New music: The B-52s, 'The Soul of Midnight Special,' 'Linda & the Mockingbirds' documentary, Def Leppard live releases

Whether your musical tastes favor groundbreaking New Wave, classic '70s soul, British favorites Def Leppard or traditional Mexican music, there are outstanding new releases to discover. 

Artist: The B-52s

Title: Live At US Festival (Shout! Factory)

You might like if you enjoy: the B-52's, Devo, the US Festival

Tell me more: Thirty-eight years after the B-52s took the stage at the inaugural US Festival in September 1982, the group's fabled appearance – featuring the band's classic era lineup – is available to see via a terrific DVD. The groundbreaking forerunner to Coachella, the US Festival was a music, technology and culture event staged in Glen Helen Regional Park in the Southern California desert in 1982 and again in 1983. The B-52s' performance has long been considered one of the finest of the two-year event and its showcase on the Shout! Factory release delivers on that promise in spades. The B-52s are on fire throughout the performance, fueling a bona fide dance party with one surefire uptempo post-punk New Wave track after another. Led by singer Fred Schneider, singer-percussionist Cindy Wilson, singer-keyboardist Kate Pierson, guitar great Ricky Wilson (who passed away in 1985) and drummer Keith Strickland, the band is also joined by a two-man horn section (sax player Ralph Carney, trumpeter Dave Buck) to further power the dance-minded material in the performance.  The fast-moving set includes 13 classic originals including beloved favorites "Party Out Of Bounds," "Planet Claire," "Mesopotamia," "Private Idaho" and "Rock Lobster." There are also interview segments where Schneider, Cindy Wilson and Kate Pierson discuss the US Festival performance, Ricky Wilson's contributions, and their enduring career. Information: ShoutFactory.com.

Artist: Al Green, Sly & the Family Stone, Ray Charles, James Brown, many more

Title: The Soul of Midnight Special (TimeLife)

You might like if you enjoy: James Brown, Al Green, Sly & the Family Stone, Chuck Berry, the Staple Singers

Tell me more: Fans of '70s soul music will want to get the newly-released "The Soul of Midnight Special," featuring more than 70 live performances. The performances are offered up in chronological order, spanning from February 1973 to December 1976. Highlights on this collection – which includes more than 70 inspired live performances spanning five DVD discs – abound; the Spinners' "I'll Be Around," the O'Jays "Love Train," Ray Charles' "Georgia on My Mind," Gladys Knight and B.B. King collaborating on "The Thrill Is Gone," and Billy Preston's "Will It Go Round in Circles" are among the countless standouts on the early part of this collection. Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine" and "Lean On Me," Al Green's "Let's Stay Together," the Staple Singers' "Let's Do It Again" and "Respect Yourself," James Brown's "Sex Machine," and Earth, Wind & Fire's "Devotion" shine on the latter part of the title. Among the hosts seen on the set are Lou Rawls, The Bee Gees, Paul Williams, Wilson Pickett, Wolfman Jack, Helen Reddy and Chuck Berry (who is also featured offering up a terrific version of "Johnny B. Goode"). The audio and visual quality of the discs is good and it's great to see so many legendary artists performing their greatest hits. Information: TimeLife.com.

Artist: Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne, traditional Mexican music

Title: Linda and the Mockingbirds (Shout! Studios / PCH Films)

You might like if you enjoy: Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne, Los Cenzontles

Tell me more: Since 1989, San Pablo, California-based Los Cenzontles Cultural Arts Academy has trained thousands of children in the art of traditional Mexican music and dance. Multi-Grammy Award winner Linda Ronstadt's long-time support of the group led to the production of a powerful new documentary ("Linda and the Mockingbirds") that chronicles the singer's 2019 journey to Mexico with a group of young students that was captured by award-winning director James Keach (who also directed Glen Campbell's "I'll Be Me" and the Linda Ronstadt documentary "The Sound of My Voice"). Los Cenzontles ("The Mockingbirds") was founded by Eugene Rodriguez – who along with singer-songwriter great Jackson Browne – also features prominently in the compelling documentary. But the true heart of the film is the road trip by Ronstadt, Browne and a large tour bus filled with young singers, dancers and instrumentalists who journey to the small town of Banámichi in the Mexican state of Sonora (where Ronstadt's grandfather grew up) to perform and meet with the folkloric dance troupe Grupo de Danza Xunutzi and stage a performance in the community. The documentary masterfully examines the important role of traditional Mexican music and dance for those who live on both sides of the border, as well as issues related to the hot topic of immigration and how that impacts families who are often divided by politics. "Linda and the Mockingbirds" was released digitally Oct. 20 via Shout! Studios. Information: ShoutFactory.com.

