In some ways, the Sweet epitomized all the tacky hubris and garish silliness of the early '70s. Fusing bubblegum melodies with crunching, fuzzy guitars, the band looked a heavy metal band, but were as tame as any pop group. It was a dichotomy that served them well, as they racked up a number of hits in both the U.K. and the U.S. Most of those hits were written by Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman, a pair of British songwriters that had a way with silly, simple, and catchy hooks…
In 2013, the great five-disc Stranglers box set The Old Testament: The U.A. Studio Recordings (1977-1982) from 1992 was reissued, featuring most of the group's best albums plus a bunch of drool-worthy bonuses (demos, B-sides, remixes, and other whatnot). This bulky 11-disc set was released just one year after – the excuse being that the band's 40th anniversary must be honored – but the differences are vast, with this one serving a purpose for the hardcore while Old Testament is the clear winner for the more casual listener…
After recording Level Headed, an album that mostly forsaked their hard rock leanings for pure pop, longtime lead vocalist Brian Connolly left Sweet for good. The rest of the group decided to press on as a trio, combining their pop/rock sound with a variety of other musical styles in a bid to gain a more progressive image. The result was Cut Above the Rest, a bizarre combination of the hard-rocking pop that dominated classic Sweet singles with progressive flights of fancy in a 10cc/Electric Light Orchestra vein, plus a dash of lounge lizard-ish soft rock balladry thrown in to cover all the pop/rock bases…
Never less than rough, ready and raw the UK Subs proved with the 7 top 40 hits included here that smooth edges weren’t needed in the wake of the Punk explosion. The singles CID, Tomorrows Girls and Stranglehold perfectly captured the mood of the times and remain as impressive as they were upon first release. A retrospective covering the most successful period of the bands career during Punk’s high tide in the late 70s. Includes the hits Tomorrows Girls, Stranglehold, She’s Not There and Warhead. Sleevenotes and compilation by Alan Parker.
A belated sequel to Rhino's 2012 box set The Studio Albums 1969-1978, 2015's The Studio Albums: 1979-2008 rounds up the expanded remasters of Chicago's next ten studio albums, beginning with 1979's Chicago 13 and ending with 2008's Chicago XXXII: Stone of Sisyphus (which was actually recorded in 1994 but shelved for 14 years)…
Motown’s legendary songwriting/production team, Holland-Dozier-Holland, left the fold in 1967, to establish their own Invictus/Hot Wax group of labels. They had worldwide hits with their flagship act, Chairmen Of The Board, debuted the first album by Parliament, as well as scoring a UK #1 with Freda Payne’s ‘Band of Gold…
The most complete Judas Priest collection all in one bundle! Contains ALL 17 Judas Priest albums featuring the classic line up of: Rob Halford, Glenn Tipton, K.K. Downing and Ian Hill. Newly Re-mastered versions of 'Rocka Rolla' and 'Sad Wings Of Destiny'. Each individual album is packaged in a replica mini-LP sleeve reproducing that album's original cover art. Also contains a 40 Page booklet with photos, liner notes & album credits