Exciting news about upcoming and suddenly-available music titles as well as an upcoming virtual concert event...
'70s Soul comes alive with legendary artists performing their biggest hits on late night's original live music show in one very special DVD collection available for the first time at retail
THE SOUL OF THE MIDNIGHT SPECIAL
This 5-DVD Set ($45.99srp) Available on October 6, Features More Than 70 Historic Live Performances - Many of Which Have Never Been Available Before - from the Greatest Soul Singers of the Decade Including James Brown, Barry White, Earth, Wind & Fire, Al Green, Gladys Knight & the Pips, Curtis Mayfield, Sly & the Family Stone and More!
Fairfax, VA (September 18, 2020) - Like never before THE SOUL OF THE MIDNIGHT SPECIAL brings home audiences and music lovers everywhere an unforgettable collection of legendary soul artists performing their hits in the prime of their careers -- uncut performances, just straight-from-the-heart soul singing with live musicians in front of a live audience. Now available at Barnes & Noble and Amazon for the first time on October 6, 2020.
 |
| James Brown performing on The Midnight Special |
In the period between American Bandstand and MTV, there were several shows that tried to bring new music to television, but it wasn't until The Midnight Special, premiered on August 19, 1972, that live music found a home on the air. Burt Sugarman, producer of Grammy Awards telecasts, was frustrated by television's lack of programming after The Tonight Show ended -- the screen reverting to test patterns at 1:00 a.m.. Recognizing this valuable airtime could cater to a brand-new audience that craved its latest musical heroes, he created The Midnight Special, which ran every Friday night on NBC from 1972 to 1981.
The'70s was a special time for soul music and The Midnight Special truly had an affinity for the genre. Week after week, home audiences would have virtual front row seats for performances by the greatest soul performers of the time including Al Green, Earth Wind & Fire, Patti LaBelle, Bill Withers, Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin, Spinners, The O'Jays, Teddy Pendergrass, The Stylistics, Chaka Khan, Gladys Knight and The Pips and so many more. The Midnight Special was the only show where you could see real live performances week after week.
This October, for the first time ever, Time Life's THE SOUL OF THE MIDNIGHT SPECIAL brings together the greatest soul performances handpicked from thousands in one very special 5-disc set. Included is an incredible collection of true soul classics - many of which haven't been seen since their original broadcast: from Let's Stay Together to Midnight Train to Georgia to love songs like the Stylistics' Betcha by Golly, Wow to dance grooves like Sly & the Family Stone's Dance to the Music and Ohio Players' Fire. All-time classic performances include Back Stabbers by the O'Jays, Tired of Being Alone by Al Green, Could It Be I'm Falling in Love by Spinners, Lean on Me by Bill Withers, The Love I Lost by Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, and I Want to Take You Higher by Sly & the Family Stone. Also included are exclusive interviews with James Brown, Gladys Knight, Patti LaBelle, Maurice White of Earth, Wind & Fire The O'Jays, Russell Thompkins Jr. of The Stylistics, Bobby Womack, Ted Mills of Blue Magic, Kenny Gamble & Leon Huff, Gerald Alston, The Manhattans and George Benson.