Artist: Def Leppard

Titles: "Hysteria At The O2" and "Hits Vegas, Live At Planet Hollywood" (Eagle Rock Entertainment)

You might like if you enjoy: Def Leppard, Queen

Tell me more: Earlier this year Rock and Roll Hall of Fame rock quintet Def Leppard released the outstanding multi-format release "London To Vegas," available as a deluxe 2Blu-ray+4CD, 2DVD+4CD and via digital formats. Now Eagle Rock Entertainment has just released standalone audio versions of "Hysteria At The O2" and "Hits Vegas, Live At Planet Hollywood" as limited edition 2CDs releases. "Hysteria At The O2," finds Def Leppard celebrating their 1987 album Hysteria with a concert set revisiting that multi-platinum album from start to finish before a hometown crowd in London in December 2018. To be sure this is an important outing for the group, and the members of Def Leppard (singer Joe Elliott, guitarists Phil Collen and Vivian Campbell, bassist Rick "Sav" Savage and drummer Rick Allen) offer up powerful arena rock-ready takes of classics including "Love Bites," "Pour Some Sugar On Me," "Animal," "Gods of War" and the rest of "Hysteria" before delving into other moments in their history for choice cuts including the set-ending "Let's Get Rocked," "Rock of Ages" and "Photograph."  

The second performance "Hits Vegas" — filmed at Zappos Theater in Planet Hollywood a few months after the band's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019 — features a far-flung set offering some choice deep cuts from the band. The hard-rocking "Die Hard The Hunter," harmonies-drenched "Too Late for Love," ambitious "Billy's Got a Gun" (bolstered by the tandem lead guitar work of Collen and Campbell) and "Paper Sun" as well as the acoustic-styled "Let Me Be The One" and "We Belong" are delivered with power and perfection. The hits are here as well, including terrific runs through "Foolin'," "Bringin' On The Heartbreak," "Rocket," "Action" and "Armageddon It." Looking ahead hardcore fans should note that the "Hits Vegas" title will be released as a limited edition transparent blue vinyl LP on Dec. 11, 2020. Information: defleppard.com and eagle-rock.com.

Robert Kinsler

Sights and Sounds: 'The Soul of Midnight Special,' Fleet Foxes, GoGo Penguin

 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.

Shore Track Listing  Wading In Waist-High Water: lyric video HERE Sunblind: lyric video HERE   Can I Believe You: lyric video HERE Jara: lyric video HERE Featherweight: lyric video HERE A Long Way Past The Past: lyric video HERE For A Week Or Two: lyrics video HERE Maestranza: lyric video HERE Young Man's Game: lyric video HERE I'm Not My Season: lyric video HERE Quiet Air / Gioia: lyric video HERE Going-to-the-Sun Road: lyric video HERE Thymia: lyric video HERE Cradling Mother, Cradling Woman: lyric video HERE Shore: lyric video HERE

Follow Fleet Foxes: Website - Instagram - Robin’s Instagram - Facebook GoGo Penguin  Announces “Live from Studio Two”   A Virtual Concert Broadcast Live, Filmed at Abbey Road Studios   October 29, 2020 at 6 p.m. (PST) / 9 p.m. (EST) GoGo Penguin have been hailed as the “Radiohead of British Jazz,” but they draw equally on rock, jazz and minimalist influences, alongside the intricacy of Aphex Twin or Four Tet to create their punchy, experimental, but always beautiful music. This very special live event “GoGo Penguin Live from Studio Two,” was filmed at one of the band’s favorite studios, the legendary Studio Two at Abbey Road Studios, London. World-famous as the studio of choice for The Beatles, Studio Two is a unique space, part myth, part sacred space and blessed with a brilliant acoustic. For the band it was the perfect venue for a live concert film. Watch the trailer HERE.   As bassist Nick Blacka explains: "We didn’t want to perform in an empty venue, somehow it just felt weird trying to create the energy of a concert in an empty room, but we had recorded an EP in Studio Two back in 2015 and loved the space and somehow it just made sense to film a show here”   Pianist Chris Illingworth agrees: ‘It’s a really special space and we wanted somewhere intimate that we would be excited to work in and where we could tap into that sense of excitement that you get from a live concert.”   While for drummer Rob Turner it is all about the sound of the room: “When we perform we’re always reacting to each other but also the crowd. The people and the energy in the space is as much a part of the performance as we are. Studio Two is imbued with the ghosts of all the incredible music and musicians that have performed there. It has an atmosphere all of its own.  You really feel the expanse of time, how much has happened before you and how much will continue to happen after you”.     Beautifully lit by Lewis Howell, the band’s regular lighting collaborator and recorded by the band’s producer Joe Reiser, the concert features music from the band’s most recent Blue Note Records album, simply titled GoGo Penguin, alongside favorites from Man Made Object (2016) and A Humdrum Star (2018).   For GoGo Penguin it’s a typically bold move, revealing a band at the very top of their game. Expect junglist rhythms, beautiful melodies and thunderous sub-bass from one of the finest live bands in the world, filmed in one of the world’s most iconic studios.   The album GoGo Penguin is out now on Blue Note Records.   Tickets are available at: www.ticketmaster.co.uk/gogopenguin   Website - Facebook - Twitter - Instagram

