Holding the Music in Your Hands ®
This 24-track, two-CD collection was compiled by SuperDeluxeEdition for Cherry Pop. So we think it’s quite good. Arguably, the only truly essential Paul Young compilation. 
Continue reading “Out This Week / 8 July 2013”
Paul Young‘s new compilation Remixes and Rarities, is officially released today. The album was compiled by SuperDeluxeEdition founder and editor Paul Sinclair. The two-CD set features all of Young’s hit singles from the 1980s in their expansive twelve-inch form, along with rarities such as B-sides, and cassette only long versions. Many tracks are issued on CD for the first time.
Purchasers of Remixes and Rarities will be able to read Paul Young’s exclusive track-by-track commentary in the booklet that comes with the CDs. This was edited down from an interview with the singer conducted by Paul Sinclair back in May.
Today we bring you some further recollections from Paul Young on his first four albums that do not feature in the CD booklet. Enjoy!
SuperDeluxeEdition: You must look back on the 1983-85 period very fondly. Hit singles, hit albums, Band Aid, Live Aid – it seemed like a great period to be a pop star.
Paul Young: Yes, I think I happened along at just the right time to ride that wave. I think if I’d waited any longer I’d have missed it. I was the newest kid on the block, when it came to that Band Aid record, everyone else was more established that I was. I’d just got my first album under my belt, and I think I was working on the second. So it was great to be there in the thick of it.
Continue reading “Paul Young / Interview”
The Allman Brothers Band’s 1973 album Brothers and Sisters, was the first full record to be recorded without Duane Allman, who’d been killed in a motorcycle accident in October 1971. The rock/blues outfit then suffered another terrible blow when bassist Berry Oakley was killed during the making of this record (another motorcycle accident). Lamar Williams was brought in as a replacement and plays on five of the record’s seven tracks.
Despite all the adversity, when released in August 1973, Brothers and Sisters would become The Allman Brothers Band first number one album in the US and even spawned a big hit single in the form of the guitarist Dickey Betts’ Ramblin Man’ (it reached number two). Those in the UK will also recognise another Betts composition, the instrumental Jessica, as the theme tune to Top Gear.
Universal’s new super deluxe edition of Brothers and Sisters comes packaged in a rather splendid 10-panel card wallet, with a 32-page booklet that details the making of the album with lots of archive photography.
The four disc set contains a bonus disc of rehearsals, jams and outtakes (all previously unreleased) as well as two further discs devoted to a live performance at Winterland in San Francisco in Sep 1973. Eleven of the 17 live tracks are previously unreleased.
Continue reading “The Allman Brothers Band / Brothers and Sisters super deluxe”
In September 2013, Universal Music will issue The Island Years, an 18-disc career retrospective box set anthologising the work of British singer-songwriter John Martyn.
The set will be packaged in an LP size hard-back slip case, and 17 CDs will feature all 12 of Martyn’s Island-era studio albums (recorded between 1967 and 1987) along with bonus tracks including previously unreleased mixes, outtakes and unheard songs. The complete demos for the rejected Apprentice album also feature.
In addition to the above, The Island Years boasts the audio from two complete, previously unreleased live solo concerts from 1972 and 1977 and comes complete with a DVD containing rare television performances from the Old Grey Whistle Test, Sight and Sound – In Concert and A Little Night Music. Foundations Live at the Town and Country Club – only available on an out-of-print VHS – is also included on the DVD.
As well as all this audio and video content, this set comes with a hard-back book, featuring a new essay by The Island Years compiler and researcher John Hillarby, as well as rare and previously unseen photographs.
The Island Years is released on 9 September 2013.
Epic/Legacy (ie Sony) are to release Higher! a four-CD deluxe box set celebrating the music of Sly & The Family Stone.
This career-spanning package will feature 17 previously unreleased tracks, alternate versions, mono singles, demos, instrumental and live performances from concerts and TV appearances. A 104-page book comes as part of the set, and the discs and book will reside in a ten-inch square deluxe slip-case.
The book sounds excellent, featuring fully comprehensive liner notes, an illustrated timeline of Sly’s career, track-by-track annotations, rare photography, 45 rpm label and picture sleeve repros, vintage concert posters and ticket stubs from Sly & The Family Stone shows.
