April 16, 2024 marked what would have been the 100th birthday of Henry Mancini (1924-1994). With over 125 films and 90 albums to his credit (not to mention television shows, stage productions, and more!), the late composer’s richly melodic music is still very much a part of the American cultural tapestry. Spain’s soundtrack specialist label Quartet Records wasn’t about to let the Mancini centennial go unnoticed. The label has delivered four new Mancini releases just in time for the holidays, all of which look to be deserving of the composer’s great legacy….
Holiday Gift Guide Review: ‘Mary Poppins: 60th Anniversary Collection’
I. In Every Job That Must Be Done, There is An Element of Fun When you’re a child – no matter where you’re from, or how perceptive you may be about such things – it’s easy to get a sixth sense about something you watch or read and just feel is different from the rest of what you’ve watched or seen. The Wizard of Oz is that way for many people. So too is Mary Poppins, P.L. Travers’ series of books about a magical nanny that was adapted into a colorful musical film by Walt…
The Weekend Stream: July 27, 2024
Welcome to another edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc’s review of notable catalogue titles (and some new ones, too!) making digital debuts. Live cuts from two of the hardest-working rockers around, more Disney punk(?!) and the debut album from a future Disney legend are mixing it up this Saturday! As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, The Reunion Tour ’99 (Columbia/Legacy) (iTunes / Amazon) 25 summers ago, Bruce Springsteen took The E Street Band back on the road for their first full-scale tour…
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It’s a Jolly Holiday: ‘Mary Poppins’ Vinyl Box Announced for 60th Anniversary
When Richard M. Sherman, one half of the legendary songwriting team The Sherman Brothers, passed away last month, The Second Disc was quick to pay tribute to all the duo’s great works for Walt Disney films and elsewhere. But their most towering achievement is probably the song score to the whimsical Mary Poppins. This summer, to celebrate the film’s 60th anniversary, Disney will release a limited edition vinyl box set collecting the film’s original soundtrack, rare archival material and no less than four out-of-print albums from the Disney discography. The Mary Poppins (60th Anniversary…
Release Round-Up: Week of February 2
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. Andy Williams, When You Fall in Love: Lost Columbia Masters 1977-1982 (Real Gone Music) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) When You Fall in Love: Lost Columbia Masters 1977-1982 rounds up eighteen rarities from the late, great Andy Williams. Over a dozen never-before-heard recordings premiere here which teamed Andy with producers, songwriters, and arrangers including Steve Dorff, Paul Vance, Kerry Chater, Bob Esty, Bill Justis, Gene Page, Dick Glasser, Robby Adcock, and Steve Popovich…
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The Year In Review: The 2023 Gold Bonus Disc Awards, From A to Z – Part Two
Happy 2024! Welcome, friends, to Part Two of The Second Disc’s 14th Annual Gold Bonus Disc Awards! As we yet again look to a new year with optimism and a hopeful spirit, we recognize the many roles music has played in our lives. With that spirit in mind, The Second Disc wishes to recognize 2023’s cream of the catalogue music crop – those exemplary reissues and box sets, big and small, that proved to be truly outstanding for music lovers worldwide. After much deliberation, we’re excited to unveil our favorites. This isn’t…
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Release Round-Up: Week of December 1
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. The Sound of Music: Super Deluxe Edition (Craft Recordings) 4CD/Blu-ray: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 3LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Craft Store (picnic meadow green) This remarkable new 4CD/1BD box set invites listeners to hear The Sound of Music anew. The first two discs represent the complete musical score as heard in the film, from the orchestral prelude and Julie Andrews’ iconic “The Sound of Music” – yes, that…
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UPDATE 10/9 – Once Upon a Dream: “Disney100” Collection Comes to CD
UPDATE 10/9: “I only hope that we never lose sight of one thing: that it was all started by a mouse.” Walt Disney was, of course, speaking of his enduring creation, Mickey Mouse. The character’s debut in the 1928 animated short subject Steamboat Willie was indeed the watershed moment from which decades of entertainment in every conceivable medium followed. But the business that became The Walt Disney Company had been founded five years earlier, in 1923, by brothers Walt and Roy. That’s the anniversary being celebrated now under the branding of Disney100. The…
The Hills Are Alive! ‘The Sound of Music’ Goes Super Deluxe for the Holidays
By any standard, Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein II, Howard Lindsay, and Russel Crouse’s The Sound of Music was a bona fide success from the moment the curtain rose at Broadway’s Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on November 16, 1959. The production starring Mary Martin and Theodore Bikel was described by The New York Times‘ Brooks Atkinson as a “bountiful musical drama” with an “endless fund of cheerful melodies.” It won five Tony Awards (besting stiff competition from Arthur Laurents, Jule Styne, and Stephen Sondheim’s Gypsy) and ran for 1,443 performances on Broadway and spun off…