Sights and Sounds: Sly & The Family Stone, Status Quo

My inbox is definitely stuffed. Here are some highlights worth sharing...

SLY & THE FAMILY STONE'S CAREER
CELEBRATED WITH DELUXE 4-CD BOX SET, HIGHER!


Features 17 previously unreleased tracks; box set offers the chance to experience the songs you know and love but often in alternate versions, including mono singles, demos, instrumental tracks, live concert and television recordings, and more

Available everywhere August 27, 2013, through Epic/Legacy

The music of Sly & The Family Stone is celebrated with a new 4-CD box set, Higher!, available every­where August 27th through Epic/Legacy, a division of Sony Music Entertainment. Released in celebration of Sly Stone's 70th birthday,Higher! is the first career-spanning anthology to celebrate the musician whose funk has influenced everyone from Miles Davis and Michael Jackson to Public Enemy and the Roots. Housed in a colorful slipcase with a lavishly-illustrated 104-page book, the box set will feature 77 tracks, 17 of them previously unreleased.


Spotlighted throughout the first three CDs of Higher! are rare mono single masters of every classic Sly & The Family Stone signature hit like they've never been heard before in the digital era. Paying homage to the golden age of transistor radios are mono versions of "Dance To the Music," "Everyday People," "Stand!," "I Want To Take You Higher," "Hot Fun In the Summertime," "Thank You (Falletinme Be Mice Elf Again)," and many others, more than 30 mono single masters and mono album cuts that were a call-out to get up and dance, dance, dance. Decades after the chart debut of Sly & The Family Stone with the game-changing "Dance To The Music," fans and newcomers will have the opportunity to dig into this far-reaching anthology, covering the recording career of Sylvester Stewart starting in 1964, and the band he master­minded from 1966 to 1977 on Epic Records.


Higher! pays tribute to the unique style of Sly & The Family Stone with its innovative ten-inch square package design, which houses the CDs in its interior pockets. The middle compartment contains a painstakingly detailed 104-page book featuring a liner notes essay, a beautifully-illustrated timeline of Sly's career, track-by-track annotations, rare and uncirculated photography, 45 rpm label and picture sleeve repros, eye-popping vintage concert posters and ticket stubs from Sly & The Family Stone shows, and more.


Sly & The Family Stone laid down a template that not only inspired an era of youthful rebellion and independence as the '60s turned into the '70s, but also had (and continues to have) a potent effect on the course of modern music in general. Sly's DNA is traceable to every cell of the musical stratosphere.

"Sly Stone's music is relevant because he was able to take from all the influencing genres before him and along side him, and combine it like gumbo," said Public Enemy frontman Chuck D. "Then inside the band, having women, having it mixed race and ethnic background − I mean, come on now. You really couldn't point and say 'well, this is the reason why it's funky,' it's all this together like gumbo that's making this happen. And Sly & The Family Stone was the epitome of a group playing the music, saying the lyrics, and also backing with the words."


Sly & The Family Stone have been inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame and the Grammy Hall Of Fame, and have received the R&B Foundation Pioneer Award, among many other recognitions of their importance and enduring influence.


