Neil Young is releasing an album of some of his earliest recordings with Crazy Horse; familiar songs in mostly rare, unreleased versions.
The 10-track album includes iconic Neil Young originals and a few tracks co-written with Danny Whitten, including unreleased versions of ‘Come On Baby Let’s Go Downtown’ (first issued on Crazy Horse’s 1971 debut album as ‘Downtown, and then later on Tonight’s The Night) and ‘Look At All The Things’ (a solo Whitten composition, also from Crazy Horse).
There’s also unreleased versions of ‘Helpless’, ‘Wonderin” and ‘Down by the River’ plus rare/unreleased mixes of ‘Birds’ and ‘Cinnamon Girl’ (the seven-inch mono mix that includes a guitar outro not on the original LP version).
This album is effectively like a mini Archives release! Speaking of which, only two tracks out of 10 feature in an Archives box (Vol 1), surely making this a ‘must buy’ for Neil Young fans. It’s available on CD, black vinyl and an indie clear vinyl pressing (the latter comes with an exclusive poster).
Early Daze will be released on 28 June 2024, via Warner Records.
David Bowie’s 1972 album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars has been mixed in Dolby Atmos and will be released physically, on a standalone blu-ray audio in September.
David’s breakthough album features numerous classic songs such as ‘Starman’, ‘Moonage Daydream’, ‘Ziggy Stardust’, ‘Five Years’ and ‘Suffragette City’, was Bowie’s first hit album, reaching number five in the UK chart in 1972, while ‘Starman’ was a top 10 single.
This is the first Dolby Atmos Mix of a Bowie studio album. Since the start of the ‘eras’ campaign with Five Years box set in 2015, Parlophone have not released any of David’s albums in surround sound. It has actually been 14 years since the last release, which was Station to Station, within the big box set. Before that, there was a 5.1 mix of Young Americans in 2007 (as part of a now out-of-print CD+DVD set) and prior to that was a Ziggy Stardust SACD in 2003.
The blu-ray contains the first ever Atmos Mix of a Bowie studio album
The blu-ray will feature the following audio streams:
2024 Dolby Atmos Mix
2024 Stereo MIx (96/24)
Original 1972 Stereo Mix – 2012 Remaster (192/24)
Original 1972 Stereo Mix – 2012 Remaster (48/24)
The Atmos mix was created by Emre Ramazanoglu with original producer Ken Scott at RAK Studios, London. This, along with a new 2024 stereo mix, are unique to this physical product – neither are included on the blu-ray in the forthcoming Rock ‘n’ Roll Star! box set. Parlophone have chosen not to include Ken Scott’s 2003 5.1 mix on this Atmos blu-ray, which is a bit of a shame.
If you don’t have an Atmos-compatible amp/receiver but do have a 5.1 set-up, it ‘down mixes’ to what is a new 5.1 mix on your system.
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars blu-ray audio will be issued on 6 September 2024, via Parlophone. Secure your copy via the SDE shop, the home of blu-ray audio! Pre-order using this link or the button below.
Tracklisting
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from MarsDavid Bowie/blu-ray audio
2024 Dolby Atmos Mix, New 2024 Stereo Mix (192/24), original Stereo Mix (96/24)
The Nik Kershaw box set that SDE exclusively revealed in our 2024 SDE Reissue Preview will be released in July. Called The MCA Years, the 10CD+DVD box set brings together Nik’s first four albums with a further seven discs of bonus content.
The four albums are of course Human Racing (1984), The Riddle (1984), Radio Musicola (1986) and The Works (1989). While the first two albums got decent – but not perfect – 2CD reissues around a decade ago, the last two have never been expanded so for that reason alone, The MCA Years is rather exciting.
The albums all stand alone on their respective CDs, newly remastered by Tony Dixon and overseen by Nik Kershaw. After that is six CDs of bonus content, made up of one disc of B-sides, three CDs of extended remixes, seven-inch mixes and the odd dub mix, and two CDs featuring Kershaw’s 1984 Hammersmith Odeon show released in its entirety for the first time!
The bonus DVD includes 13 promo videos and the filmed version of the Hammersmith show (which is edited and therefore doesn’t include all the audio tracks on those two CDs.
I interviewed Nik for this release last year and in the accompanying booklet he tells his ‘MCA story’ with anecdotes and recollections from this era.
The MCA Years will be released on 21 February 2025 (was 7 February 2025, 27 September 2024 and before that was 30 August 2024 and prior to that, 26 July 2024), via Cherry Red.
John Lennon’s 1973 album Mind Games will be reissued in July across numerous physical formats including a 6CD+2blu-ray deluxe edition and super deluxe edition which is limited to 1100 units worldwide.
Mind Games was John’s fourth solo album and was issued in late October 1973, about six weeks before McCartney’sBand on the Run, for some solo Beatles context. There was only one single from the album, its title track, which was a top 20 hit in America and a top 20 hit in the UK.
