Wham! - The Second Disc

The Weekend Stream: December 21, 2024 – and a Merry Discmas to All!

December 21, 2024 by Mike Duquette | 11 Comments

Welcome to 2024’s final edition of The Weekend Stream, The Second Disc’s review of notable catalogue titles (and some new ones, too!) making digital debuts! With no Release Round-Up this Friday and a few weeks of peace and quite from (and for!) us until 2025, we’ve got a few more treats for you under the tree from Wham!, Elton John, Bruce Springsteen, Miles Davis, Archie Bell & The Drells and so much more! Wham!, Last Christmas (Epic/Legacy/Sony Music U.K.) (iTunes / Amazon) For its 40th anniversary, Wham!’s holiday classic was reissued on various physical…

Categories:

The Weekend Stream

Formats:

Digital Download, Digital Streaming

Genres:

Classic Rock, Disco/Dance, Electronic, Holiday, Jazz, Pop, R&B/Soul, Rock, Soundtracks

Tags:

Aphex Twin, Archie Bell and the Drells, Bruce Springsteen, Earth Wind and Fire, Elton John, George Michael, INXS, John Williams, Miles Davis, Wham!

Release Round-Up: Week of December 13

December 13, 2024 by The Second Disc | No Comments

It’s Friday the 13th, but it just might be your lucky day for reissues! Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the titles available today. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Luther Vandross, Never Too Much: Greatest Hits (Epic/Legacy) 2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada 2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada In conjunction with a new documentary film, Legacy Recordings issues a new double-disc anthology of the late Luther Vandross’ work, accompanied by several rare and unreleased tracks. Never Too Much: Greatest Hits offers 20 tracks on two CDs that represent the…

Categories:

Release Round-Up

Formats:

CD, Digital Download, Digital Streaming, Vinyl

Genres:

Cast Recordings, Classic Rock, Holiday, Pop, R&B/Soul

Tags:

Anais Mitchell, David Grisman, Foghat, Jason Robert Brown, Jefferson Starship, Jerry Garcia, Luther Vandross, Stephen Sondheim, The Doobie Brothers, The J. Geils Band, Wham!, Yachtley Crew

Review: WHAM!, “The Singles: Echoes from the Edge of Heaven” (7″ Vinyl Box Set)

August 3, 2023 by The Second Disc | 6 Comments

WHAM! The dance-pop duo’s name immediately called to mind the fantastical, onomatopoeic pop art exclamations that would appear on the ’60s Batman television show. George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley had everything going for them: good looks, great voices, and a knack for pure pop songcraft. In a mere handful of years, WHAM! launched nearly a dozen singles into the Top 10 of the U.K. singles chart. – a lucky seven entries. Their first album was entitled Fantastic; it was. The second was Make It Big; they did! By the time they bowed…

Categories:

Reviews

Formats:

Box Sets, CD, Digital Download, Digital Streaming, Vinyl

Genres:

Disco/Dance, Pop

Tags:

Andrew Ridgeley, George Michael, Wham!

Release Round-Up: Week of July 7

July 7, 2023 by The Second Disc | 3 Comments

Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up, featuring a selection of the new titles in stores today! Pool-Pah, The Flasher: Original Soundtrack Recording (Real Gone/Second Disc) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Real Gone Music) Second Disc Records and Real Gone Music celebrate 50 years of the best album you’ve never heard: Pool-Pah’s The Flasher. In 1973, the sexual revolution was on, streaking was taking college campuses by storm, and Deep Throat was edging pornography ever closer to the mainstream. Against this backdrop, a talented New York band with the unlikely moniker of Pool-Pah teamed with up-and-coming singer-songwriter, musician, and…

Categories:

Release Round-Up

Formats:

Box Sets, CD, Digital Download, Digital Streaming, Vinyl

Genres:

Blues, Classic Rock, Disco/Dance, Pop, R&B/Soul, Soundtracks

Tags:

Billy Burnette, Flamin' Groovies, Hans Zimmer, Ill Biskits, Janet Jackson, Owsley, Pool-Pah, Rory Gallagher, Rupert Holmes, Suede, Taylor Swift, Wham!