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The Weekend Stream: July 22, 2023
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. Today brings remixes from ABC, Madonna and Cypress Hill, plus rarities from Stan Getz and Julie Andrews! ABC, The Look of Love (Single) (Mercury/UMC) (iTunes / Amazon) Another single from the upcoming reissue of The Lexicon of Love; like last week’s, it focuses on “The Look of Love” – arguably the signature hit from ABC’s debut – as heard in…
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Once Upon a Dream: “Disney100” Celebrates the Disney Music Legacy
“I only hope that we never lose sight of one thing: that it was all started by a mouse.” Walt Disney was, of course, speaking of his enduring creation, Mickey Mouse. The character’s debut in the 1928 animated short subject Steamboat Willie was indeed the watershed moment from which decades of entertainment in every conceivable medium followed. But the business that became The Walt Disney Company had been founded five years earlier, in 1923, by brothers Walt and Roy. That’s the anniversary being celebrated now under the branding of Disney100. The campaign…
Release Round-Up: Week of August 20
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up! Eric Clapton, Eric Clapton: Anniversary Deluxe Edition (Polydor/UMe) 4CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 1LP (Original Album Only): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Eric Clapton’s eponymous 1970 solo debut is reissued today in 4CD and 1LP iterations. The 4CD Deluxe Edition presents Eric Clapton in three separate mixes, with one mix on each of the first three CDs in the box: The Tom Dowd Mix, The Eric Clapton Mix, and The Delaney Bramlett Mix. The mix by Dowd (Dusty Springfield, The Allman Brothers Band) was originally released in 1970; the…
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Release Round-Up: Week of October 18
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up! Jethro Tull, Stormwatch: 40th Anniversary Edition (Chrysalis) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) Jethro Tull continues its long-running box set series with a new 4CD/2DVD expansion of 1979’s Stormwatch, the final Tull album to feature the “classic” line-up of Ian Anderson, Martin Barre, John Glascock, John Evan, David (now Dee) Palmer, and Barriemore Barlow. The new edition features: The original album and associated recordings newly remixed by Steven Wilson; A complete concert from the Netherlands recorded in March 1980; The original album and 13…
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How Far I’ll Go: England’s ‘Sing Your Heart Out’ Series Releases Disney Volume with Rare Instrumentals
A British compilation series recently released a magical volume for Disney fans – and with a host of rarities for collectors, to boot! Since 2016, Universal Music On Demand’s Sing Your Heart Out series has annually issued hits-packed compilations meant for (you guessed it) singing together, at home or in the car. In October, the Sing Your Heart Out series expanded to include a volume of classics from the films of Walt Disney Pictures. A total of 52 tracks are featured across the set’s first two discs, spanning the full length of…
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Release Round-Up: Week of December 8
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up! Debby Boone, You Light Up My Life: 40th Anniversary Expanded Edition (Real Gone Music) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) Finally, the platinum LP containing the biggest hit of the 1970s arrives on CD! Real Gone’s new edition expands Debby Boone’s original You Light Up My Life album by a whopping thirteen tracks, tracing Debby’s career back to her earliest recordings with her sisters as The Boone Girls. You’ll hear their effervescent covers, originally released on labels including Motown and Warner Bros./Curb, of songs by John Denver, The Marvelettes, The Supremes, Mary…
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Release Round-Up: Week of May 5
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up! Grateful Dead, Cornell 5/8/77 (Grateful Dead/Rhino) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) Rhino teams with the Grateful Dead for the first authorized release of one of the band’s most famous concert bootlegs: the Cornell 5/8/77 show. The bootleg recording of this show was so significant that it was added to the Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry in 2011. This 3-CD set ties in with a new book about the oft-discussed concert; both the book and CDs were also available as part of a sold-out box set exclusive…
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Analog Spark Breathes New Life Into Three Classic Broadway Cast Recordings
Curtain up! Analog Spark, the audiophile imprint of Razor and Tie, has brought back the luster of yesteryear with a trio of reissues from the days when people dressed up to go to the theatre. The label has given the Original Broadway Cast Recordings of My Fair Lady, West Side Story and Fiddler on the Roof the deluxe treatment on 180-gram vinyl, and indeed, one would be hard-pressed to think of three titles more worthy of the presentation. Fair Lady, Fiddler and West Side all reveal profound, universal truths about love, tolerance,…
