Ace Records is currently celebrating its 50th anniversary with special releases as well as concerts and a pop-up shop in London. Over the course of those decades, the label has established a number of long-running series including their Songwriters and Producers lines. A recent release in the Songwriters series celebrates two of the all-time greats in both categories: Philadelphia’s Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff. Love Train: The Gamble and Huff Songbook brings together 24 songs from the Philadelphia International Records duo who also formed two thirds of Mighty Three Publishing along with…
Release Round-Up: Week of November 19
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up! Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band, The Legendary 1979 No Nukes Concerts (Columbia/Legacy) 2CD/Blu-ray: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2CD/DVD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada The Legendary 1979 No Nukes Concerts features newly remixed and restored audio and video footage from Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band’s sets at Madison Square Garden in New York City in late September 1979. The star-studded “No Nukes” concerts were put on by MUSE (Musicians United for Safe Energy), a coalition of artists and activists (including Jackson Browne,…
Categories:
Formats:
Genres:
Put Your Hands Together: Second Volume of Complete Philadelphia International Albums Arrives in November
Back in late January, we shared news of Philadelphia International Records’ 50th anniversary plans. The centerpiece of the campaign announced by Sony Music’s Legacy Recordings was a series of fifteen CD box sets via the U.K.-based United Souls/Snapper Music presenting every PIR album in chronological order. The first of those box sets hit stores in late May, and now the second volume has been announced for November 19 release. The slipcased, 8-CD/1-12″ single hardcover book-style set entitled Satisfaction Guaranteed: The Sound of Philadelphia International Records Vol. 2 will feature the following eight…
Release Round-Up: Week of July 16
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up! Tina Turner, Foreign Affair [Various Formats] (Parlophone/Rhino) 4CD/1DVD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Official Store (white variant) Rhino and Parlophone revisit Tina Turner’s 1989 album featuring “The Best” in a variety of formats including a 4CD/DVD Super Deluxe Edition and 2CD and 2LP Deluxe Editions. The Super Deluxe Edition of Foreign Affair features the remastered original album on CD 1. Disc 2 has a selection of period remixes and B-sides plus a previously unreleased demo of “The Best.” The third and fourth CDs premiere…
Categories:
Formats:
Genres:
Release Round-Up: Week of May 28
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up! Various Artists, Get on Board the Soul Train: The Sound of Philadelphia Vol. 1 (Snapper/United Souls) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Burning Shed) Get On Board the Soul Train: The Sound of Philadelphia International Records Vol. 1 is the first in a series of box sets from the U.K.-based United Souls label, an imprint of Snapper Music, which will ultimately collect the entire Philadelphia International albums discography on CD. The slipcased, 8-CD/1-12″ single hardcover book-style set will feature the following eight albums, originally released between 1971 and 1973: Billy…
Categories:
Formats:
Genres:
If You Don’t Know Me By Now: Legacy Plans Philadelphia International “Best of” Series
The Philadelphia International Records 50th anniversary campaign kicks off this Friday, May 25, with the release of Get on Board the Soul Train: The Sound of Philadelphia International Records Vol. 1 from the U.K. Snapper Music label’s United Souls imprint. The 8-CD hardcover book-style box presents the first eight albums released on PIR, and the series will eventually encompass every one of PIR’s LPs on CD. On the domestic front, Legacy Recordings issues its first anniversary release this Friday with The Best of Philadelphia International Records, a 12-track overview of some of…
The Weekend Stream: May 15, 2021
While The Second Disc prides itself on connecting people to reissues and box sets they can keep on their shelves, it’s no secret that listening audiences are also digital – catalogue music lovers, too – and our passion is connecting people to music from the past that they might adore. So we’ve introduced a new Saturday feature: The Weekend Stream, which focuses on hidden gems that recently made it to digital channels that might make your playlists a little brighter! Various Artists, Philadelphia International Records: The Tom Moulton Remixes (Philadelphia International Records/Legacy)…
Categories:
Formats:
Genres:
The Weekend Stream: April 10, 2021
While The Second Disc prides itself on connecting people to reissues and box sets they can keep on their shelves, it’s no secret that listening audiences are also digital – catalogue music lovers, too – and our passion is connecting people to music from the past that they might adore. So we’re introducing a new Saturday feature: The Weekend Stream, which focuses on hidden gems that recently made it to digital channels that might make your playlists a little brighter! Marilyn Maye, Girl Singer (RCA/Legacy) (iTunes/Amazon U.S./Spotify) Happy Birthday, Marilyn Maye! Today, Marilyn Maye…
Categories:
Formats:
Genres:
People All Over the World, Join Hands: United Souls Announces First Philadelphia International Records Albums Box Set, “Get On Board the Love Train”
Back in late January, we shared news of Philadelphia International Records’ 50th anniversary plans. The centerpiece of the campaign announced by Sony Music’s Legacy Recordings was a series of CD box sets presenting every PIR album in chronological order. Now, the first of those box sets is available for pre-order with a release date of May 28. Get On Board the Soul Train: The Sound of Philadelphia International Records Vol. 1 is a product of the U.K.-based United Souls, an imprint of Snapper Music. The slipcased, 8-CD/1-12″ single hardcover book-style set will…
Ace Throws a Philly Soul “House Party” with The Delfonics, Len Barry, Jerry Butler, More
What is the sound of Philadelphia? As Kent Records’ exciting compilation Nothing But a House Party: The Birth of The Philly Sound 1967-1971 readily admits, there were many such sounds – the sound of teen idols Fabian and Frankie Avalon; of “South Street” and “The Mashed Potato” and Cameo-Parkway Records; of the doo-wop of The Dreamlovers, and before that, of Italian-American singers like Mario Lanza and Al Martino. But the sound of Philadelphia referenced here is the one with capital letters – TSOP, the style perfected by the Mighty Three of Kenny…
To Be Happy Is The Real Thing: BBR Reissues, Expands The Intruders’ “Save the Children”
Before The O’Jays or Harold Melvin and The Blue Notes, The Intruders were the first stars in Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff’s orbit. Founded in 1960, the group formed an association with the duo beginning in 1966 for the pre-Philadelphia International labels named Gamble and Excel. “(We’ll Be) United,” produced and penned by the label’s namesake and his partner, earned The Intruders a No. 14 R&B/No. 78 Pop hit. In 1968, “Cowboys to Girls” earned them an R&B chart-topper and Top 10 Pop smash, securing their place in the firmament of early…
Release Round-Up: Week of October 28
Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up! Roy Orbison, The Ultimate Collection (Roy’s Boys/Legacy) CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2-LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada Legacy Recordings and Roy’s Boys, LLC deliver a newly-remastered, career-spanning anthology for the late Roy Orbison. The Ultimate Collection has 26 tracks drawn from The Big O’s halcyon years at Monument and MGM as well as his final solo recordings and collaborations with The Traveling Wilburys. Available on CD, DD and vinyl. Read more here! Otis Redding, Live at the Whisky…
Categories:
Genres:
