Some Dreams Come True: Bangles’ “Everything” to Be Expanded by Cherry Pop

Close your eyes, give us your hand and let’s talk about a new reissue of Everything, The Bangles’ final album for Columbia Records, from the Cherry Pop label.

Released in 1988, Everything was the latest effort from a band riding high for the past two years. Different Light, released in 1986 (and also expanded by Cherry Pop), had made them MTV superstars thanks to killer cuts like the Prince-penned “Manic Monday” and “Walk Like an Egyptian.” The following year, a hard-hitting cover of Simon & Garfunkel’s “Hazy Shade of Winter” was the lead single off the Rick Rubin-produced soundtrack to Less Than Zero, the adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis’ acclaimed debut novel.

Featuring individual songwriting credits from all four members of the group, Everything was primarily anchored by two tunes from lead singer Susanna Hoffs and pop songwriting duo Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly (“Like a Virgin,” “True Colors,” “So Emotional”). The first, rollicking single “In Your Room,” was a Top 5 hit, follow-up ballad “Eternal Flame” hit No. 1 in the U.S., U.K. and other parts of Europe, their second and final chart-topper after “Walk Like an Egyptian.”

Despite Everything‘s success, internal tensions led to the band’s breakup by the release of a 1990 greatest-hits compilation and single, “Everything I Wanted.” In the latter part of the decade, Hoffs reunited with guitarist Vicki Peterson, bassist Michael Steele and drummer Debbi Peterson and released a new album, Doll Revolution, in 2003. Steele departed the group two years later, and in 2011 the group released the album Sweetheart of the Sun with producer Matthew Sweet filling in for her.

Cherry Pop’s expanded Everything features three bonus cuts: a non-LP track, “What I Wanted to Say” (the flip-side of “Eternal Flame”) and two remixes of “In Your Room.” It’s out in the U.K. on September 24 and will hit the U.S. roughly a week later.

Hit the jump to place your order!

Costello’s Wheel Good Tour Captured on New Live Box Set

In 1986, Elvis Costello and The Attractions did something bizarre for rock musicians: they reinvented the wheel. Okay, maybe that’s pushing it, but the introduction of “The Spectacular Spinning Songbook” to Costello’s tour itinerary remains among the most treasured of memories for longtime fans. Costello, who only used The Attractions once on his then-new album, King of America (opting instead for a number of other musicians, including a studio-created group, The Confederates, featuring T-Bone Wolk and Mitchell Froom and members of Elvis Presley’s 1970s T.C.B. Band), reassembled them for a humorously gaudy portion of the tour in which Costello, in character as fictitious game show host Napoleon Dynamite (years before that name was re-appropriated on film), invited audience members to spin a giant wheel to determine what the next song in the set list would be. Selections were varied, from hits to deep cuts to the odd cover or two.

A quarter of a century later, Elvis Costello and The Imposters (featuring original Attractions Steve Nieve on keyboards and Pete Thomas on drums and Davey Farragher on bass) reignited a live frenzy by bringing back the Spectacular Spinning Songbook – and this time, it’s been captured for release. And the lavish box set nature of the release is enough to warrant coverage on The Second Disc, for sure.

Hip-O’s Return of the Spectacular Spinning Songbook is a limited-edition box – only 1,500 numbered copies worldwide – culled from the group’s two dates at Los Angeles’ Wiltern Theater in May of 2011. The set includes a CD of 16 performances from both nights, ranging from all ends of Costello’s lengthy career, from “Mystery Dance” off his 1978 debut My Aim is True to the title track of 2010’s National Ransom. The accompanying DVD showcases the second show on May 12 and includes highlights in covers of Nick Lowe (“Heart of the City”) and The Rolling Stones (“Out of Time”) as well as “Tear Off Your Own Head (It’s a Doll Revolution),” featuring a guest appearance from Susanna Hoffs, who covered the track with The Bangles a year after Costello released his version on When I Was Cruel in 2002.

The box set also features a 10″ EP with an additional four songs, a 40-page hardbound book of photos and Costello’s journal entries while on tour, a 20″ x 30″ poster, a limited edition tour postcard and a commemorative card signed by Costello himself. Those who don’t want all the super-deluxe trimmings can rest easy, though: next year, the CD and DVD will be released individually and as a two-disc set.

The set’s in shops November 28, but you can order your copy right now through Amazon. Enjoy the set lists after the jump.

September 20 Will Be a Manic Monday: 2 Bangles Titles Reissued and Expanded in the UK

Emerging in the early 1980s with a sound equal parts garage rock, power pop and 1960s folk rock a la the Byrds, the Bangles quickly took their place as one of the most successful girl groups of all time. The band consisting of Susanna Hoffs, Vicki Peterson, Debbi Peterson and Michael Steele made their major-label debut on the Columbia label with 1984’s All Over the Place.  While not a major success, the album made enough of a splash to attract some big fans, namely 1980s icons Cyndi Lauper, Huey Lewis and Prince. The Bangles were invited to open on a major tour for Huey Lewis and the News, then for Lauper; shortly thereafter, Prince offered them his song “Manic Monday” and the rest is eighties pop history. On September 20, Cherry Red’s Cherry Pop division will reissue the first two Bangles LPs in expanded editions, with All Over the Place‘s 1986 follow-up, Different Light, getting the full 2-CD treatment. Hit the jump for full details!

Prince Week Day 5: Prince in Other Places

Prince’s influence has been discussed far and wide, from fashion to music videos to the actual, Hendrixian quality of his guitar playing. But it’s always unusual when the mercurial purple genius decides to directly contribute to another artist’s canon, particularly since one really never knows where he’s going to end up next.

What follows is a chronological list of ten of Prince’s most interesting “guest appearances.” Half of them are actual guest appearances, the other half either songs he wrote or covers of his hits (we have disqualified anything Prince produced, as everyone knows as soon as Prince sits in a producer’s chair, it’s essentially his song). Some of these might not be new to you if you’re a die-hard Prince fan, but at least you can reflect on His Royal Badness and the far-flung influence he’s had on pop music for more than a quarter-century. Take a look after the jump.

Reissue Theory: The Bangles

The other night, my radio happened upon “Manic Monday,” one of the best pop songs of the 1980s. I’m sure you’re all aware that the tune was written by Prince (under the pseudonym “Christopher,” an effect from his Under the Cherry Moon days) and given to Susanna Hoffs and company after Apollonia 6 recorded a version that was never released. You may also know that the song itself hit No. 2 on the charts, kept from the top by none other than Prince and The Revolution’s “Kiss.”

You might not know why Sunday would be considered a fun-day (or an I-don’t-have-to-run-day for that matter). I don’t either, and that always makes me think why Prince would come up with such a line. Clearly he had more fun on Sundays than I did as a kid (I often used Sunday to mope about soon-to-be-manic Mondays). But I don’t think I could take it up with him – or The Bangles for that matter. And not only because Susanna Hoffs is crazy pretty, but because there’s better things to say to the band – like, “Hey! What if your albums got a heavy-duty reissue treatment?” (How’s that for a segue! Now, I realize all three are available, with a bonus track each, from Wounded Bird Records. But I suppose there isn’t anything stopping a guy from imagining what could be.)

In tribute to one of the best female rock groups of the ’80s, I give you a special three-for-one version of Reissue Theory, where I tackle All Over the Place, Different Light and Everything. Read on after the jump!