Johnny Cash is coming to town (again)! When the legendary Man in Black was unceremoniously dropped by his longtime home of Columbia Records in mid-1986 - "the hardest decision I've ever had to make in my life," opined then-label chief Rick Blackburn - he wasn't yet finished. Mercury Records stepped up to sign Cash, beginning a relationship that lasted for five years and six albums. Now, that fertile 1986-1991 period of rebirth is being revisited by Mercury and UMe in a multi-platform
Here's your Release Round Up for the week ahead. Various Artists, Country Music -- A Film By Ken Burns: The Soundtrack (Legacy Recordings) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) 5CD: 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 1CD: Walmart.com Filmmaker Ken Burns has tackled many subjects over the years, from the Civil War to baseball. His documentaries have garnered numerous awards over the years.
Filmmaker Ken Burns has tackled many subjects over the years, from the Civil War to baseball. His documentaries have garnered numerous awards over the years. In 2001, he took an in-depth look at the genre of jazz. Now, he is aiming to explore a different genre with Country Music, an eight-part, 16-1/2-hour documentary premiering September 15 on PBS. And as with Jazz, there will be an accompanying soundtrack. The most expansive of these is a 5-disc box set debuting on August 30 from Legacy
The names of Mickie Most and Reggie Young might not be among the most familiar except to diehard music aficionados, but the songs that benefited from their respective golden touches certainly are among the most well-known ever. Ace Records has recently paid tribute to both of these late talents with a pair of deluxe anthologies. The Pop Genius of Mickie Most may be the most lavish single-disc package yet released by Ace, housed in a heavy slipcase also containing a squarebound 74-page
Today is Emmylou Harris' birthday, and Rhino is celebrating the songbird's illustrious career with a brand-new 2-CD remastered and expanded edition of one of her most cherished albums. On June 1, the label will reissue 1985's The Ballad of Sally Rose, a concept album inspired by Harris' short but blazing time spent with the late Gram Parsons. This deluxe edition will also be available as a digital download, on streaming services, and as a 2-LP vinyl set. (The vinyl release will also be
Welcome to this week's Release Round-Up! B.J. Thomas, New Looks from an Old Lover-The Complete Columbia Singles (Real Gone Music) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) New Looks from an Old Lover - The Complete Columbia Singles from B.J. Thomas gathers up all of the A and B sides the singer recorded for that label during his tenure there in the 1980s including the No. 3 Country hit "Two Car Garage" and two No. 1s: "Whatever Happened To Old-Fashioned Love" and "New Looks from an
Between 2012 and 2014, Ace issued three volumes of Where Country Meets Soul. All three volumes featured many of the greatest soul singers of all time tackling country-and-western repertoire. Now, the label has revisited the country-soul territory - in reverse! Out of Left Field: Where Soul Meets Country presents 24 sizzling R&B songs as sung by country's greatest performers, and most are surprisingly comfortable fits. Stax thought it was onto something when it ushered Daaron Lee into the
It began life as the theme to a 1955 B-movie that asked, “No locks! No walls! In the prison without bars! What keeps men like these from crashing out?” The film was Unchained, and the song was “Unchained Melody” with music by Alex North (A Streetcar Named Desire, Spartacus) and lyrics by Hy Zaret (“Dedicated to You”). Though the movie - in which just a brief snippet of the song was sung by Porgy and Bess’ original Porgy, Todd Duncan – is hardly remembered today, the intensely romantic
Most titles this week are already out in the States, on account of Justin Timberlake's The 20/20 Experience - 2 of 2 hitting stores on Monday. So without further ado... Rush, The Studio Albums 1989-2007 / Vapor Trails Remixed (Atlantic/Rhino) All of the Canadian rock gods' albums for Atlantic in one box, with 2002's Vapor Trails newly remixed (and available separately). The Studio Albums: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. Vapor Trails Remixed: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. The Bongos, Phantom Train /
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Raise your hand if you’ll be joining 2013 Ambassador Jack White tomorrow to celebrate Record Store Day 2013! Yes, on Saturday, April 20, independent record stores everywhere will offer an eclectic roster of limited edition releases of all kinds – most on vinyl, but some on CD, too. As usual, the labels participating in RSD ’13 have a number of surprises on the way, previewing future releases, revisiting past titles and even curating completely new packages. As is our tradition here, we’re
With Record Store Day just a little over three weeks away, Omnivore Recordings has unveiled an eclectic slate of three vinyl platters suiting the label’s deliciously omnivorous tastes. Two artists are familiar to fans of the label, while the third makes an Omnivore debut. All of the titles, of course, will be offered via your local brick-and-mortar independent music retailer on Saturday, April 20 to mark the sixth annual event. Without further ado…hit the jump to dive into tasty treats from
The Sex Pistols' controversial single "God Save the Queen" is getting repressed for its 35th anniversary on May 28. Universal Music Catalogue in the U.K. will re-release the single, a month after repressing "Anarchy in the U.K." for Record Store Day and four months before reissuing the band's Never Mind The Bollocks Here's The Sex Pistols. It is unknown if the single, released alongside the Queen's Silver Jubilee in 1977, will feature "No Feeling," the original B-side on the extremely rare
Pink Floyd, The Wall: Experience and Immersion Editions (Capitol/EMI) The latest Pink Floyd box, featuring live tracks and demos from the vault will make you lose your marbles! (Editor's note: I am so sorry for typing that.) The Ventures, The Ventures Play Telstar and The Lonely Bull / "Surfing" / (The) Ventures in Space / The Fabulous Ventures / Walk, Don't Run Vol. 2 (Sundazed) Five classic Ventures albums, remastered in stereo on CD and vinyl. Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings, Live at
Following a pair of DVD releases, Shout! Factory has announced the release of several performances on CD from the famous US Festival in California. Spearheaded by Apple Computer co-founder Steve Wozniak, the US Festival intended to be a celebration of technology and culture, with a temporary stage and open-air venue paid for by Wozniak himself just for the purposes of the festival. (Initially called the Glen Helen Pavilion, the San Manuel Amphitheater, where the festival was held, remains the