Michael Jackson - Joy (1990)

After the success of his seventh album 'Bad' in 1987, Michael Jackson wanted more independence and control over the creative process, so he separated from longtime producer Quincy Jones to avoid the perception that his success depended on him. Jackson began working on new tracks in 1989 for an album that was conceived as a greatest-hits collection, 'Decade', with a handful of new songs, similar to Madonna's 'The Immaculate Collection'. It was scheduled for a late 1989 release but was delayed several times, and after a November 1990 release date failed to materialise it was dropped entirely, and Jackson determined that his new material would constitute a full album, to be called 'Dangerous'. He enlisted Bryan Loren to co-produce, and throughout 1989 he recorded rhythm tracks with Loren at Westlake Studios, where they taped 'Work That Body', 'She Got It', 'Serious Effect', 'Do Not Believe It', 'Seven Digits', and 'Man In Black'. Loren wanted to recapture the organic R&B feeling of Jackson's albums 'Off The Wall' and 'Thriller', while Jackson was keen to add hip-hop to the record, and so invited LL Cool J to rap on 'Serious Effect' and 'Truth About Youth'. Although Loren's material was strong, it was not up to Jackson's standards, as he was searching for a newer sound that would be as compelling as 'Rhythm Nation' by his sister Janet, and so in the end none of Loren's recordings made the album. Jackson discovered new jack swing, a more aggressive and urban sound, and in June 1990 he hired Teddy Riley to co-produce, and work carried on at Ocean Way Record One in Sherman Oaks, reworking some of Loren's work such as 'She Got It' and 'Serious Effect', and continuing work on 'Jam' and 'Dangerous'. The release date was set for 28 November 1991, Thanksgiving Day, and of the roughly 60 to 70 songs that were recorded for for 'Dangerous', fourteen ended up on the record, while some were released later, including the environmental anthem 'Earth Song', and 'Superfly Sister', 'Ghosts', and 'Blood On The Dance Floor' were released in the remix compilation 'Blood On The Dance Floor: HIStory In The Mix'. Another Loren co-write that was recorded in 1989 was 'Mind Is The Magic', which was written for magicians Siegfried & Roy's 'Beyond Belief Show' in Las Vegas. When they released their German album 'Dream And Illusions' in 1995, Jackson gave them permission to include the song, and it was later released as a single, reaching No. 80 in France in 2010. By adding that to the other Loren out-takes mentioned earlier we can make up an album that would have slotted in perfectly between 'Bad' and 'Dangerous', featuring songs that carried on the sound of 'Bad' and 'Thriller', before Jackson reinvented it to give 'Dangerous' the new jack swing that he wanted.  

Track listing

01 Bumper (Intro)
02 Mind Is The Magic
03 Serious Effect (feat. LL Cool J)
04 Work That Body
05 Someone Put Your Hand Out
06 She Got It
07 Joy
08 If You Don't Love Me
09 For All Time
10 Monkey Business

Boy George - Covers Up (2021)

Boy George has announced that he's recording an album of cover versions several times in his career, but never followed through, although he has often included covers on his albums, as well as gifting them to tribute albums, film soundtracks, and posting them on his Instagram account. As he's never got around to doing it himself then it's up to us to do it for him, and so this collection includes demos, internet leaks and Instagram posts to make George's very own 'Pin Ups', titled 'Covers Up'. The earliest recording on here is from 1988, and the latest is from March 2021, while the choices run the gamut from 60's pop through to 70's glam and 80's electro-pop, and is book-ended by his individual take of a couple of soul classics, so while we wait for the official covers albums to arrive this should tide us over nicely. 

Track listing

01 I Can't Stand The Rain
02 Love Is A Stranger
03 Children Of The Revolution
04 It Ain't Me Babe
05 Somebody To Love
06 Down By The Riverside
07 Sorrow
08 The Crying Game
09 Make Up
10 What Becomes Of The Broken-Hearted

The cover is a superb piece of artwork by Mark Ashkenazi.

Pet Shop Boys - Remix (1987)

I recently discovered a superb 12-minute fan-made remix of the Pet Shop Boys 'Rent' online, and so it didn't take long before I started to wonder if any of their other songs had been given the remix treatment and posted online, and not surprisingly there are literally hundreds of them out there. Their songs seem to be the perfect inspiration for fans to go to town and remix them to within an inch of their lives, from their very earliest recordings right through to some of their most recent work, and you can easily find trance, techno and dance remixes of their songs without too much effort. Undoubtedly my favourite period of theirs was the late 80's, where they produced an outstanding run of hit singles from 1985 to 1989, and so a quick trawl through the net uncovered remixes of six of my favourite tracks, which I then mixed together into one 50-minute hit-filled megamix of the best of the Pet Shop Boys. 

