The Year In Reissues: The 2014 Gold Bonus Disc Awards

Welcome to The Second Disc’s Fifth Annual Gold Bonus Disc Awards!

As with every year’s awards, our goals are simple: to recognize as many of the year’s most essential reissues and catalogue titles as possible, and to celebrate as many of those labels, producers and artists who make these releases happen in an increasingly-challenging retail landscape.  The labels you’ll read about below have, by and large, bucked the trends to prove that there’s still a demand for physical catalogue music that you can purchase in brick-and-mortar stores.  And from our vantage point, there’s still great strength and health in our corner of the music industry.  By my estimate, The Second Disc covered roughly 500 compact disc releases in 2014 – and we have no reason to believe that number will decrease in the year ahead.  We dedicate The Gold Bonus Disc Awards to the creators of the music and releases we cover, to the dedicated retailers who continue to support catalogue titles, and most importantly, to you, our readers.  After all, your interest is ultimately what keeps great music of the past – this site’s raison d’etre – alive and well.

Which releases take home the gold this year? Hit the jump below to find out!

Release Round-Up: Week of November 10

 

The Monkees, The Monkees: Super Deluxe Edition (Rhino Handmade) (Exclusively available directly from label)

It’s Monkeemania all over again: Davy, Micky, Peter and Michael are back with a 3-CD expansion of their debut album featuring 100 tracks – 45 of which are previously unreleased!

ABBA, Gracias Por La Musica: Deluxe Edition (Polar/Universal) (Amazon U.S. Link TBD / Amazon U.K.)

ABBA is saying “Thank You for the Music” – in Spanish!  The band’s Spanish-language 1980 album Gracias Por La Música is going deluxe with 5 bonus tracks, plus a 40-minute DVD featuring vintage promo clips and previously unreleased television material.

The Kinks, Muswell Hillbillies: Legacy Edition (Legacy) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

Legacy has a new edition of 1971’s Muswell Hillbillies on tap as part of its new Kinks kampaign.  It retains eight of the thirteen bonus tracks on the 2013 U.K. Deluxe Edition, dropping three BBC radio performances from The John Peel Show (“Acute Schizophrenia Paranoia Blues,” “Holiday” and “Skin and Bone”) and the 1976 remixes of “Muswell Hillbilly” and “20th Century Man.” It then adds a separate DVD with thirteen previously-unreleased performances: two songs from a January 1972 broadcast of The Old Grey Whistle Test and eleven from BBC’s Live at the Rainbow program from July 1972.

Pink Floyd, The Endless River (Columbia)

CD/Blu-ray: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

CD/DVD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. 

Single CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

In early 1993, David Gilmour, Nick Mason and Richard Wright created more than one hundred pieces of music by jamming together and recording the results.  The trio then honed the pieces at Gilmour’s studio, played them live for 2 days at Olympic Studios in Barnes with additional players (Guy Pratt on bass, Jon Carin on keyboards and Gary Wallis on percussion), returned to Astoria, and worked further with co-producer Bob Ezrin.  The resulting LP, after lyrics and vocals were added, was The Division Bell.  Rumors abounded of a separate ambient album created from the remaining ethereal instrumentals, but nothing came of it until now.  Gilmour and Mason re-entered the studio earlier this year and added further instrumentation to the tracks they originally created with the late Richard Wright.  Pink Floyd describes The Endless River as 60% new, with the other 40% drawn from those original 1993 recordings.  Gilmour describes the record as follows: “The Endless River has as its starting point the music that came from the 1993 Division Bell sessions. We listened to over 20 hours of the three of us playing together and selected the music we wanted to work on for the new album. Over the last year we’ve added new parts, re-recorded others and generally harnessed studio technology to make a 21st century Pink Floyd album. With Rick gone, and with him the chance of ever doing it again, it feels right that these revisited and reworked tracks should be made available as part of our repertoire.”

Rush, R40 (Concord/Rounder)

DVD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

BD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

This 10-DVD or 6-BD box set tells the story of Rush through live performance material recorded over the years,with an emphasis on the period of 2003-2013.

Whitney Houston, Live (Arista/Legacy)

CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
CD/DVD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Clive Davis has overseen this first official live release for the late, great Whitney Houston, which includes some of the diva’s most beloved onstage performances recorded between 1983 and 2009.

Queen, Queen Forever (Hollywood)

CD: Amazon U.K.
2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

This new anthology features three previously unissued recordings (including “There Must Be More to Life Than This” with Michael Jackson) and other off-the-beaten path selections.

