In an extraordinary career spanning seven decades, director and "godfather of black cinema" Melvin Van Peebles (1932-2021) only made one studio film. 1970's Watermelon Man shattered conventions with its bitingly satirical story about a white couple, intolerant and obnoxious insurance salesman Jeff Gerber (Godfrey Cambridge) and his seemingly liberal wife Althea (Estelle Parsons). One morning, Jeff awakens to discover that his skin color has changed from white to black-and it's not a result of
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! Glenn Frey, Above the Clouds: The Collection (UMe) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) The 3-CD/1-DVD Above the Clouds: The Collection celebrates the musical legacy of Eagles' Glenn Frey, presenting key tracks from Frey as a solo artist on 2 CDs as well as the long-awaited, official CD premiere of Longbranch/Pennywhistle as newly remixed by J.D. Souther and Elliot Scheiner, and a live concert DVD, Strange Weather/Live in Dublin,
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! Rita Coolidge and Kris Kristofferson, Full Moon: Expanded Edition (Real Gone) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) 1973's Grammy-winning, chart-topping Full Moon was the first duet album Rita Coolidge made with her then-husband Kris Kristofferson. Yet, it has never been released on CD outside of Japan - until now! Real Gone's new reissue has been expanded with six previously unreleased outtakes: one from the album sessions and five more
As we get further into the spring season, we've begun to hear about releases that will be coming out more towards summer. Among these are the new announcements of titles from Real Gone Music due on June 2. As always, they are an eclectic group featuring CDs and vinyl reissues. First up are two titles from Rita Coolidge featuring liner notes from our very own Joe Marchese. 1973's Full Moon was the first duet album Coolidge made with her then-husband Kris Kristofferson. It was the first of
ABBA, Live at Wembley Arena (Polar/Universal) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. ) As part of ABBA's 40th anniversary celebration, the band unveils this 2-CD, hardcover book-style set preserving its 1979 concerts at Wembley Arena. The 25-track set features the first-ever release on record of Agnetha's "I'm Still Alive" along with perennials like "Dancing Queen," "Waterloo," "Knowing Me, Knowing You" and "Fernando." Live at Wembley is also available on vinyl. Oasis, (What's the Story) Morning
The Beatles, Live At The BBC / On Air: Live At The BBC Volume 2 (Capitol) What's better than a remaster of The Fab Four's 1994 double-disc set of live BBC sessions? How about another two-disc set of those sessions? Live At The BBC (2CD): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. Live At The BBC (3LP): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. On Air: Live At The BBC Volume 2 (2CD): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. On Air: Live At The BBC Volume 2 (3LP): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. Live At The BBC: The Collection (4CD): Amazon U.S. /
On July 14, 2012, Woody Guthrie would have turned 100 years old. The Oklahoma-born “Dust Bowl Troubadour” died in 1967, just 55 years of age, but all these many years later, his compositions such as “This Land is Your Land,” “Grand Coulee Dam” and “The Sinking of the Reuben James” are cornerstones of American song. The folk hero, whose guitar was famously emblazoned with the slogan “This machine kills fascists,” was celebrated last year with Smithsonian Folkways’ impressive 3-CD/hardcover book
Forgive the hyperbole, but there’s nobody quite like Van Dyke Parks. Composer, arranger, producer, singer, musician, actor, author, raconteur, Parks is one-of-a-kind. Known for his dazzling, sometimes oblique wordplay, and sheer musical invention, Parks has contributed production, arrangements and songs to an incredible number of renowned artists over the years, often blazing new trails while harnessing his vast knowledge of popular music. For the first time, the renaissance man's work as a