Higher! includes 77 tracks in total and is released on 26 August 2013. See track listing below for more details.
Purchasing notes: As well as the 4CD box set, US Amazon is offering an ‘exclusive’ (and expensive) 8LP+CD package, with the bonus CD said to contain “6 more extremely rare and previously unreleased tracks”. There is also a ‘best of the box’, 16-track, single CD ‘highlights’ edition which manages to squeeze into its running order a few of the unreleased gems. The UK box set is available for pre-order at the time of writing for a decent price of £39.
4CD Box Set
Japanese 4xBlu-Spec CD2 box set
8LP+CD Vinyl box set (bonus CD Amazon.com exclusive)
1CD ‘Highlights’ release
Higher! – Sly & The Family Stone full track listing:
Continue reading “Sly & The Family Stone / Higher! 4CD box set with unreleased rarities”
Muswell Hillbillies, The Kinks‘ 1971 album, will be reissued as a two-CD deluxe edition on 29 July 2013.
The album was the band’s first for RCA records and although critically well received, it was not a commercial success. This new edition pairs the original album with a bonus disc of alternate versions, demos and live tracks. These include Kentucky Moon and Mountain Woman which featured on the previous reissue.
Muswell Hillbillies deluxe edition track listing:
Disc: 1
Disc: 2
ABBA‘s 1973 debut album, Ring Ring, will be issued as a CD+DVD deluxe edition on 14 October 2013.
The original album comes with 13 bonus tracks, four of which are new to CD, while the DVD will feature some rare TV performances and the now familiar ‘International Sleeve Gallery’.
Amongst the bonus cuts are the rare original versions of the album tracks I Saw It In The Mirror and I Am Just A Girl; the 1970 recording There’s A Little Man, featuring Agnetha on backing vocals (her first contribution to a recording written and produced by Björn and Benny); Man vill ju leva lite dessemellan, a 1972 hit single for Frida featuring backing vocals by her fellow ABBA members; and En hälsning till våra parkarrangörer, a spoken-word promotion single from 1972 on which the four ABBA members talk up their 1973 tour of Sweden.
Although the DVD looks a little thin on content, in addition to the archive footage, it features a 2012 report from Swedish television where Benny tells the story of the writing and recording of Ring Ring, and he goes in-depth on the group’s creative process, isolating the different tracks on the original multi-track tape. That sounds interesting.
The package also includes a 20-page illustrated booklet featuring an extensive essay on the making of the album.
RING RING Deluxe Edition track listing:
Continue reading “ABBA / “Ring Ring” 40th anniversary deluxe edition coming soon”
Demon Records, the new vinyl-only imprint from Demon Music Group, are set to delve into their broad catalogue for some more special – and very limited – vinyl releases.
Titles issued in July 2013 include Sugar‘s Beaster (limited to 500 copies), a picture disc of Saxon‘s Dogs Of War (750 copies) and The Beat‘s Wha’ppen (750 copies).
Fans will also be clamouring for some special coloured vinyl sets, including Deacon Blue‘s classic Raintown on transparent blue vinyl (1000 copies), and Ian McCulloch‘s recent Holy Ghost album across a triple transparent yellow vinyl set (500 copies – a What Records exclusive).
All releases come with a download code to obtain an MP3 versions of the songs and most are pressed on 180g heavyweight vinyl.
Foghat: ‘Fool For The City’ (500 copies)
UK Pre-order: Fool For The City – Vinyl [VINYL]
Sugar: ‘Beaster’ (500 copies)
UK Pre-order: Beaster – Vinyl [VINYL]
Saxon: ‘Dogs Of War’ Picture Disc (750 copies)
UK Pre-order: Dogs Of War – Picture Disc Vinyl
Ian McCulloch: ‘Holy Ghosts’ 3LP yellow vinyl (500 copies)
What Records Exclusive
Deacon Blue: ‘The Hipsters’ Transparent yellow vinyl (1000 copies)
UK Pre-order: The Hipsters – Vinyl
Deacon Blue: ‘Raintown’ (1000 copies)
UK Pre-order: Raintown – Vinyl
Deacon Blue: ‘When The World Knows Your Name’ (1000 copies)
UK Pre-order: When The World Knows Your Name – Vinyl
The Beat: ‘Wha’ppen?’ (500 copies)
UK Pre-order: Wha’Ppen – Vinyl
Jim Croce: ‘I Got A Name’ (500 copies)
UK Pre-order: I Got A Name – Vinyl
Kim Wilde has today revealed the full track listing for Universal Music’s 25th anniversary reissue of her 1988 album Close.