Roger Taylor, The Lot (Omnivore)

The Queen drummer’s own solo career is captured in this lavish 13-disc complete box set.

Blood Sweat and Tears, Child is Father to the Man – 5.1 Surround SACD (Audio Fidelity) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. Link TBD)

Al Kooper’s long-shelved 5.1 surround mix of Blood, Sweat and Tears’ stunning jazz-rock debut finally makes an appearance on hybrid SACD thanks to Audio Fidelity!  Bob Ludwig masters Kooper’s 5.1 mix, while Steve Hoffman has remastered for the stereo presentations.

Eric Clapton, Pilgrim SACD (Audio Fidelity) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. Link TBD)

Steve Hoffman remasters Eric Clapton’s 1988 studio album Pilgrim for hybrid stereo SACD!

Tears for Fears, Songs from the Big Chair: Super Deluxe Edition (Mercury)

Box Set: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

2-CD Deluxe Edition (Discs 1 & 2 below only): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Vinyl (Original Album): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Blu-ray Audio (Stereo and 5.1 Mixes): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Mercury has a variety of formats coming for Tears for Tears’ landmark 1985 album, including a 4-CD/2-DVD box set!

Ray Charles, Genius Loves Company: 10th Anniversary Limited Collectors Edition (Hear Music) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

Hear Music repackages Ray Charles’ Grammy-winning duets album for a second time this year, retaining the two bonus tracks and DVD documentary from the previous edition and adding director Taylor Hackford’s 2004 motion picture Ray on a second DVD.

Worzel Gummidge: The Musical – Original London Cast Recording (Stage Door) (Amazon U.K.)

Stage Door Records remasters and expands the Original 1981 London Cast Recording of Keith Waterhouse, Willis Hall and Denis King’s musical comedy to CD for the first time.

Various Artists, Lost on the River: The New Basement Tapes (Harvest) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

What happens when you give a notebook filled with never-before-recorded Bob Dylan lyrics to producer T Bone Burnett and a musical collective featuring Elvis Costello, Rhiannon Giddens (Carolina Chocolate Drops), Taylor Goldsmith (Dawes), Jim James (My Morning Jacket) and Marcus Mumford (Mumford & Sons)?  You get Lost on the River: The New Basement Tapes, a 2014 companion to the recent issue of the original, legendary recordings made by Dylan and The Band.

 

Review: Bob Dylan and The Band, “The Bootleg Series Vol. 11: The Basement Tapes – Complete”

I. They Shall Be Released

1967: Jimi Hendrix asks, “Are You Experienced?” The Beatles plead, “Let me take you down” to “Strawberry Fields Forever.” Brian Wilson spins a yarn of “Heroes and Villains.” The Summer of Love is in full swing, and psychedelia is in the air. Fast forward one year. In July, The Band releases Music from Big Pink. Reportedly, hearing the album convinces Eric Clapton to leave Cream. The ripples of its influence would be felt in the ranks of The Beatles and Pink Floyd. The next month, in August, The Byrds unveil Sweetheart of the Rodeo, arguably the first major country-rock album by an established band. There’s nary a whiff of patchouli. But neither Big Pink and Sweetheart – nor countless albums that followed in their footsteps – would likely have existed, at least as they’re now known, if not for The Basement Tapes.

Big Pink introduced the world to “I Shall Be Released” and “Tears of Rage,” and included “This Wheel’s on Fire.” Rodeo began with “You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere” and ended with “Nothing Was Delivered.” All of those songs were composed and first recorded by Bob Dylan and the group that would become The Band in a fertile period of recording from March 1967 to February 1968 (with some breaks in that period). Yet, The Basement Tapes – en toto, the whole enchilada – have remained largely unreleased, until now. Just how these recordings became more influential than most platinum-selling hit records is one of music’s enduring mysteries. Would a full commercial release of this “cosmic American music” (to steal from Gram Parsons) diminish its mystique? The answer, happily, is no. The new Columbia/Legacy release of The Bootleg Series Vol. 11: The Basement Tapes: Complete, over six CDs, should quickly become the cornerstone of many a musical library and the key to a deeper understanding of not only its artists – who pushed the envelope by looking back as well as forward – but of an entire period of popular music and culture.

Dive into The Basement Tapes cache after the jump!

Release Round-Up: Week of November 4

Bob Dylan, The Bootleg Series Vol. 11: The Basement Tapes Complete and Raw  (Columbia/Legacy)

At long last, here are the complete and unexpurgated Basement Tapes – 6 discs and over 140 songs recorded in the creatively fertile days of 1967 and 1968 by Bob Dylan, Robbie Robertson, Garth Hudson, Rick Danko, Richard Manuel and Levon Helm.  Quite simply, this treasure trove of Americana may well be the Catalogue Music Event of the Year.

