When Rhino released Q: The Musical Biography of Quincy Jones – a 4CD, 74-track collection – in 2001, it was a valiant attempt to tell a story that was still being written. The gifted bandleader, composer and producer, who passed away at the age of 91 in 2024, had an enduring way with sound, be it jazz, pop, R&B, rock or even film and television scoring. His decades of work with the 20th century’s greatest luminaries made him a tremendous (if controversial) raconteur, with countless stories to tell and luminaries to work alongside….
Release Round-Up: Week of October 3
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. Oasis, (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? 30th Anniversary Edition (Big Brother) 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 3LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Oasis have a slightly expanded edition of 1995’s (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? on tap, pairing a 2014 remaster of the album (which initially came with additional bonus material) with a bonus EP of new unplugged mixes of four of the album’s tracks (plus a non-album B-side, “Acquiesce”). The group’s songwriter/guitarist Noel…
Categories:
Formats:
Genres:
Omnivore Basks in ‘The Glow of Love’ on Expanded Reissue by Change
Between 1980 and 1985, the group known as Change released six albums built around dance rhythms, big hooks, and powerful vocals. The group’s name was spot-on, as during that period, Change’s line-up was in constant flux – yet the quality of the music delivered consistently. On October 3, Omnivore Recordings will revisit Change’s debut album, 1980’s The Glow of Love, on CD in an expanded and remastered edition. Originally appearing in Italy on Goody Music Records and throughout the rest of the world on the Warner Bros. label, The Glow of Love…
Reissues…and Stuff Like That! Classic Quincy Jones Titles Due on Vinyl, SHM-CD This Summer
A cadre of titles from the discography of the late Quincy Jones – spanning nearly 25 years of his storied career – are coming back into print on physical formats thanks to the shared efforts of Universal’ Music Group’s teams in America and Japan. Coming June 6 are new SHM-CD pressings of seven of Jones’ LPs: This is How I Feel About Jazz (1957), The Quintessence (1962), Big Band Bossa Nova (1962), Walking in Space (1969), Body Heat (1974), Mellow Madness (1975), Sounds…and Stuff Like That!! (1978) and The Dude (1981). Each will be packaged in the usual style, as part of UMG’s “All of…
The Weekend Stream: February 15, 2025
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! We’re taking it way back today with reissues and rarities by Peggy Lee, Brenda Lee, The Fleetwoods, and The Five Satins – plus more Luther Vandross rarities! Luther Vandross, Never Too Much: Greatest HIts (Epic/Legacy) (iTunes / Amazon) Released late last year ahead of the new documentary on the late R&B legend, Luther Vandross’ Never Too Much: Greatest Hits has already been expanded, and for good reason! The album’s biggest discovery was…
Categories:
Formats:
Release Round-Up: Week of December 13
It’s Friday the 13th, but it just might be your lucky day for reissues! Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the titles available today. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Luther Vandross, Never Too Much: Greatest Hits (Epic/Legacy) 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada In conjunction with a new documentary film, Legacy Recordings issues a new double-disc anthology of the late Luther Vandross’ work, accompanied by several rare and unreleased tracks. Never Too Much: Greatest Hits offers 20 tracks on two CDs that represent the…
Categories:
Formats:
Genres:
So Amazing: Companion Album to Luther Vandross Documentary Features Unreleased Songs
One of this year’s documentary darlings at the Sundance Film Festival, a look at the life and career of Luther Vandross, makes its theatrical debut in select cities this week. Ahead of its wider, planned streaming release in 2025, Legacy Recordings will issue a new double-disc anthology of his work, accompanied by several rare and unreleased tracks. Never Too Much: Greatest Hits, available December 13, offers 20 tracks on two CDs that represent the cream of Vandross’ solo career. In addition to unforgettable hits across the three decades he released albums –…
The Weekend Stream: October 26, 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. We’re positively packed this Saturday: posthumous tracks from Van Halen, Luther Vandross and DMX; a great deluxe live set from Linda Ronstadt; plus some Halloween and Christmas surprises…and, to top it all off, a call to action to aid one of our favorite power-pop acts of the last 40 years. Edward & Alex Van Halen, “Unfinished (Between Us Two)” (self-released) (official site) Alex Van Halen just released Brothers, a heartfelt…
Categories:
Formats:
Genres:
The Weekend Stream: October 19, 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. A brief week offers some unusual soundtracks, an even more unusual Beach Boys homage – and plenty of Christmas curiosities! Various Artists, Pulp Fiction (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (Geffen) (iTunes / Amazon) This weekend, the iconic songs-and-dialogue album for Quentin Tarantino’s classic film Pulp Fiction – featuring favorites like Dick Dale’s rapid-fire, guitar-driven instrumental “Misirlou” and a cover of Neil Diamond’s “Girl, You’ll Be a Woman Soon” by Urge Overkill…
Categories:
Formats:
Genres:
The Weekend Stream: June 8, 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. This week is jam-packed with practically something for everybody, especially if you love the ’80s: live cuts from one of the biggest touring bands of the decade, B-sides and remixes from that same decade’s biggest British band and a rediscovered female country hitmaker – plus rare soundtracks, early favorites from a Latin-pop icon and so much more! Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, The Born in the U.S.A….