Track listing

01 Rent (remix by Unreleased Versions)

02 Suburbia (remix by gulymix)

03 It's A Sin (remix by themotownboy1)

04 West End Girls (remix by Dinei Silva Master Mix)

05 Always On My Mind (remix by Ramsey Hagar)

06 Opportunities (Let's Make Lots Of Money) (remix by Unreleased Versions)

David Spinozza - ...and on guitar (1976)

David Spinozza was born on 8 August 1949 in Port Chester, New York, and began his professional recording career as a teenager in the 1960’s, swiftly becoming a sought after New York studio musician and soon signing with A&M Records as a solo artist. He has become known for being a versatile musician, with credits that span every facet of the music and entertainment industries, and as well as adding guitar to numerous recordings over the past 50 years, he's also produced, arranged, orchestrated, conducted, co-written and played guitar for a Who's Who of acclaimed artists such as James Taylor, Carly Simon, Garland Jeffries, Aretha Franklin, Roberta Flack, Bonnie Raitt, Bette Midler, B.B. King, Judy Collins, Jim Croce, George Benson and three out of four Beatles. His guitar is heard on countless classic hits, most notably Don McLean’s 'American Pie', John Lennon’s 'Mind Games', Paul McCartney’s 'Another Day', Paul Simon’s 'Me And Julio Down By The Schoolyard' and his iconic solo on Dr. John’s 'Right Place Wrong Time'. One of his earliest gigs was playing with Paul McCartney during sessions for his 'Ram' album in 1971, and when the chance came to work with Lennon two years later, as Yoko Ono prepared her 'Feeling The Space' album and Lennon his 'Mind Games', Spinozza discovered that Lennon was not aware he had previously worked with McCartney, and was afraid he would be fired if Lennon found out, given their recent feuding in the media, but when Lennon did learn of it his only comment was that McCartney "knows how to pick good people". The relationship with Ono carried on after 'Feeling The Space', where he contributed to her 'A Story' album, recorded during 1974 but not released until 1998, served as her bandleader during a residency at Kenny's Castaways, and rehearsed her band to tour her native Japan, although they parted ways when the tour began. In 1978 he released his first solo album 'Spinozza' on A&M, which was a jazz-oriented album with some vocal tracks, and he has also made contributions to the soundtracks of the movies 'Dead Man Walking', 'Happiness', and 'Just The Ticket'. Spinozza has played on literally hundreds of albums in his career, and so for this post I've only selected tracks from 1970 to 1976 where he was a featured soloist, and to show his versatility in a variety of genres I've split this three disc set into one album of jazz, one of soul and one of pop music.   

Track listing

Some Jazz
01 Ahunk Ahunk  (from 'Consummation' by Thad Jones & Mel Lewis 1970)
02 Man's Hope (from 'Push Push' by Herbie Mann 1971)
03 Lover Man (from 'All The King's Horses' by Grover Washington, Jr. 1972) 
04 Monkey (from 'White Elephant' by White Elephant 1972)
05 Hanky's Panky (from 'Superstition' by Shirley Scott 1973)
06 A Sunday Afternoon Feeling (from 'Journey' by Arif Mardin 1974)
07 Draggin' The Line (from 'Until It's Time For You To Go' by Rusty Bryant 1974)
08 Chile Con Carmen (from 'Joy Of Cookin'' by Joe Thomas 1974)
09 Who Knows What Goes When The Doors Close (from 'Brother Where Are You' by 

                                                                                                             Oscar Brown Jr. 1974) 

Some Pop
01 Come To My Bedside, My Darling (from 'Donal Leace' by Donal Leace 1971)
02 Roller Derby Queen (from 'Life And Times' by Jim Croce 1973)
03 Something So Right (from 'There Goes Rhymin' Simon' by Paul Simon 1973)
04 Get On The Right Thing (from 'Red Rose Speedway' by Paul McCartney & Wings 1973)
05 A Man Can't Always Be (from 'Lifesong' by Cashman & West 1974)
06 Rainy Day Man (from 'Streetlights' by Bonnie Raitt 1974)
07 Genesis (from 'The Second Coming' by Jerry LaCroix 1974)
08 Think I'm Gonna Have A Baby (from 'Hotcakes' by Carly Simon 1974) 
09 Me And My Guitar (from 'Walking Man' by James Taylor 1974)
10 Great Big Man (from 'Homeless Brother' by Don McLean 1974)
11 The Closest Friends (from 'Lucy Simon' by Lucy Simon 1975)
12 Angel Spread Your Wings (from 'Judith' by Judy Collins 1975)
13 Let Me Just Follow Behind (from 'Songs For The New Depression' by Bette Midler 1976)
14 Say The Words (from 'This One's For You' by Barry Manilow 1976)
15 Early Evening Light (from 'Marriott' by Steve Marriott 1976) 

