Reissue Theory: Live Aid on CD

Twenty-six years ago today, on two different continents, the music world came together for a worthy cause: to raise awareness of famine in Ethiopia. Live Aid, a pair of concerts organized by Bob Geldof in London and Philadelphia on July 13, 1985 and broadcasted live on the BBC, ABC and MTV, was seen in person by some 172,000 people and on television by nearly 2 billion across the globe.

And, if you can believe it, none of it has ever been released on LP or CD.

Granted, it’s not entirely unsurprising. Geldof promised artists that the performances were very much a one-off, never to be seen past the initial broadcast. (That of course turned out to be untrue, with the release of a four-disc DVD set in 2004.) But you have to wonder, given not only the fiercely charitable nature of the organization as well as the capitalistic nature of the music industry, why a commemorative album was never put out to raise even more money for charities.

But if they did, this is how it might go down.

Release Round-Up: Week of March 8

Billy Joel, Live at Shea Stadium: The Concert (Columbia/Legacy)

The best of the Shea Stadium farewell shows on two CDs and a DVD or Blu-Ray. Not my favorite Joel show, but it’s now yours for the buying. (Official site)

Neil Diamond, The Bang Years 1966-1968 (Columbia/Legacy)

Two Bang LPs (and one non-album single) on a nicely put-together disc – hopefully the first of many deserved tributes to the Solitary Man on the eve of his Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction. (Official site)

Simon & Garfunkel, Bridge Over Troubled Water: 40th Anniversary Edition (Columbia/Legacy)

The folk duo’s studio swan song, presented with a previously unissued concert special and making-of documentary on DVD. (Official site)

Bo Diddley, Bo Diddley’s Beach Party (Hip-o Select)

Bo knows live music, and this long out-of-print concert proves it. (Hip-o Select)

Elvis Presley, Elvis is Back! Legacy Edition (RCA/Legacy)

Two Elvis LPs (Elvis is Back! and Something for Everyone) and a handful of single sides on a fresh two-disc set. (Official site)

Traffic, John Barleycorn Must Die: Deluxe Edition (Island/UMe)

An expanded edition of the seminal Traffic reunion album, with a bonus disc of unreleased studio work and previously released live material. (Amazon)

Rainbow, Down to Earth: Deluxe Edition / Rising: Deluxe Edition (Polydor/UMe)

Recently released in the U.K., these two Rainbow albums – featuring the guitar of Ritchie Blackmore and the vocals of Ronnie James Dio – are metal classics. And now they’re expanded with tons of rare and unreleased content. (Amazon: Down to Earth, Rising)

Serge Gainsbourg, Integrale (Universal U.K.)

The latest in imported megaboxes: a 20-disc collection of material from the late French singer-songwriter. (Amazon U.K.)

Bo Goes to the Beach in Hip-o Select Reissue

Hip-o Select, in addition to prepping what they’ve confirmed is the penultimate set of James Brown singles, has got a blues title coming up: a straight reissue of Bo Diddley’s Beach Party, the first live album by guitar legend Bo Diddley.

Recorded over two nights in June of 1963 at a club in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Bo Diddley’s Beach Party features nine of the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer’s original songs and an instrumental cover of fellow Chessman Chuck Berry’s “Memphis.” This set makes its first appearance on any format as its own individual set since the album’s initial release, so fans of the man and the genre have a nice rediscovery on their hands here.

Order it over at Select’s Web site and check out the track list below.