Grant Us an Extension
The other day I was talking about how us catalogue fans can sometimes end up wanting that one missing track to add to our collections. I used the 45 version of Billy Joel’s “Sometimes a Fantasy,” which...
View ArticleBack Tracks: Squeeze
If The Second Disc has any European readers, allow me to express my intense jealousy that Squeeze, one of the best British pop bands I can name, is embarking on a tour in your neck of the woods later...
View ArticleReissue Theory: Cheap Trick, Squeeze Do-Overs
Today’s installment of Reissue Theory is going to tread over familiar ground, in honor of two bands who turned out some great live sets last night at New Jersey’s State Theater: Cheap Trick and...
View ArticleRelease Round Up: McCartney and Michael Dates Plus More Squeeze Reissues?
It looks like we finally can expect Paul McCartney’s Concord catalogue program to start up on September 28. Amazon has a pre-order link up for the promised reissue of Band on the Run for that date....
View ArticleTake It to the Bridge: Squeeze Frontman Releases New Set of Vintage Demos
Here’s a treat for any of you British pop fans out there: another series of demos from Squeeze songwriter Glenn Tilbrook. When Daylight Appears: The Demo Tapes 1985-1991 spotlights Squeeze at one of...
View ArticleReview: John Cale, “Conflict and Catalysis: Productions and Arrangements...
Catalysis (ca-tal-y-sis): The action of a catalyst, especially an increase in the rate of a chemical reaction. With his induction into Ace Records’ Producers series, John Cale joins an esteemed group...
View ArticleA&M Records Celebrates Half-Century Mark with Three-Disc Compilation
Ask the most voracious of music trivia buffs what “A&M Records” stood for and they’ll tell you simply: Herb Alpert, noted jazz trumpeter and bandleader; and music promoter Jerry Moss, a duo who...
View ArticleRelease Round-Up: Week of August 28
Frank Zappa, Official Reissues #15-26 (Zappa Records/UMe) FZ’s 1972-1979 discography, almost entirely sourced from original analog masters. (Joe breaks it all down for you here!) Various Artists,...
View ArticleReview: “A&M 50: The Anniversary Collection”
On its surface, it seems kind of crazy to make a compilation of tunes from A&M Records. There are plenty of labels with clearer narrative arcs: Columbia was a hotbed for melodic singer-songwriters...
View ArticleThe Fruits of Another: Paul Carrack’s Career Anthologized on Triple-Disc...
Like some sort of blue-eyed soul version of Zelig, Paul Carrack has been a fixture of British rock for decades. As frontman of pub-rock Ace, he took “How Long” to the U.K. Top 20 and to No. 3 on...
View Article
More Pages to Explore .....