Complete: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Raw:

CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Vinyl: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

The Paul McCartney Archive Collection: Wings, Venus and Mars (Hear Music/MPL, 2014)

Paul McCartney continues his Archive Collection with deluxe, bonus-packed editions of two Wings classics: 1975’s Venus and Mars and 1976’s Wings at the Speed of Sound!  Full details including track listings and more can be found right here!

2-CD/1-DVD Deluxe Book Edition: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / 2-CD Standard Edition: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Gatefold Vinyl: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

The Paul McCartney Archive Collection: Wings, At the Speed of Sound (Hear Music/MPL, 2014)

2-CD/1-DVD Deluxe Book Edition: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / 2-CD Standard Edition: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Gatefold Vinyl: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Robert Goulet: The Complete Columbia Christmas Recordings (Amazon U.S. /Amazon U.K.) /  Andy Williams and the Williams Brothers: The Williams Brothers Christmas Album (Amazon U.S. /Amazon U.K.) / The Statler Brothers: The Complete Mercury Christmas Recordings Featuring the Albums “Christmas Card” & “Christmas Present” (Amazon U.S. /Amazon U.K. ) / The Brothers Four: Merry Christmas (Expanded Edition) (Amazon U.S. /Amazon U.K. ) / The Kingston Trio: The Last Month of the Year (Amazon U.S. /Amazon U.K. ) /  Rosemary Clooney: In Songs from the Paramount Pictures Production of Irving Berlin’s White Christmas (Expanded Edition) (Amazon U.S. /Amazon U.K.) / Frank DeVol and the Rainbow Strings: The Old Sweet Songs of Christmas (Amazon U.S. /Amazon U.K.) / Dick Wagner: Dick Wagner (Amazon U.S. /Amazon U.K.)

Christmas arrives early this year thanks to our friends at Real Gone Music!  The label has a whopping seven Christmas albums due this week from artists including rare holiday music from Rosemary Clooney, The Statler Brothers, The Kingston Trio, Frank DeVol and The Brothers Four!  And that’s not all.  We’re particularly excited about two of Real Gone’s releases.  Joe compiled and annotated Robert Goulet’s Complete Columbia Christmas Recordings featuring both of Goulet’s classic holiday LPs plus a host of bonus tracks, and he has also written the notes for the first CD reissue  from the original master tapes of Andy Williams and the Williams Brothers’ Christmas Album!  Get a head start on the Christmas season with these happy holiday reissues!

T Rex, The Albums Collection (Edsel) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

Edsel has boxed up T Rex’s eight studio albums and added two CDs of selected bonus material for this one-stop-shopping set.

Rolling Stones, From the Vault: Hampton Coliseum 1981 (Eagle Rock)

This 1981 live concert from The Rolling Stones’ digital archive goes physical on CD, LP, DVD and standard definition Blu-ray.  The program continues later this month with similar releases for L.A. Forum – Live in 1975!

CD: Amazon U.S.

Vinyl: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

DVD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

BD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

DVD [NTSC] + CD Set: Amazon U.K.

John Denver, All of My Memories: The John Denver Collection (RCA/Legacy) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

This new box set traces the beloved, late troubadour’s career over four CDs and 90 songs recorded between 1964 and 1997.

Big Star, Live in Memphis (Omnivore)

CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

DVD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. 

Vinyl with Download Card: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Roger Taylor, Best (Omnivore)

The first-ever best-of for the Queen drummer features 18 tracks from his criminally-unknown solo catalogue!

CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Vinyl: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

King Crimson, Starless (DGM) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

This King Crimson treasure chest contains 27 discs – including CDs, DVD-As, and BDs – for an immersive, in-depth look at Crimson circa 1973-1974, live and in the studio.  Full details on this stunning collection can be found here!

Ronnie Milsap, The Complete RCA Albums Collection (RCA/Legacy) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

This 21-CD set chronicles the Country Music Hall of Famer’s career at RCA Records, from 1973 to 1991, plus his return to the label in 2006!

Yes, Relayer CD/DVD-A and CD/BD (Panegyric)

CD/DVD-A: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

CD/BD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Steven Wilson works his magic on Yes’ 1974 Relayer, the band’s seventh studio album!  Wilson provides new stereo and surround mixes available on CD + DVD-A or BD configurations.

XTC, Drums and Wires CD/DVD-A and CD/BD (Ape House)

CD/DVD-A: Amazon U.S. TBD / Amazon U.K.

