Blame It On The Bossa Nova: Él Compiles Brazilian Classics, Plus: “Pop! Goes the West”

The gentle guitars of a bossa nova band and the blazing guns of the American West don’t seem to have much in common on the surface. Yet the sun-drenched music of Brazil and the dramatic landscape of the American West both have their own distinct mythologies. And as the 1960s dawned, both bossa nova and western music swept the pop charts. Cherry Red’s Él label is celebrating these two very different styles with a pair of new anthologies. Festival of Bossa Nova is a primer on the early days of the genre (1957-1961, with one song from 1950), while Pop! Goes the West compiles cowboy classics that crossed over into pop and rock territory between 1952 and 1961.

Although 1964’s Getz/Gilberto is usually recognized as the album that set the bossa nova craze in motion internationally, it wasn’t even the first American album in the style. The music literally translating to “new trend” had taken root years earlier in Brazil, gaining traction with the success of 1959’s Black Orpheus and its score by Luis Bonfá, Antonio Carlos Jobim and Vinicius deMoraes. Bossa nova was the result of societal upheaval in Brazil, calling for its own soundtrack; a period of democratic freedom and economic development under President Juscelino Kubitschek led to unprecedented optimism. His promise of “fifty years of progress in five” was reflected in the forward-thinking music, which was both sophisticated and breezy. Identified by gentle acoustic guitar and sometimes piano, and often adorned with subtle string or horn accents, bossa nova was based on the rhythms of the samba. It soon was adapted on stages from the concert hall to Broadway, spawned the “lounge” genre and influenced countless musicians across the genre divide.

Festival of Bossa Nova brings together 32 tracks from the earliest days of bossa nova. All are sung in their original Portuguese and have the instantly recognizable, frequently mellow sound that would influence a generation of musicians in both pop and jazz. Of course, “the Brazilian Gershwin” Antonio Carlos Jobim (credited with deMoraes and Gilberto as having written one of the earliest true bossa nova songs, 1958’s “Chega de Saudade”) is represented via songs performed by singer/guitarist Joao Gilberto (including the now-standard “Insensatez” and “Corcovado”) and organist Walter Wanderley (“Agua de Beber”). Lyricist/poet deMoraes also collaborated with Carlos Lyra and Baden Powell, both of whom are also heard on Festival of Bossa Nova. Another major name you’ll hear on the new disc is Sergio Mendes, before he defined the sound of AM (and A&M!) pop with Brasil ’66. Mendes, quoted in the liner notes, offered a most apt description of bossa nova as “so refreshing and new…it was all so seductive. So sensual.”

Other familiar artists on hand include guitarists/composers Oscar Castro-Neves and Laurindo Almeida, and singer Elis Regina. The legendary Bonfá is on hand performing his own “Variacoes” and as co-composer, with Jobim, of “Amor Sem Adeus” smoothly performed by Brazilian crooner Dick Farney, born Farnésio Dutra e Silva, with a lush orchestral backing. Some of the tracks are actually rather dramatic (Dolores Duran’s “Solidao”) or boisterous (Os Cariocas’ “Preto Velho Bossa Nova”) but all are the product of a heady, experimental time. With a refreshing blend of well-known songs and unfamiliar material, Festival of Bossa Nova is a great starting point to explore the varied genre.

Another cleverly-compiled collection, Pop! Goes the West, joins Festival of Bossa Nova from Él. We’ve got details after the jump, plus track listings and order links for both titles!

Release Round-Up: Week of March 6

Mark Lindsay, The Complete Columbia Singles (Real Gone)

Joe calls this collection of the Paul Revere and The Raiders frontman’s solo single sides “one of (Real Gone’s) finest and most consistently enjoyable releases to date.” If that doesn’t get your catalogue muscles moving, it may be time to check your pulse!

Clannad, Timeless / The Essential Clannad (RCA/Legacy)

Alternately given both titles (the package has the latter while the sticker atop the disc has the former), this double-disc overview of one of Ireland’s favorite rock bands features a heap of Celtic tradition alongside guest vocals by Bono, Bruce Hornsby and Steve Perry.

Fats Domino, The Imperial Singles Volume 5: 1962-1964 (Ace)

The fifth and final volume from Ace of Fats’ Imperial single sides.