John was 33 at the time and found himself in personal and political upheaval. A years-long deportation battle with U.S. immigration continued to rage on while his anti-Vietnam war activism, and overtly political messages on 1972’s, Sometime in New York City (touted for a while as the next Lennon box set) made him a target of a newly elected Richard Nixon, leading to surveillance by the FBI.
Against this backdrop Lennon entered NYC’s Record Plant in August ’73 with musicians including drummer Jim Keltner, guitarist David Spinozza (who played on Macca’s Ram album), pianist Ken Ascher, bassist Gordon Edwards, pedal-steel player ‘Sneaky’ Pete Kleinow, saxophonist Michael Brecker, drummer Rick Marotta (he played on only a couple of tracks), and backing vocalists Jocelyn Brown, Christine Wiltshire, Angel Coakely and Kathy Mull.
If you have bought the Imagine, Gimme Some Truth or Plastic Ono Band reissues you’ll have an idea what to expect from the Mind Games reissue. It’s “fully authorised” by YokoOno Lennon and produced by SeanOno Lennon, who oversaw the creative direction. In terms of audio, everything has been completely remixed (from the original two-inch multi-track session tapes) and expanded for a deep listening experience both for stereo and immersive Dolby Atmos. Engineer Paul Hicks and mixers/engineers Sam Gannon and Rob Stevens were the team that worked on the audio.
The reissue, in deluxe set guise, at least, explores the album’s 1973 recording sessions at the Record Plant in New York City, from inception to the final master, through scores of unreleased outtakes, unadulterated versions, instrumentals, stripped down mixes, studio chatter and more, revealing how the songs evolved and came to life.
Yoko Ono Lennon says: “John was trying to convey the message that we all play mind games. But if we can play mind games, why not make a positive future with it – to be a positive mind game? ‘Mind Games’ is such an incredibly strong song. At the time, people didn’t quite get the message because this was before its time. Now, people would understand it. I don’t think in those days people knew they were playing mind games anyway.”
6CD + 2 x blu-ray deluxe edition (click to enlarge)
The 6CD+Blu-ray deluxe edition offers the now familiar different types of mixes across the six CDs. These are
• ULTIMATE MIXES – new stereo mixes created from high-definition 24/192 audio transfers of the original first-generation multitrack recordings (by Matthew Cocker at Abbey Road Studios) to create the best possible recreations of the originals.
• ELEMENTAL MIXES – Simpler stripped-back, lean-back arrangements, erring towards the acoustic, with John’s voice to the fore, and without drums.
• ELEMENTS MIXES – These highlight specific performances from the musicians, sometimes unheralded or unheard. Thesereduce the songs to the minimum amount of instruments possible; at most, only three instruments are heard at any one time. With the focus taken away from John’s vocal, the delicacy and nuance of these performers is allowed to shine through.
• EVOLUTION DOCUMENTARY – Mini audio documentaries that explore the development of each song from their very first demo state through to the fully formed master take via in-studio development, chat and out-takes. Edited down from the original 16-track multitrack tapes, demo cassettes and other source tapes.
• THE RAW STUDIO MIXES – These offer exactly what was recorded during the sessions. The songs have been mixed with minimum effects, tape delays or reverbs, recreating as close to possible what these performances sounded like, raw and live.
• THE OUT-TAKES – Having reviewed all the takes from the entire recording sessions, the best alternate take of every song on the album is presented.
The two blu-rays in the deluxe set feature EVERYTHING on the six CDs in hi-res stereo, 5.1 and Dolby Atmos, so that is the Ultimate Mixes, Elemental Mixes, Elements Mixes, Evolution Documentary, Out-takes and Raw Studio Mixes. Additionally you get, 2024 remastered ‘Mind Games’ music video and ‘You Are Here’ (additional out-take) tape boxes video.
Additionally, the deluxe edition includes a 128-page hardback coffee table book that tells the story behind each of the songs and the making of the album in the words of John & Yoko’s (taken from hundreds of hours of archive interviews), and the words of those who worked alongside them. There’s exclusive never-before-seen photographs by Bob Gruen and photos, lyrics, letters, original tape boxes and memorabilia from the John Lennon & Yoko Ono Lennon Archives. There’s also a reproduction of the original triptych marketing poster for the album; postcard sized reproductions of artworks made for the marketing of the album in 1973 and an individually numbered Citizen of Nutopia ID Card.
There are also 2CD and 2LP editions of Mind Games, both of which combine ‘Ultimate Mixes’ on the first disc and ‘Outtakes’ on the second.
