Let's begin by saying nothing could be a bigger waste of your cash than an A Bigger Bang remaster. The record is about 20 minutes old. What could there possibly be to remaster? Anyway, the Stones are remastering their catalog from their years with Virgin records and this is the latest drop of albums in that category. Snobs and dickheads will tell you with the exception of Exile On Main Street these albums all sucked. Of course they're completely wrong. I'd like to take this opportunity to once again stand up for the seriously underrated Voodoo Lounge. Of course it's five songs too long. Listen to this record carefully and make your own cuts. Then go listen to it again in leaner form. It stands up. It big time stands up.
Unfortunately, early word is that the remastering job on these records has been terrible. The music is louder compressed to hell and back. The packaging is virtually the same as the previous release of these discs. There are no extra tracks. If you own the records, keep them. If you don't, you should but maybe not these re-issues.
Bleu
A Watched Pot
Bleu's third solo album is another in a long line of albums that almost never happened. Wilco fans will find this story familiar. Following up his Redhead album, listed on NPR's Top 10 of 2003, he started working on A Watched Pot in 2005. He was dropped by Sony before the album could be released, leaving him and the record in limbo. He continued to tour, playing songs he didn't know if he'd ever get to release. He collaborated with other friends in various side projects, never forgetting about A Watched Pot. Four years later, he negotiated the rights to his own music and the album gets its release today.
Here's the full rundown of new releases:
Daughtry
Leave This Town
The Dead Weather
Horehound
George Jones
A Good Year for the Roses: The Complete Musicor Recordings, 1965-1971, Pt. 2
Emitt Rhodes
The Emitt Rhodes Recordings 1969-1973
Sick Puppies
Tri-Polar
Adelitas Way
Adelitas Way
Air Supply
Free Love
Leif Ove Andsnes
Shadows of Silence
August Burns Red
Constellations
Article comments
1 - MarkSaleski
a lot of the Storytellers things aren't out. must be the vh1/mtv bastards want too much money.
people would kill for the Waits show (and it's been bootlegged to death)
2 - Josh Hathaway
I'd like R.E.M.'s 'Storytellers' released, as well. Counting Crows released theirs, sort of. I'd like a CD/DVD package of that performance, as well. There were an awful lot of good ones that should be out there.
3 - Donald Gibson
The funny thing with Bowie's Storytellers is that he actually remembers some of his own stories.
He's gone on the record saying there are a couple years in the mid '70s of which he has absolutely no recollection.
4 - Josh Hathaway
He says the same thing about the post-Let's Dance era of the '80s. He had a great line about being lost in the wilderness with only his drugs to keep him company. He's a crackup. I remember loving this performance. My copy has shipped. I can't wait to sit and watch it again and again...