Higher! is a tribute to the far-reaching horizons of Sly & The Family Stone. Their repertoire, every composition penned by Sylvester Stewart aka Sly Stone, kept the Pop and R&B charts jumping for seven glorious years from 1968 to 1975. There are the three career-defining RIAA gold Billboard #1 Pop/#1 R&B hits, "Everyday People," "Thank You (Falletinme Be Mice Elf Again)" and "Family Affair." Their signature Top 40 hits began with "Dance To the Music" and went on to include "Stand!," "I Want To Take You Higher," "Hot Fun In the Summer­time," "Runnin' Away," "If You Want Me To Stay," "Time For Livin'," and more. Their top-charted RIAA gold, platinum and multi-platinum albums include Stand! (1969), Greatest Hits (1970), There's A Riot Goin' On (1971), and Fresh (1973), every one a must-have.


In addition to those durable numbers (all of which are in mono up through 1969's "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)"), Higher! opens CD One with seven pre-Epic Records tracks. These include five rare solo sides by 'Sly Stewart' during his time as A&R-producer-song­writer-staff musician circa 1964-'65 at San Francisco's Autumn Records. These include both sides of the rare (and widely bootlegged in the U.S. and Europe) Loadstone Records single of January 1967 by Sly & The Family Stone, which helped win the band their Epic Records deal. One of these sides is a cover of Otis Redding's "I Can't Turn You Loose." The Epic story begins with the mono single master of "Higher" in May 1967 (Disc One, track 8).

Of the many impossibly rare and fascinating inclusions on Higher! special attention is paid to the four tracks that close CD Three. They were recorded live at the Isle of Wight Festival in the UK, early Sunday morning, August 30, 1970, one year after Sly's memorable wee hours performance at the Woodstock Music & Art Fair. Two of the Isle of Wight numbers, "Stand!" and "You Can Make It If You Try," were subsequently issued on the Columbia three-LP release from 1971, The First Great Rock Festivals Of The Seventies. (The big multi-artist package coupled Isle of Wight performances with others at the first Atlantic Pop Festival of July 1970.) The two other numbers by Sly & The Family Stone at Isle of Wight, namely "Dance To The Music" and the medley of "Music Lover / I Want To Take You Higher / Music Lover" (a variation on their medley from the Woodstock soundtrack album), are both previously unissued until now.


Higher!serves as a new model for the most diligent and imaginative efforts that can go into a vintage collection of this nature. The box set was produced by Legacy Recordings veteran and Sundazed Records owner Bob Irwin, with Project A&R by Rob Santos at Legacy. All music was mastered by Vic Anesini at Battery Studios in New York.


Three major elements are central to the 104-page book. There is the authoritative liner notes essay written by Jeff Kaliss, author of I Want To Take You Higher: The Life And Times Of Sly & The Family Stone, the group's only authorized biography. The booklet also contains a comprehensive, lavishly-illustrated timeline compiled by Dutch authorities Edwin & Arno Konings. Nearly 100 entries span from March 15, 1943 ("Sylvester Stewart is born in Denton, Texas. Six months later, the family moves to Vallejo, California") to a final update in late-2012. The Koningses have also contributed track-by-track annotations for all 77 cuts in Higher! The notes contain excerpts from Thank You, the Koningses' own forthcoming biography of Sly & The Family Stone. (Go to slystonebook.com).

Every track-by-track annotation contains at least one revelation, as told to the writers by original Sly & The Family Stone band members Greg Errico, Larry Graham, Jerry Martini, Cynthia Robinson, and Sly Stone himself, as well as such figures as Rachel Donahue (widow of Tom Donahue), managers Rich Romanello (1967) and David Kapralik (1967-1972), Epic A&R man Stephen Paley, bassist Rustee Allen (who succeeded Graham in 1973), all three drummers who succeeded Errico post-1971 (Gerry Gibson, Andy Newmark, Bill Lordan), various background vocalists, saxophonists, bassists, and so on. All their collective statements and observations, as transcribed by the Koningses, add to the value of Higher! as a valuable memoir in and of itself.

"Refracted in these treasures," Kaliss says of the kaleidoscopic delights on Higher! "are colors you may be unused to seeing in Sly: old R&B, jazz, nursery rhymes, gospel, and even country, fused and transformed by a precious visionary and his fellow musical alchemists."

In addition to Jeff Kaliss, and Edwin & Arno Konings, other essential reading includes: Sly and the Family Stone: An Oral History by Joel Selvin (HarperCollins, 1998); and There's A Riot Going On by Miles Marshall Lewis (Bloomsbury "33 1/3" series, 2006).



