991.com Sleevenotes : A Blog about Collecting Rare Vinyl 7", 12" & LP Records, CDs, Memorabilia & Music

Wednesday's Forthcoming Releases

 

U2 ‘The Unforgettable Fire’ [Release Date 26/10/2009]

CD  I     2CD   I    2CD/DVD Set   I   LP

"this ain't mere genius, this is rock 'n' roll" - Kerrang, October 1984

U2's fourth album, 'The Unforgettable Fire' has been remastered and will be released by Mercury Records on 26th October.

This special edition marks 25 years since the album's original release in October 1984. Recorded at Slane Castle, Ireland, 'The Unforgettable Fire' was the first U2 album to be produced by Brian Eno and Danny Lanois, and spawned two top 10 UK singles – 'Pride (In The Name Of Love)' and 'The Unforgettable Fire'.

Special formats of The Unforgettable Fire will also feature bonus audio material, including two previously unheard tracks from the Slane Castle sessions: “Yoshino Blossom”, and “Disappearing Act” (a track which the band recently completed), and a DVD including music videos, a documentary and unreleased live footage from the Amnesty International Conspiracy of Hope Tour in 1986. The Unforgettable Fire has been remastered from the original audio tapes, with direction from The Edge.

 

MORRISSEY ‘Swords’ [Release Date 26/10/2009]

CD  I    2CD  I  2LP

It draws b-sides from many of the singles taken from 'You are the Quarry', 'Ringleader of the Tormentors', 'Greatest Hits' and 'Years Of Refusal'.

Although these tracks were originally released as b-sides, heard together and alongside each other on this CD they sound superb as a collection in their own right, and is a wonderful journey through some of Morrissey's lesser heard tracks recorded over the last 5 years.

There is a limited edition format for initial orders that comes superbly packaged with an extra disc recorded live in Warsaw. It contains 8 tracks never before released, recorded during his current 2009 world tour and captures Morrissey on awesome form.

Abba in Japan

 

Just when you thought there couldn't possiby be something new from Abba!

ABBA ‘Abba In Japan’ [Release Date 26/10/2009]

DVD   I   Deluxe 2 DVD

* After the amazing international success of ABBA 'The Movie', comes the next Abba DVD event for 2009 'Live in Japan'.

* This special show was made for Japanese television back in 1978 and comprises of 15 hit songs including special Bonus Track 'If It Wasn't For The Nights' performed by ABBA (playback and live).

* Extras include the exclusive behind the scenes documentary with TV performances and interviews with press and radio, the content is based on their 10 day visits to Japan in 1978

* The 2 disc Deluxe Version also contains the 1980 behind the scenes footage. In addition to the above, the Deluxe Edition also contains a photogallery plus 2 photocards and a sticker.

 

 

The Ultimate version of the Ultimate Live Album?

 

A bold claim perhaps, but check this monster out before you scoff!!

On 3rd November, Abcko are issuing a Super Deluxe Collectors Edition of the Rolling Stones' classic live album, 'Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out!' - so what do you get for your moolah?

* 3 180gram audiophile quality vinyl LPs - LP 1 features the original 1970 LP, recorded live at Civic Center, Baltimore on 26th November 1969 and Madison Square Garden, New York on 27th & 28th November 1969, LP 2 features 5 previously unreleased recordings from MSG, while LP 3 includes 12 previously unreleased tracks from supporting artists BB King and Ike & Tina Turner!

* 3 CD albums replicating the vinyl content

* Bonus DVD which features footage from Madison Square Garden, backstage footage, scenes of Keith Richards in the studio and footage of the album cover shoot, all shot by Albert and David Maysles

* 56-page collectors book & postcard

* Free download of the live version of 'I’m Free' for Guitar Hero 5 

All wrapped up in a super groovy 13" x 13" box! Click here for more info and to reserve a copy!

Hi From Texas

Just time for a quick note before I leave for the airport. It's been a busy few days here in Texas. Peter and I have been attending the twice yearly Austin Record convention where we discovered some amazing pieces including an Elvis Presley Sun single, an original Beatles 1965 sealed LP and a guitar signed by the members of Led Zeppelin. I'll be posting all the details on the food, weather and Peter's scary road rage incident on my return to the UK, til then....

Vinyl sales on the up

NME recently confirmed that "through the first five months of 2009 alone, sales of vinyl are up 50 per cent on 2008". They also make clear that although it's still "a drop in the ocean" compared to CD album and digital download sales, in targeting those that still see music as art, taking your casual music fan out of the equation, and weighing up all the possible formats that have been offered over the years - eight-track cartridges, cassettes, MiniDiscs, CDs, downloads etc. - the vinyl LP still stands as the number one more aesthetically pleasing. Read on...