CD/BD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Wilson takes the same approach for the newest volume in Ape House’s series of deluxe XTC reissues on CD/DVD-A and CD/BD: 1979’s Drums and Wires, the band’s third album.

Scorpions, Blackout SACD (Audio Fidelity) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

The eighth studio album from Germany’s favorite hard rockers arrives on hybrid stereo SACD, playable in all CD players, from Audio Fidelity.

Various Artists, Blue Note: Uncompromising Expression (Blue Note) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

Blue Note celebrates its 75th anniversary with 75 single sides collected on this new 5-CD box set.  Each disc represents a different era in the label’s history – which is, to say, the history of jazz!

Thelonious Monk, ‘Round Midnight: The Complete Blue Note Singles 1947-1952 (Blue Note) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

Thelonious Monk’s recordings for Blue Note signaled the label’s move from boogie woogie and vintage jazz to cutting-edge hard bop. These recordings, which include the first version of Monk’s classic composition “‘Round Midnight” (originally recorded as “‘Round About Midnight”), were released on a series of fifteen 78 RPM singles. Later, the singles were re-compiled on 10-inch and 12-inch LPs.  This collection, housed in a hardbound digipak, will present for the first time Monk’s Blue Note singles in their original 78 RPM sequence of release, adding as bonus tracks the alternate takes that appeared on later LP and CD releases.  All told, the 2-CD set includes nine tracks not available on any current reissues of the great pianist/composer’s albums.

Frank Sinatra, Come Fly with Me / In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning / This is Sinatra! / A Jolly Christmas with Frank Sinatra / Sinatra and Swingin’ Brass / Moonlight Sinatra (Vinyl) (Capitol/UMe)

As part of the Signature Sinatra initiative, Capitol/UMe has been releasing a series of select original Sinatra LPs from both his Capitol and Reprise catalogues in limited edition, remastered heavyweight vinyl pressings.  Look for this series to continue with more releases in the very near future!  We’ve been able to obtain few details about these releases, but we can confirm that Come Fly with Me is mono, as is A Jolly Christmas with Frank Sinatra.  (No true stereo version of the latter has ever been issued.)  (Thanks to The Sinatra Family Forum for their valuable info on these releases!)

Come Fly with Me (Mono – Amazon shows incorrect stereo cover): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

In the Wee Small Hours: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

This is Sinatra! : Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

A Jolly Christmas with Frank Sinatra (Mono): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Sinatra and Swingin’ Brass: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Moonlight Sinatra: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Carly Simon, Playlist: The Very Best of Carly Simon (Arista/Legacy) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

This 14-track Playlist volume combines Carly’s hit Arista recordings (“The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of,” “Coming Around Again,” “Better Not Tell Her”) with live cuts (“You’re So Vain,” “Anticipation”) and one new-to-CD track: the Live from Grand Central performance of “Touched by the Sun.”

 

Judy Collins, Both Sides Now: The Very Best of Judy Collins (Wildflower) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

The catalogue of Collins’ own Wildflower Records is tapped for this 2-CD, 28-track set drawn primarily from recent and late-period recordings.

Bette Midler, It’s the Girls (Warner Bros.) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. )

The Divine Miss M returns with her tribute to the greatest girl groups of all time – and Bette isn’t limiting herself to any one era, as she tackles songs by The Andrews Sisters, The Shirelles, The Supremes, TLC and more!  Marc Shaiman (Hairspray, Smash) produces this spirited set!

Neil Young, Storytone (Reprise)

For his latest album, Neil Young fulfilled his ambitions to record an LP live with an orchestra in the same room.  The lush Storytone features a 92-piece orchestra and choir, and is available in a deluxe edition with a second disc of Neil’s solo renditions of its songs.  With material ranging from dramatic ballads to finger-snapping swingers, this is truly a departure from anything Young has done before – and is well worth checking out for that reason alone.

Deluxe 2-CD Version (Orchestrated and solo albums): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Standard Edition (Orchestrated album only): Amazon U.K.

180-gram Double Vinyl (Orchestrated and solo albums): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

The Doobie Brothers, Southbound (Arista Nashville) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

Listen to the music!  For this greatest-hits duets set, The Doobie Brothers (including Michael McDonald) have teamed up with current country stars including Blake Shelton, The Zac Brown Band, Hunter Hayes, Brad Paisley, Sara Evans, Toby Keith and Vince Gill.  Southbound marks the first Doobie Brothers album to feature Tom Johnston, Patrick Simmons and Michael McDonald since 1976’s Takin’ It to the Streets!