As we reported last week, Universal have added some extra tracks, over and above what Cherry Red were looking to release a few years ago (see the Cherry Red version here).
The two extra tracks are previously unreleased mixes of lead single Hey Mr Heartache – ‘Bonus Beats’ and ‘Acapella With Percussion’. The Shep Pettibone US 7″ mix of You Came moves to the end of CD1 (from CD2) to incorporate the additional tracks on the second disc.
Kim Wilde fans should be fairly happy with this – nothing lost from the original proposed version and a couple of previously unreleased mixes. Let us know what you think.
Close will be released on 2 September 2013.
Full Track Listing:
Continue reading “Kim Wilde / “Close” 2CD track listing”
It’s fair to say that UK reissue label Cherry Red Records aren’t exactly renowned for deluxe packaging. For the most part their reissues tend to be delivered in those hinged double jewel cases that have a lifespan of around five minutes.
So, to give credit where it’s due, they have done a marvellous job with their new five-disc indie-fest Scared To Get Happy. It comes in the form of a soft-feel ‘book pack’ and contains an extensive 58-page booklet. Lora Findlay’s design is superb, and all in all, this is a great example of how making an effort with presentation and packaging, creates a really desirable product that is light years away from a bunch of MP3s. More details on this set can be found here.
This five-CD set contains 113 remastered tracks, from Motown’s output during the first half of 1972, and will have a limited production run of 7,500.
Nile Rodgers performed a triumphant set at this year’s Glastonbury Festival, with his Chic Organisation, and even managed to get a sneaky plug in for this two-CD hits compilation!
A new vinyl box set that gathers together Fleetwood Mac‘s output from 1969 to 1972 will be issued on 19 August 2013.
The set starts with the band’s third album (their first for Warners) Then Play On (1969) and contains three further records: Kiln House (1970), Future Games (1971) and Bare Trees (1972). A bonus seven-inch replica of 1969 single Oh Well – Pt. 1 is also included.
Although these aren’t heavyweight pressings (140g), Chris Bellman at Bernie Grundman Mastering cut the lacquers for all four albums and the packaging is promised to replicate the originals, including gatefolds for Then Play On and Kiln House. The five records are housed in an attractive looking black slip-case.
An expanded CD reissue of the Then Play On album will be issued on the same date, featuring four bonus tracks: parts one and two of Oh Well, The Green Manalishi (With The Two Prong Crown) and World In Harmony, which is available on CD for the first time
• UK Pre-order: Fleetwood Mac: 1969 – 1972 VINYL box
• USA pre-order: Fleetwood Mac 1969-1972 VINYL box
• GERMANY Pre-order: Fleetwood Mac 1969-1972 VINYL box
• CANADA Pre-order: Fleetwood Mac 1969-1972 VINYL box
Edsel Records will issue a series of releases dubbed Live From Metropolis Studios on 9 September 2013.
Iconic eighties artists Heaven 17, Belinda Carlisle, Level 42 and Spandau Ballet’s Tony Hadley have all performed intimate sets at Metropolis, the West London studio complex, in the last 18 months, which were filmed and recorded.
These new DVD+CD combo sets feature the audio and video for the full concerts, with bonus documentaries included on the DVDs.
The images above confirm that Edsel are presenting these sets in their ‘casebound book’ packaging, and they are available now for pre-order for around the £10, which is reasonably good value.
Heaven 17
Belinda Carlisle
Level 42
Tony Hadley
Full track listings and details below:
Continue reading “Edsel prepare “Live From Metropolis” combo packs of eighties favourites”
Last Thursday we revealed that Mike Oldfield‘s 1983 album Crises will be reissued on 2 September as a 5-disc box set. We are now pleased to bring you the first picture of this release, which looks like a nicely designed package, complete with a hardback book.
At the time of writing this release still hasn’t been officially announced, and whether Crises will be offered as a cheaper two or three disc variant, or a new deluxe vinyl LP remains to be seen.
Five Miles Out is released as a 2CD+DVD set on the same day – more details and tracklistings can be found here.
