Nina Simone - The Second Disc

April 9, 2019 By

"I've never gotten over the pleasure of someone covering one of my songs," Leonard Cohen once said. "I don't have a sense of proprietorship, which probably stems from coming up as a folksinger where it was understood that songs develop a patina through interpretation. I feel that's the mark of excellence." Ace Records has just released a new collection of excellent Leonard Cohen covers with Hallelujah: The Songs of Leonard Cohen. It's the latest volume in the label's Songwriter series, and it

April 1, 2019 By Sam Stone 4 Comments

With his acumen for gripping poetry, inimitable baritone, and trademark Spanish-influenced fingerpicking, Leonard Cohen married his talents for poetry and song-craft to create some of the most enduring music of the singer-songwriter era and beyond. Like every great songwriter, Cohen's work continues to inspire an array of cover versions. Sure, there's the million-and-one covers of "Hallelujah," but even before the 1967 release of his debut Songs of Leonard Cohen, early supporters like Judy

February 23, 2018 By Joe Marchese Leave a Comment

Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! Various Artists, Concert for George [Various Formats] (Craft Recordings) 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2CD/2DVD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2CD/2BD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 4LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2CD/2DVD/2BD/4LP Limited Online Exclusive Box Set: George Harrison Shop The star-studded 2002 concert celebration of the life of George Harrison - featuring Paul McCartney,

February 14, 2018 By Joe Marchese 2 Comments

Listeners experiencing 2018 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Nina Simone's debut recordings for the first time might be taken aback at the ferocity and determination which mark these fourteen sides, compiled for the first time in complete form on CD as Mood Indigo: The Complete Bethlehem Singles (BMG 538320282). Those qualities distinguished this remarkable artist throughout a long and fiery career, but were thrillingly present at her very first sessions. Pianist-singer Simone began her

February 9, 2018 By Joe Marchese 1 Comment

Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! Various Artists, Stax Singles Vol. 4: Rarities and Best of the Rest (Stax/Craft) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) Craft Recordings boxes up a fourth volume of rare singles from the Stax vaults. Volume Four lives up to its subtitle, collecting odds and ends from Stax and its various imprints by artists including not just the label's usual heavy hitters but also Big Star, Billy Eckstine, Delaney and Bonnie, and others. 80 pages of

January 24, 2018 By Joe Marchese 1 Comment

Few artists have had the impact on pop, soul, rock and jazz as the iconoclastic Nina Simone. Simone (1933-2003) played by her own rules in life and art, recording some of the most electric and eclectic music imaginable in any genre. It wasn't uncommon on a Simone album to find politically charged protest music alongside popular Broadway hits and reworkings of contemporary rock songs. This April, she will enter the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, though she preferred to call her singular fusion of

September 6, 2017 By Joe Marchese Leave a Comment

Cherry Red's Robinsongs imprint is turning up the Cool Heat with a new 2-CD, 25-track collection celebrating The Best of CTI Records and featuring many of the classic jazz label's most renowned artists including instrumentalists George Benson, Freddie Hubbard, Hubert Laws, and Stanley Turrentine, and vocalists Nina Simone, Patti Austin, and Esther Phillips. Chances are, if you think of a jazz artist, it wouldn't take many degrees of separation to reach Creed Taylor. The esteemed producer

May 12, 2017 By Joe Marchese 7 Comments

With a recent Grammy Awards salute, a new catalogue deal, and the 40th anniversary of Saturday Night Fever, the music of the Bee Gees has been front and center in 2017. Ace Records has joined the celebration of the brothers Gibb with a new entry in the label's long-running Songwriters Series. To Love Somebody: The Songs of The Bee Gees 1966-1970 pulls into focus the early professional years of Barry, Robin, and Maurice, with 24 choice cover versions of songs both familiar and lesser-known.