In a first for John Lennon reissues, a special, highly limited super deluxe edition limited to 1100 copies worldwide. Available via D2C / Universal Music channels only (e.g. The Sound of Vinyl in the UK), this is described as “a time capsule into John and Yoko’s world around the writing and recording of Mind Games, including the times leading up to and after its release in 1973. This eleborate package is presented in a 13-inch cube, a perspex reproduction of Yoko’s 1966 artwork ‘Danger Box’. Once lifted, four sides, featuring artwork from Mind Games on shiny mirror board, fall to reveal nine individual boxes of various shapes and sizes interlocked together, each with its own look and focus. Hidden throughout are many Easter Eggs, some of which can only be revealed by using other items in the box to see them, along other hidden secrets, surprises, puzzles, and ‘mind games’. The box is housed inside a striking 13” packing container cube adorned with custom art.
The super deluxe edition, with perspex cube removed (click to enlarge)
This super deluxe edition features everything in the deluxe (6CDs, 2 blu-rays) plus 7LPs (in four gatefold sleeves) featuring all the content on the six CDs. There’s also two Zoetrope vinyl LPs (which feature Ultimate Mixes + Outtakes) a hologram-engraved picture disc (seven-inch, we presume) that contains ‘Mind Games (Ultimate Mix)’ & ‘Meat City’ (Ultimate Mix). In the super deluxe you also get the bigger, deep-dive 288-page Thames & Hudson book which goes into more detail about the making of Mind Games (you still get the smaller book in the deluxe and the big book is available separately). On top of all that, it includes a Citizen of Nutopia box (various bits of memorabilia), a ‘You Are Here’ box (12-inch circular canvas reproduction of John Lennon’s artwork You Are Here, 1968 with a Certificate of Authenticity), an I-Ching box (three customized John & Yoko I-Ching coins, ultraviolet flashlight and Magic Magnet) and a Puzzle Tiles box (no further details!). This super deluxe box is £1350!
Mind Games is released on 19 July 2024 via UMR. Leave thoughts and comments below.
Yes’ 1972 album Fragile is being reissued as a six-disc super deluxe edition.
The 4CD+blu-ray+LP set features a newly remastered version of the original album, new 2024 stereo mixes, instrumental mixes, rarities, live recordings and more.
Fragile marked keyboardist Rick Wakeman’s debut with Yes, which included Jon Anderson (lead vocals), Chris Squire (bass, vocals), Bill Bruford (drums), and Steve Howe (guitar). After he joined in the summer of 1971, the band recorded nine songs for the album, four group arrangements (‘Roundabout’), and five individual compositions, including Anderson’s ‘We Have Heaven’ and Howe’s instrumental ‘Mood For A Day’.
The blu-ray offers five versions of the album, with everything bar the remaster newly mixed by Steven Wilson.
2024 Dolby Atmos Mix
2024 5.1 mix
2024 New Stereo Mix
2024 Instrumentals
2024 Remaster of Original Mix
The lacquers for the included vinyl record have been cut by audio engineer Bernie Grundman. This new reissue of Fragile will be packaged the same as The Yes album and comes with a booklet.
South Side Of The Sky – Early Version (Steven Wilson Mix)
Long Distance Runaround (Steven Wilson Edit) *
Heart Of The Sunrise (Steven Wilson Edit) *
America
Roundabout – Early Rough Mix
13. “We Have Heaven – Acapella (Steven Wilson Mix)
CD 4: More Rarities & Live
Five Per Cent For Nothing” – Alternate Version *
Heart Of The Sunrise” – Alternate Version *
Long Distance Runaround/The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus)”- Alternate Version *
The Dean”
America” – Instrumental *
Live at the Academy of Music, NYC (2/19/72)
Long Distance Runaround / The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus)” *
Perpetual Change” *
Yours Is No Disgrace” *
* previously unreleased
Blu-ray
The following tracks in these formats: 2024 Steven Wilson Dolby Atmos Mix
2024 5.1 Mix DTS-HD MA
2024 Stereo Remix
2024 Stereo Remaster
2024 Instrumental Mix
Battersea Power Station – now completely redeveloped into a shopping centre and residential/office block complex – made for an appropriate venue for a playback, last night, of the new Dolby Atmos Mix of Pink Floyd’s 1977 album, Animals.
SDE was there, with selected guests and media, to hear the new immersive mix in the Cinema in Turbine Hall B, in the company of Aubrey ‘Po’ Powell of Hipgnosis and Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason.
Originally comprising two coal-fired power stations (‘A’ was completed in 1935, while a delayed ‘B’ wasn’t operational until 1955) the building was eventually decommissioned in the late 1970s and made a Grade II listed building in 1980. It then spent three-and-a-half decades in a state of disrepair with various plans to redevelop, never coming to fruition.