Categories:
Formats:
Genres:
Release Round-Up: Week of June 7
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. Dwight Twilley, Jungle: Expanded Edition (Iconoclassic) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) Iconoclassic’s deluxe expanded edition of power pop hero Dwight Twilley’s third solo album boasts six bonus tracks including the outtakes “Forget About It, Baby,” “You Can Change It,” and “Don’t You Love Her,” and Twilley’s demos of “Long, Lonely Nights,” “To Get to You,” and the title track. Ken Sharp has contributed a new essay based on his…
Categories:
Formats:
Genres:
Release Round-Up: Week of April 19
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles available today. With Record Store Day events taking place tomorrow, this is one of the biggest weeks in recent memory – so if you hit up your local indie store tomorrow, remember: there’s plenty of non-exclusive releases to check out, too. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. TSD also mourns the passing of Dickey Betts, 80. As a singer, songwriter, guitarist, and founding member of The Allman Brothers Band, Betts left behind an extraordinary legacy of…
Categories:
Formats:
Everybody Rejoice: Long-Unavailable Luther Vandross Projects Coming to CD, LP, Digital
Legacy Recordings has announced plans to deepen the legend of Luther Vandross with the first-ever expanded reissue of two long-unavailable albums recorded mononymously as Luther in the mid-’70s. Luther (1976) and This Close to You (1977) were originally issued by the Cotillion label but near impossible to find after Vandross finally found solo success in the 1980s, as he bought the rights to both releases back. With 2024 poised to be a big rediscovery year for the late icon – the documentary Luther: Never Too Much recently premiered at the Sundance Film Festival – both…
Categories:
Formats:
Genres:
The Weekend Stream: September 16, 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. 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 Management) (iTunes / Amazon) The initial puzzle piece in a planned centennial…
Categories:
Formats:
Genres:
The Weekend Stream: July 2, 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. This week brings an R.E.M. classic given new life by a hit TV show, another side of one of Motown’s sultriest crooners, two Prince-related artists gone solo, dance grooves from Janet Jackson and Paula Abdul and an early version of one of the greatest epic film scores of the ’50s. R.E.M., Strange Currencies EP (Craft) (iTunes / Amazon) The…
Categories:
Formats:
Genres:
The Weekend Stream: March 11, 2023
Welcome to The Weekend Stream, a relaxing weekly review of notable digital-only catalogue titles. There may be no CD or vinyl, but there’s plenty of great new/old music to usher you into the weekend. From a Death Row drop and classic mixes from Madonna and Teena Marie, to a super-sized Elvis tribute, there’s something here for everyone – including a way you can help a reissue producer in need. Snoop Dogg, Doggystyle / Various Artists, Above the Rim (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (Deluxe Edition) / Various Artists, Murder Was the Case (The Soundtrack)…
Categories:
Formats:
Genres:
Paradise: Edsel Celebrates the Music of Change on CD Box Set, Vinyl Collection
It’s been said that the only true constant is change – and that’s certainly been borne out by the group bearing that moniker. Between 1980 and 1985, the rotating line-ups collectively known as Change released six albums built around insistent rhythms, catchy hooks, and commanding vocals. Unexpectedly in 2018, Change returned from a three-decade-plus hiatus with a new album that captured the old magic. Late last year, Demon Music Group’s Edsel label chronicled Change’s discography on CD in a handsome 7-CD box set. Everything and More: Complete Recordings 1980-2019 is decked out…
Extravagant Gestures: Cherry Red, SoulMusic Box Up Dionne Warwick’s Arista Albums on New 12-CD Set
Over 40 years ago, Dionne Warwick left Warner Bros. Records and signed to Clive Davis’ Arista label to begin a new chapter in her remarkable career – a career which happens to be going as strong as ever today. Now, Cherry Red’s SoulMusic imprint has announced a 12-CD box celebrating Warwick’s Arista period. Due on February 28, 2020, Déjà Vu: The Arista Recordings (1979-1994) collects all of her acclaimed albums for the label and rounds up over two dozen previously released bonus tracks. Encompassing a whopping 159 tracks including 29 bonuses, Déjà…
That’s What Friends Are For: Clive Davis Soundtrack Features Barry, Whitney, Dionne, Aretha, More