Going for It: New Wham! Compilations Offer Singles, New to CD Mixes and More

April 27, 2023 by Mike Duquette | 7 Comments

More than 40 years after they took the U.K. – and then the world – by storm, the story of pop duo WHAM! will be told in a multi-format compilation, issued just after a new documentary set for release this summer. The Singles: Echoes from the Edge of Heaven is arguably the most comprehensive look at the work of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley as they combined their glossy good looks with an almost unsuspecting penchant for pop brilliance. In just five short years, the pair notched nearly a dozen singles into…

Categories:

News

Formats:

Box Sets, CD, Digital Download, Digital Streaming, Vinyl

Genres:

Disco/Dance, Pop

Tags:

Andrew Ridgeley, George Michael, Wham!

The Weekend Stream: August 7, 2022

August 7, 2022 by Mike Duquette | 2 Comments

Welcome to The Weekend Stream, a relaxing weekly review of notable digital-only catalogue titles. There may be no CD or vinyl, but there’s plenty of great new/old music to discover! From new remixes of old favorites and throwback remixes of new hits, to deep dives into ’80s alt-rock, mid-century easy listening, ’70s live folk and ’90s tracks to run on the beach in slow motion to…we’re pulling out all this stops this Sunday! Beyoncé & Madonna, Break My Soul (The Queens Remix) (Parkwood/Columbia) (iTunes / Amazon) Queen Bey had a busy month gearing…

Categories:

The Weekend Stream

Formats:

Digital Download, Digital Streaming

Genres:

Country, Disco/Dance, Folk, Funk, Jazz, Pop, R&B/Soul, Rock, Soundtracks

Release Round-Up: Week of November 8

November 8, 2019 by The Second Disc | 13 Comments

Welcome to this week’s Release Round-Up! Chet Atkins, The Complete RCA Victor and Columbia Christmas Recordings (Second Disc/Real Gone) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada) Second Disc Records and Real Gone Music are proud to present The Complete RCA Victor and Columbia Christmas Recordings from legendary guitarist-producer Chet Atkins on a deluxe 2-CD, 46-song anthology remastered by Vic Anesini at Sony’s Battery Studios and featuring new liner notes by the set’s compiler-producer, TSD’s Joe Marchese. These joyous and virtuosic recordings encompass rare singles, the complete albums Christmas with Chet Atkins…

Categories:

News, Release Round-Up

Formats:

Blu-Ray, Box Sets, CD, DVD, Digital Download, Digital Streaming, SACD, Vinyl

Genres:

Classic Rock, Classical/Opera, Country, Holiday, Pop, Popular Standards/Vocal, R&B/Soul, Rock, Soundtracks

Tags:

Billy Vera, Chet Atkins, Dino Desi and Billy, Eugene Ormandy, Gene Clark, George Michael, Humble Pie, Jim Reeves, John Fogerty, John Legend, Margaret Whiting, Natalie Cole, Suede, The Nazz, The Police, The Rolling Stones, Wham!

With a Fire In His Heart: George Michael Classics Power ‘Last Christmas’ Soundtrack

October 4, 2019 by The Second Disc | No Comments

An upcoming holiday film is taking its cues from a classic song from George Michael and Wham! On November 8 in the U.S. and November 15 in the U.K., Last Christmas will arrive in cinemas. Legacy Recordings will issue the soundtrack, featuring one previously unheard George Michael song and an array of his classics, on November 8 in CD, vinyl, and digital formats. In spring 2013, screenwriter-actress Emma Thompson visited Michael to earn his blessing for the film. Michael consented, leading to the romantic comedy starring Emilia Clarke, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeoh,…

Categories:

News

Formats:

CD, Digital Download, Digital Streaming, Vinyl

Genres:

Holiday, Pop, Soundtracks

Tags:

George Michael, Wham!

Love…Thy Will Be Done: Cherry Pop Expands Martika, Andrew Ridgeley Titles in January

January 25, 2018 by Joe Marchese | 5 Comments

Cherry Pop is returning to the early days of the 1990s with expanded editions from the small discographies of two beloved artists: Andrew Ridgeley of Wham!, and Martika. After breaking up Wham! in 1986, George Michael graduated to bona fide solo superstar, while his musical partner Andrew Ridgeley had largely shunned the spotlight to pursue other interests such as acting and motor racing. By 1990, however, Ridgeley was ready to return to music. The result was Son of Albert, his only solo album to date. Released on Epic Records (asserting its right…

Categories:

News

Formats:

Genres:

Pop

Tags:

George Michael, Martika, Prince, Wham!