Daryl Easlea interviews Nick Mason after the playback (click image to enlarge)
Po Powell in his talk with Daryl Easlea, before the playback, said: “When I came here with Roger Waters [late in 1976] it was pretty shocking. The building was out of use, although they had one turbine that was still functioning a bit, but around the building was a phenomenal mess. Detritus was everywhere: it was old rolling stock; slag heaps of coal; barbed wire, with bits of plastic stuck to it – it was just a mess. And I think Roger and I were shocked at the state of it. But what was very interesting was that knocking on the only available door of this huge edifice, somebody answered! And this bloke with a cloth cap and overalls said “What do you want?” and we said “We want to fly a pig between the chimneys”. He said “How much?”. “£200?”. He said “Done!”. No word of a lie, it was that simple. Health and Safety didn’t exist. A week later, there we were: Pink Floyd, me and a pig.
After the Atmos playback Nick Mason took to the stage to talk to Daryl. He admitted that he hadn’t listened to the whole album “in 40 years” but found it really interesting listen with “so many elements of it that I’d completely forgotten about, like Rick’s playing”. He also added that “the melodic structure is far more sophisticated than I remember”. Nick also commented on “how dark the record is, lyrically and musically”.
Pink Floyd’s Nick Mason with SDE’s Paul Sinclair
Animals was the first album that Pink Floyd recorded in their own studio, Britannia Row, in Islington, London. “We devised it to be something we could absolutely operate on our own, either as individuals or as a band” said Nick, although he admitted that the album is “probably the least accurate, in terms of not having that Abbey Road facility, with all that back-up. It was more or less [just] us, the tech guy who looked after the equipment and Brian Humphries, who was the engineer”.
The Atmos Mix of Animals (a full review will follow) is released on Friday on blu-ray audio and streaming. If you have pre-ordered from the the SDE shop, the home of blu-ray audio, shipping has already started. If you haven’t placed your order yet and would like to support SDE you can do so using this link or the button below.
Before and after. Battersea Power Station on the cover of the album and as it is today (click to enlarge)
SDEtv explores the two recent Wham! SDE-exclusive blu-ray audios – Fantastic and Make It Big – that were recently released in collaboration with Sony Music. These are available only via the SDE shop using this link, or the button below.
Tracklisting
FantasticWham! /SDE-exclusive blu-ray audio
Dolby Atmos & 96/24 Stereo
Bad Boys
A Ray of Sunshine
Love Machine
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?)
A Ray of Sunshine (Instrumental Remix)
Love Machine (Instrumental Remix)
Club Tropicana
Nothing Looks The Same in the Light
Come On
Young Guns (Go For It!)
Nothing Looks The Same in the Light (Instrumental Remix)
Bonus tracks in Dolby Atmos & Stereo
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) – single version 3.32
Young Guns (Go For It) – single version 3.43
Young Guns (Go For It) UK 12” mix 5.11
Blue (Armed With Love) 3.56
Bonus tracks in Stereo-only
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) [Club Mix] 4.20
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) [Social Mix] 6.45
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) [Unsocial Mix] 6.38
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) [Special Club Remix] 3.05
Young Guns (For For It) – Special US 12” Remix 6.53
Going For It 4.39
Bad Boys (12” Extended Club Mix) 4.58
Bad Boys (instrumental) 3.21
Club Tropicana (instrumental) 3.31
Club Fantastic Megamix 3.57
Tracklisting
Make It Big Wham! /SDE-exclusive blu-ray audio
Dolby Atmos & 96/24 Stereo
Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go 3.51
Everything She Wants 5.03
Heartbeat 4.44
Like A Baby 4.15
Freedom 5.02
If You Were There 3.39
Credit Card Baby 5.10
Careless Whisper 6.32
Bonus tracks in Dolby Atmos & Stereo
Careless Whisper (Single Version) 5.03
Freedom (version from The Final) 5.20
Last Christmas 4.26
Everything She Wants (Remix edit) 5.30
Freedom (Long Version) 7.09
Last Christmas (Pudding Mix) 6.45
Everything She Wants (Remix) 6.30
I’m Your Man 4.07
The Edge of Heaven 4.37
Battlestations 5.31
Where Did Your Heart Go? 5.50
Bonus tracks in Stereo-only
A Ray of Sunshine (specially recorded for ‘The Tube’)
Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go (instrumental) 4.02
Freedom (instrumental) 5.10
Last Christmas (Pudding Mix Edit) 4.47
I’m Your Man (Extended Stimulation)
Do It Right (Instrumental)
I’m Your Man (Acappella)
Blue (Recorded Live in China)
I’m Your Man (version from Music From The Edge Of Heaven version)
Pink Floyd release a brand new Dolby Atmos Mix of their 1977 album Animals on blu-ray audio. It’s available via the home of blu-ray audio, the SDE shop.
Various Artists / Now 80s Dancefloor R&B & Funk (2LP set)
Another Now That’s What I Call Music 2LP coloured vinyl set, this time themed around R&B & Funk. Artists include Cameo, Barry White, James Brown, The Gap Band, Alexander O’Neal, The S.O.S. Band, Sheila E., the Dazz Band, Sly Fox, and more.