’til tuesday, Voices Carry: Expanded Edition (Hot Shot Records)

Boston-based ’80s rockers – best known as the first spotlight for lead singer/songwriter Aimee Mann’s talents – see their first, most successful album reissued by new Cherry Red imprint Hot Shot, with three single mixes as bonus tracks.

Rick Nelson, The Complete Epic Recordings (Real Gone)

Another victory for Real Gone: all of Rick Nelson’s late ’70s solo material for Epic Records, much of it released for the first time on CD, in the U.S. or both!

Todd Rundgren, Back to the Bars / Hermit of Mink Hollow/Healing/The Ever-Popular Tortured Artist Effect ; Utopia, Todd Rundgren’s Utopia/Another Live / Adventures in Utopia/Deface the Music/Swing to the Right ; Roger Powell, Air Pocket / M. Frog, M. Frog (Edsel)

A whole lot of Todd Rundgren reissues.

David Sylvian, A Victim of Stars 1982-2012 (EMI)

Released last week in the U.K. and available on our shores now, this two-disc set collects the best of the Japan frontman’s solo work, with one new track.

Rick Nelson, Mark Lindsay, McGough and McGear (with Hendrix and McCartney!) Are Real Gone In February

With another month comes another slate of rare music on both CD and vinyl from one of the real up-and-comers in the reissue biz, Real Gone Music!  The label’s February centerpieces just might be Rick Nelson’s The Complete Epic Recordings and Mark Lindsay’s The Complete Columbia Singles, but those two releases are being joined by titles from Sean (T.S.) Bonniwell, McGough and McGear, Eddie Hazel and the girls of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller’s Red Bird label on CD, plus Hank Thompson on vinyl!  The titles will arrive in two waves, on February 21 and February 28.

The Complete Columbia Singles of Mark Lindsay follows a similar 2010 Collectors’ Choice Music release for Paul Revere and the Raiders, the band with which Lindsay made his name as both lead vocalist and saxophonist!  Lindsay’s solo collection will include every A- and B-side released on Columbia (including the smash hit “Arizona”), plus a previously unissued rendition of Tim Hardin’s “Reason to Believe,” originally planned as the flip of the singer’s debut single.  The first five tracks are in mono, and the balance in stereo, and the songs are presented in chronological order.  Ed Osborne contributes new liner notes, drawing on interviews with Lindsay, songwriter Jerry Fuller, arranger Artie Butler and singer Tom Bahler.  The Complete Columbia Singles arrives February 28.

On the complete albums front, Real Gone is also compiling Rick Nelson’s Epic Records period.  Although Nelson recorded three albums’ worth of material at Epic, only one LP was released during the singer’s lifetime, 1977’s Intakes.  Musical renaissance man Al Kooper produced the intended follow-up, Back to Vienna, but the album collected dust on the Epic shelf, while Rockabilly Renaissance – a commercial prospect if there ever was one, with Nelson returning to his musical roots – was posthumously overdubbed.  Although the original albums have all seen the light of day in the compact disc age, The Complete Epic Recordings, due out February 28, will mark the American debut of 11 of its 41 tracks.  James Ritz has produced and written the liner notes, while Rockabilly Renaissance was restored to its original format by Bear Family’s Richard Weize.

With Paul McCartney releasing his latest studio album, Kisses on the Bottom, in time for Valentine’s Day in February, it might also be a good month to spread the love to Macca’s younger brother Mike, a.k.a. Mike McGear.  Roger McGough and Mike McGear were two-thirds of the Scaffold, the comedy/rock band remembered for U.K. No. 4 hit “Thank U Very Much” and chart-topper “Lily the Pink.”   The duo’s eponymous 1967 album on the Parlophone label welcomed a “Who’s Who” of rock royalty: John Mayall, Spencer Davis, Paul Samwell-Smith, Graham Nash, brother Paul, and even Jimi Hendrix, whose searing guitar lights up two tracks!  McGough & McGear makes its long-overdue American CD debut, with new liner notes by Richie Unterberger, on February 21.

Hit the jump for more releases from Eddie Hazel, Sean Bonniwell and Hank Thompson, plus the girls of Leiber and Stoller’s Red Bird Records label!