They Shall Be Released: Bob Dylan and The Band’s “The Basement Tapes, Complete” Arrives In November

Come all without, come all within, you’ll not see nothing like The Basement Tapes, Complete.  On November 4, Columbia Records and Legacy Recordings will grant an official release to perhaps the most coveted collection of songs in Bob Dylan’s storied catalogue.  The eleventh installment of Dylan’s acclaimed Bootleg Series presents, for the very first time, six discs of The Basement Tapes – as recorded in the summer of 1967 by Dylan and the group that would later become The Band, and per the label, including “every salvageable recording from the tapes, including recently discovered early gems recorded in the ‘Red Room’ of Dylan’s home in upstate New York.”  In addition, this set – meticulously restored by The Band’s Garth Hudson and Canadian music archivist Jan Haust – is being presented “as intact as possible.  Also, unlike the official 1975 release, these performances are presented as close as possible to the way they were originally recorded and sounded back in the summer of 1967.  The tracks on The Basement Tapes Complete run in mostly chronological order based on Garth Hudson’s numbering system.”

In addition to the 6-CD, 138-song box set, a 2-CD, 38-song highlights version of The Bootleg Series Volume 11 will be released as The Basement Tapes Raw.  This iteration will also be presented as a 3-LP vinyl set.  All versions are due on November 4.

After the jump: a look further into the world of The Basement Tapes, plus the full track listing and pre-order links!

Release Round-Up: Week of April 1

Cyndi Lauper, She’s So Unusual: A 30th Anniversary Celebration (Portrait/Epic/Legacy)

One of MTV’s first queens wears the crown anew on this deluxe set featuring new remixes, rarities from the vault, rare photographs and a fun expanded package with a diorama and reusable sticker set.

Amazon U.S.: 1CD / 2CD / LP
Amazon U.K.: 1CD / 2CD / LP

Real Gone slate: Doris Day, Music, Movies & Memories / Doris Day, Sings Her Great Movie Hits / Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles, The Complete Atlantic Sides Plus (2-CD Set) / Cowboy, Reach for the Sky / Keith Allison, In Action — The Complete Columbia Sides and More!/ The Ohio Express, Beg, Borrow and Steal — The Complete Cameo Recordings / Eddie Kendricks, Love Keys / Vicki Lawrence, The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia — The Complete Bell Recordings / The Grateful Dead, Dick’s Picks Vol. 19 — 10/19/73 Oklahoma City Fairgrounds Arena, Oklahoma City, OK

The latest Real Gone slate includes two compilations to celebrate Doris Day’s 90th birthday, soul rarities from Eddie Kendricks and Patti LaBelle and a great new Keith Allison set featuring new liner notes from Joe!

Doris Day/Music, Movies & Memories: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Doris Day/Great Movie Hits: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Patti LaBelle: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Cowboy: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Keith Allison: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Ohio Express: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Eddie Kendricks: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Vicki Lawrence: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Grateful Dead: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

The Alan Parsons Project, The Complete Albums Collection (Arista/Legacy)

The complete Alan Parsons Project discography in one box, including their non-Arista debut, 1976’s Tales of Mystery and Imagination: Edgar Allen Poe and the unreleased 1981 instrumental album The Sicilian Defence. (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

The Brothers and Sisters, Dylan’s Gospel (Ode/Light in the Attic)

Ten gospel-fied covers of Bob Dylan tunes, featuring singers from Merry Clayton to Patrice Holloway, arrangements from Gene Page and contributions from Ode artists and friends including Carole King and John Phillips. First time in print in more than a decade!

CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Andy Capp: Original West End Cast Recording (Stage Door Records)

Stage Door revives the original London cast recording of the 1982 musical based on Reg Smythe’s long-running comic strip. (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

Various Artists, Play It Again: The Classic Sound of Hollywood (TCM/Masterworks)

Joe will have a full rundown of the latest title in Masterworks and TCM’s vintage Hollywood series later this week! (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

Review: Bob Dylan, “The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration: Deluxe Edition”