This past April, New York’s Radio City Music Hall hosted a prestigious premiere. The film was Clive Davis: The Soundtrack of Our Lives, and the screening was accompanied by an all-star concert featuring Barry Manilow, Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin, Carly Simon, and others celebrating the life of the music legend. Beginning on October 3, Apple Music will exclusively stream the Chris Perkel-directed documentary, and today, September 27, Legacy Recordings has digitally released an exclusive 34-track deluxe soundtrack on Apple Music boasting four previously unreleased performances. (A standard 20-track digital soundtrack will be…
Categories:
Formats:
Genres:
The Wonderful World of Christmas: Elvis, Johnny, Luther Headline Legacy’s Vinyl Christmas Slate
Looking for some vinyl to place under the tree this season? Legacy is coming to the rescue with five new Christmas releases from the label’s top tier artists including Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Luther Vandross and more! Merry Christmas Baby arrives from Elvis Presley this Friday, October 7. This new 120-gram vinyl compilation features seventeen of the King’s bona fide Christmas Classics, all newly remastered from original sources. Naturally, “Blue Christmas” is here, as well as “Santa Claus Is Back in Town,” “Silent Night, “O Come, All Ye Faithful,” “I’ll Be Home…
The Glow of Love: Groove Line Records Compiles The Music of Change, Featuring Luther Vandross, More
If ever a group lived up to its name, that group was Change. The brainchild of French-Italian music impresario and producer Jacques Fred Petrus, in collaboration with Italian-based producer/arranger Mauro Malavasi and bassist Davide Romani, Change released six albums between 1980 and 1985. Built on infectiously danceable rhythms, melodic hooks and sublimely soulful vocals, the sound of Change was primarily created by a rotating cast of Italian-based musicians and America-based vocalists. Groove Line Records has recently celebrated the legacy of Change in truly definitive style with Reach for the Sky: Anthology, a…
So Amazing: FTG Expands Dionne Warwick’s Arista Albums With Previously Unheard Songs
In 1979, Dionne Warwick was at a crossroads. Her unprecedented string of pop and R&B hits written and produced by Burt Bacharach and Hal David at Scepter Records were in the rearview mirror. Bacharach and David had bitterly split after just one album with Warwick at Warner Bros. Records, leaving their muse feeling high and dry. One more dynamic success followed for Dionne in 1974 with the Thom Bell-produced Spinners duet “Then Came You,” unbelievably her first-ever No. 1 Pop single. But other than that one smash, Warwick’s studio career was commercially…
Holiday Gift Guide Review: Bobby Darin, “The 25th Day of December” and Various Artists, “Funky Christmas”
Real Gone Music is ensuring that it’s going to be a merry Christmas, indeed, with a number of holiday-themed releases that practically beg to be enjoyed alongside a glass of egg nog and a warm fireplace. Bobby Darin’s The 25th Day of December, the late singer’s only holiday LP, arrived on the Atco label in 1960. However, the album wasn’t the work of Bobby Darin, the splish-splashin’ rock-and-roller, or Bobby Darin, the finger-snapping, tuxedoed crooner. It’s not even the work of Bob Darin, the folk troubadour. Instead, it displays another side of…
And One More For The Road: Frank Sinatra’s “Duets” Goes Super Deluxe In November
The way he wore his hat…the way he sipped his tea (or likely, something stronger)…the memory of all that…no, they can’t take that away from us. Frank Sinatra’s influence is still felt every day – in style, in attitude, especially in song. Though 2013 has been a quiet year for the Chairman’s catalogue, that’s about to change on November 19 when Capitol and UMe celebrate the twentieth anniversary of Sinatra’s triple-platinum Duets album with a variety of commemorative reissues including a 2-CD/1-DVD Super Deluxe Edition, 2-CD Deluxe Edition and 2-LP vinyl set. …
October Is The Most Wonderful Time of The Year With Real Gone Releases From Andy Williams, Bobby Darin, Patti Page, More
It’s not too early to start making that Christmas list! Just ask Real Gone Music. On October 29, the label will release five deluxe holiday-themed collections from some of the most beloved vocalists of all time, in addition to two other titles reflecting the label’s usual eclectic tastes. For those who need a little Christmas right this very minute, now’s the time to peruse Real Gone’s upcoming offerings. The crown jewel comes from Andy Williams, already announced as the subject of a 2013 compilation from Legacy Recordings. We couldn’t be more enthused…