With A Little Help From His Friends: James Burton Anthology Features Everlys, Nelson, Hazlewood and Buffalo Springfield

When James Burton was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001, no less a legend than Keith Richards delivered his induction speech.  Richards was just one of the many guitarists influenced over the years by Burton, a talent whose C.V. boasts names like Rick Nelson, Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Elvis Costello, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis, Joni Mitchell, John Denver, and oh yeah, Elvis Presley.  Burton’s talent has transcended genre and classification, and at the age of 72, he continues to contribute musically to selected projects.  U.K. compilation experts Ace Records have turned the spotlight on this longtime sideman and occasional solo artist with the October 4 release of James Burton: The Early Years 1957-1969, the first of two volumes showcasing the guitarist’s titanic body of work.

A mainstay of Elvis Presley’s TCB Band and the lead guitarist on nearly all of Ricky Nelson’s classic recordings, Burton first appeared on record in 1956 on the small Ram label, backing Carol Williams on “Just For a While,” and that track appears on The Early Years.  It wasn’t long before Burton was an in-demand session musician, playing the famous and influential solo on Dale Hawkins’ “Susie Q” in 1957.  Within a year, Burton had taken his place alongside Ricky Nelson, building up a body of work that still endures; of his Nelson collaborations, “My Babe,” “Don’t Leave Me This Way,” “Stop Sneakin’ Around” and “Blood from a Stone” all appear.  His association with Nelson lasted until 1967; two years later, he would take the stage in Las Vegas with Elvis Presley, where “Play it, James” became a familiar catchphrase of The King’s.

Burton’s recordings of “Fireball Mail” and “Daisy Mae” as Jim and Joe (with fellow session stalwart Joe Osborn of the L.A. “Wrecking Crew”) have been included, as well as other solo tracks including “Cannonball Rag” and “Jimmy’s Blues.”  He appears as “Jimmy Dobro” on both sides of a 1963 single, “Swamp Surfer” b/w “Everybody Listen to the Dobro.”  Other familiar names making an appearance on the compilation include Lee Hazlewood, The Everly Brothers, Glen Campbell, Merle Haggard and the recently-reunited band Buffalo Springfield.  Even David Gates, later of Bread, is represented with the 1962 single by “David and Lee,” “Tryin’ to Be Someone.”

While touring with Presley in the 1970s, Burton found time to play with Emmylou Harris as a member of her “Hot Band,” and also began to work with John Denver that lasted 16 years and produced 12 albums.  A promised Volume 2 will collect Burton’s later years, including his work with Elvis Presley, Emmylou Harris, Gram Parsons and others.

Hit the jump for the complete track listing with discographical annotation, plus a pre-order link, for James Burton: The Early Years 1957-1969, which is due on October 4 from Ace Records!

Come and Get Them: Upcoming Releases Due from DeShannon, Nelson and More

Britain’s Ace family of labels is kicking off 2011 in a big way! Mike filled you in Tuesday about Kent’s upcoming I’ll Do Anything: The Doris Troy Anthology 1960-1996, and today we turn the spotlight on three more releases due in the U.K. on January 31.

Jackie DeShannon remains one of the most beloved voices of the 1960s. DeShannon not only broke barriers as a rare female songwriter in an era when it simply wasn’t common, but she was equally comfortable in front of the microphone as a first-class interpreter of others’ songs. Come and Get Me is the second volume of Ace’s three-part series collecting all of DeShannon’s singles for the Liberty and Imperial labels. Its 26 tracks include DeShannon’s classic “When You Walk in the Room,” “Splendor in the Grass,” on which she is backed by The Byrds, and songwriting collaborations with Randy Newman. Also compiled are five remarkable Burt Bacharach/Hal David compositions. These sophisticated pop singles were produced by Bacharach at his lush peak, and include not only the first, definitive recording of “What the World Needs Now is Love” but underrated gems like the breezy “So Long, Johnny,” haunting “Windows and Doors” and impassioned “Come and Get Me,” the song which gives this collection its title. All singles are presented exactly as they originally appeared, whether in mono or stereo, with some mixes making first-time appearances on CD. Each volume in this series has been released with Jackie’s full participation, and you can expect more illuminating quotes from her in the booklet, as well as original label scans and artwork.