Crises 5-disc box set
Five Miles Out 2CD+DVD
Earlier this year we reported that Universal Music were working on the reissue of Kim Wilde’s 1988 album Close.
For a while it looked like a summer release was likely, but that has slipped back and the deluxe edition is now due on 2 September 2013.
Universal are staying tight-lipped on the track listing at this stage, but interestingly, they have confirmed to this blog that the release will have ‘more tracks’ on it in comparison to the ‘Cherry Red’ track listing, which was detailed on our earlier post. That tells us that Universal have definitely not just copied what Cherry Red would have done, had they secured the license to reissue this album.
This has also being confirmed as a two-CD set, and it is now available for pre-order.
Thirty years on from the original release, audiophile specialists Mobile Fidelity are issuing a hybrid SACD edition of Billy Joel‘s An Innocent Man.
Joel’s ninth studio album proved to be a massive commercial success, with three US top ten hits, including the UK number one Uptown Girl.
This numbered, limited edition is mastered from the original master tapes and will play on all CD players and SACD players. Mofi boast that the quality of the audio on this set “effortlessly outshines that heard on all previous editions”.
An Innocent Man Hybrid SACD is released on 2 July 2013.
An Innocent Man SACD track listing:
September 2013 sees the 30th anniversary (ish) reissues of two Mike Oldfield albums.
1982’s Five Miles Out, which features the single Family Man (covered with great commercial success by Hall and Oates) will be issued as a three disc 2CD+DVD edition, with the DVD featuring a 5.1 surround sound mix.
Oldfield’s follow-up to Five Miles Out was Crises, released little over a year later in May 1983. That album was responsible for another bit hit, this time Moonlight Shadow, which was a top ten hit in many countries around the world and in the UK is well known for being featured on the first of the long running Now That’s What I Call Music series.
Amazon are listing a 5-disc Crises box set, with a release date of 2 September, the same day as Five Miles Out. At this stage there is no official confirmation of exactly what will be on each disc, but the track listings are available on Amazon and Oldfield confirmed to his personal Facebook group earlier this year that Crises will be mixed for 5.1 surround sound. Here’s some of his message from Mike:
“Here is a screenshot of my studio Mac with “Crises” long instrumental all labelled and ready to mix.
I have started putting some automation down and it’s so great to work in 5.1 as there is so much more room for all the sounds in that lovely big space. I was working on Moonlight Shadow 5.1 last night and that’s easy to mix and everything is sounding amazing. The folks at the archiving company are having a bit of trouble finding the old masters of Taurus 3 and Foreign Affair but they have 2 mysterious big reels of Ampex tape in the oven so hopefully those tracks will be found. Shadow on the Wall will be the long version.”
In a later message he added:
“Have had a quick look at Moonlight Shadow and it’s magic you just push the faders up and it sounds fantastic. Found an extra Maggie Reilly vocal take so will have a good look at that.”
All in all exciting news for Mike Oldfield fans! Track listings for both releases are below, although with no official confirmation it may take some educated guessing to establish whether tracks are live versions, demos, 5.1 etc.
Crises 5-disc box set
Five Miles Out 2CD+DVD
Full track listings:
Continue reading “Mike Oldfield / Five Miles Out reissue and Crises 5-disc box set”
Although the jury is still out on the cover design, Sony have done a great job, overall, with the presentation of their new Blow Monkeys‘ hits package Halfway To Heaven.
The luxurious eight-panel digipak contains the three CDs (Best of The Blow Monkeys, Best of Dr. Robert solo and a December 1984 gig The Blow Monkeys Live at the Hammesmith Palais) and a 20-page booklet with decent sleeve notes telling the story of the band, with plenty of new quotes from Dr. Robert.
Available for under £12 this set is competitively priced and has plenty to offer casual and devoted fans alike. Full track listing can be found here.
Polish-born Basia Trzetrzeleska (pronounced Basha Chechelevska) released Time and Tide, her debut album, on CBS records in 1987. Despite heavy promotion and a string of singles in the UK, the record was destined only for modest success in Britain, but would go on to sell over a million copies in the US and also prove very successful in France.
