For the 42 years Star Wars has been a pop cultural force, musical oddities have followed in the wake of its starship engines. Sure, legendary composer John Williams put an interstellar jazz number in the middle of his almost operatic score to the original 1977 film, but that didn't predict a chart-topping disco song, or Christmas albums, or quirky EDM, or various other ephemera in the ensuing decades. When Star Wars: Shadows Of The Empire was released in 1996, amid a major comeback for that
The week started with May the Fourth, so it might as well end with another trip to a galaxy far, far away! Our latest #TSDTweet will take a listen to John Williams' original soundtrack to Star Wars: the 1977 double album that launched one of the composer's most lengthy and recognizable works. Williams composed the music to eight other Star Wars films between 1980 and 2019, in addition to contributing new works for the 2018 spin-off Solo: A Star Wars Story and the newly-opened Galaxy's Edge at
With May the 4th occurring yesterday, it seemed only natural that there might be some Star Wars music-related news, or some great catalog-related material from the film series' iconic composer, John Williams. Luckily, fans got both! Not one but two Williams-oriented titles were announced yesterday. First, from Deutsche Grammophon comes John Williams Live In Vienna, a new live set taken from concerts conducted by the five-time Oscar winner earlier this year. Anticipation for the shows were
La-La Land Records kicks off March with a killer pair of archival score releases by two of the most famous film composers of all time! The label will premiere Jerry Goldsmith's oft-requested The Swarm (1978) and expand John Williams' underrated Far and Away (1992) this month. Having kicked off a disaster movie craze in the '70s by producing The Poseidon Adventure and The Towering Inferno (both of which featured scores by Williams that were recently given deluxe treatment in a box set from
Welcome to our final Release Round-Up of 2019! This edition covers today's releases as well as those of the next two weeks, the quietest time of the year for new releases. The weekly Release Round-Up will be back on January 10. In the meantime, Happy Holidays to all! Frank Zappa, The Hot Rats Sessions (Zappa/UMe) 6CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada This 6-CD box set explores Frank Zappa's 1969 primarily instrumental solo
It wouldn't be Black Friday without an announcement of one last killer batch of archival soundtracks from La-La Land Records. The impressive slate of titles the label announced are on sale now, and we've got the scoop on all of them! First up, it's a second, long-promised collection of music from Star Trek Voyager, the third live-action spinoff based on Gene Roddenberry's iconic sci-fi series that aired between 1966 and 1969. Hot off the success of Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987-1994)
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
A defining classic of horror film and a late-period Spielberg-Williams collaboration are just two of La-La Land Records' recent archival soundtrack releases. The latest in the label's Universal Pictures Film Music Heritage Collection is rescued elements from a soundtrack that's more than 80 years old: Franz Waxman's score to The Bride Of Frankenstein. One of the first critically acclaimed blockbuster sequels, Bride continued the story of Universal's 1931 adaptation of the iconic Mary Shelley
The major labels aren't the only ones who'll be part of Record Store Day Black Friday this year. A number of impressive indies (and other major labels with notable catalog friendly material) have announced exciting additions to the RSDBF slate. What's more, we've got coverage of some exciting new music from artists as diverse as Paul McCartney, Tank and the Bangas, Madonna, Bruce Springsteen, and Norah Jones! First up... Chuck Berry, Chuck Berry In London (Elemental) By 1965, the British
Sure, you can wait to find Real Gone's lineup of holiday-themed titles under the tree, but why wait? A trio of merry Yuletide albums will be available on color vinyl on November 1, including Cyndi Lauper's Merry Christmas... Have A Nice Life!, the Home Alone Christmas soundtrack compilation, and the soundtrack to Love Actually. First up: Cyndi Lauper's Merry Christmas... Have A Nice Life! This often-overlooked slice of Lauper's discography is a fresh spin on the time-honored tradition of
Look, up in the sky! (You knew we were going to say that!) Following remastered releases of the scores to Superman II, Superman III and Superman IV: The Quest For Peace in 2018, La-La Land Records returns to the one that started it all: a brilliant new remastered edition of John Williams' score to Superman: The Movie, landing just a few months after its 40th anniversary. (In an amazing confluence of events, today's announcement comes on "Superman Soundtrack Day," the same date as two previous
Hours of unreleased soundtrack music? Oft-requested titles from favorite composers and popular film series? It's definitely Black Friday season at La-La Land Records! The venerable soundtrack label closed the book on 2018 with five brand-new film and television score expansions - a total of 18 discs' worth of material, including three works involving one of the most successful living soundtrack composers and projects related to two world-renowned franchises. First up, La-La Land's successful
La-La Land Records' current slate is nothing short of super-powered, with six(!) titles streeting this month with a root in comic books - five of which come from DC Comics properties. By far the biggest of the titles in terms of both depth and recognition is the debut standalone release of Ken Thorne's scores to Superman II and Superman III, the first two sequels to 1978's blockbuster adaptation of The Man of Steel. Richard Donner's original film was memorably scored by John Williams;