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Various Artists
NOW Thats What I Call 80s Dancefloor: R&B & FUNK [VINYL]
A Miles Showell half-speed mastered vinyl edition of Pete Townshend’s second solo album which was originally released in 1982, and produced by Chris Thomas. 1985’s White City: A Novel gets the same treatment.
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Pete Townshend
All the Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes - half-speed vinyl
With the announcement on Thursday of some ‘new’ Duran Duran reissues, SDE thought it would be a good time to look back at the busy 2010 reissue campaign and check out the interesting, but inconsistent approach given to the band’s catalogue almost a decade-and-a-half ago. Leave a comment with your thoughts on these old deluxe editions.
Sony will reissue Bruce Springsteen’s 1984 album Born in the USA on vinyl, for its 40th anniversary.
The album will be pressed on translucent red vinyl and is presented in a gatefold sleeve. It comes with a booklet, featuring new sleeve notes from Erik Flannigan and a litho print.
That’s it! There’s no other physical formats, which is of course very disappointing. There’s also no mention of the mastering, but it’s probably same to assume this is the 2014 mastering, as used on the The Album Collection, Vol 1 box set.
Born in the USA will be released on 14 June 2024.
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Springsteen, Bruce
Born In The USA (40th Anniversary Edition Colour Vinyl) [VINYL]
Warner Records are reissuing Duran Duran’s first five albums on CD and vinyl.
Duran Duran (1981), Rio (1982), Sevenand the Ragged Tiger (1983), Notorious (1986) and Big Thing (1988) have all been out-of-print for a while (at least, in theory), and it’s worth remembering that the last vinyl reissues (circa 2010) were all 2LP deluxe sets, with bonus tracks – there was no standalone versions.
These reissues are single vinyl LP and single CD releases, with no bonus tracks, and they use the 2010 remasters so far as audio is concerned (Rio was actually remastered in 2009). This is significant, since the 2010 CD remastering of the band’s debut album is widely regarded as being atrocious. The so-called ‘loudness wars’ at their worst. The label ignored fan criticism at the time and here we are 14 years later and they are choosing to use the same audio again. Okay…
All five albums are reissued on CDs in gatefold card sleeves (click image to enlarge)
One point to underline is that Big Thing features the un-remixed version of ‘Drug’ which superseded the original remixed version. John Taylor, in the sleeve notes for the 2010 reissue, admitted the decision, in 1988, to include the remix of ‘Drug’ – and not the original recording – was “made in haste” and the band quickly realised they “had made a big mistake”. Duran Duran had “compromised the integrity and sonic flow” of the album, he said. I agree, so it’s good that this change is now effectively permanent.
There’s not too much else to say, about these reissues, other than the CD packaging looks quite nice, since they are presented in mini-LP CD style gatefold sleeves. But if you already own vinyl or CD editions of these albums that you are happy with, then no action required, with the proviso that Big Thing is definitely worth picking up, if you have a pre-2010 version, for the reasons outlined above.
All five Duran Duran albums are issued on CD and vinyl on 19 July 2024, via Warner Records. Offer your thoughts on this campaign by leaving a comment and scrolling up for the SDE Reader Rating!
Lindsey Buckingham’s three solo albums, recorded between 1981 and 1992 are collected in a new 4CD box set called 20th Century Lindsey.
Law and Order (1981), Go Insane (1984), and Out of the Cradle (1992) all feature audio remastered in 2017 from the original master tapes (presumably when his Solo Anthology: The Best of Lindsey Buckingham was prepared).
Now we’re getting full albums and a bonus disc – 20th Century Rarities – is a compilation of non-album tracks including rare extended mixes (‘Go Insane’, ‘Slow Dancing’) and soundtrack contributions, such as ‘Time Bomb Town’ (from Back to the Future, 1985) and ‘Twisted’ – his duet with Stevie Nicks (Twister, 1996).
There is a vinyl box, but at the moment that only seems to be available via the US-based Rhino.com, although signed editions are available. We’ll update this page if we spot this elsewhere!
20th Century Lindsey will be released on 16 August 2024, via Rhino.
Keane’s debut Hopes and Fears is issued as an SDE-exclusive blu-ray, #21 in the ongoing SDE Surround Series. This disc features a Dolby Atmos and 5.1 mix by David Kosten, alongside a the stereo version and a bonus track in all three audio streams.
A new scan of the 35mm negative of thisQueen 1981 concert film, plus a new Dolby Atmos Mix should mean that via this 4K blu-ray Queen Rock Montreal should be an amazing experience. The icing on the cake is Live Aid performance (and rehearsals) in Atmos (Live Aid is upscaled HD not true 4k). Remember you need a 4K blu-ray player and a 4K-compatible TV to enjoy this. Order from the SDE shop.
John Entwistle / The Ox (6CD box set)
Six solo albums of The Who’s John Entwistle, plus 29 bonus tracks in this new 6CD box set.
