Rolling Stones on Abkco |
Cliff Richard and The Shadows on EMI |
Friends Of Dean Martinez on Glitterhouse |
LABEL
SPOTLIGHT
ABKCO
RECORDS -
The extensive PR kit invites you to Get stoned in a whole new
way while also including loads of technical data from mastering
engineer legend Bob Ludwig and record company posturing from
ABKCO Records guru Jody Klein verifying the glories
of Super Audio SACD, Direct Stream Digital (DSD) mastering and Super
Bit Mapping processes. But in the end it was the 21 cut sampler contained
in the press kit that really proved to this writer that, soundwise,
this is what fans of The Rolling Stones have long been waiting
for. Abkcos new line of hybrid Stones CDsplayable on SACD
players and any standard CD players alikeare clearly the best
sounding Stones CDs to hit the market since their initial arrival
back in 1987. Each of the 22 various American and English CD titles
comprising the entire 60s catalog of The Rolling Stones benefits
soundwise and the impressive digi-pak packagingalthough minus
liner notes and lyricsis really prominent looking and will impress
Stones fans. Looking back on it all 30+ years later, the highlight
of the 60s Stones catalog was the synergy created by the original
lineupespecially the way the late, great Brian Jones (the
man credited by some as the one whose blues mastery invented the Stones)
interacted with the Mick Jagger / Keith Richards songwriting
team and the crack rhythm section of Bill Wyman and Charlie
Watts. While the Stones were primarily regarded as a singles band
by many teenyboppers for much of the 60s, it was the groups
classic 67 psychedelic masterpiece Their Satanic Majesties
Request that really put them on the map as serious contenders
to the Beatles throne. Their all time classic, 1968s Beggars
Banquet was followed by their near-best from 69, Let
It Bleed, but it all came crashing down with
the tragic, unnecessary death of Brian Jones in July 69. Anyone
who followed the Stones throughout the 60s will be impressed
at the diversity, scope and improved sound of the ABKCO Rolling Stones
reissue series which revives divergent U.K. and U.S. album reissues
of all their early to mid 60s albums (best examples being: the
shared cover art, different tracks of the U.K. release of Out
Of Our Heads and the U.S. release of Decembers
Children, the different track line-up of the US and
UK versions of Between The Buttons and the two different
covers of their classic Aftermath).
www.abkco.com
BMG
HERITAGE - Although primarily known as a singles band, The
Lovin Spoonful did record a number of memorable studio albums,
the first two of which were reissued in the U.S. for the first time
during Summer 2002. Both Do You Believe In Magic (first
released November 1965) and Daydream (March 1966) are
two of the latest releases on the NYC-based Buddha / BMG Heritage
label. Released in the 60s on Kama Sutra Records,
both BMG CDs sport bonus tracks, new and original liner notes (that
are actually readable) and original LP artwork. Expertly produced
and remastered by Rob Santos and Sundazed Records honcho
Bob Irwin, both BMG Spoonful reissues go to great lengths to
capture the pop enthusiasm the group brought to Top 40 radio during
the heyday of 60s Beatlemania. Also on BMG Heritage is a new
best of CD from late, great singer-songwriter Harry Nilsson simply
entitled Greatest Hits. Spanning Nilssons
heyday, 1967-73, the 21 track single CD features all the big hits
(Everybodys Talkin, Jump Into The Fire,
Spaceman) with new liner notes and track data and legendary
appearances from pop icons such as John Lennon, George Harrison,
Ringo Starr, Peter Frampton, Caleb Quaye and
Chris Spedding.
www.BuddhaRecords.com
EMI
RECORDS - The back catalog of EMI Records in the U.K. reads
like a textbook of Western pop music history. In addition to being
the label home for The Beatles, EMI in England is also the
label credited with signing the biggest names in pop music history.
Heading up the list of major reissues on EMI is a 2002 release entitled
The Cliff Richard Show - Live At The ABC Kingston
1962 from Cliff Richard & The Shadows. Before The
Beatles conquered the worldwide pop charts pop idol Cliff Richard
was the man to top. Richard is often credited with discovering instrumental
pop heroes The Shadows and, in fact, Shadows founders Hank Marvin
and Bruce Welch wrote and arranged most of Cliffs
60s albums. Recorded in England on their 1962 tour, Live
At The ABC Kingston provides a pretty accurate account of those
early pre-Beatlemania days in England. The Shads would come on first
and run through a number of their chart-topping instrumentals, mixing
in a few vocal hits followed by Cliff and all those screaming girls.
