Sights and Sounds: Blur, The Guess Who, Bill Kreutzmann, Steve Earle

Happy Friday everybody! While I will be trying to catch up on a few more Academy Awards-minded movies over the weekend leading up to the Oscars (I caught the James Brown biopic Get On Up last week and do recommend that one), I still wanted to share a few bits of music news headed into the weekend!

You can stream "Go Out" from Blur's forthcoming album The Magic Whip via the link here.

Audio Fidelity has announced plans to release The Best Of The Guess Who on limited edition 4.0 Quad Hybrid SACD.

Here are highlights of the media release on the forthcoming release, as well as a look at the great cover artwork too:

Marshall Blonstein's Audio Fidelity will be releasing The Guess Who's The Best Of The Guess Who album on Limited Edition 4.0 Quad Hybrid SACD in April 2015. They didn't have street cred; they didn't look like stars; and they weren't considered "cool" by the ultra hip and snooty underground FM rock crowd. But over the course of their career, The Guess Who created some of the most transcendent and electrifying pop music of the Seventies. The Guess Who stubbornly flew in the face of fashion, trends, and the flourishing progressive rock movement, and built an enduring body of work that illuminates their status as immensely gifted pop rock practitioners.

Though influenced by the British Invasion, The Guess Who were purely Canadian rockers. The band scored a string of Top Ten hits in the late '60s and early '70s, including the psychedelic-romantic smash "These Eyes" and the riff-rocking anthem "American Woman." The band was a huge success in the States and even performed at President Nixon's inaugural ball (with the acerbic "American Woman" conspicuously omitted from the set list).

Burton Cummings' throaty baritone vocals and guitarist Randy Bachman's theatrical riffs gave the band their versatile sound - and their rocking classics sound as vital today as they did when they were first released.

As a special bonus that audiophiles and fans alike are sure to enjoy, Audio Fidelity has included in each package a miniature version of the coveted psychedelic poster that was contained in the original 1971 vinyl album release!

Track Listings

1. These Eyes

2. Laughing

3. Undun

4. No Time

5. American Woman

6. No Sugar Tonight/New Mother Nature

7. Hand Me Down World

8. Bus Rider

9. Share The Land

10. Do You Miss Me Darlin'?

11. Hang On To Your Life

Mastered dual Channel SACD from all original masters by Steve Hoffman at Stephen Marsh Mastering

Original Recordings Produced by Jack Richardson for Nimbus 9

Recording Engineer: Brian Christian

For more information: https://audiofidelity.net/product/guess-whothe-best-guess-who

Bill Kreutzmann, a founding member and drummer for every one of The Grateful Dead's 2,300+ concerts, has penned a memoir DEAL: My Three Decades of Drumming, Dreams, and Drugs with the Grateful Dead (St. Martin's Press) set for release on May 5, 2015. 

The tell-all book will provide Kreutzmann to reflect on the band's 50th anniversary while recalling sharing the stage with his legendary band mates as well as the fabled likes of Janis Joplin, Bob Dylan and The Who.

Visit his official Facebook page here or his Web site here for all the details.

Finally, writer George A. Paul has posted a great roundup including a mini-review of Steve Earle's excellent Terraplane album (available now via New West Records).
You can read my previously-published review of Earle's latest disc here on the MusicNewsNashville.com site.