Bob Dylan’s 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration, held on October 16, 1992 at New York’s Madison Square Garden to mark Dylan’s Columbia Records debut, could have been a valedictory.  The 51-year old honoree and participant was nearly at the halfway point of a self-imposed sabbatical from writing and recording original songs; it would last seven years, from 1990 to 1997.  He had not had an album reach the Top 20 of the Billboard 200 since 1983’s Infidels and hadn’t cracked the Top 5 since 1979’s Slow Train Coming.   When Good as I Been to You, a collection of traditional tunes and standards, arrived in stores just a couple of weeks after the concert, it was the artist’s first solo acoustic album since 1964.  Was the artist who once challenged convention with alarming regularity now succumbing to it, resting on his laurels while his famous friends saluted him?  One could have been forgiven for coming to that conclusion.  But the concert dubbed by participant Neil Young as “Bobfest” proved conclusively that the Bob Dylan songbook was as enshrined in the cultural consciousness as any of the classic songs Dylan had taken to recording of late.  His songs still had the power to shock, to entertain, to incisively observe upon the world and the human condition.  Columbia Records issued the concert as a 2-CD set and on VHS; now, both the audio and video components have received, shall we say, a 22nd anniversary update and upgrade from Legacy Recordings.  With Dylan more venerated than ever, on the heels of a remarkable “comeback” that began in 1997 and hasn’t abated since, the timing couldn’t be better.

It’s striking in equal measure to note how many of the artists featured on Concert Celebration are still going strong, like Dylan, and how many have moved onto the next world.  Of the former, Stevie Wonder, Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Eric Clapton, Neil Young, Roger McGuinn and Tom Petty all now possess “living legend” status.   There’s an overwhelmingly bittersweet quality, however, savoring the performances by Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash, George Harrison, Richie Havens, Levon Helm and Rick Danko, Tommy Makem and Bobby, Liam and Paddy Clancy, Howie Epstein of The Heartbreakers and Donald “Duck” Dunn.

Underscoring the adaptable nature of Dylan’s singular songs, the genres of rock, folk, country and even R&B all earned a spot at the Garden that evening.  Naturally for any such concert retrospective, a number of artists reprised past triumphs with an older and wiser sensibility to mark their own shared history with Dylan: Stevie Wonder with his 1966 hit version of “Blowin’ in the Wind,” Johnny and June Carter Cash with their 1965 Top 5 Country romp through “It Ain’t Me Babe” (enlivened by Mickey Raphael’s harmonica), Roger McGuinn and his 12-string Rickenbacker (plus Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers!) with The Byrds’ chart-topping “Mr. Tambourine Man,” folk hero Richie Havens with “Just Like a Woman,” a staple of his repertoire since the 1960s.  The O’Jays liked Dylan’s “Emotionally Yours” so much that they named a 1991 album after the song and recorded it twice on that LP – once in an R&B Version and once in a Gospel Version.  The latter raised the rafters at the Garden, thanks to the chorus featuring, among others, Cissy Houston and the pre-fame Sheryl Crow.  Sans Robbie Robertson, Levon Helm, Rick Danko and Garth Hudson of The Band invested “When I Paint My Masterpiece” with appropriate, ironic optimism.

Other headliners also had one foot in the past, honoring the original performances of the songs via their faithful renditions.  John Mellencamp even enlisted Al Kooper to revisit his famous organ part on a rip-roaring, concert-opening “Like a Rolling Stone.”  Rosanne Cash, Shawn Colvin and Mary-Chapin Carpenter revived the folk-rock spirit of The Byrds on “You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere.”  Eddie Vedder, on vocals, and Mike McCready, on guitar, tackled the acoustic “Masters of War” (“Even Jesus would never forgive what you do”) and did full justice to its lacerating, unforgiving lyrics (“I’ll stand on your grave ‘til I’m sure that you’re dead”).

Click on the jump to keep reading!

Release Round-Up: Week of March 4

Little Feat, Rad Gumbo: The Complete Warner Bros. Years 1971-1990 (Warner Bros./Rhino)

The eclectic rock band’s near two-decade run on Warner Bros. is celebrated in this new box set, featuring all the band’s original studio albums, an expanded edition of the live Waiting for Columbus and a bonus disc of recordings sourced from the band’s 2000 box set Hotcakes & Outtakes. (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

The Grass Roots, The Complete Original Dunhill/ABC Hit Singles / Irma Thomas, Full Time Woman — The Lost Cotillion Album / Professor Longhair, The Last Mardi Gras / Dr. John, The Night Tripper, Gris Gris / David Ruffin, My Whole World Ended/Feelin’ Good / David Ruffin, David Ruffin/Me ‘N Rock ‘N Roll Are Here to Stay / Marilyn McCoo, Solid Gold (Expanded Edition) / Charley Pride, The Gospel Collection (Real Gone Music)

Real Gone’s March madness features a host of titles, including two Mardi Gras-themed offerings from two New Orleans legends: Dr. John’s first album and a double-disc live set from jazz pianist Professor Longhair.