THE SOUL OF THE MIDNIGHT SPECIAL includes (in alphabetical order):
- Al Green -- Tired of Being Alone (8/3/73), How Can You Mend a Broken Heart (8/3/73), I'm Still in Love with You (11/29/74), Let's Stay Together (11/29/74)
- Al Wilson -- Show and Tell (3/1/74)
- Barry White -- You're the First, the Last, My Everything (11/15/74), Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe (12/13/74), Never, Never Gonna Give You Up (12/13/74)
- Bill Withers -- Ain't No Sunshine (3/22/74), Lean on Me (3/22/74)
- Billy Preston -- Will It Go Round in Circles (1/4/74)
- Blue Magic -- Sideshow (12/13/74)
- Bobby Womack -- Lookin' for a Love (12/13/74)
- Chuck Berry -- Johnny B. Goode (11/2/73)
- Curtis Mayfield -- Back to the World (6/8/73), Freddie's Dead (Theme from Superfly) (9/21/73), Superfly (1/4/74)
- Earth, Wind & Fire -- Devotion (4/18/75)
- George Benson -- This Masquerade (7/30/76)
- Gladys Knight & the Pips -- Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye) (4/6/73), I Heard It through the Grapevine (4/6/73), Midnight Train to Georgia (10/5/73), Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me (12/20/74)
- Gladys Knight/B. B. King --The Thrill Is Gone (10/5/73)
- Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes -- Bad Luck (5/23/75), The Love I Lost (5/23/75), Let's Get Together Soon (Hope That We Can Be Together Soon) (5/23/75)
- James Brown -- Sex Machine (8/6/76), Get Up Offa That Thing (8/6/76), Cold Sweat/Papa's Got a Brand New Bag (10/8/76),
- Johnnie Taylor -- Who's Making Love (11/2/73)
- Kool & the Gang -- Hollywood Swinging (12/20/74), Jungle Boogie (12/20/74)
- LaBelle -- Lady Marmalade (4/18/75)
- Love Unlimited Orchestra -- Love's Theme (11/15/74)
- Minne Riperton -- Lovin' You (7/18/75), Inside My Love (7/18/75)
- Ohio Players -- Fire (4/4/75), Skin Tight (4/4/75)
- Ohio Players -- Love Rollercoaster (12/19/75), Honey (12/19/75)
- Ray Charles -- Georgia on My Mind (3/30/73), What'd I Say (3/30/73)
- Ray Charles/Aretha Franklin -- Takes Two to Tango (3/30/73)
- Rufus featuring Chaka Khan -- Sweet Thing (12/12/75), Once You Get Started (12/12/75)
- Sly & the Family Stone -- Stand! (10/26/73), I Want to Take You Higher (10/26/73), Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin), (10/26/73), Dance to the Music (10/26/73)
- Spinners -- Could It Be I'm Falling in Love (2/9/73), I'll Be Around (2/9/73), One of a Kind (Love Affair) (6/8/73), Sadie (2/14/75), Then Came You (2/14/75)
- The Brothers Johnson-- I'll Be Good to You (10/8/76)
- The Chi-Lites -- Oh Girl (9/21/73)
- The Main Ingredient -- Just Don't Want to Be Lonely (10/11/74), Everybody Plays The Fool (10/11/74)
- The Manhattans -- Kiss and Say Goodbye (12/3/76)
- The Miracles -- Love Machine (12/3/76)
- The O'Jays -- Back Stabbers (3/23/73), Love Train (3/23/73), Put Your Hands Together (913/74), Sunshine (9/13/74)
- The Staple Singers -- Let's Do It Again (1/16/76), Respect Yourself (1/16/76)
- The Stylistics -- Betcha by Golly, Wow (6/1/73), Break Up to Make Up (6/1/73), I'm Stone in Love with You (6/1/73), You Make Me Feel Brand New (3/1/74)
- The Sylvers -- Boogie Fever (7/30/76)
- Wilson Pickett -- In the Midnight Hour (9/21/73)
About Time Life
Time Life is one of the world's pre-eminent creators and direct marketers of unique music and video/DVD products, specializing in distinctive multi-media collections that evoke memories of yesterday, capture the spirit of today, and can be enjoyed for a lifetime. TIME LIFE and the TIME LIFE logo are registered trademarks of Time Warner Inc. and affiliated companies used under license by Direct Holdings Americas Inc., which is not affiliated with Time Warner Inc. or Time Inc.
Fleet Foxes release surprise fourth album 'Shore'
Album out digitally on Anti- today, Sept. 22, 2020
AVAILABLE AT 6:31am PT / 9:31am ET
MARKING THE AUTUMNAL EQUINOX
 |
| Photo credit: Emily Johnston |
Today, on the Autumnal Equinox, Fleet Foxes released their fourth studio album Shore at 6:31 am PT/9:31 am ET. The bright and hopeful album, released via Anti-, is available to stream and for physical pre-order HERE for a February 5, 2021 street date. In addition to the album, a 16 mm road movie of the same name by Kersti Jan Werdal that showcases the landscapes of the Pacific Northwest set to the score of the album is available to view at https://fleetfoxes.co.