In Memoriam: George Michael (1963-2016)

December 26, 2016 by Joe Marchese | 2 Comments

Last night, the shocking news came that George Michael had died at the age of 53. Born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou, the artist created music that lived up to the title of WHAM!’s second album Make It Big. Michael’s fearlessness was big; his ambition was big; his talent, of course, was big. Whether crafting bright, ebullient and danceable pop, sensual balladry or funky dancefloor jams, the passionate Michael (as writer, producer, musician, and vocalist) wore his heart on his sleeve. Onstage and off, as well as on record, he was provocative. He frankly…

Categories:

News

Formats:

Box Sets, CD, DVD

Genres:

Pop

Tags:

George Michael, Wham!

Give ‘Em a Spin: The Second Disc’s Essential Back to Black Friday 2014 Release Guide

November 27, 2014 by Joe Marchese | No Comments

Yes, it’s that time of year again. Thanksgiving is here, and with each Thanksgiving comes another Black Friday, the day for consumers to start off the holiday shopping season on a mad, frenetic note. This year is just in the latest one in which numerous retailers in the U.S. have made headlines by blackening Thursday, or Thanksgiving Day itself, with sales starting on the holiday. So many might give thanks that the folks behind Record Store Day are waiting until the traditional Friday for the second of their twice-yearly events. In keeping with tradition,…

Categories:

News

Formats:

Vinyl

Genres:

Jazz, Pop, Rock, Soundtracks

Tags:

Miles Davis, Record Store Day, Run-D.M.C., Wham!

From “Last Christmas” To “Blue Xmas”: Legacy’s Black Friday Slate Features Wham!, Miles Davis, Hendrix, Kinks, Elvis, More

October 16, 2014 by Joe Marchese | No Comments

It’s that time of year again! Announcements are finally coming in for Record Store Day’s annual Black Friday event happening on Friday, November 28. Rather than storming malls and big box stores, maybe you’ll want to pay a visit to your favorite local independent record store for an assortment of exclusive vinyl goodies. Legacy Recordings certainly hopes you will; the label’s roster for Black Friday’s RSD event includes titles from heavy-hitters including David Bowie, Joe Satriani, Miles Davis, Dave Matthews Band, Elvis Presley, The Kinks and Jimi Hendrix! And that’s not all!…

Categories:

News

Formats:

Vinyl

Genres:

Classic Rock, Jazz, R&B/Soul, Rock

Tags:

David Bowie, Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, Joe Satriani, Miles Davis, Record Store Day, The Kinks, Wham!

Reissue Theory: WHAM! “The Final: Live at Wembley”

June 28, 2011 by Mike Duquette | No Comments

Welcome to another installment of Reissue Theory, where we take a look back at notable albums and the reissues they could someday see. Twenty-five years after one of pop’s guiltiest pleasures said goodbye to a packed live audience, we wonder what a release of that show would look like. On June 28, 1986, twenty-five years ago today, WHAM! became a past-tense pop act. It wasn’t your typical pop meltdown, however; it was a breakup for the ages. What other group bids their fan base (80,000 attendees worth) farewell with a handful of…

Categories:

Features

Formats:

DVD

Genres:

Pop

Tags:

George Michael, Reissue Theory, Wham!

Reissue Theory: George Michael’s Different Corners

February 1, 2011 by Mike Duquette | 1 Comment

Welcome to another installment of Reissue Theory, where we reflect on well-known albums of the past and the reissues they could someday see. With the reissue of George Michael’s most flawless pop album, today’s installment takes you into the corners of the world pop music scene to prove how part of the musical culture he really was. The reissue of George Michael’s iconic Faith album has your humble catalogue correspondent excited. Really excited. So excited that today’s Reissue Theory talks about two albums from the same time period he managed to contribute…

Categories:

News

Formats:

Genres:

Pop

Tags:

George Michael, Reissue Theory, Wham!