Hungry For “Some Girls” Deluxe? Wal-Mart Offers Early Rolling Stones Appetizer

Can’t get no satisfaction waiting for Mick, Keith and the boys to drop Some Girls on November 21?  Well, whether you’re a Stones completist who simply must own every reissue or a casual fan looking for some quick slam-bang classics, you might want to take a drive over to your local Wal-Mart.  The retailer is exclusively offering a new compilation from ABKCO spanning the 1964-1971 period which found the band transition from blues to pop to psychedelia to gritty rock.  The Very Best of the Rolling Stones 1964-1971 collects 17 tracks, 15 from the band’s Decca (U.K.)/London (U.S.) catalogue and two from 1971’s Sticky Fingers, the Rolling Stones Records release of which marked the band’s independence.

While all of the tracks on The Very Best have been compiled over and over again, this is the first single-disc compilation to cover all of this territory.  1966’s Big Hits (High Tide and Green Grass) compiled the period of 1964-1966, with different line-ups for the American and British markets.  1969’s Through the Past Darkly (Big Hits Vol. 2) continued the Stones’ story, again featuring different track lists in each country.  1971’s double LP Hot Rocks was the first compilation to emerge from Allen Klein’s ABKCO after the band’s departure from Decca/London and Klein’s control.  Like The Very Best Of, it included “Brown Sugar” and “Wild Horses” which were recorded under the Decca contract despite appearing on the band’s self-controlled Sticky Fingers.

Hit the jump for more, including an order link and the full track listing with discography!

Review: Nirvana, “Nevermind: 20th Anniversary Edition”

It finally happened.

After around 20 months at the helm of The Second Disc, I think I’ve finally stumbled over a reissue that feels…dare I say it…misguided. Not entirely misguided, mind you, but misguided enough that it took me far longer than anticipated to bang out some thoughts on the title at hand, to understand what it meant for all of us as collectors and enthusiasts of catalogue material. Not a total strikeout, but a hit that barely gets a runner to second base, when it should have been an out-of-the-park home run.

Nirvana’s Nevermind (1991) was a game-changer on so many levels. Alongside two releases by fellow lauded Seattle bands Pearl Jam (Ten) and Soundgarden (Badmotorfinger), they instigated a sea change in music and popular culture forever. Not only did they turn the tide away from traditional pop albums entering the upper reaches of the Billboard 200, but in the wake of the publication’s adoption of Nielsen SoundScan data for official chart placement, such diverse sounds became, temporarily, part of the mainstream (before the diversity ultimately burst the monoculture into tiny pieces, right as the Internet became mainstream).

The record was, at the time of release, estimated to sell 250,000 copies when all was said and done; the album in fact moved more than 10 million in the U.S. alone. Now, Nevermind is revisited by that music industry that was so undone in part by the album’s success – an industry where a million copies sold of any record is now staggering. Predictably, it’s being given the royal treatment, either as a double-disc deluxe edition (DGC/UMe B0015883-02) or a by-now-industry-standard 4-CD/1-DVD super-deluxe edition (DGC/UMe B0015885-00). By virtue of its artistic and commercial value, Nevermind certainly earns this status as a reissue. Was it necessary, though, doing it the way it was done?

Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’: Epic to Release Cirque Soundtrack for “Immortal” Michael Jackson

With so many eyes lately fixated on the manslaughter trial of Dr. Conrad Murray, it’s perhaps appropriate that Epic Records is turning the spotlight back where it belongs for fans of the late Michael Jackson: back on his music.

On November 21, the label will release Immortal, the “musical tapestry,” or soundtrack recording, to Cirque du Soleil’s touring production of the same name created by writer and director Jamie King.  The most high-profile project to have emerged since Jackson’s 2009 death, Immortal received its premiere in Montreal, Canada last evening.  In attendance were  Jackson’s mother Katherine, three children Prince, Paris and Blanket, and siblings Tito, Jackie and Randy.  The Montreal debut marks the launch of a tour that will take the show to at least 47 cities before it establishes a permanent residency in Las Vegas in late 2013.  According to Cirque, The Immortal World Tour takes place in “a fantastical realm where we discover Michael’s inspirational Giving Tree—the wellspring of his creativity. The secrets of Michael’s inner world are unlocked—his love of music and dance, fairy tale and magic, and the fragile beauty of nature.”

Like The Beatles’ LOVE and Elvis Presley’s Viva ELVIS before it, features “reimagining[s]” of the most famous songs from all eras of the artist’s career.  In Jackson’s case, the production and soundtrack incorporate material performed by The Jackson 5, The Jacksons and of course, Michael Jackson solo.  The music of Immortal has been designed by Kevin Antunes (the Giles Martin of Immortal!), known for his work with Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears and Madonna.  Immortal features mash-ups, alternates and outtakes.  Among this never-before-released material: an alternate take of the Jackson 5’s “ABC” and a choir recorded by Jackson but never used for his “They Don’t Really Care About Us.”  Onstage, the soundtrack mixes vocal parts extracted from the original recordings with a live band led by keyboardist Greg Phillinganes.

The single-disc edition of Immortal boasts 15 tracks, while a two-disc deluxe edition includes 22.  Among the songs present on the deluxe edition only are The Jacksons’ “Shake Your Body Down to the Ground,” Jackson’s early solo hit “Ben,” “Scream/Little Susie,” “Gone Too Soon,” the Jackson 5’s “I’ll Be There,” a mime sequence (this is Cirque du Soleil, folks!) set to a medley of “I Like The Way/Speed Demon/Another Part Of Me,” and a finale of “Remember the Time” and “Bad.”

Hit the jump for pre-order links and a complete track listing for both editions.  Immortal hits stores on November 21 from Epic Records.