We might have known that a wealth of 50th-anniversary reissues would arrive this year—after all, 1969 was a magnificent year of multifarious musical pleasures. And what we have here is a doozy: the watershed Stones LP that unleashed "Gimme Shelter," "You Can’t Always Get What You Want" AND "Let It Bleed" (not to mention "Midnight Rambler" and their hillbilly twist on "Honky Tonk Women," "Country Honk"). Jagger-Richards were at the absolute top of their game here, and Mick Taylor arrived as Brian Jones, sadly, departed. This a crucial chapter in the Rolling Stones story returns here in remastered form (courtesy of Bob Ludwig) on CD, vinyl or within a suitably lavish boxed set. The complete album is in that set in both mono and stereo, on vinyl as well as on hybrid Super Audio CD. You also get the 7" vinyl single "Honky Tonk Women" b/w "You Can’t Always Get What You Want" (it’s a reproduction of the 1969 mono picture-sleeve single). "But that’s not all!," as they’ve been saying since long before 1969. Also in this box are three 12" x 12" hand-numbered replica-signed lithographs, a 23" x 23" poster featuring artwork from the 1969 Decca release and an 80-page hardcover book. Therein you’ll encounter a detailed David Fricke essay as well as previously unseen photos by the band’s photographer Ethan Russell. Ludwig has gone on record (so to speak) to say that this new mastering has unveiled a new level of sonic detail missing from all previous editions of this essential rock album. Don’t let the golden anniversary of "Let It Bleed" pass you by without picking up one of these special editions, Stones fans! ABKCO.020286229001 This founding singer/keyboardist of Santana and Journey has also been a mainstay in Ringo Starr’s All-Starr Band since 2012. Gregg’s first studio album in 18 years features his ex-Santana mate Michael Shrieve and his fellow Journey-man Neal Schon as well as Steve Lukather and Alphonso Johnson. His gospel-tinged take on Elvis’s "Don’t Be Cruel" joins "What About Love," "They Want It All," "Breaking My Heart," "Lift Me Up" and more self-penned songs! Rolie.020286229650 The lyrics are provocative and personal, the sonics are raw and edgy…it’s the brand-new album by these much-loved San Francisco alt-rockers, and it features contributions by Smashing Pumpkins’ Billy Corgan, who Third Eye Blind are now referring to as their "musical consigliere." The title track and the inspiring "The Kids Are Coming (to Take You Down)" join "Ways," "Walk Like Kings," "Who Am I" and more. CD, vinyl or limited-edition pink vinyl, which is a "Ten Bands One Cause" release (benefiting Gilda’s Club NYC, which supports cancer patients and their caretakers). Mega Collider.028948367672 Deutsche Grammophon have recorded more Beethoven music than any other label, so it's no wonder they’re a central figure in the 2020 Beethoven celebration (marking the composer’s 250th birthday). And at the heart of their new Beethoven campaign: this 123-disc limited-edition boxed set created in partnership with the Beethoven-Haus Bonn. This beast of a Beethoven box contains much more than we can detail here, but suffice it to say: you’ll encounter more than 175 hours of music and 250 artists, from Gilels to Gardiner, Amadeus Quartet to Arrau, Furtwangler to Fischer-Dieskau, Kempff to Karajan, Menuhin to Mutter, Perahia to Pollini, Lupu to Lang Lang. Böhm to Brendel to Bernstein to Barenboim and many more. A new essay by Dr. Christine Siegert (Director of the Beethoven Archive) accompanies this set, the most up-to-date and comprehensive one ever assembled. Among the world-premiere recordings here are Lang Lang’s performance of the obscure "Menuet in C Major" and some Daniel Hope performances of fragments and movements including the last musical idea Beethoven wrote down before his death. Unreleased discoveries join rare recordings as well as prize-winning triumphs, and each of the nine volumes comes with a book featuring extensive notes on the repertoire, track lists, sung texts and comprehensive recording details. The essays and insights from leading Beethoven scholars derive from the most up-to-date research, bringing us closer than ever to the life of Beethoven as well as his music. A full 30 of these CDs are devoted to alternative interpretations including historic archive recordings and period-instrument performances. Sir John Eliot Gardiner’s readings of the nine symphonies join three Blu-Ray audio discs in 24-bit sound containing Karajan’s legendary 1962 symphony cycle, Kempff’s vision of the complete piano sonatas and the Amadeus Quartet’s benchmark recordings of the complete string quartets. And those DVDs? They bring you Bernstein’s conducting of "Fidelio" and the