Wouldn’t It Be Loverly: Analog Spark Reissues “My Fair Lady,” “West Side Story,” “Fiddler” On Vinyl
Following its vinyl and SACD presentations of the original soundtrack of 1965’s The Sound of Music and its 40th anniversary vinyl pressing of 1975’s original Broadway cast recording of A Chorus Line, Razor and Tie’s audiophile division Analog Spark has turned its attention to three more classic cast albums. My Fair Lady (1956), West Side Story (1958) and Fiddler on the Roof (1964) are all now available from Analog Spark in newly-remastered, 180-gram deluxe audiophile vinyl editions. These are the first titles released in association with Masterworks Broadway; the Sony imprint last…
Review: “The Sound of Music: Original Soundtrack Recording” on SACD
RCA Victor expected the soundtrack album to 1965’s big-screen musical The Sound of Music to be a juggernaut. The label backed the release with a $100,000.00 promotional campaign, and arranged for tie-ins at locales including the New York World’s Fair. The release was joined on the label’s roster by other albums of the already-famous Rodgers and Hammerstein score in styles from jazz (Gary Burton’s The Groovy Sound of Music) to “easy listening” (The Living Strings’ Music from The Sound of Music). RCA’s investments paid off; the album starring Julie Andrews spent a…
Release Round-Up: Week of May 5
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up! Oddly, releases were split between yesterday and today, but both days add up to a wealth of titles in nearly every genre! Without a doubt, this is one of the most packed weeks yet this year! Jackie DeShannon, All the Love: The Lost Atlantic Recordings (Real Gone) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) All the Love–The Lost Atlantic Recordings brings together DeShannon’s entire 1973 Atlantic Records material in one place for the first time, including seven previously unreleased tracks plus her four collaborations with Van Morrison and the…
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Wouldn’t It Be Loverly? Two Julie Andrews Classics Return to CD
By anyone’s estimation, Julie Andrews was one of Columbia Records’ leading lights by 1962. Her Tony-nominated performances onstage in My Fair Lady and Camelot had both led to chart-topping, record-breaking original cast recordings on the Columbia label; in fact, it was under the leadership of president Goddard Lieberson that the record label underwrote the original Broadway production cost of My Fair Lady – an investment that, needless to say, paid off many times over! So it was unsurprising that Columbia signed Andrews as a solo artist. (She had previously recorded at RCA…
Release Round-Up: Week of April 28
Dusty Springfield, Faithful (Real Gone Music) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) Faithful assembles for the first time on one CD all of the masters produced by Jeff Barry (“Chapel of Love,” “Leader of the Pack,” “Sugar, Sugar”) for Dusty Springfield in 1971. From his home base at New York’s Century Sound, Barry produced thirteen songs for Dusty – twelve intended for album release and one for a non-LP single. Four songs were released on two 45s, but when Dusty departed Atlantic Records, the remaining tracks were left on the shelf, and thought…
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Review: “The Sound of Music: 50th Anniversary Edition”
In the days when The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Peter and Gordon, The Zombies, The Animals and The Kinks were vying for chart supremacy, there was another British Invasion going on. And it was virtually a single-handed one. The invader in question was a winsome soprano named Julie Andrews, who was a perfect nanny not once but twice on the silver screen. Andrews’ performance as Mary Poppins saw her headlining the No. 1 album in the United States in March 1965 (emerging triumphant over Beatles ’65); by late May, the Poppins score…
Release Round-Up: Week of March 10
This week brings a particularly impressive slate by any standard, but we’re particularly proud to introduce the world to Second Disc Records with our first two releases, from Johnny Mathis and the late Bob Crewe! Johnny Mathis, Life is a Song Worth Singing: The Complete Thom Bell Sessions (Second Disc/Real Gone) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) Here, on two CDs, we proudly present both of Johnny Mathis’ album collaborations – including the never-on-CD Mathis Is… – with songwriter-producer Thom Bell, plus ten bonus tracks! Read more here! Bob Crewe, The Complete Elektra Recordings…
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One Little Spark: New Label Launches With Kate Bush, Ben Folds, Laura Nyro, “The Sound of Music”
With its upcoming roster boasting titles from Kate Bush, Ben Folds Five, The Dave Brubeck Quartet, Laura Nyro and Julie Andrews, the new audiophile label Analog Spark is pulling out all the stops for its debut this spring. Yesterday, Razor & Tie announced the launch of Analog Spark, a new imprint which will focus on reissued releases on both 180-gram vinyl and SACD. Razor & Tie co-owners Cliff Chenfeld and Craig Balsam commented, “We’re very excited about the launch of Analog Spark and the reissue of this important historical music. These albums…