Peter Gabriel’s 2013 concert performance which saw him play So in its entirety, with the original So touring band. You need a 4K blu-ray player and a 4K-compatible TV to enjoy this release. Order from the SDE shop
With the ‘main’ Yearbook for 1974 released on Friday, Now That’s What I Call Music have announced the companion ‘Extra’ version, which contains 64 tracks across three CDs.
This set features songs from acts such as Elton John (‘The Bitch is Back’), Queen (‘Seven Seas of Rhye’), Slade (‘The Bangin’ Man’), Bryan Ferry (‘Smoke Gets in Your Eyes’), Leo Sayer (‘One Man Band’), Mud (‘Rocket’), Status Quo (‘Break the Rules’), David Essex (‘America’), Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel (‘Judy Teen’), Diana Ross & Marvin Gaye (‘Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart)’), Commodores (‘Machine Gun’), Roberta Flack (‘Feel Like Makin’ Love’), Barry White (‘Never, Never Gonna Give Ya Up’), Elvis Presley (‘My Boy’), Olivia Newton-John (‘Long Live Love’), Andy Williams (‘Solitaire’) and more.
Full tracklisting can be found below, and, as usual, this Extra edition comes packaged in a cheap-and-cheerful six panel card sleeve. Now Yearbook 1974 – Extra will be released on 7 June 2024.
Great price for the very cool Japan CD+Blu-ray deluxe presentation of Pink Floyd’sAtom Heart Mother. If you want to know exactly what this is like, watch the SDEtv unboxing video!
Yes/The Yes Album 4CD+blu-ray+LP4CD+blu-ray+LP super deluxe
40th anniversary Rolling Stones reissue from 2021. ‘Lost and Found’ bonus rarities on CD 2 are: ‘Living In The Heart Of Love’, ‘Fiji Jim’, ‘Troubles A’ Comin’, ‘Shame Shame Shame’, ‘Drift Away’, ‘It’s A Lie’, ‘Come To The Ball’, ‘Fast Talking Slow Walking’ and ‘Start Me Up (Early Version)’.
The Rolling Stones/Hackney Diamonds 2CD2CD Live Edition
You can pick up the 2CD ‘live edition’ of The Rolling Stones’Hackney Diamonds for £6.50 if you click on the voucher offer on the product listing on Amazon UK.
Original Lindsay Anderson cut of Wham! In China showing at BFI Southbank
British film and theatre director Lindsay Anderson was the brave – probably foolish – choice to film Wham! in 1985 on their famous 10-day visit to China, where they played two concerts (on 7th and 10th of April).
Anderson was in his early sixties in 1985 when he took the job and his career was rather in the doldrums after some singular and acclaimed work during the 1960s and 1970s (notably This Sporting Life (1963), the Palm D’Or winning If (1968) and O Lucky Man! (1973)). In his posthumously published diaries he admitted to having “no interest in Wham!” and stated that he was simply “doing this for the money”.
His lack of interest in Wham! must have been evident when Anderson presented his 77 min cut of the film, called If You Were There, to the dismay of the group, and in particular George Michael, who in essence, thought there was too much China and not enough Wham! in the film (there were just four songs from the tour, only one of which is a full performance).
The director was sacked, the editing team walked out and the film was entirely re-edited and renamed. It was released as Wham! in China: Foreign Skies, on VHS and laserdisc in 1986.
Sarah Bromage of the University of Stirling (home to a Lindsay Anderson archive) has seen If You Were There and says there was “a fundamental misunderstanding of the purpose of the documentary”. She points out that “Anderson’s film shows the beginning of the influence of western youth culture and capitalism in Chinese Society. In particular his footage, lost in the released version of the film, exposes the vast cultural divide between this dynamic pop group, British civil servants and the Chinese authorities”.
Lindsay Anderson’s original cut of Wham! In China: Foreign Skies is being shown at the BFI in London’s Southbank
Even the re-edited film is fairly rare these days (it has not been issued on DVD or blu-ray) but Lindsay Anderson’s cut has never been shown in public, at all, and has remained unseen in the near 40 years since it was filmed.
Now, with the permission of the George Michael Estate and Andrew Ridgeley, the British Film Institute is being allowed to screen If You Were There as part of their Anderson season called O Dreamland! Lindsay Anderson’s Dark British Cinema.
There will be two showings at London’s BFI Southbank: One on 25 May and another on 31 May. Tickets go on sale TODAY at 12.30pm. Book here.
SDE takes you through the new album, track-by-track
Pet Shop Boys 15th studio album saw Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe work with a new producer, James Ford. Their trilogy of long-players with producer Stuart Price ended on a high, with 2020’s Hotspot, a record this site described as “rather enjoyable”.