Some Soul
01 Too Many Days (from 'Labelle' by Labelle 1971)
02 You've Got A Friend (from 'Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway' by 

                                                                                  Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway 1972)
03 Cold Sweat (from 'Get On The Good Foot' by James Brown 1972)
04 The Get Out Of The Ghetto Blues (from 'Free Will' by Gil Scott-Heron 1972)
05 I'm Only A Woman (from 'Margie Joseph' by Margie Joseph 1973)
06 Right Place, Wrong Time (from 'In The Right Place' by Dr. John 1973)
07 Grind It Out (from 'The Soulful Crooner' by Nick Holmes 1973)
08 As Long As He Will Stay (from 'New Beginnings...' by Morgana King 1973)
09 I Know It's You (from 'Extension Of A Man' by Donny Hathaway 1973)
10 The Masquerade Is Over (from 'Let Me In Your Life' by Aretha Franklin 1974)
11 Somebody New Is Lovin' On You (from 'I'm In Need Of Love' by Lou Courtney 1974)
12 Early Ev'ry Midnight (from 'Feel Like Makin' Love' by Roberta Flack 1975)

Swegas - Swegas (1969)

Swegas was formed in 1969 by Nick Ronai and Joe Spibey, taking their name from a plural form of the Anglo-Saxon word 'sweg', which means 'sound', 'noise', or 'music'. Spibey (trumpet) and Ronai (trombone) had been members of the Fulson Stilwell Band before joining the soul band Cat Road Show, and when they left to form their own band they added Alan Smith on tenor sax and Jonny Toogood on guitar, plus a few other pick up players while they looked for permanent members, and so in mid 1969 they advertised for an organist and bassist, and Keith Strachan and Roy Truman applied and got the gig. They'd played together in various bands since being at college and were looking for something a bit more adventurous, which they found in Swegas, who were attempting to fuse jazz and rock in the manner of Blood Sweat And Tears and The Chicago Transit Authority, who were both in their early stages of development in the US. They secured a deal with B&C Records in October 1969 and recorded an album at Advision Studios in Regent Street, with a line-up of Spibey, Ronai, Smith, Toogood, Strachan and Truman, plus Chris Dawe on trumpet, Nick Thomas on tenor sax, John Legg on baritone sax, and Chrys Chrysostomou on drums. The album was not destined for release, however, and Spibey, Smith and Toogood left the group shortly afterwards, followed later by Chrysostomou. Undeterred, the remaining members recruited Stewart Wilkinson on guitar, Ron Shillingford on tenor sax, and Maurice McElroy on drums, and managed to get a deal with First Class Management, rehearsing endlessly on new material in a room at the London Ambulance Service in Waterloo Road. They signed record and management deals with the Barry Class Organisation in March 1970, and following a tour of Germany they went into Tangerine Studios in Dalston to record their 'Child Of Light' album, which was released in 1970 on Trend Records. A second album 'Beyond The Ox' followed in early 1971, but then things started to go wrong for the band, with their band bus suffering a collision in Hamburg and being virtually written off, following which Barry Class and First Class Management pulled the plug when the band returned from Germany, and after one final gig in Bristol in September 1971 the band broke up. Listening to their records you can hear that they were a very accomplished group, and Ronai had a talent for writing and arranging, but they never had the breaks and so leave just the two albums as their legacy. However, that unreleased first record has since surfaced, and listening to it you can hear that even at that early stage of their existence they were a tight little band, playing all original material, and if they'd just had a little encouragement they could have become the English BS&T.

Track listing

01 Planetarium 
02 There's Nothing In It
03 What You Gonna Do 
04 Old Flames 
05 Over The Points 
06 The Summer Of My Days
07 The Naz 
08 Keep Out Of Sight 
09 Grey Lust

Barry Ryan - Give Me A Sign (1972)