DeShannon’s songwriting catalogue has already been immortalized on a volume of Ace’s long-running Songwriters and Producers series, recipient of our recent Gold Bonus Disc Award, and the series now turns its attention to a pair of mid-’60s soul men with Sweet Inspiration: The Songs of Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham. Penn and Oldham may not have the name recognition of Bacharach and David or Goffin and King, but who reading this isn’t familiar with “I’m Your Puppet” or “Cry Like a Baby,” just to name two of the team’s most well-known songs? Sweet Inspiration‘s 24 tracks include many from the Atlantic, Chess and Goldwax vaults, those labels alone attesting to the high quality of the soul music contained. Penn and Oldham’s first collaboration, “Let’s Do It Over” as performed by Joe Simon in 1965, is here, as is Dionne Warwick’s 1969 take on “I’m Your Puppet” and Arthur Alexander’s 1970 “Cry Like a Baby.” Other artists featured on this long-overdue tribute to the Penn/Oldham partnership are soul titans Percy Sledge (recipient of a new Rhino Handmade box set), Etta James, Irma Thomas, the late, great Solomon Burke, and the Sweet Inspirations themselves. Less likely artists on this eclectic set include Ronnie Milsap, Sandy Posey and Tommy Roe. Ace promises to follow up this volume with a disc of Penn’s collaborations with others. This volume would presumably include a recording of “Dark End of the Street,” arguably his masterwork, co-written with Chips Moman.

In 1970, Decca released a 12-track album comprising the best of Rick Nelson’s stand at the legendary Troubadour. A CD reissue briefly appeared, only to go out-of-print. Ace has come to the rescue, however. Some 40 years after the original LP’s release, the label delivers Rick Nelson: In Concert – The Troubadour, 1969, expanding the album’s 12 tracks to a whopping 42 (!), all derived from the concerts which took place at the intimate club between October 29 and November 2, 1969. The first disc boasts the original 12 tracks plus 10 alternates, while the second disc premieres a complete live show of yet 20 more performances, with Nelson’s spoken introductions and between-song commentaries intact. Nelson revisits many of his hits including “Poor Little Fool,” “Travelin’ Man” and “Hello, Mary Lou,” alongside then-contemporary material by writers like Bob Dylan, Tim Hardin and Randy Newman. This release was prepared from the original eight-track masters, which have been remixed and newly mastered. Eagles and Poco fans should note that this concert marked the debut of Nelson’s Stone Canyon band, with Randy Meisner on bass and backing vocals, plus Allen Kemp on lead guitar, Patrick Shanahan on drums and Tom Brumley on steel guitar.

Hit the jump for full track listings, pre-order information and full discographical details!

Rick Nelson Box Set Raves On

A hat tip to MusicTAP for pointing this one out: Bear Family, the inimitable German catalogue label specializing in reissues from the early days of rock, is issuing the last in a series of career-spanning box sets from the late, great Rick Nelson.

In 1957, Ricky Nelson, the heartthrob co-star of The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (which starred his parents), began to develop a rock ‘n’ roll career that thrived throughout the rest of the decade. Next to Elvis Presley and Pat Boone, there was no greater presence on the Top 40 than Ricky’s. While the British Invasion put a stop to much of his chart success, he continued putting out original country-tinged rock throughout the ’70s and ’80s before his tragic death in a plane crash on the last day of 1985.

Bear Family now brings the musical celebration of his life to a close with The Last Time Around, a seven-disc box set chronicling Nelson’s career from 1970-1982. This 134-track set includes his last four albums for Decca/MCA – Rick Sings Nelson (1970), Rudy the Fifth (1971), Garden Party (1972) (the title track of which was a Top 10 hit and bought Rick back into the spotlight) and Windfall (1974) – as well as an album for Epic (Intakes (1977)) and Capitol (Playing to Win (1981)). The set also includes two albums’ worth of rare material – Back to Vienna, a 1978 session produced by Al Kooper that was never released, and The Memphis Sessions, another sessions from the same year that were unreleased until after Nelson’s death in 1986 (where they were remixed for their inclusion on the Epic LP). Various singles, unreleased material and a live concert fill in the gaps, and a 144-page, hardcover liner notes booklet featuring interviews with principal collaborators and figures in Nelson’s life, session notes and rare artwork is also included.

The set starts shipping at the end of August and will set you back about $200. Take a look at the offerings after the jump. (Note: Bear Family’s page doesn’t note how each disc breaks down. We provide as much detail as we can below.)