fourth and seventh symphonies conducted by Carlos Kleiber. The volumes are orchestral music, music for the stage, keyboard music, chamber music, lieder & partsongs, folksong settings, vocal works with orchestra, world premieres & rarities and classical performances/period-instrument performances. Beethoven left us with a lifetime of musical discoveries, and they’re all here in this magnificent box! Deutsche Grammophon.028948374724 Fournier & Guida’s highly prized 1959 recordings have been remastered at Emil Berliner Studios in 24-bit/192kHz DTS-HD Master Audio. That’s a mouthful, but trust us: it means the highest fidelity ever for these reference-standard performances of "Sonata in F Major No. 1," "Sonata in G Minor No. 2," "Sonata for Cello & Piano No. 3 in A Major," "Sonata in C Major No. 1," and "Sonata in D Major No. 2" plus Beethoven’s three variation cycles. Completing the perfection of this 3-CD release: a cover adapted from the original artwork and a booklet featuring splendid photos of both these illustrious artists! Deutsche Grammophon.028948377695 This Icelandic pianist made a splash with the striking transcriptions of well-known and rarely played Bach pieces on his album "Johann Sebastian Bach." This 2-CD set combines that release with "Bach Reworks," his much-talked-about album of transcriptions and Bach-inspired original works performed by an array of electronic artists. Includes "For Johann," "Above and Below," "And at the Hour of Death," selections from "Prelude & Fughetta in G Major," "Prelude & Fugue in E Minor," "Organ Sonata in E Minor," "Aria Variata in A Minor," "Invention No. 12 in A Major," "Sinfonia No. 12 in A Major and more! Deutsche Grammophon.029667096126 Arriving 15 years after Dave’s death and after his fourth "Soul Treasures" comp, volume five collects cuts chosen by Dave for future releases in the series. Some of these are gems he wanted from day one but which, due to licensing issues, weren’t available ’til now. Dave’s own words (in the notes) join "Don’t Pass Me By" Big Maybelle, "Foolish Fool" Dee Dee Warwick, "Home Is Where the Hatred Is" Esther Phillips, "(Until Then) I’ll Suffer" Barbara Lynn, "Lovers Always Forgive" Gladys Knight, "Every Night (I Pray)" Chantels, "These Ain’t Raindrops" James Carr…25 tracks, some previously unreleased! Kent Soul.029667096324 Half a century ago, Westbound set about proving that post-Motown Detroit could still be a driving force in music. Here are 24 funk, soul and gospel hits and rarities from the legendary Motor City label: "Pain," "Funky Worm" Ohio Players, "I’ll Bet You," "Standing on the Verge of Getting It On" Funkadelic, "Get Ya Some" Melvin Sparks, "Get Up off My Mind" Denise LaSalle, "Feel the Need" Detroit Emeralds, "Calling Planet Earth" Dennis Coffey, "I Love You" Motivations, "I’ve Changed" Magictones, "Devil’s Gun" CJ & Co and more! Westbound.029667096621 Unlike the previous editions of this series, this one focuses exclusively on one genre: rock. In the notes, Jon waxes rhapsodic about his first encounters with the distorted tones and bristling energy of these classics: "King Kong" Kinks, "American Woman" Guess Who, "1969" Stooges, "Funk #48" James Gang, "Rock and Roll Queen" Mott the Hoople, "The Witch’s Promise" Jethro Tull, "Plynth (Water down the Drain)" Jeff Beck Group, "Bad Night at the Whiskey" Byrds, "Waiting for the Wind" Spooky Tooth, "Flying" Faces, "Sweet Jane" Velvet Underground, "The Green Manalishi" Fleetwood Mac, "Spirit in the Sky" Norman Greenbaum, "Caught in a Dream" Alice Cooper, "Broad Daylight" Free…43 tracks from a pivotal and thrilling time in rock history! Ace.032511186720 These ex-members of the Lonesome River Band formed this group to merge traditional bluegrass with forward-looking roots music that really doesn’t have a name yet. Their second album features beautiful vocal harmonies and guests Rob Ickes, the Isaacs, Jason Crabb and famed fiddler Aubrey Haynie: "Julie," "Heartstrings," "Where I Belong," "My Ol’ Tattoo," "Charming Betsy," "Cold Heart of Steel" and more! Rebel.045778727629 Hardcore punk, rage against greed and government…and Santy Claus? These L.A. punk legends have long talked about making a holiday record, believe it or not. Scratch that: believe it, ’cause here it is in all its hard-charging, fist-pumping glory. Don’t let the choir-boy intro to "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" fool you—it’s all storming guitars and drums after that on "O Come All Ye Faithful," "Little Drummer Boy," "White Christmas," "What Child Is This?" and more. This 2013 hardcore holiday triumph now comes to gold vinyl, limited to just 500 copies…get yours now! Epitaph.049891401220 How about a Tex-Mex Christmas this