Barry Ryan and his twin brother Paul were born in Leeds on 24 October 1948, the sons of pop singer Marion Ryan and antiques dealer Fred Sapherson. Their father left when Barry and Paul were two, and they were brought up until they were 11 by their grandmother, moving to London when the boys were 16. Their mother suggested they try a career as singers, with her boyfriend and then husband, impresario Harold Davison, managing them, and he secured a contract with Decca Records in 1965 under the name of Paul & Barry Ryan. Within two years they'd amassed eight Top 50 singles in the UK, with their best sellers being 'Don't Bring Me Your Heartaches'. 'I Love Her', and 'Have Pity On The Boy'. Feeling that he couldn't cope with the stress of show business, Paul left the group and Barry continued as a solo artist, enabling his brother to stay out of the limelight and concentrate on writing songs. Their greatest achievement as a composer-singer duo was with the heavily orchestrated and melodramatic 'Eloise', which was a number 2 hit in 1968. Paul reputedly wrote 'Eloise' in three days, after being played the Richard Harris version of 'MacArthur Park' by Harris himself, and being determined to write something as good. In 1969 Barry recorded a whole album of songs written by his brother, with 'Barry Ryan Sings Paul Ryan' being one of his best records, and Paul continued to write nearly all of Barry's singles and albums right up to the early 70's. As well as 'Eloise', four other singles were lifted from the '...Sings Paul Ryan' album, and the titles alone show that Paul was not content just to pen 'moon/june' lyrics, with further singles including 'The Hunt' (1969), 'Magical Spiel' (1970), and 'Kitsch' (1970). Ryan was also popular in Germany and France, with his first solo single 'Goodbye' being almost impossible to find other than in the German version, and he recorded a number of other songs in German and Italian for those markets. Around 1976 he withdrew from singing, and from the late 70's he maintained a successful career as a fashion photographer, with his photographs appearing in such magazines as Ritz and Zoom. Ryan died on 28 September 2021 after complications from a lung disorder, and so this collection of rare singles and b-sides is a tribute to a performer who will forever be associated with his biggest hit, but as you can hear from these songs, had much more to offer than just that one single. 

Track listing

01 Goodbye (single 1968)
02 I'm So Sad (b-side of 'Goodbye')
03 Love I Almost Found You (b-side of 'Eloise' 1968)
04 Love Is Love (single 1969)
05 I'll Be On My Way Dear (b-side of 'Love Is Love')
06 Oh, For The Love Of Me (b-side of 'The Hunt' 1969)
07 Magical Spiel (single 1970)
08 Caroline (b-side of 'Magical Spiel')
09 Lay Down (b-side of 'We Did It Together' 1970)
10 Give Me A Sign (b-side of 'Kitsch' 1970)
11 Loneliest Night Of The Year (b-side of 'Red Man' 1971)
12 Annabelle (b-side of 'It Is Written' 1971)
13 I'm Sorry Susan (single 1972)
14 Bye And Bye (b-side of 'Sanctus, Sanctus Hallelujah' 1972)

Eminem - King Mathers (2007)

After releasing 'Encore' in 2004, Eminem planned to take some time off from recording his own music to become a hip hop producer for other rap acts, especially for the artists signed to his own label Shady Records. However, after cancelling the European leg of the Anger Management Tour in the summer of 2005 because of exhaustion and an addiction to prescription sleeping drugs, he entered something of a hiatus and this was put on hold. The following year, the rapper's remarriage to his former wife Kimberly Scott lasted only eleven weeks before a second divorce, while his best friend and fellow rapper Proof was later shot and killed during an altercation outside a Detroit nightclub. Devastated by both these events, Eminem relapsed into prescription drug abuse and became increasingly reclusive. Speculation on an upcoming album had been reported since mid–2007, both from announcements made by artists 50 Cent and Stat Quo, and also by rapper Bizarre, who stated that the release of his group D12's third studio album was on hold because Interscope Records wanted to release Eminem's album first. With all the problems going on in his life, and with him being more miserable than ever before, it's no surprise that this was reflected in the content of his music, with the songs sounding more serious, and often quite depressing. During a call to the radio station WQHT Hot 97 in September 2007, Eminem stated that he was in limbo and was not sure whether he would release any new material in the near future, although he was constantly working in the recording studio. He said that he had come to terms with his personal issues, but in December 2007 he was hospitalized following an overdose of methadone, and in early 2008 he began a 12-step program to recover from his addiction. The album that he had been working on was scrapped while he recovered, and by mid 2008 he was ready to start recording again with Dr. Dre producing, and following his recovery he'd started writing verses at such a pace that he often took more time to record the lyrics than to write them. There was therefore no need to revisit the music that he'd recorded in 2007, and it remained unheard until YouTuber John Banana assembled various leaks and songs known to be recorded at that time, and put together a possible 'King Mathers' album. If the album had been released in 2007, it could well have divided fans, as it could be considered an improvement on parts of 'Encore', but was nowhere near the quality of his first three albums. Luckily he found his groove again for 2009's 'Relapse', so just enjoy 'King Mathers' for what it is - an album that he needed to make to come back with 'Relapse'. 

