Nite Sensation was, expectedly, dripping with sarcasm; the album was the prolific composer-bandleader’s seventeenth overall release. But the “sensation” part was spot-on. The LP became Zappa’s first of two U.S. gold-certified releases and an ideal entry point into his musical world. On November 3, Zappa Records and UMe celebrate the 50th anniversary of this landmark record in a variety of formats including a 4CD/1Blu-ray super deluxe edition, 2LP and 3LP “highlights” editions, and digital and Dolby Atmos releases. Following the “Flo and Eddie” comedy-rock era…
Review: Frank Zappa, “Funky Nothingness”
Frank Zappa’s 1969 LP Hot Rats remains among the late composer-bandleader’s most accessible albums. Blending bluesy electric rock with jazz, it makes a fine introduction to his sometimes-daunting discography. But those looking for more might not have known exactly where to start. Certain elements of the Hot Rats sound would crop up in the maestro’s future discography, but a proper sequel was never released. It’s only been recently revealed, however, that one was recorded…more or less. Funky Nothingness, new on 3 CDs or 2 LPs from Zappa Records and UMe (and No….
