The Complete Unreleased

The recording industry of the 20th century saw stars become legends and albums become icons of popular culture. Completed in a total of only four days and released in January 1956, Glenn Gould s début recording of Bach s Goldberg Variations is without doubt one of the most significant and successful classical recordings in the history of the gramophone record.

Forty years ago, on September 2, 1982 – the year of Michael Jackson’s Thriller and Steven Spielberg’s E.T. – Glenn Gould’s legendary second recording of the Goldberg Variations closed a circle that his revolutionary 1956 recording of Bach’s masterpiece had opened. While his first recording is the exuberant, fast-paced work of a 22-year-old pianistic prodigy, his second is the measured, richly detailed interpretation of an experienced studio artist. Just five weeks later, the Canadian pianist died unexpectedly, leaving the world a masterpiece of recording art that – awarded two GRAMMYs – is still one of the most listened to classical albums worldwide.

On the heels of their rapturously received The Red Bird Girls: Very First Time in True Stereo 1964-66 compilation, producers Ron Furmanek and Ash Wells have come up with the first legitimate album devoted to the classic Blue Cat recordings of the Ad-Libs, featuring 24 tracks taken straight from the original master session tapes! And among those 24 tracks are a full five unreleased songs and nine unreleased alternate versions, featuring three previously unheard versions of the big hit “The Boy from New York City” including an a cappella demo! Notes by James Moniz tell the Ad-Libs story with help from copious quotes from group member Norman Donegan, while Manhattan Transfer member Tim Hauser pens an introduction. Another incredible find from the Red Bird / Blue Cat vaults!

The short-lived Houston, Texas late-'60s psych band Moving Sidewalks are generally best known as one of the first bands of Billy Gibbons, who went on to fame in biker-blues arena rockers ZZ Top. In their day, Moving Sidewalks recorded their sole LP, Flash, as well as a few singles of psychedelic blues-rock, before evaporating into garage rock history and seeing Gibbons off to radically different prospects. The Complete Moving Sidewalks collects all known studio work by the band as well as demos and unreleased tracks from the Coachmen, the Gibbons-fronted predecessor that came just before Moving Sidewalks. As an album, Flash is very much a product of its time. Gibbons' vocals, guitar playing, and songwriting are all under a heavy Hendrix influence, borrowing the stoned blues side of Jimi's nonchalant playing and electric hippie persona.

The title is a bit of a misnomer; this double CD only includes the complete sessions that the Animals recorded with producer Mickie Most in 1964 and 1965. The 40 songs capture the band at their peak, including most of their best and biggest hits: "House of the Rising Sun," "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood," "Bring It on Home to Me," "We Gotta Get Out of This Place," "I'm Crying," "It's My Life," and "Boom Boom." Most of the rest of the tunes don't match the excellence of these smashes, though they're solid. The great majority of them are covers of vintage R&B/rock tunes by Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, and the like, which aren't quite as durable as reinterpretations from the same era by the Stones and Yardbirds.