Shore was recorded before and during quarantine in Hudson (NY), Paris, Los Angeles, Long Island City and New York City from September 2018 until September 2020 with the help of recording and production engineer Beatriz Artola.The fifteen song, fifty-five minute Shore was initially inspired by frontman Robin Pecknold’s musical heroes such as Arthur Russell, Nina Simone, Sam Cooke, Emahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guebrou and more who, in his experience, celebrated life in the face of death. “I see “shore” as a place of safety on the edge of something uncertain, staring at Whitman’s waves reciting ‘death,’” commented Pecknold. “Tempted by the adventure of the unknown at the same time you are relishing the comfort of the stable ground beneath you. This was the mindset I found, the fuel I found, for making this album.”
Pecknold continues:
Since the unexpected success of the first Fleet Foxes album over a decade ago, I have spent more time than I’m happy to admit in a state of constant worry and anxiety. Worried about what I should make, how it will be received, worried about the moves of other artists, my place amongst them, worried about my singing voice and mental health on long tours. I’ve never let myself enjoy this process as much as I could, or as much as I should. I’ve been so lucky in so many ways in my life, so lucky to be born with the seeds of the talents I have cultivated and lucky to have had so many unreal experiences. Maybe with luck can come guilt sometimes. I know I’ve welcomed hardship wherever I could find it, real or imagined, as a way of subconsciously tempering all this unreal luck I’ve had. By February 2020, I was again consumed with worry and anxiety over this album and how I would finish it. But since March, with a pandemic spiraling out of control, living in a failed state, watching and participating in a rash of protests and marches against systemic injustice, most of my anxiety around the album disappeared. It just came to seem so small in comparison to what we were all experiencing together. In its place came a gratitude, a joy at having the time and resources to devote to making sound, and a different perspective on how important or not this music was in the grand scheme of things. Music is both the most inessential and the most essential thing. We don’t need music to live, but I couldn’t imagine life without it. It became a great gift to no longer carry any worry or anxiety around the album, in light of everything that is going on. A tour may not happen for a year, music careers may not be what they once were. So it may be, but music remains essential. This reframing was another stroke of unexpected luck I have been the undeserving recipient of. I was able to take the wheel completely and see the album through much better than I had imagined it, with help from so many incredible collaborators, safe and lucky in a new frame of mind.
Read the full artist statement HERE.
About Shore The Film
Shore is an art piece filmed over the course of a month in Washington, Oregon, and Western Idaho on 16mm film.
“I listened to the album while driving, and observationally shot landscapes that I felt resonated with the music, yet also stood on their own,” explained Director Kersti Jan Werdal. “The film is intended to co-exist and engage with the album, rather than be in a direct and symbiotic relationship with it. The urban and narrative scenes interact with the more surreal landscapes, rather than sit in opposition of one another. My hope is that the film, much like the album does, reflects optimism and strength.”
Kersti Jan Werdal is an artist working in film, photography, installation, and collage.
Fleet Foxes’ self-titled debut made a profound impact on the international musical landscape, topping numerous “Best Of” lists, including Rolling Stone’s 100 Best Albums of the 2000’s and Pitchfork’s 50 Best Albums of 2008. Fleet Foxes is certified Gold in North America and Platinum in both the UK and Australia. The follow-up album Helplessness Blues was met with the same critical praise as its predecessor (MOJO five stars, Rolling Stone four stars, Pitchfork Best New Music); that album debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard Top 200, went Gold in the UK, and earned the band a GRAMMY nomination. Six years later, the highly anticipated album Crack-Up was released, with AP saying “Rewarding, involving and meticulous, Crack-Up has been well worth the wait” and Uncut calling the album “Astonishing. Crack-Up may be the most anticipated release of the year, a welcome return. Ambitious, mature, meticulous.” The band embarked on a world tour that saw them headlining major festivals and their own sold-out shows throughout 2017-2018.
|
|
Wow! Excited for the this Fleet Fox release!
ReplyDeleteWow! Excited for the this Fleet Fox release!
ReplyDelete