Track listing

01 Intro
02 Careful What You Wish For
03 I Get Money (Remix)
04 Everything
05 Cut Back (Freestyle)
06 50 Ways
07 Paul (Skit)
08 Syllables (feat. 50 Cent, Ca$his, Dr. Dre, Jay-Z, Stat Quo)
09 Give Me The Ball
10 Ballin' Uncontrollably
11 The Apple
12 Difficult (feat. Obie Trice)
13 G.O.A.T.
14 Hip-Hop (Freestyle)
15 It's Been Real

InI - Center Of Attention (1995)

InI was an American hip hop group composed of Rob-O, Grap Luva, Ras G a.k.a. I Love H.I.M., Marco Polo (now known as Jolomite), and DJ Boodakhan. The group started working on their debut album together with producer Pete Rock in the mid-1990's, and signed a deal with Rock's newfound imprint Soul Brother Records through Elektra. In 1996 'Fakin' Jax' was issued as the lead lead single from their album and it became an underground hit, although that appeared to be the last bit of good luck that the band experienced. Management shifts at the label were blamed firstly for the album changing title from 'The Life I Live' to 'Center Of Attention', and then ultimately to it's complete cancellation. Rock had a particular issue with Sylvia Rhone's vision for the label, and so his relationship with Elektra Records quickly turned sour, which led to his distribution deal with them ending, along with the demise of Soul Brother Records. As a result, the two releases Rock was working on at the time, InI's 'Center Of Attention' and Deda's 'The Original Baby Pa', never came out due to legal complications surrounding the ownership of the masters. Despite the initial lack of an official release, the album eventually became one of the most bootlegged albums in hip-hop's history, and in 2003 it finally saw an official release after being included on 'Lost & Found: Hip Hop Underground Soul Classics', a double LP of Pete Rock's mid-1990's production work. Although Pete Rock is not an official member of the group, it became synonymous with his name, as he produced almost every track on the album, and his younger brother Grap Luva formed a crucial part of the band. After 'Center Of Attention' was shelved the group members went their separate ways, with only two of them staying on the music scene to pursue solo careers. Grap Luva released a few limited 12" singles in the new millennium and aspired toward achieving his true interest in being a beat boy and producer, while Rob-O released numerous singles and an 8-track album named 'Superspectacular' through the St. Nick Entertainment imprint. Although the album did eventually secure a semi-official release, that's not the end of the story, as it emerged that here was a vinyl test pressing made at the time of recording which included short interludes between nearly all the tracks, and when the CD came out in 2003 these were all removed, along with two of the actual songs, and the whole track-listing was re-ordered. The removal of the 'interludes' was particularly galling to Rock, as a lot of them were his only appearances on the album, supplying 'Vocal Skit' and 'Vocal Outro' on his own. Other differences in the two releases are that the test pressing includes 'Mind Over Matter' and 'Center Of Attention', which weren't on the 1995 bootleg, while the bootleg did include 'No More Words', which was not on the test pressing. Lastly, the 2002 CD re-issue omitted 'Keep On', but added in two otherwise unavailable songs, which means that to own all the tracks you need all the different pressings of the album, and so to save you the trouble of hunting them all out, here is the definitive version of 'Center Of Attention', with every track and interlude included in one place, and you can now hear just why it's so highly regarded. 

Track listing

01 Intro

02 The Life I Live
03 No More Words
04 Interlude
05 Square One
06 Freestyle Interlude
07 Fakin' Jax
08 Step Up
09 Interlude
10 Kross Roads
11 Interlude
12 Vocal Skit
13 Center Of Attention / Interlude
14 Mind Over Matter
15 Freestyle Interlude
16 Midtro
17 Grown Man Sport (feat. Meccalicious)
18 Interlude
19 Think Twice
20 Interlude
21 To Each His Own (feat. Large Professor & Q-Tip)
22 Interlude
23 Props
24 Keep On
25 Freestyle Interlude
26 What You Say
27 Don't You Love It
28 Microphonist Wanderlust
29 Vocal Outro

Dave Mason - ...and on guitar (1984)