year? Tish has been putting out acclaimed albums blending American folk and traditional Mexican sounds for 30 years. Her 2003 holiday album is split between English- and Spanish-language delights: "Silent Night," "In a Christmas Dream," "Everything You Wish," "Arbolito," "Milagro," "Hanukia," the title song and more! Texas/New West.050087430146 Ranging from lounge sounds to the sweepingly dramatic, from ’70s disco to ’80s dance-pop, Freddie’s 1985 solo debut was an unequivocal winner. There are some shades of Queen, but this was a bold step into the solo spotlight for Freddie, and it comes to CD and 180-gram vinyl now (with download): "Let’s Turn It On," "I Was Born to Love You," "Made in Heaven," "Your Kind of Lover," the title track and more! Hollywood.051617200024 This restlessly creative jazz-pop band have been keeping listeners guessing since the late ’70s. Here, on their first album of new material in six years, Spyro Gyra break out some faithful versions of classics, but also some inventive jazz renditions of pop hits from the vinyl era. Plenty of surprises here, on CD or vinyl: "Sunshine of Your Love," "What a Fool Believes," "Secret Agent Mash," "You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away," "Tempted," "The Cisco Kid," "Can’t Find My Way Home" and more! Amherst.075597923018 Byrne listened to his friends, who told him that the stage show supporting his 2018 album "American Utopia" is so theatrical that it ought to be on Broadway—and now it is. An ensemble cast joins Byrne on stage to perform Talking Heads and David Byrne songs, and a narrative arc sews it all together as we hear this original cast recording from David Byrne’s latest triumph! Nonesuch.075597924282 This beloved actor is also the owner of an almost operatic singing voice, and he lets it fly here on his first new album in over 15 years. With minimal piano/Mellotron backing by producer/musician Thomas Bartlett, Mandy covers Randy Newman, Rufus Wainwright, Lyle Lovett, Stephen Sondheim, Laurie Anderson and more: "Going to a Town," "Refugees/Song of the Titanic," "If I Had a Boat," "From the Air," "To Be of Use," "Fear Itself," "My Mom" and more! Nonesuch.075597925302 Produced by Joe Henry, recorded in Dublin and featuring primarily just Rhiannon and Italian multi-instrumentalist Francesco Turrisi, Giddens’ new album takes us from Africa and the Arabic world to America and Europe and back again. They play banjo, violin, viola, piano, accordion, lute, colascione and more on "Gonna Write Me a Letter," "Brown Baby," "Pizzica Di San Vito," "I’m on My Way," "Black Swan" and more originals, traditionals and covers. See this dynamic duo on tour this year and behold their stunning new album on CD or double vinyl which includes 4 previously unreleased tracks and new liner notes written by Rhiannon and Francesco! Nonesuch.089353501921 Punk historians know Manitoba as the leader of NYC’s the Dictators (and, much later, the lead singer of MC5). Now, at long last, we welcome Dick’s first solo release, featuring contributions by Santana drummer Michael Shrieve, Free/Bad Company drummer Simon Kirke and the late, great P.F. Sloan, whose voice, harmonica and guitar are heard on a fresh rendition of "Eve of Destruction" (the 1965 Barry McGuire smash penned by Sloan). That joins "Shelley," "Surfside," "Magenta Street," "Thicker Than Blood," the title track and more! Liberation Hall.090204656509 Recorded live in 2009 at Sherpherd’s Bush in London, this live album boasts Wishbone Ash classics and some emotional moments, too, as they welcome two former members in Mark Birch and Ben Granfelt. The DVD is a road movie covering the band’s 40th-anniversary tour; on the 2 CDs: "Blind Eye," "Blowin’ Free," "Jailbait," "Right or Wrong," "Rainstorm," "The Way of the World," "Phoenix," "The King Will Come," "Runaway," "Growing Up," "Sometime World" and more! ZYX.093624898900 It’s been seven years since Neil Young and Crazy Horse recaptured their ragged rock ’n’ glory with "Psychedelic Pill." They’re set to thrill with that throwback sound again on this new release: 10 new Neil Young compositions featuring Young on vocals, guitar, piano, harmonica and vibes. Billy Talbot’s on bass, Ralph Molina’s on drums and Nils Lofgren returns to the fold on guitar and piano, almost 50 years since he last played on a Crazy Horse album (’71)! Recorded in the state of its title, "Colorado" arrives now on CD or double vinyl, which includes a bonus 7" ("Truth Kills") along with "Think of Me," "She Showed Me Love," "Green Is Blue," "Milky Way," "Eternity," "I Do," "Olden Days" and more. Vinyl edition also features a bonus solo performance of "Rainbow of Colors," recorded live in Portland in May 2019! Reprise.
