Just a bit more than a week after the arrival of autumn, Real Gone music will deliver a slate of releases that might put you in an appropriately reflective mood. On September 30, two late vocal legends, Patti Page and Perry Como, get the Real Gone treatment complete with numerous previously unissued performances. A bona fide rock and R&B legend, Billy Preston, sees an early classic reissued alongside another concert rescued from the Grateful Dead's vault. And the batch is rounded out by
Holiday specials have long been a television tradition, from the beloved (Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, A Charlie Brown Christmas) to the programs their creators would rather forget (The Star Wars Holiday Special). Legendary Entertainment Alliance has recently drawn on the archives of producer Bob Banner for three new releases, each available as a DVD, a CD soundtrack and a CD/DVD combo pack. Christmas with Carol Burnett reaches back to the earliest tube appearances of the famed comedienne,
Election Day is upon us today! But if you're looking to cast your vote for some music, too, we might be able to help! Though we were able to keep the lights on each day at The Second Disc, Hurricane Sandy kept us from publishing a Release Round-Up last week. So without further ado, here's the best of the best for the weeks of October 30 and November 6! Louis Armstrong, The Complete OKeh, Columbia and RCA Victor Recordings 1925-1933 (OKeh/Columbia/RCA/Legacy) (10 CDs) / Charlie Christian,
The holiday season must be upon us, for Real Gone Music has announced its Christmas-themed offerings – but that’s not all! The enterprising label has two offerings with Apple Records ties (one actually from the Apple catalogue!), the complete singles of a soul legend, a counterculture classic, a distinctly non-counterculture classic, and well…just read on about the rest! First up, four more of Johnny Mathis’ long-unavailable Mercury Records LPs are arriving on CD for the first time! (Read
Although Burt Bacharach had been composing songs at least since 1952, when he kicked off a long career with the instrumental “Once in a Blue Moon” for Nat “King” Cole, the Burt Bacharach “sound” didn’t truly crystallize until the early 1960s. Prior to his reshaping of the sound of adult R&B, Bacharach teamed with a variety of lyricists to craft songs in virtually every genre imaginable: rock-and-roll, rockabilly, country, pop balladry, jazz, even the novelty song. Naturally, the earliest
Well, another New Year is in sight, the CD still isn't dead (told you so!) and celebration is in the air at The Second Disc. Back on December 23, Mike shared The Year in Reissues both here and over with our pals at Popdose. Do not pass go, do not collect 200 bucks until you read these indispensable columns! Are you back with me? Good. Now, I'd like to take this opportunity to take a fun look back at a few of my favorite things via Joe's Gold Bonus Disc Awards! I'm awarding these to the reissues
They don’t make ‘em like that anymore. I can’t help but think of that old adage whenever I think of Perry Como. The singer was one in a line of great crooners, many of them Italian-Americans. Frank Sinatra, dean of them all and forever the Chairman of the Board, was well-known for his swagger. Tony Bennett is still renowned for the jazz chops he brings as an interpretive vocalist. Perry Como, though, is perhaps best-known for his quiet gentility. Days after his death in 2001, conservative
ABBA, ABBA Gold: Greatest Hits - Special Edition / The Vinyl Collection (Polydor/UMe) The most popular ABBA compilation ever gets expanded with a DVD of music videos, including a previously unreleased animated clip. Also, a deluxe box of the band's eight LPs on vinyl alongside a ten-track record of single and non-LP tracks will be released the same day. (Official site) Joy Division, +- (Rhino U.K.) A box of ten partially fictional singles on vinyl to honor deceased frontman Ian Curtis, 30
Chestnuts roasting on an open fire. Frosted windowpanes, candles gleaming inside. Sleigh bells jingling (ring-ting-tingling too)! All of these images are among the most evocative in popular song, and all are linked to the most wonderful time of the year: the holiday season. Catalogue enthusiasts traditionally have their holiday wishes granted each year with a spate of new/old releases, and this year is no exception. In November, Collectors' Choice Music offers a trio of remastered holiday