Like Hotspot, Nonetheless doesn’t outstay its welcome and offers 10 tracks all in the ballpark of 3-5 mins in length. Ford’s contribution is significant; as well as producing he contributes “additional programming, keyboards, guitars, percussion and drums”.
Opener ‘Loneliness‘ rewards repeated listens. Initially, I wasn’t too sure, but like many of the best Pet Shop Boys songs it combines melancholy and minor chords with beats and ultimately a caring optimism (“everyone needs time to think / no one can live without love”). It’s very catchy and the extended outro on the album version is lovely. A great start.
‘Feel‘ has skippy, vaguely house-y piano style beat before the strings and keyboard lines come in. Neil’s harmony vocals at the beginning sound precise and rather lush. The verses have a quick vocal pace before the chorus slows down with the draggy “you make me f-e-e-l like – nobody else can”. ‘Feel’ is a bright and breezy number. Initially, it ‘feels’ rather lightweight, and there’s certainly an almost childlike simplicity to the lyrics, but like much of Nonetheless its charms unfurl slowly. The beats sound good at the end, but it’s still surprising that this song is so high up the running order of the album.
‘Why Am I Dancing?’ has a literal fanfare at the beginning at the beats fade up. Given that Neil has reluctantly acknowledged that Nonetheless is what you might call Pet Shop Boys ‘lockdown’ album (he learnt how to program on Garageband), it’s not surprising that as with ‘Loneliness’, the lyrics address isolation (“Why am i dancing – when I’m so alone?). Again, there’s that seductive melancholy that pervades this song and it has a wonderful melody with a great tone to Neil’s vocal delivery. Like all the songs on this album, there are strings in the arrangement but the beats still come through strongly and have a vaguely retro feel to them.
‘New London Boy‘ is one of the best songs on the album. It has a beautiful laid back intro with sprightly arpeggiated keyboards coming in. ‘Bouncy’ is the adjective I’d used to describe the beginning of this song. Right at the beginning, Neil speaks the words “I remembering wondering… ” suggesting this might be spoken word all the way through but no, he completes the thought by singing in falsetto “Who am I? – and what will I turn out to be?”. The lyric is one of nostalgia as Neil looks back to being “a new London boy – like so many others – hanging around – with my glam rock brothers”. ‘New London Boy’ is elevated by Neil indulging in a wonderful ‘West End Girls’ style rap (“follow the style – plastic and showy – Everyone’s dancing to Roxy and Bowie”, he ‘sings’). Inevitably this lends this song a PSB authenticity; a feeling of being ‘classic’ Pet Shop Boys. It wouldn’t be out of place as a track on their second album, Actually.
‘Dancing Star’ was a good choice for the second single. It celebrates the life and spirit of Rudolf Nureyev, the Soviet-born ballet dancer who defected to the West in 1961 (“Jumped the barrier at Orly airport – claimed political asylum there”). There’s a simplicity to the arrangement which again harks back to early Pet Shop Boys and the documentary aspect to the lyrics echoes Chris and Neil’s composition ‘Nothing Has Been Proved’ which was, of course, sung by Dusty Springfield. The orchestral stabs, the synth bass and in particular the middle eight section with the handclaps are all vintage Pet Shop Boys.
‘A New Bohemia‘ is a ballad which starts ‘Side B’ of the album, if you have the vinyl version. Neil has confirmed that this will be the third single. The song has a traditional pop/rock structure with the first verse as Neil sings to a simple piano accompaniment before drums and strings fill out the sound for the chorus, which is very strong in terms of melody (“Where have they gone, les Petites Bons-Bons?”). You can read more about Les Petites Bons-Bons here. A New Bohemia flows effortlessly and exhibits a pleasing, evocative yearning for a lost era.
‘The Schlager Hit Parade‘ starts with acoustic guitars, for a slightly different vibe. The whole song is a commentary on Schlager music, a style of European music generally defined by catchy instrumental accompaniments to vocal-driven pop with simple and often sentimental lyrics; which is why Neil sings “It’s always Christmas or the sound of summer – in the Schlager Hit Parade” at the end of each chorus, where the song leans most towards ‘Go West’ (cheesy?) style Pet Shop Boys. There’s perhaps a hint of politics in the break (“The future is forever – let’s not dwell on the past”) but generally speaking this a straightforward song that adopts the Schalger style to make a point. It’s not necessarily cool, but it is catchy.
‘The Secret of Happiness‘ is a floaty, dreamy number driven by a bossa nova beat and beautiful sunny imagery, from Neil. The verse melody, when expressed by the horns, flirts with easy-listening, but the chorus is lovely; sophisticated, balanced, melodic and boasts a very cinematic string/horns arrangement. Tennant proves himself one of pop’s deftest lyricists with some lovely turns of phrase, particularly the break towards the end where he sings about how the secret of happiness “was always concealed from me”.