October 18, 2016 By Joe Marchese 1 Comment

If there was ever any doubt as to the versatility, adaptability and endurance of the songs of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison, it would certainly be dispelled by Ace’s new release of Let It Be: Black America Sings Lennon, McCartney and Harrison. The latest volume in the label’s Black America Sings series (also encompassing volumes dedicated to Sam Cooke, Bob Dylan, Otis Redding, and the team of Burt Bacharach and Hal David) and the second dedicated to the music of The Beatles,

July 15, 2016 By Joe Marchese Leave a Comment

Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! Little Richard, Mono Box: The Complete Specialty and Vee-Jay Albums (Concord/Specialty) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) This new, 5-LP vinyl box set collects all of the studio albums that Little Richard recorded for both the Specialty and Vee-Jay labels between 1957 and 1965. The mono albums, each replicating the original label and jacket art, have been remastered from analog tapes. A 16-page booklet featuring new liner

June 26, 2014 By Joe Marchese Leave a Comment

Well, summer is officially upon us! Already there’s talk about which songs will be anointed the perfect summer jams for 2014 – songs by artists like Ariana Grande, Iggy Azalea and the ubiquitous Pharrell Williams. If those names don’t set your pulse racing, however, Legacy Recordings has an alternative that’s bound to conjure up images of tropical sunsets, refreshing drinks and summer breeze. Studio Rio Presents The Brazil Connection makes over 12 pop classics from the Sony vaults by melding the

April 30, 2014 By Joe Marchese Leave a Comment

In retrospect, it might be telling that Burt Bacharach’s first recorded song, “Once in a Blue Moon,” was cut in 1952 by Nat “King” Cole. From those earliest days, Bacharach and his lyrical partner Hal David saw their songs recorded by a host of African-American artists: Johnny Mathis, Gene McDaniels, Joe Williams, Lena Horne, and Etta James among them. Once the duo began to change the sound of American music with their ultra-cool, sophisticated pop-soul compositions, those songs were most

February 17, 2014 By Joe Marchese Leave a Comment

If you’re looking for a little music to go with your grande toffee nut latte, Starbucks has recently unveiled a number of new audio offerings to kick off 2014. In addition to its annual Sweetheart disc – an anthology of new(ish) artists playing old(ish) love songs including, this year, songs by John Lennon, Bob Dylan and Harry Nilsson – the coffee giant has curated a selection of Music for Little Hipsters, sets dedicated to Women of Jazz and When Jazz Meets Guitar, and an Opus Collection volume

August 27, 2013 By Mike Duquette Leave a Comment

The Beach Boys, Made in California (Capitol/UMe) Six discs of career-spanning tunes - hits and rarities aplenty - from the best band to come out of Hawthorne, California. (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) Bob Dylan, Another Self Portrait (1969-1971): The Bootleg Series Vol. 10 (Columbia) Revisit one of the most polarizing periods of Dylan's career with the latest Bootleg Series entry, featuring outtakes from Nashville Skyline, Self Portrait and New Morning. A deluxe version includes Dylan and The

August 26, 2013 By Joe Marchese Leave a Comment

Another chapter is soon to be written in the story of the classic jazz label Bethlehem Records. The label, founded in 1953 by Gus Wildi, will soon be relaunched by classical specialist label Naxos in association with Bethlehem’s current owner, Verse Music Group. Titles are planned to roll out in six batches, from August 27 of this year through July 29, 2014. Bethlehem played a major part in establishing the careers of such prime vocalists as Chris Connor, Nina Simone and Julie London, and at

September 22, 2011 By Joe Marchese Leave a Comment

And the (complete) hits just keep on comin’. Sony’s PopMarket site has become a must-visit destination for many music fans, not only due to daily deals on existing box sets and back catalogue titles but also due to a line of new boxes under the Complete Albums Collection umbrella. Initial recipients of this treatment were Sam Cooke, The Byrds. Stan Getz and Return to Forever. A second wave offered collections from John Denver, Grover Washington Jr., Kansas and Wayne Shorter. Another eight

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