James Last on your iPlayer

James Last is a consistently good seller here at 991. Why that is I haven't a clue, in all frankness. But there is something about the man with the golden beard that continually attracts the punters, and for that we're grateful. Even the hipster-mag Wax Poetics has composed a primer, educating its readers on some of the more funkier elements in the man's everlasting repertoire of party hit medleys; and they're serious! Perhaps Guy Barker's three-part BBC documentary on the German composer and bandleader will give some clues, originally aired in 2006 and recently made available online. Otherwise, answers on a postcard please...

The Twilight Saga - contributions from Thom Yorke & more...

THOM YORKE / THE KILLERS / MUSE / EDITORS / VARIOUS ARTISTS

‘The Twilight Saga: New Moon’ [Release Date 19/10/2009]

CD

Atlantic Records is set to release 'The Twilight Saga: New Moon Music From The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack' on October 19th. The first single taken from the album is Death Cab for Cutie's 'Meet Me On The Equinox' which will be released on October 26.

 

Good News

For those of you that have been waiting [and for those of you that so far have missed out], there is a new shipment of the amazing books by Yuri Grishin on the way & we should soon have them all back in stock again.

For those that don't know, Yuri has written & released four incredible books on the great British Record Labels of the last thirty years. Each book is an encyclopaedic reference with label designs, sleeve pictures & interviews with key people that had a hand in the label, making then an essential for the library of any serious collector.

The books available so far are for Island, Harvest, Charisma & the recently published Vertigo, which also includes singles for the first time.

Yuri plans to also publish pocket books in the future for ease of use & also to include any updates to his main works.

As someone that has purchased one of each, I can recommend them !

RTA

Glasto gloom...

If you haven't signed up and already bought a ticket for the legendary Glastonbury festival next summer, you're too late - It's already sold out.

No acts are confirmed yet but there's sure to be the usual mixture of star names and cult heroes for it's 40th anniversary bash.

Perhaps these buggers bought them all...?

Progtastic!

Most would think prog into disco doesn't go, but as the cosmic tones of both Chrome Hoof and Jean Pierre Massiera's music attest, sometimes the stars align. At least that's what happened last night at the Barbican. Both artists got down to some of the most danceable prog you could imagine, warming up the stage and setting the controls for the heart of the sun in preparation for Magma, prog royalty in France. Some of their more bizarre fans include Antoine de Caunes and, who would've thought, snooker maestro Steve Davis! Daevid Allen was certainly in attendance last night, and prior to the gig Artrocker caught up with Stella Vander, as the band got ready to celebrate their 40th anniversary in style. 

Photo: Julia Beatty

"Paul Morley explores the oft-misunderstood world of folk music"

The latest in Paul Morley's "Showing Off" series for The Guardian finds him pondering what Folk music means to him as well as Johnny Marr, Roots Manuva, Martin & Eliza Carthy and society as a whole, and why it doesn't have to be a four letter word. Are we any the wiser? Watch with the latest Flash player here

Michael Jackson - This Is It....

It really is. The latest offering from the King Of Pop

MICHAEL JACKSON ‘This Is It’ [Release Date 26/10/2009]

2CD

* Final tracklisting yet to be confirmed *

We are told that disc one will feature the original album masters of some of Michael's biggest hits arranged in the same sequence as they appear in the film. The disc ends with two versions of the never-released 'This Is It'. This song is featured in the film's closing sequence and includes backing vocals by Michael's brothers, the Jacksons.

Disc two offers previously unreleased versions of some of the hiss classic tracks. This disc also features a touching spoken word poem from Michael Jackson entitled 'Planet Earth' that has never been heard before.

The two-disc 'This Is It' is a stand-alone companion to the motion picture and includes a 36-page, commemorative booklet featuring exclusive photos of Michael from his last rehearsal.

Folk me!

Driving home last Wednesday evening I happened to catch on the radio the last 15 minutes of The Mike Harding Show.  Mostly I remember Mike Harding as a comedian but it turns out he’s a bit of a folk legend. Coincidentally he’s also Lancastrian and I was actually driving back from Manchester so there could have been some kind of weird folk cosmic waves in play.  Anyhow, I’m not usually one to listen to folk music whilst driving – it’s a bit too soporific, and I didn’t have a bale of hay in the back of the van - but before I could channel-hop to something less fiddle-de-dee the Rochdale cowboy cued up The Lazy Boy Chant by an Orkney band called The Chair.  And a right good stomping tune it was too.  So I bought their album ‘Huinka’ and have now played it three times in as many days - and there was not a beer festival in sight (more’s the pity) - I think this means I’m becoming a bit of a folker.