A valuable, historic CD release on EMI U.K., Live At The ABC Kingston
1962 is superbly packaged with incredible period piece photos,
2002 liner notes and an exact duplication of the program guide from
that fateful February-March 1962 tour.
www.leosden.co.uk
For 60s pop completists, recent 2002 60s 2on1
reissues from the EMI U.K. vaults include How Do You Do It?
/ Ferry Cross The Mersey from Liverpool pop heroes Gerry
And The Pacemakers, You Were Mad For Me / In Disneyland
from Freddie & The Dreamers and a 24 track
twofer reissuepairing Hermans Hermits / Both Sides
Of Hermans Hermits from the great, you guessed it Hermans
Hermits. Each of these superb EMI reissues features original album
art and original (and sometimes hard to read) liner notes.
www.emirecords.co.uk
GLITTERHOUSE RECORDS - Guitar instrumental fans have been raving
for years about pedal steel guitarist Bill Elm and his band
Friends Of Dean Martinez. Early FODM albums on Sub Pop Records
put the band in tight with savvy guitar fans and its worth noting
two recent FODM CD releases on the German-based Glitterhouse Records.
The bands core lineup of Bill Elm (steel guitar), Mike Semple
(guitar) and Dave Larchance (drums) come alive on their
2001 live CDrecorded in GermanyLive At Club 2.
Sounding like an instrumental version of Neil Youngs Crazy
Horse, the all-instrumental Live At Club 2 offers a devastating
sonic performance featuring a number of Elm/Semple originals and covers
of Gershwins Summertime and Tennessee Waltz.
Another must hear CD from Elm and company another 2001 release, Wichita
Lineman, also out on Glitterhouse. Recorded in Austin,
and featuring Elm, Semple and a host of fine players, Wichita Lineman
shows just how great FODM is in the studio, and yes, there is
a fine instro cover of the Jimmy Webb song Wichita Lineman.
Both CDs are filled with Elms majestic steel guitar reveries
and are simply amazing.
www.glitterhouse.com
MULTIPHASE RECORDS - A name highly regarded among guitar fans,
Carl Weingartens recent solo output includes his highly acclaimed
2000 album Blue Faith, and he adds to his legacy with his 2002
CD Escapesilence, released on Multiphase Records.
In the spirit of Steve Tibbetts and Michael Hedges, Weingarten is
a master at coaxing a variety of hues and textures from his acoustic
and electric guitars. Some may call it New Age, world fusion, and
ambient space musicyet the sound of Escapesilence literally
escapes definition. A full line-up of players take part including
Michael Manring (bass), acoustic guitarist Alex DeGrassi,
pedal steel ace Robert Powell and drummer/engineer Brian
Knave. A soundtrack for you own private movie, the entrancing,
nocturnal Escapesilence beckons you to turn off the lights,
slip on the headphones and drift off to a strange and wonderful place.
www.mphase.com
UMG - They called him the 5th Beatle back during the Let It
Be era. Having first met the Fabs during his stint as a member
of Little Richards group, keyboard / organ great Billy Preston
is well represented on his new compilation The Best Of Billy
Preston - 20th Century Masters / The Millennium Collection on
A&M / UME. Preston is perhaps credited with his performance
at The Concert For Bangla Desh, where he nearly stole the show,
andas the liner notes point outGeorge Harrison
lends his slide guitar work on Prestons classic 1972 funk-rock
instro anthem Outa-Space. Other new 20th Century Masters
Millennium Collections worth checking out includes The
Best Of Savoy Brown, released on Polydor / UME.
Late 60s Savoy Brown classics like Blue Matter and A
Step Further sealed the groups reputation as the leading
blues-rock group of the 60s and early 70s. Featuring blues
guitar great Kim Simmonds, the Savoy Brown Millennium Collection
spotlights tracks from a number of their early albums up to and
including their 71 classic Street Corner Talking,
while good liner notes retrace the groups illustrious history.
The British rock band Free are remembered on their Millennium
Collection The Best Of Free. Theres even a few tracks
from the bands great first two album classics, Tons Of Sobs
and Free. Since bursting on the U.S. scene as the opening
act for Blind Faith during the Summer of 69, the band always
released great albums. Best known for the song All Right Now,
their new best of touches on a number of Free albums. Also just out
on UMG are Millennium Collection reissues The Best Of
Fairport Convention (featuring late 60s early 70s
folk-rock music from Richard Thompson and singer Sandy Denny)
and The Best Of J.J. Cale, which features a number
of the singers early classics like After Midnight
(from 1971) and Cocaine, recorded in Nashville in 1976.
The Millennium series remains a highly successful marketing instrument
for UMG as these new reissues clearly prove.
www.universalchronicles.com
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