Just in time for Halloween, Varese Sarabande has announced a new CD featuring arguably the greatest fictional horror character of all time: Dracula. Varese's latest entry in their CD Club is an expanded presentation of John Williams' score to the 1979 film version of Dracula. The 2-CD set Dracula: The Deluxe Edition is available for preorder now and due to start shipping the week of November 5. Dracula, the character, of course needs little introduction. Created by Bram Stoker in 1897 for
Fans of John Williams' soundtracks for the films of Steven Spielberg have plenty of reasons to phone home lately, thanks to La-La Land Records! The film score label this month issued two expansions of Spielberg-Williams scores - one making its vinyl debut, the other on CD - and there's more yet to come. Longtime readers of The Second Disc no doubt know our love for E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (founder Mike Duquette's all-time favorite film). Spielberg's blockbuster about the tender friendship
40 years ago, Varese Sarabande Records launched with the soundtrack to writer-director Bruce Kimmel's The First Nudie Musical. Today, the label (recently acquired by Concord Music Group) continues to serve the soundtrack community with an impressive array of releases from both past and present. Its limited edition CD club has recently announced its first four titles marking the company's 40th anniversary. First up is John Williams' 1972 score to director Mark Rydell's The Cowboys. The John
Over the past couple of days, La-La Land Records has released a pair of 2-CD soundtrack limited edition sets for two entries in sci-fi/superhero franchises which began in the 1970s: Superman IV: The Quest for Peace and Alien 3. Released in 1987, Superman IV marked the final time Christopher Reeve would step into the Man of Steel's iconic red and blue costume. Directed by Sidney J. Furie (Lady Sings the Blues, Iron Eagle), the film centered around Superman's efforts to curtail the nuclear
Welcome to our annual rundown of Must-Haves for this year's Record Store Day 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 favorites from our friends at Legacy Recordings, Varese Sarabande, Rhino Records, Real Gone Music, Demon Music Group, Walt Disney Records, Omnivore Recordings, and more! Joe's kicking things off with five essential picks (in
Since Disney bought Lucasfilm back in 2012, there has been a steady stream of new Star Wars material for fans to explore that galaxy far, far, away. A couple of weeks ago, the animated television series Star Wars: Rebels wrapped up its four-season run. Tomorrow sees the release of The Last Jedi, the latest film in the famous saga, on DVD and Blu-ray. On May 25, the second "anthology film," Solo: A Star Wars Story will be released. Next year, the Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge areas are to open at
We've already filled you in on the upcoming Record Store Day releases from Legacy Recordings, Rhino, and Real Gone Music, but there's still much more on offer from many of our other favorite labels! Here's a selection of "the best of the rest" to be released in brick-and-mortar independent record stores on Saturday, April 21! ABBA, Summer Night City (Polydor) (2000 copies) (Record Store Day UK) (Quantity TBA) Clear/yellow-splatter 7-inch release of ABBA's 1978 non-LP single Baby Huey,
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! Ron Wood and Ronnie Lane, Mahoney's Last Stand: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Real Gone Music) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) Faces' Ronnie Lane and Ron Wood teamed up to pen the score, consisting of country/folk-flavored songs and instrumental tracks, for this 1972 low-budget Canadian film. Real Gone brings it back to CD with new liner notes by Richie Unterberger. Read more here! Roxy Music, Roxy Music: Super Deluxe
This past Sunday, John Williams received a Grammy Award for Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Capella, for a track on his latest studio album. It's his 24th Grammy and joins his five Oscars, four Golden Globes, three Emmys and numerous other awards. At 85, Williams has hardly slowed down. Of course, aside from his film composing work, he has also been an orchestra conductor for many years. Sony Classical is celebrating that aspect of Williams' career with the 20-disc John Williams:
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! The Alan Parsons Project, Eye in the Sky: 35th Anniversary Edition (Arista/Legacy) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) The eye in the sky is still looking at you...Legacy Recordings has a 35th anniversary box set celebrating The Alan Parsons Project's 1982 best-seller Eye in the Sky. The album, which yielded the APP's biggest hit single with its title track as well as the classic instrumental "Sirius," will be enhanced for this lavish
While all of the Thanksgiving and Black Friday excitement was going on last week, La-La Land announced five exciting new limited-edition soundtrack reissues which are going to be available today at 12 pm PST on the label's website. First up, celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, is the soundtrack to Richard Fleischer's 1967 musical Doctor Dolittle. The film, based upon the character created by the Hugh Lofting in 1920, starred Rex Harrison as Doctor Dolittle, Samantha Eggar as Emma
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...well, five years ago in California, anyway...The Walt Disney Company purchased Lucasfilm Ltd. for a staggering $4 billion, gaining the rights to George Lucas' space epic Star Wars and beginning a new sequel trilogy (as well as several film and TV spin-offs) in the $42 billion franchise. Only now, however, has Disney Music Group announced its first physical catalogue product: a triple-LP vinyl box set of John Williams' original Oscar-winning score to