David Thomas Mason was born on 10 May 1946 in Worcester, and was a professional musician by his teens, making his recording debut with 'Opus To Spring' in 1963 with the instrumental group the Jaguars. It was with this band that he first encountered drummer Jim Capaldi, and the two became members of the Hellions, who played around the U.K. and in Hamburg, West Germany, as well as cutting a few singles in 1964 and 1965. Mason quit the Hellions in the spring of 1965 to study music formally, while also sitting in occasionally with another band featuring Capaldi, Deep Feeling. In early 1966 he took a job as road manager for the Spencer Davis Group, where he met Steve Winwood, and when Winwood left The Spencer Davis Group in March 1967, he took Mason with him to form Traffic with Capaldi and flautist Chris Wood. After their first single 'Paper Sun' was a UK hit, they followed it with Mason's 'Hole in My Shoe', which hit number two in the U.K. Mason stayed in the band long enough to record Traffic's debut album 'Mr. Fantasy', but left just as it was being released, recording a solo single 'Little Woman' in early 1968. He then rejoined Traffic, staying with them until the band broke up in late 1968. After that he moved to Los Angeles and joined Delaney & Bonnie & Friends in 1969, and then in 1970 he signed a solo contract with Blue Thumb Records and released his debut solo album 'Alone Together', which reached number 22 and went gold in the U.S. Despite this success, he continued to work in group contexts, serving temporarily as second guitarist in Eric Clapton's band Derek And The Dominos, recording with George Harrison on 'All Things Must Pass', and forming a duo with Cass Elliot, releasing their album 'Dave Mason & Cass Elliot' in February 1971. During this time he was a busy session guitarist, starting almost as soon as Traffic ceased to exist, and as he was a friend of Jimi Hendrix he was invited to play 12-string acoustic guitar on his recording of 'All Along The Watchtower', as well as singing and playing on 'Crosstown Traffic'. In 1969/1970 he toured with Delaney and Bonnie and Friends, and contributed a searing solo to their 'Comin' Home' single, as well as playing with Eric Clapton on Derek And The Dominos' single 'Tell The Truth'/'Roll It Over'. In the early 70's he was very much a part of the US West Coast singer/songwriter collective, not only with his own albums, but also featuring on records by Graham Nash, David Crosby, David Blue, Bobby Keys, and his old friend Jim Capaldi. In 1973 he was the guest guitarist on jazz pianist Dave Brubeck's 'Two Generations Of Brubeck' album, showing that he was as much at home with jazz as he was with rock. He also added his guitar to Wings' hit single 'Listen To What The Man Said', and helped out Stephen Stills, Ron Wood, and Donovan in the late 70's/early 80's. Although Mason is pretty much a household name for his work with Traffic and his solo career, I was surprised at just how much he'd spread himself around in the 70's, and so this is a fine celebration of his work from that period.  

Track listing

Disc One
01 Crosstown Traffic (from 'Electric Ladyland' by Jimi Hendrix Experience 1968)
02 Sing To Me, Woman (from 'Thinking Back' by Gordon Jackson 1969)
03 Hello Little Girl (from 'Word Of Mouth' by Merryweather 1969)
04 Comin' Home (single by Delaney & Bonnie & Friends 1969)
05 Freedom (from 'Bobby Lester' by Bobby Lester 1970) 
06 Plug Me In (from 'All Things Must Pass' by George Harrison 1970)
07 Roll It Over (b-side of 'Tell The Truth' by Derek And The Dominos 1970)
08 All Life Is One (from 'Warm Waters' by Charles Lloyd 1971)
09 Military Madness (from 'Songs For Beginners' by Graham Nash 1971)
10 Don't Be A Hero (from 'Oh How We Danced' by Jim Capaldi 1972)
11 Steal From A King (from 'Bobby Keys' by Bobby Keys 1972)

Disc Two
01 Immigration Man (from 'Graham Nash - David Crosby' by Crosby & Nash 1972)
02 Outlaw Man (from 'Nice Baby And The Angel' by David Blue 1973)
03 Blue Rondo A La Turk (from 'Two Generations Of Brubeck' by Dave Brubeck 1973)
04 No Show Tonight (from 'Phoebe Snow' by Phoebe Snow 1974)
05 Ain't That Loving You (out-take from '461 Ocean Boulevard' by Eric Clapton 1974) 
06 Listen To What The Man Said (from 'Venus And Mars' by Wings 1975)
07 Hideaway From Love (from 'Black And White' by Mike Finnigan 1978)
08 You Can't Dance Alone (from 'Thoroughfare Gap' by Stephen Stills 1978)
09 F.U.C. Her (from 'Gimme Some Neck' by Ron Wood 1979)
19 Boy For Every Girl (from 'Lady Of The Stars' by Donovan 1984)

Rihanna - Angel (2019)

By March 2019 fans of Rihanna had been waiting for a new album for quite some time, and the thirst for a new project from her was tangible. In February it was reported that her new full-length release was already done, and so when a record surfaced in iTunes fans bought it in their droves, sending it to No. 67 on the Worldwide iTunes Albums Chart. It soon transpired, however, that it wasn't an official release, but an unauthorized album full of unreleased Rihanna music which was posted under the name of Fenty Fantasia, Fenty being Rihanna's real name. As expected, the release was deleted from the service shortly afterwards, and it emerged that a lot of the songs on the release, which was titled 'Angel', had previously surfaced online in some way or another, with some of them dating as far back as 2009, but the quality of the music and packaging fooled fans into thinking it was a legitinate release. When word of the album started to make it to social media, a fan asked Rihanna directly what's going on with 'Angel', to which she replied simply "Shit's crazy". Nearly three years later we're still waiting for the follow-up to 2016's 'Anti', so for now this will have to tide us over until it finally makes an appearance.  

