Meet The Beatles! Japan Box: A cute and costly curio for collectors

main

Journalist Terry Ott reviews the “Meet The Beatles!” Japan Box for SuperDeluxeEdition:


I suppose some fans of The Beatles could look at this latest repacking of five Fabs’ albums released in Japan during 1964 and 1965 as an unnecessary, pricey addition to the ever growing Beatles’ canon, seeing as all the music contained on these discs has already appeared in previous, relatively recent CD packages of one sort or another.

Or, this new superbly produced set could be viewed as the gift that keeps on giving from a spectacular back catalog and another chance to celebrate the nostalgia and the ongoing world-wide, 50th anniversary appeal of the Beatles.
Continue reading “Meet The Beatles! Japan Box: A cute and costly curio for collectors”

George Michael / Symphonica vinyl

symphonica_LP

George Michael‘s number one album Symphonica will be issued as a limited edition double LP vinyl in August.

The album was originally released back in March, with the standard CD offering 14 tracks and the deluxe edition and blu-ray audio versions adding three bonus songs (Roxanne, You Have Been Loved and Going To A Town).
Continue reading “George Michael / Symphonica vinyl”

Out This Week / 14 July 2014

japanbox

The Beatles / Meet The Beatles: The Japan box

Released in Japan a few weeks ago, this five-disc box set contains the Japanese versions of Meet The Beatles, The Beatles’ Second Album, A Hard Day’s Night, Beatles No. 5 and Help! for the first time ever on CD. Unique artwork and quality mini-LP CDs with OBI strips are all part of the attraction. Read more


cover

Morrissey / World Peace Is None Of Your Business 

Morrissey’s new album is out today. You can pick-up a deluxe version with bonus tracks or even opt for one of the pricey bundles. Read more
Continue reading “Out This Week / 14 July 2014”

The Dream Academy / The Morning Lasted All Day: 2CD retrospective

EDSK7074_The Dream Academy_The Morning Lasted All Day_Booklet

The Morning Lasted All Day is a new Dream Academy retrospective compiled by frontman Nick Laird-Cowes.

Best remembered for 1985’s Life In Northern Town in, the band released three studio albums in the years that followed, eventually disbanding in 1991.
Continue reading “The Dream Academy / The Morning Lasted All Day: 2CD retrospective”

The Beatles / Superb Mono vinyl box is set to deliver the goods

Just listened to some Beatles mono vinyl here.

A visit to Abbey Road studios on Wednesday this week for an early listen to (and look at) The Beatles in Mono vinyl box set has this writer convinced that this set really is about as good as it’s going to get when it comes to recreating the sound and the feeling of purchasing an original mono pressing back in the 1960s.

In studio 3, remastering engineer Sean Magee was on hand to answer questions and the remastering supervisor in this process, Steve Berkowitz, was also there to not only tell us all about how the work was carried out, but also to drop the needle on the record of the new mono albums.

Inevitably, some great nuggets of information came out in this one hour session, and here’s some highlights:
Continue reading “The Beatles / Superb Mono vinyl box is set to deliver the goods”

Bronski Beat / “Dance and Desire: Rarities and Videos”: new collection

jimmy

Edsel Records will release a Bronski Beat rarities set in the autumn.

Dance and Desire: Rarities and Videos will be a 2CD+DVD collection which looks like it may be similar to the recent Cherry Red Remixes & Rarities collections (Paul Young, Thompson Twins etc.) although with the distinct advantage of containing a DVD in addition to the audio discs.
Continue reading “Bronski Beat / “Dance and Desire: Rarities and Videos”: new collection”

Ian Anderson / “Thick As A Brick”: Live in Iceland / blu-ray and 2CD

taab_lii

Ian Anderson – or to use his full name Jethro-Tull’s-Ian-Anderson – took the classic Tull opus Thick As A Brick out on the road in 2012, combining it with his own Thick As A Brick 2, to give audiences the chance to hear the full story of Gerald Bostock in a live setting.
Continue reading “Ian Anderson / “Thick As A Brick”: Live in Iceland / blu-ray and 2CD”

Monty Python / Total Rubbish boxes

frontpair

Universal Music’s recent Monty Python box sets are a superb celebration of the audio-only exploits of the influential comedy group.

Monty Python’s Total Rubbish is available as a nine-CD set or a nine-LP vinyl box. Both come with an excellent hardcover books with entertaining notes by Robert Ross, guiding you from album to album. The graphic design is authentically Python, thanks to the hands-on involvement of Terry Gilliam.
Continue reading “Monty Python / Total Rubbish boxes”

Deal Alert (again) / Allman Brothers Band: Fillmore East 6CD box

buy5allman_deal

Having been £70 for quite a while, it was great news for Allman Brothers Band fans when Amazon UK reduced the price of the forthcoming 1971 Fillmore East Recordings 6CD box to just under £40 in recent weeks. I don’t think anyone expect this set to drop any further but that is exactly what has happened today.
Continue reading “Deal Alert (again) / Allman Brothers Band: Fillmore East 6CD box”

Limahl / Don’t Suppose deluxe

Limahl / Don't Suppose deluxe edition

Former Kajagoogoo frontman Limahl‘s 1984 debut solo album, Don’t Suppose, will be reissued by Cherry Red / SFE in August as a two-CD deluxe edition.

The album features the hit singles Never Ending Story and Only For Love and this new edition sees a host of remixes on the bonus disc, including five period remixes of Never Ending Story (six, if you count the French language version L’histoire Sans Fin), a Dance and Dub mix of Only For Love, and other assorted B-sides and demos.
Continue reading “Limahl / Don’t Suppose deluxe”

Save a fortune on the Queen Live at the Rainbow super deluxe

buy5queen_rainbow_deal

Want to buy the Queen Live at the Rainbow four-disc super deluxe box set? Me too. But do you want to pay £113 for the pleasure? Not particularly.

The good news for those who live in what we like to call ‘rip-off Britain’ is that you can order this set from Amazon Canada for almost one quarter of the price that Amazon UK have it listed at.
Continue reading “Save a fortune on the Queen Live at the Rainbow super deluxe”

Paul McCartney / Early Days video

 

Paul McCartney continues a lifelong habit of picking the wrong songs to promote from his albums. The latest is Early Days – for which he has made a video – from last year’s New. There’s nothing wrong with the song, or the sentiment (although it is a bit earnest), but this acoustic number isn’t half as much fun as On My Way To Work from the same album, which has a similar weren’t-the-old-days-really-cool vibe but has a much witty lyric.

What’s really sad is that the highlight of the record is the amazing Alligator (produced by Mark Ronson) but this has been overlooked (in terms of videos etc.) for the middling Appreciate and the stomping Queenie Eye.

Anyway, check out Alligator and On My Way To Work below, and tell me if you agree!
Continue reading “Paul McCartney / Early Days video”

First Pictures / Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young: CSNY 1974 blu-ray+DVD

Out today is Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young CSNY 1974 live set.

What you see pictured above is the two-disc blu-ray (audio) + DVD edition. Packaging is well executed and very similar to the Stephen Stills Carry On set. The type is embossed on front and spine and the 188-page booklet is immense. Review of the music to follow.


3CD+DVD Edition

Blu-ray Audio + DVD edition


Track listing:
Continue reading “First Pictures / Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young: CSNY 1974 blu-ray+DVD”