The Grass Roots: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Irma Thomas: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Professor Longhair: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Dr. John: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
David Ruffin #1: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
David Ruffin #2: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Marilyn McCoo: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Charley Pride: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Bob Dylan, The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration (Columbia/Legacy)

This multi-artist live tribute to The Bard, recorded at Madison Square Garden in 1992, is reissued as an expanded CD set as well as in a newly-restored DVD or Blu-Ray version with unreleased performances and behind-the-scenes footage.

2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
DVD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
BD: Amazon U.S./ Amazon U.K.

T. Rex, A Beard of Stars / T. Rex: Deluxe Editions (Universal U.K.)

Before Marc Bolan hit the sweet spot, 1970 saw him cutting two albums – the last credited to “Tyrannosaurus Rex” and the first credited to “T. Rex,” respectively – that saw him moving from psych-folk to the kind of music that made him a legend. Both albums are expanded with unreleased demos, outtakes and single material (including beloved glam cut “Ride a White Swan”).

A Beard of Stars: 2CD (Amazon U.K. / Amazon U.S.) / 2LP (Amazon U.K. / Amazon U.S.)
T. Rex: 2CD (Amazon U.K. / Amazon U.S.) / 2LP (Amazon U.K. / Amazon U.S.)

Rufus Wainwright, Vibrate: The Best of Rufus Wainwright (DGC/Interscope/UMe)

A greatest-hits compilation from the theatrical singer-songwriter, son of fellow-renowned musician Loudon Wainwright III.

CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Bob Frank, Bob Frank / Peter Walker, “Second Poem to Kamela” or Gypsies Are Important (Light in the Attic)

Light in the Attic kicks off its new Vanguard Vault series exploring the “obscure, non-traditional side of the legendary Vanguard Records archive” with the 1972 self-titled album from Bob Frank (“the best songwriter you never heard” per Big Star producer Jim Dickinson) and the rare 1968 follow-up to Peter Walker’s mystical psych-folk Rainy Day Raga LP.

Bob Frank: LP (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) / CD (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)
Peter Walker: LP (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) / CD (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

Heart, Magazine / Peter, Paul and Mary, Peter, Paul and Mary (Audio Fidelity)

New, Steve Hoffman-mastered editions of two classic titles on hybrid SACD.

Heart: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Peter, Paul and Mary: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Ode to Bob: “Dylan’s Gospel” Reissue Due in April, Features Merry Clayton, Gloria Jones, Edna Wright

Light in the Attic is getting ready to spread the Gospel of Bob.  Dylan, that is.  On April 1, the label returns Ode Records’ 1969 tribute Dylan’s Gospel to print with new CD and LP reissues.  Credited to The Brothers and Sisters, Dylan’s Gospel featured the cream of the crop of Los Angeles’ session singers including Merry Clayton, Clydie King, Patrice Holloway, Edna Wright and Shirley Matthews on a variety of Dylan staples, sanctified-style.

Producer Lou Adler formed Ode Records after selling his Dunhill label – the home of The Mamas and the Papas and The Grass Roots, among others – to ABC Records in 1967.  The impresario-producer kicked off Ode with releases by Scott McKenzie and Spirit and soon expanded its roster with releases from artists including Mod Squad star Peggy Lipton, Carole King’s band The City and a John Densmore/Robbie Krieger-produced outfit called The Comfortable Chair.  When Adler hit upon the notion of a tribute to Bob Dylan, he made sure that it would be something special.  Dylan’s career was, unbelievably, less than a decade old in 1969, yet he had already written a number of oft-covered songs which would become modern-day standards.  And so rather than another album of Bob Dylan, say, folk-rock-style, Adler took the troubadour to church.

He enlisted arranger-conductor Gene Page for Dylan’s Gospel.  Already noted for his work on Phil Spector’s production of “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’” and at Motown, the versatile Page would go on to orchestrate some of Barry White’s most lush compositions, work in Hollywood and on Broadway, and collaborate with artists like Elton John and Whitney Houston.  The 27-strong cast of powerful, big-voiced singers was primarily selected from that rarefied group that would be immortalized in the 2013 film 20 Feet from Stardom: backup singers, many of whom had a background singing in church.  “Gimme Shelter” co-vocalist Merry Clayton joined Adler’s Brothers and Sisters as did Edna Wright (Darlene Love’s sister and member of The Honey Cone), Patrice Holloway (co-writer with sister Brenda of “You Made Me So Very Happy”), Stax artist Ruby Johnson, Honeys member Ginger Blake, and the accomplished songwriter and “Tainted Love” vocalist Gloria Jones.