Track listing

01 Answer
02 Sexuality
03 Bitch I'm Special
04 Bubble Pop
05 Winning Women
06 Just Be Happy
07 Don't Even Try
08 Here We Go
09 Goodbye
10 Whipping My Hair
11 Hating  On The Club
12 Angel

Hint for Soulseek - try whipping aiwe

Twiggy - Beautiful Dreams (1978)

Lesley Hornby was born on 19 September 1949 and raised in Neasden, and her mother taught her to sew from an early age, being able to use this skill to make her own clothes, and sparking her interest in fashion. In January 1966, aged 16, she had her hair coloured and cut short in London at Leonard of Mayfair, owned by celebrity hairdresser Leonard, and as the hair stylist was looking for models on whom to try out his new crop haircut, a professional photographer Barry Lategan took several photos of Hornby, which the hairdresser hung in his salon. Deirdre McSharry, a fashion journalist from the Daily Express, saw the images and asked to meet the young girl, and after arranging to have more photos taken, the publication featured an article and images of Hornby, declaring her "The Face of '66". Hornby's career quickly took off, and with her streamlined, androgynous sex appeal, and change of name to Twiggy (from "Twigs", her childhood nickname), she was soon seen in all the leading fashion magazines, commanding fees of £80 an hour, bringing out her own line of clothes called "Twiggy Dresses" in 1967, and taking the fashion world by storm. She began modeling extensively, quickly gaining international recognition, and her appearance on the cover of the U.S. edition of the leading fashion magazine Vogue (April 1967) heralded her rise to fame. She extended her celebrity into a singing career, releasing an award-winning debut single 'Beautiful Dreams' in 1967, and following this with 'When I Think Of You' later the same year. In 1970, Twiggy retired from modeling, and Ken Russell cast her in the starring role of his campy homage to musicals of the 20's and 30's, 'The Boy Friend'. 

Released in 1971, the film found Twiggy not just acting but singing and dancing as well, and while the film was a disappointment at the box office, for the most part critics were kind to Twiggy's work in the film. Three of her songs from the soundtrack album were later released as singles, and in 1971 she cut a one-off single for Bell Records, 'Zoo Dee Zoo Zong'/'Little Pleasure Acre'. In 1974 she was given her own musical variety series on BBC television, and after the show was renewed for a second season, she signed an international recording contract with Phonogram, with her 1976 self-titled debut album being a commercial success in the U.K., and spawning the hit single 'Here I Go Again'. A follow-up album titled 'Please Get My Name Right' was released in 1977, with the backing being supplied by the American group Clover, who would also back Elvis Costello on his debut album 'My Aim Is True' later the same year. A third album for Mercury was recorded but not released, though a single from the sessions, 'Tomorrow Is Another Day', was issued in late 1977. After cutting a single with longtime friend David Essex in 1978,  she recorded a disco album with production help from Donna Summer and Juergen Koppers, but with disco losing ground in the marketplace, the album went unreleased until 2007, when it was eventually issued as 'Heaven in My Eyes'. Through much of the 1980's she concentrated on her acting, and the singing career took a backseat, so this collection encapsulates her time in the music business, with her singles and b-sides from that first 1967 offering up to her retirement following the release of the David Essex song 'Falling Angel' in 1978. As the singles from 'The Boy Friend' were very theatrical, I've edited out a lot of the dancing in 'A Room In Bloomsbury' and faded 'I Could Be Happy With You' so that we just have the music.  

Track listing

01 Beautiful Dreams (single 1967)
02 I Need Your Hand In Mine (b-side of 'Beautiful Dreams')
03 When I Think Of You (single 1967)
04 Over And Over (b-side of 'When I Think Of You')
05 Zoo De Zoo Zong (single 1971)
06 Little Pleasure Acre (b-side of 'Zoo De Zoo Zong')
07 A Room In Bloomsbury (single by Twiggy & Christopher Gable 1972)
08 You Are My Lucky Star (single 1972)
09 All I Do Is Dream (b-side of 'You Are My Lucky Star')
10 I Could Be Happy With You (b-side of 'Overture "The Boyfriend" 1972)
11 It's De-Lovely (from the soundtrack to the 'Cole Porter In Paris' TV special 1973)
12 In Love Together (b-side of 'Here I Go Again' 1976)
13 A Woman In Love (single 1977)
16 Falling Angel (single 1978)
17 Virginia (And The Circus Side Show) (b-side of 'Falling Angel')

Uriah Heep - Fives Miles (1979)