After the soft underbelly of the last few tracks it’s good to be back in clubland with ‘Bullet For Narcissus’ and its stripped back beats and quick punctuated guitar figures. After a few bars of intro, there’s a wonderfully catchy guitar lead line to usher us into the first verse. Neil takes pot shots at the titular Narcissus who we could read as any number of people in 2024 (“His politics are simply mean – he doesn’t trust what he hasn’t seen”). The strings are present, as with all the songs on the album, but you wonder if there was a case for doing this track without and them and giving this song a slightly harder edge. Still, it’s great and elements of that guitar line and the arrangement took me back to ‘Behaviour’.
Nonetheless ends with the very atmospheric and rather brilliant ‘Love is the Law’. As with ‘Bullet For Narcissus’, the textures, sounds and arrangement are Behaviour-esque to these ears. This denouement is night and day when compared to the rather trite ‘Wedding in Berlin’ at the end of Hotspot. Another brilliant lyric, Neil sings “Love is the law but you can’t regulate it – The desire is so strong and you won’t moderate it”. It’s a very strong end to the record.
Summary
Nonetheless really does deliver the goods. There are no duffers on the album and a pleasing variety of styles and sounds which often deploy elements that remind you of Pet Shop Boys at their best. Inevitably, the album’s highs don’t match the peaks of imperial phase PSB, but was anyone expecting that, 40 years after the Bobby Orlando version of ‘West End Girls’? James Ford appears to be a sympathetic and inspiring collaborator and the (real) strings are used with a reasonably light touch – don’t go away thinking this is an ‘orchestral’ album – it’s not. Impressive.
Bonus content: Furthermore review
For deluxe CD and vinyl editions of Nonetheless, Pet Shop Boys have included four new recordings of old songs: ‘Heart’, ‘Being Boring’, ‘Always On My Mind’ and ‘It’s a Sin’ (three UK number ones). These were recorded in 2021 and are all produced by Pet Shop Boys.
‘Heart’ has a leaner, clubbier vibe and the post chorus melody of ‘ahhs’ is not the same as the original but ultimately it’s not that different and it’s hard not to wonder, what’s the point? It’s noticeable that two out of the four tracks were originally produced by Julian Mendelsohn; was there some aspect to the original productions that the PSBs were never 100 percent happy with? ‘Being Boring’ was produced by Harold Faltermeyer and most fans would consider song and production near-perfect. The re-recording doesn’t improve on the original (obviously) with Tennant’s vocal delivery not matching the original. This new version a bit clubbier with touches of house piano. The most interesting part is in the middle where Neil speaks over the music and explains how his friend in Newcastle inspired the song. Despite fairly aggressive sequenced beats at the beginning, ‘Always On My Mind’ is the least successful of the songs on Furthermore. The horn sound is, frankly, awful and the arrangement is virtually identical, just not as good. “Siri, give me an inferior version of Always On My Mind”. Pointless. The new version of ‘It’s A Sin‘ rather borrows from the original disco mix arrangement (a good thing) and the vocal sounds very similar. But again, it’s not different enough to justify its existence. Having listened to all these tracks a few times, I can’t see why I’d ever want to listen to them again. A better title for this bonus EP would have been Superfluous.
Nonetheless is out now, via Parlophone. The limited blu-ray with the exclusive slipcase and the 2CD edition are available via the SDE shop using this link or the buttons below. The slipcased edition is limited to 3,000 units (we’ve almost sold out).
Little Feat’s 1974 album Feats Don’t Fail Me Now will be reissued for its 50th anniversary, in June.
The long-player has been newly remastered and a new 3CD edition offers 12 outtakes/rarities on CD 2 (seven, previously unreleased) and a third disc featuring a previously unreleased live recording.
3CD set offers studio rarities and unreleased live performances
A 2LP vinyl set offers a pure analogue cut version of the album (AAA) and a bonus LP with the same 12 rarities from the CD set. There’s no live material included in the vinyl package.
Feats Don’t Fail Me Now will be released on 14 June 2024, via Rhino.
Rhino continue with their Joni MitchellArchives reissue programme with The Asylum Albums 1976-1980 which delves into Joni Mitchell’s jazz-inflected sound on her 1970’s studio albums.
5CD and 6LP 180g vinyl box sets offer newly remastered editions of Hejira (1976), Don Juan’s Reckless Daughter (1977) and Mingus (1979) – and the live album Shadows and Light (1980).
The Asylum Albums 1976-1980 – 5CD box set (click image to enlarge)
Famed bassist and composer — and long-time Mitchell collaborator — Jaco Pastorius appears prominently on each of the four albums in this set, alongside other noted jazz luminaries like Charles Mingus and Herbie Hancock.
These boxes are presented “with premium packaging” and feature abstract cover artwork from Mitchell’s private fine arts collection. Don Juan’s Reckless Daughter has a new front cover.
The Asylum Albums 1976-1980 is released on 21 June 2024, via Rhino.
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