Higher! by Sly & The Family Stone


(Epic/Legacy 88697 53665 2)


Disc One (1964-1967):

1. I Just Learned How To Swim by Sly Stewart (Autumn Records single, 1964)


2. Scat Swim by Sly Stewart (Autumn single, 1964)


3. Buttermilk (Part 1) by Sly (Autumn single, 1965)


4. Dance All Night by Sly and Freddie (1965, originally unissued)


5. Temptation Walk by Sly (Autumn single, 1965)


6. I Ain't Got Nobody (For Real) (Loadstone single, 1967)


7. I Can't Turn You Loose (Loadstone single, 1967)


8. Higher (mono Epic single master, promo only, 1967)


9. Underdog (mono Epic single master, 1967)


10. Bad Risk (mono Epic single master, 1967)


11. Let Me Hear It From You (mono Epic single master, 1967)


12. Advice (A)


13. If This Room Could Talk (A)


14. I Cannot Make It (A)


15. Trip To Your Heart (A)


16. I Hate To Love Her (A)


17. Silent Communications (1967, previously unissued)


18. I Get High On You (version one, 1967, previously unissued)


19. I Remember (1967, previously unissued)


20. My Woman's Head (instrumental demo, 1967, previously unissued)



Disc Two (1967-1968):

1. What's That Got To Do With Me (1967, previously unissued)


2. Fortune And Fame (1967, previously unissued)


3. What Would I Do (1967, originally unissued, B)


4. Only One Way Out Of This Mess (1967, originally unissued, B)


5. I Know What You Came To Say (1967, previously unissued)


6. Dance To The Music (mono Epic single master, 1967)


7. Ride The Rhythm (C)


8. Color Me True (C)


9. Are You Ready (C)


10. Don't Burn Baby (C)


11. We Love All (D)


12. Danse A La Musique by The French Fries (mono Epic single, 1968)


13. Small Fries by The French Fries (mono Epic single, 1968)


14. Chicken (mono Epic single master, 1968)


15. Into My Own Thing (E)


16. Life (mono Epic single master, 1968)


17. Love City (1968, previously unissued mono mix)


18. M'Lady (mono Epic single master, 1968)


19. Dynamite! featuring Johnny Robinson on vocals (1968, previously unissued)


20. Undercat (instrumental, 1967, previously unissued)





Disc Three (1968-1970):


1. Everyday People (mono Epic single master, 1968)


2. Sing A Simple Song (mono Epic single master, 1968)


3. I Get High On You (version two, 1968, previously unissued)


4. Wonderful World Of Color (instrumental, 1968, previously unissued)


5. Pressure (originally unissued, F)


6. I Want To Take You Higher (mono Epic single master, 1969)


7. Seven More Days (originally unissued, F)


8. Feathers (instrumental, 1968, previously unissued)


9. Somebody's Watching You (G)


10. Sex Machine (G)


11. Hot Fun In The Summertime (mono Epic single master, 1969)


12. Everybody Is A Star (mono Epic single master, 1969)


13. Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin) (mono Epic single master, 1969)


14. Stand! (LIVE at the Isle of Wight Festival, August 30, 1970, H)


15. You Can Make It If You Try (LIVE, same as track 14, H)


16. Dance To The Music (LIVE, same as track 14, previously unissued)


17. MEDLEY: Music Lover / I Want To Take You Higher / Music Lover (LIVE, same as track 14, previously unissued)




Disc Four (1971-1977):

1. Luv N' Haight (Epic single master, 1971)


2. Family Affair (I)


3. Brave & Strong (Epic single master, 1971)


4. Runnin' Away (Epic single master, 1971)


5. (You Caught Me) Smilin' (Epic single master, 1971)

6. Spaced Cowboy (I)

7. You're The One featuring Little Sister (LIVE on Don Kirshner's Rock Concert, September 1973, previously unissued)


8. In Time (J)


9. If You Want Me To Stay (Epic single master, 1973)


10. Frisky (Epic single master, 1973)


11. Skin I'm In (J)


12. If It Were Left Up To Me (Epic single master, 1973)


13. Time For Livin' (Epic single master, 1974)


14. Can't Strain My Brain (Epic single master, 1974)


15. Loose Booty (K)


16. Le Lo Li (Epic single master, 1975)


17. Crossword Puzzle (Epic single master, 1975)


18. Family Again (Epic single, 1976)


19. Hoboken by Sly Stone (originally unissued, 1975-1977)


20. High by Sly Stone (1975, previously unissued)




Epic Records album index:

A - from A Whole New Thing (originally released November 1967, as Epic LN 24324, mono)


B - from A Whole New Thing (Expanded Edition) (originally released April 2007, as Epic/ Legacy 82796 90277 2)


C - from Dance To The Music (originally released April 1968, as Epic BN 26371)


