Out This Week / on 4 December 2020

I’m pleased to see Coldplay give a physical release to Christmas Lights. My top Christmas tunes are:

1 Chris Rea, Driving Home for Christmas
2 The Pogues and Kirsty MacColl, Fairy Tale Of New York
3 George Michael, December Song (I Dreamed Of Christmas) Why wasn’t this on The Last Christmas soundtrack?
4 Wham, Last Christmas
5 Slade, Merry Christmas Everybody
6 Wizzard, I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday
7 Mariah Carey, All I Want For Christmas Is You
8 The Pretenders, 2000 Miles
9 John & Yoko / Plastic Ono Band, Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
10 Coldplay, Christmas Lights
11 Frankie Goes To Hollywood, The Power Of Love
12 Bob Dylan, Must Be Santa
13 Nat King Cole, The Christmas Song
14 Johnny Mathis, When A Child Is Born
15 Gabriella Cilmi, I’m Gonna Be Warm This Winter

There’s probably loads more I like, but haven’t yet heard this year to remind me.

Always loved the album ” Tea for the Tillerman ” from Cat Stevens, so I ordered the deluxe box a few minutes ago. Should I order the other one too ? What du you think about this album ? Worth while or crap ?

Still waiting on my Billie Joe Armstrong exclusive LP to be despatched by the Official Warner Brothers Store. It’s still showing as “packing” and has done so since last Thursday. I’ve emailed them. No response. It was pre ordered 2 months ago and since its release date last Friday the LP is showing as being “in stock” on their website. Shocking service. Oh and they took my money two months ago too.

Agree with comments about Heaton/Abbott issue. I’ve bought albums on the release date, only to find that within 6 months a double edition turns up! I do love the album so I’ll probably buy it begrudgingly… wish it was just available as Manchester Calling 2.

Also out on Friday is the expanded & remastered Soft Cell comeback album Cruelty Without Beauty. Now expanded to 2 discs on CD, or available on vinyl for the first time, and as lossless format on memory stick featuring 75 tracks… Also a limited white vinyl of remixes.

Former Journey lead singer Steve Perry releases “Traces Alternate Versions and Sketches” this Friday, These 8 new versions of songs from the original Traces album from 2018 will feature a more stripped back acoustic sound, this album closes the Traces chapter and next year a new chapter will open up at some point.

Beautiful South was reissuing their albums on vinyl over the past couple years but got up to Blue is the Colour (which was scheduled) and then it didn’t come out. Fingers crossed it’s still on the way, but records like Miaow and the earlier 0898 and debut sound great…

I held out on buying the Heaton/Abbott album because I had a feeling there would be a new edition released, but then I bought it because I wasn’t hearing any news of one. And now, here it is. Sigh. I’ll likely be buying it anyway, because it’s the closest I can get to new Beautiful South material. (Speaking of which, why don’t they have a proper reissue campaign?)

Thanks Paul Heaton. I love the opportunity to buy an album for the 2nd time so close to the original issue date. Can’t wait for the deluxe 1st anniversary edition which should be released early in the new year. Maybe it will have a collectible cover?

Quick shout out to the team at Cherry Red, who this week are releasing an Immaculate Fools 7-CD boxed set, featuring 6 albums (plus assorted b-sides etc) together with a bonus disc of live material.

https://www.cherryred.co.uk/product/the-immaculate-fools-searching-for-sparks-the-albums-1985-1996-7cd-box-set/

I can’t speak for the the later albums (I bailed after the third), but the debut album is to my mind something of a lost 80s classic – and I think I am right in saying it is the first time it has ever appeared on CD!

End of public service announcement ;)

A few other items I have pre-ordered/out this Friday: “Seasonal Shift” by Calexico (their first ever Holiday album) as well as Beck’s “Hyperspace (2020)” Deluxe Limited Edition CD for Japan (18 total tracks- including new songs and “Paisley Park Sessions” recorded at Prince’s studio).

Dolly Parton 8-Track now “only” $43.99 on Amazon US for cyber Monday!!!

Also out on Friday is Once Upon A Time, the first singles compilation by Siouxie And The Banshees. It’s half speed remastered I think and it’s on clear vinyl. Can’t wait for that to arrive.

Also out on Friday, a reissue/remaster of Blue Oyster Cult’s A Long Day’s night and a new live album, Live at Rock of Ages. Both are available in various formats, CD/DVD, Blu-ray etc. A busy year for BOC reissues and live albums and also the stunning new recent album The Symbol Remains. Frontiers music have definitely pulled some fur off getting all these out in a difficult year.

Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day released a solo LP last Friday. His online store (run by Warner Bros) has an exclusive glow in the dark sleeve. I pre ordered it in early October but my LP has still not been posted. I have ordered many new releases over the past year from Artist’s Official Stores and I have to say the majority of them have been unable to ensure the new releases have been sent out in time for release date. And I’m not talking about exclusives where there has been a delay from the manufacturer. Ordinary variations that are in other retailers stores and available for release day but the artists’ own stores can’t manage it. Operated by the big record companies too. This issue pre dates the pandemic.

Roll on Bob Marley! Had a multi LP box back in the day that I sold for a handsome profit when disposing with my turntable and never replaced most of them on CD.

Re the Cat Stevens “extensive super deluxe edition box sets” – “expensive” is with a “p”, not a “t”.

:)