After the jump: what will you hear on Dylan’s Gospel?  Plus: the full track listing and pre-order links!

Release Round-Up: Week of February 4

Burt Bacharach, Together? — Original Soundtrack Recording / Toomorrow: From the Harry Saltzman-Don Kirshner Film “Toomorrow” — Original Soundtrack Recording / The Mamas and the Papas, A Gathering of Flowers / Brotherhood, The Complete Recordings / Smith, A Group Called Smith/Minus-Plus / Troyka, Troyka / Jim Reeves, A Beautiful Life — Songs of Inspiration / The Grateful Dead, Dick’s Picks Vol. 20 — Capital Centre, Landover, MD 9/25/76 — Onondaga County War Memorial, Syracuse, NY 9/28/76 (Real Gone Music)

What could be better than this Real Gone bounty, featuring a classic compilation by The Mamas and The Papas, an exciting compilation by Brotherhood, a post Paul Revere & The Raiders combo, and two exceptional, long-out-of-print soundtracks? How about those latter two soundtracks making their way to domestic CD with liner notes from The Second Disc’s very own Joe Marchese? I’d call that a big yes!

Together?: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Toomorrow: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
The Mamas and The Papas: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Brotherhood: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Smith: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Troyka: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Jim Reeves: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
The Grateful Dead: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Aretha Franklin, The Queen of Soul / Otis Redding, The King of Soul (Atlantic/Rhino)

Two of the most legendary performers in the Atlantic soul catalogue are newly anthologized with simple four-disc overviews.

Aretha: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Otis: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.

Michael Bloomfield, From His Head to His Heart to His Hands (Legacy)

One of the best (and most unfairly obscure) guitarists of the 1960s gets his due in a new career-spanning box set featuring three CDs of favorites and rarities and a new film about the late performer, who played with Bob Dylan, Al Kooper, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band and others. (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

Tina Turner, Love Songs (Parlophone)

Just in time for Valentine’s Day, a new romantically-inclined compilation from another all-time soul queen. (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

The Small Faces, Here Come The Nice: The Immediate Years 1967-1969 (Charly/Snapper Classics)

An exhaustive new box set (exclusive to Amazon) featuring all of the mod legends’ single sides for the Immediate label, rare and unreleased studio outtakes, four repressed vinyl EPs/acetates and a load of extra content, including replica press kits, posters, art prints, a hardbound book and more. (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

 

The Dream Syndicate, The Day Before of Wine and Roses (Omnivore)

A killer live set recorded at KPFK-FM in Los Angeles, weeks prior to the recording of The Dream Syndicate’s seminal debut. (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

Rainbow, Singles Box (Polydor/UMC)

A 19-disc box replicating various 45s from Ritchie Blackmore’s iconic rock combo. (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

Gene, Olympian / To See the Lights / Drawn to the Deep End / Revelations / Libertine: Deluxe Editions (Edsel)

All five of the alt-rock/Britpop band’s standard albums (including the B-sides compilation To See the Lights) have been newly expanded as double-disc sets in casebound packages, all featuring rare B-sides and some unreleased live material and demos throughout.

Olympian: Amazon U.K.
To See the Lights: Amazon U.K.
Drawn to the Deep End: Amazon U.K.
Revelations: Amazon U.K.
Libertine: Amazon U.K.

Cast, All Change / Mother Nature Calls / Magic Hour / Beetroot: Deluxe Editions (Edsel)

In the same vein as Gene, John Power’s band after the dissolution of The La’s was notable in the Britpop era, particularly for debut All Change, the highest-selling debut in Polydor Records’ history. All four of their albums have been expanded as triple-disc (double in the case of Beetroot) sets, including rare B-sides and other material as well as DVDs packed with music videos, live appearances and new interviews with Power about each album.

All Change: Amazon U.K.
Mother Nature Calls: Amazon U.K.
Magic Hour: Amazon U.K.
Beetroot: Amazon U.K.

Jon Anderson, Olias of Sunhillow / Alice Cooper, Billion Dollar Babies (Audio Fidelity) / The Doobie Brothers, Stampede / Dean Martin, This Time I’m Swingin’ / Frank Sinatra, Point of No Return (Mobile Fidelity)

The latest hi-def offerings. Kevin Gray and Steve Hoffman respectively master the Audio Fidelity gold disc titles, while MFSL offers two crooners and a ’70s rock band on hybrid SACD.

Jon Anderson: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Alice Cooper: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
The Doobie Brothers: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
Dean Martin: Amazon U.S.
Frank Sinatra: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.