D - from Dance To The Music (Expanded Edition) (originally released April 2007, as Epic/Legacy 82796 90274 2)


E - from Life (originally released November 1968, as Epic BN 26397)


F - from Life (Expanded Edition) (originally rel. April 2007, as Epic/Legacy 82876 83945 2)


G - from Stand! (originally released April 1969, as Epic BN 26456)


H - from The First Great Rock Festivals Of The Seventies (originally released August 1971, as Columbia C 30807)


I - from There's A Riot Goin' On (originally released October 1971, as Epic KE 30986)


J - from Fresh (originally released June 1973, as Epic KE 32134)


K - from Small Talk (originally released July 1974, as Epic PE 32930)


www.slystonemusic.com


www.legacyrecordings.com








earMUSIC / Eagle Rock proudly announces 'STATUS QUO
BULA QUO!' set for release on July 9, 2013

More than “just” a new studio album by British rock icons Status Quo! One audio CD features Quo’s new album; a second disc with all their hits as heard in the spy-comedy movie Bula Quo!, starring the band

New York, NY (May 29, 2013)—Experience classic rock artists Status Quo as you’ve never encountered them before. On July 9 2013, the band will release their new double album, Bula Quo! via earMUSIC/Edel/Eagle Rock Entertainment.



Bula Quo! has been inspired by their incredible adventures filming their first ever feature-film of the same title. The first disc features nine brand new tracks, written as the soundtrack for the duo’s madcap escapades in the movie. Disc 2 contains exclusive reworked studio songs or live versions of 10 classic Quo hits, which are also featured in the film (including an amazing Fijian-style rendition of “Living On An Island”).

Status Quo is enjoying an exciting phase in their long and successful career, after the critical acclaim and the support received by their loyal audience for their previous studio album Quid Pro Quo and the relative tour. The 90-minute action movie Bula Quo! features the band as themselves and stars Craig Fairbrass [Cliff Hanger, Rise Of The Footsoldier, Eastenders] and Laura Aikman [Keith Lemon The Movie, Freight, Surviving Picasso] with Jon Lovitz [Saturday Night Live, The Critic, Friends, The Wedding Singer]. The film was directed by Stuart St. Paul, who has worked on projects ranging from Duran Duran’s seminal “Wild Boys” video, to Aliens, Batman and three James Bond films. The movie will hit the stores and theaters soon after summer.

“Making the film in Fiji was a fantastic experience and we couldn’t help but be inspired by our surroundings,” states vocalist/lead guitarist Francis Rossi. “We had no plans to write and release a new studio album as well as filming our parts for the movie, it just happened.”

Adds singer/rhythm guitarist Rick Parfitt: “We hope that Quo fans will enjoy the film, which is certainly something new for the band, but we know they are going to love the music.”

As the new material sounds inspired and fresh, it is one album not to be missed and the film is destined to become a cult for Quo fans. For everybody else… Bula Quo! will “simply” be one of their strongest releases ever!



www.statusquo.co.uk
www.ear-music.net
www.youtube.com/earMUSICofficial
www.facebook.com/earmusicofficial


Eagle Rock Entertainment is the largest producer and distributor of music programming for DVD, Blu-Ray, TV, Audio and Digital Media in the world. Eagle works directly alongside talent to produce top quality, High Definition and 3D programs, both concerts and documentaries, including The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, The Who, Queen, The Doors, Jeff Beck, U2, Peter Gabriel, Paul McCartney and Ozzy Osbourne. Eagle is a Grammy Award winning company and has received over 30 multi-platinum, over 50 platinum and over 90 gold discs, worldwide. Eagle Rock Entertainment has offices in London, New York, Toronto, Paris and Hamburg.

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TRACK LISTING


CD1 – THE NEW ALBUM

1. Looking Out For Caroline / 2. GoGoGo / 3. Run and Hide (The Gun Song) / 4. Running Inside My Head /

5. Mystery Island / 6. All That Money / 7. Never Leave A Friend Behind / 8. Fiji Time / 9. Bula Bula Quo (Kua Ni Lega)



CD2 – STUDIO AND LIVE

1. Living On An Island (Fiji Style) / 2. Frozen Hero / 3. Reality Cheque / 4. Rockin' All Over The World (Bula Edit) /

5. Caroline (Live) / 6. Beginning Of The End (Live) / 7. Don't Drive My Car (Live) / 8. Pictures Of Matchstick Men (Live) / 9. Whatever You Want (Live) / 10. Down Down (Live)