In 1979 Uriah Heep were riding high following the release of three successful albums with vocalist John Lawton, and 'Firefly', 'Innocent Victim' and 'Fallen Angel' were all fine examples of the more 'pop' orientated, stylish sound that Ken Hensley was striving for in the latter part of the 70's. A fourth album was recorded in 1979, provisionally titled 'Five Miles', but for reasons which remain unclear it was shelved, although that decision could well be to do with the major line-up changes which occurred in 1980, when Lawton was replaced as vocalist by John Sloman, and both Lee Kerslake and Ken Hensley quit the band, with the subsequent release 'Conquest' being generally perceived as the band's worst album. Had this one appeared it could have completed a quartet of great records from the group, with things kicking off if fine fashion with 'Let It Ride', which sounds a bit like Lawton's prior band Lucifer's Friend in it's use of group back up vocals. 'Life Is A Dream' has what sounds like a nice duel between Mick Box and Ken Hensley on guitars threading through a very upbeat and infectious melody, and 'That's How I Am' features Hammond organ in the background, an incredibly beautiful and well constructed acoustic Mick Box solo, and a powerful vocal performance from Lawton, at the top of his game. The following 'You And I' is another lovely song, with orchestration in the background, and Box and Hensley adding some nice countryish duelling on guitar. 'Your Love' is a nice driving piece, with another good Lawton performance, and 'I'll Never Forget' is one of those Heep tunes where the back up vocal hamonizing takes it to another level. 'Fools' and 'Feelings' were both later re-worked for the 'Conquest' album, and so you can compare both vocalists to see who delivers the better versions. 'I Won't Change' closes the album with a lead vocal from Hensley, and features a confessional lyric, with him admitting "I'm just an honest guy trying to stay true to who I am". The album has been bootlegged over the years, often under the name of 'Ten Miles High', and with 'Fallen Angel' out-takes tagged onto the end, but in 2005 another 'Five Miles' recording was included on the 'Chapter And Verse' box-set, so this version also includes 'LA Woman', which is missing from all the other boots, and I've also restored the original title. It might be leveled at the band that they'd produced a more lightweight affair, but that was the direction they were going for at the time, and it certainly didn't deserve to be locked away as there is plenty on here for fans to enjoy. 

Track listing

01 Let It Ride 
02 Life Is A Dream 
03 Feelings 
04 You And I 

05 LA Woman
06 That's How I Am  
07 I'll Never Forget  
08 Your Love  
09 Tonight 
10 Fools  
11 Been Hurt  
12 I Won't Change 

Diana Ross & The Supremes - Sing Disney Classics (1967)

'Supremes Sing Disney' was not the idea of Berry Gordy, Jr., as you might think, but of Diana Ross, who yearned to do a music album for children. The special project was then started with Ross, Mary Wilson and Florence Ballard in early 1967, along the same lines as 'The Supremes Sing Rodgers & Hart', which displayed the worldliness of Motown Records and the true musical diversity of the group. The recording was put on hold for the 'Reflections' personnel change of summer 1967, when Ballard was fired and replaced by Cindy Birdsong, and recording resumed in late 1967 with the new line-up, with the title amended to 'Diana Ross & The Supremes Sing Disney Classics'. Ross sings lead on all the songs except 'Davy Crockett', which was a Wilson lead vocal, and the album was completed and ready to go when Motown Records decided not to release it. Had the album been released in Autumn 1968 as later planned, the cover photograph would have had to reflect that Ballard had been replaced by Birdsong, but the recordings stayed locked in the vaults for 20 years, until some of the songs finally turned up on 'Diana Ross & The Supremes - The Never Before Released Masters' in 1987, following years of pleading from fans. Despite this act of generosity by Motown, three of the songs remained unreleased for many years, but I've managed to track down 'Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah' and 'A Spoonful Of Sugar', (admittedly not as high quality as the other tracks, although I have improved them from their original thin sound), which just leaves 'Chim Chim Cher-ee' still missing. A video of this appeared on Youtube for two days in 2017 before it was taken down by Disney, so if anyone has a copy of it that I could have then it would complete this extremely rare collection.  

Track listing

01 Heigh-Ho (from 'Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs')
02 I've Got No Strings (from 'Pinocchio') 
03 Chim Chim Cher-ee (from 'Mary Poppins') MISSING
04 A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes (from 'Cinderella') 
05 Someday My Prince Will Come (from 'Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs')
06 The Ballad Of Davy Crockett (from 'Davy Crockett, King Of The Wild Frontier') 
07 Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah (from 'Song Of The South') 
08 Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (from 'Mary Poppins')
09 Toyland (from 'Babes In Toyland')
10 When You Wish Upon A Star (from 'Pinocchio')  
11 A Spoonful Of Sugar (from 'Mary Poppins') 
12 The Land Of Make Believe (from 'Peter Pan') 
13 Whistle While You Work (from 'Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs')
14 It Won't Be Long 'Til Christmas (from 'The Happiest Millionaire')