 

Thom Yorke Supergroup Debut

Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke debuts his new "Supergroup" tonight at a special gig in LA. They are as yet unnamed, whilst the choice of bass player has raised a few eyebrows among die-hard fans... Get the scoop here

Friday's Forthcoming Releases [Part 2]

ALISON MOYET ‘The Best Of’ [Release Date 19/10/2009]

CD  I   2CD

Acclaimed singer Alison Moyet will mark her incredible three-decade spanning career on 19 October 2009 with the release of 'The Best Of Alison Moyet' through Sony Music. A deluxe 2CD version of the album entitled 'The Best Of: 25 Years Revisited' will contain 11 brand new interpretations of Alison's favourite songs from her back catalogue recorded with her current live band.

'The Best Of Alison Moyet' is a true reflection of the extraordinary music produced by Alison Moyet over the last 25 years and a testament to the diversity of her talents. The songs included on the album form a definitive representation of her stunning and vivacious vocal style and range, from subtle blues and bombastic soul to big pop chart hits.

The Top 10 singles 'All Cried Out', 'Love Resurrection', 'Invisible' and 'Is This Love' are all included on this 20 track anthology, as are the heartbreakingly honest ballad 'This House' and the modern soul of 'Hoodoo'. Timeless cover versions of 'That Ole Devil Called Love' and 'Love Letters', which both cracked the Top 5 upon release in 1985 and 1987 respectively, and 'Windmills Of Your Mind' and 'Almost Blue' from 2004's 'Voice' album, perfectly demonstrate the smoky range of Alison's blues vocals, are all included on this comprehensive collection of solo work.

Friday's Forthcoming Releases [Part 1]

BOB DYLAN "Christmas In The Heart" [Release date 12/10/2009]

CD   I  Deluxe CD

Bob Dylan will release a brand new album of holiday songs, Christmas In The Heart, on Monday, October 12th. 'Christmas In The Heart' will be the 47th album from Bob Dylan, and follows his worldwide chart-topping 'Together Through Life', released earlier this year. Songs performed by Dylan on this new album include, 'Here Comes Santa Claus,' 'Winter Wonderland,' 'Little Drummer Boy' and 'Must Be Santa.'

Bob Dylan's four previous studio albums have been universally hailed as among the best of his storied career, achieving new levels of commercial success and critical acclaim for the artist. The Platinum-selling 'Time Out Of Mind' from 1997 earned multiple Grammy Awards, including Album Of The Year, while 'Love and Theft' continued Dylan's Platinum streak and earned several Grammy nominations and a statue for Best Contemporary Folk album.  Modern Times, released in 2006, became one of the artist’s biggest albums worldwide, selling more than 2.5 million copies and earning Dylan two more Grammys.

Those four releases fell within a 12-year creative span that also included an Oscar and Golden Globe-winning tune, 'Things Have Changed,' from the film 'Wonder Boys', in 2001; a worldwide best selling memoir, 'Chronicles Vol. 1,' which spent 19 weeks on the New York Times Best Seller List, in 2004; a Martin Scorsese-directed documentary, 'No Direction Home', in 2005; and several volumes of the best-selling 'Bootleg Series', which culminated in last year's highly-acclaimed 'Tell Tale Signs'.

Marr/Brown collaboration...?

I dislike the term 'supergroup' in music but a meeting up of fellow Mancunians Ian Brown & Johnny Marr, from 2 of the UK's most critically acclaimed bands, is certainly a heavyweight combination.

Fans of both the Stone Roses and The Smiths will be interested to see if this potential TV drama soundtrack comes about... 

The King of Schlock Rock keeps Halloween Alive

Apparently Halloween never ends for Alice Cooper, it's a 3-6-5 thing for him and he means it. It's family tradition! To celebrate such madness, he has a new single out just in time for the holiday this year.

Courtesy of Planet Rock news

Clapton + Beck = Expensive

With regards to Julians earlier post this week, I was one of the people in the office who was mildly excited by the prospect of Clapton and Jeff Beck sharing a stage together, however the excitement soon turned to anger and frustration on the discovery of the ticket price - £125!!

 

Now I could understand such a price tag if they were playing a nice intimate venue such as Beck did when he graced the stage of Ronnie Scotts, I could have even forgiven them charging such an amount for a venue such as Shepherds bush, but a 20,000 seat capacity arena? No thanks.

 

I don't know why but Clapton, along with U2 and Madonna seem to be at the forefront of artists pushing the prices of tickets through the roof, making them unobtainable for the average fan. A decent pair of tickets for Madonna's recent o2 gigs would set you back over £300 plus a further additional £35 in hidden fees. When you factor in food, drink, transport etc, you can kiss goodbye to another £100. Personally I'd rather spend £450 on a week somewhere hot and sunny than one night at a gig, but that's my opinion....

Before The Frost

America's last great old-school rockers the Black Crowes talk about their thunderous new album Before the Frost.

As Oasis have shown, a rock band based on a fraternal partnership is liable to be a volatile affair. The Black Crowes, from Atlanta, Georgia, who first surfaced here 20 years ago, are no exception. Read the full article here at The Telegraph