Basia had worked alongside keyboard player and songwriter Danny White to make Time and Tide. The pair had effectively been two thirds of the latin infused British jazz-pop outfit Matt Bianco (Mark Reilly being the other key member of that band). That Matt Bianco line-up was destined to last for only one album (Who’s Side Are You On) but Basia and Danny would forge a musical relationship that lasts to this day.
Earlier this month Time and Tide was reissued as a two-CD deluxe edition and we recently spoke to both Basia and Danny White about their memories of that period. Additionally, legendary ‘mixmaster’ Phil Harding (best known for his mixing and production work at Pete Waterman’s PWL studios) offers an interesting perspective on Basia and Danny’s work, both during the Matt Bianco period, and afterwards when Basia went solo. Uniquely, Phil worked with them on both the first Matt Bianco album (mixing and recording large parts of that record) and Basia’s Time and Tide (mixing only).
So just how did this young woman from Poland come to be a successful solo artist, signed to a major label in just four short years? Basia takes us right back to the beginning:
The early years
“I worked in a Polish vocal group. But when you’re one of six people, you’re really nobody. I didn’t really have any success in Poland and one of the reasons it was so easy for me to leave Poland – I met an English guy and moved in the eighties with him here [UK] – was because I wasn’t really leaving anything important behind in Poland, I had no career there at all.”
Like most success stories, luck, good fortune, and coincidence played their part and that was the case with Basia. Danny remembers how it started with a band he was in called Bronze…
“One of the guys [in the band] was Warne Livesey who went on to be a producer”, he explains, “and we had a drummer called Jeff Rich, who went on to be in Status Quo for many years. The singer was Tessa Niles, who was married to the arranger Richard Niles. For whatever reason, she left the band and we put an ad in Melody Maker for a singer. Basia – fresh from Poland – was one of the people who got in touch. Her husband actually answered the ad on her behalf, and we said that we needed a demo tape and a photograph, which she didn’t have – well she didn’t have a demo tape. So that was the last we heard from her. Then Warne, who was working in Wave Studios in Twickenham, as an engineer, happened to be there while she went in to do a recording of some demos for the purpose of doing her tape. So he said he’d heard this really good singer and that we should check her out, and that’s how we met Basia.”
Continue reading “From Matt Bianco to Basia: The story of “Time and Tide””
In a new feature, we highlight what YOU have been telling us about the latest releases or newly announced product in the last few weeks. These are comments left on our Facebook page, or thoughts and views posted here on this blog.
Our exclusive annoucement revealing the track listing of Nik Kershaw’s The Riddle deluxe edition prompted many fans to declare that the bonus disc was a big disappointment…
“I’m just delighted that at last one of my favourite ever albums is being properly remastered” Gerry Forrester
“To not include the ‘Wild Horses’ 12″, ‘Progress’ (live) and any other goodies hanging around the vaults seems a little short sighted and bizarre??” Martin
“Missed opportunity but great to have it remastered. The breaking of the live tracks up is a strange one.” Andy Patchell
“Completely disappointing and doesnt make any sense. It doesnt use all the disc, isn’t complete in any sense and the track order weird. Please Nik – revise!” Mike
The Beach Boys Made In California box set has finally been announced and here’s what you had to say about it…
“About £40 too much I’d say.” Stephen Hoffman
“It’s very comprehensive, but… my biggest complaint is the fifth disc; as patchy as the post-70s albums are, the disc feels like an apology for three decades’ work; five songs taken from five albums (one of which isn’t represented at all) plus a few rarities and outtakes isn’t enough.” Thom
“The “60 unreleased tracks” is misleading since most are released tracks that have been tweaked (now in stereo, etc)” Mike Cox
“£100!!! Compare to the 17 disc Nilsson set @ around £50.” Mike
We revealed that Elton John’s Goodbye Yellow Brick Road would be receiving the 40th annversary treatment later this year, and asked you what you’d like to see in it…
“This *has* to include the 5.1 mix, and even a hi-res 5.1 mix in Blu Ray audio. However, I ain’t holding my breath ;-)” Rob Purcelli
“5.1, but not restricted to the pricey box!” Mike Fisher
“According to Peter Asher’s website he is producing a CD of new cover versions of GYBR songs for inclusion in the 40th anniversary edition of the album.” Jeremy
“How about the December 22nd, 1973 show from the Hammersmith Odeon. It has a great setlist from ths GBYBR tour.” Stephen
