Gencon 1994

Welsh composer, viola terrorist, and art rocker John Cale remains a unique link between "dirty ass rock & roll" (as one '70s mission statement was titled), the avant garde and classicism–a droll, thoughtful musician who studied with John Cage, joined the Velvet Underground, and went on to craft a series of often divergent post-Velvets solo projects. Early projects that confronted the clash of classicism and pop head-on, like The Academy In Peril and the classic Paris 1919, which mixed string sections with electric slide guitars, gave way to more stripped-down, primal rock in the '70s, but Cale's music has always left a door open to musical and thematic invention. This intelligently assembled two-CD anthology offers a smart entry point into a beguiling maze of Cale personae. –Sam Sutherland

In the first half of the 1960s, Colpix and Dimension were record-label offshoots of Columbia Pictures; Colpix tended toward teen idols, while Dimension was mainly an outlet for the compositions of the Gerry Goffin/Carole King songwriting team. This 40-song double CD includes all the major hits on the labels by the Marcels, James Darren, Shelley Fabares, Paul Petersen, Little Eva, the Cookies, and Carole King herself, as well as quite a few rarities. Although the compilers have done a thorough job, the jumble of disparate styles – sappy teen-idol pop, rhythm and blues, girl groups, soul, even a garage band – makes for tough end-to-end listening. Several of the sides by Darren and Petersen are unbearably cloying; the ones by Fabares, Teddy Randazzo, and Sandy Stewart are barely any better. The hits by Little Eva and the Cookies, on the other hand, are great dynamic girl-group performances. And some of the rarities are pretty cool – Carole King's odd, almost folk-rockish flop single "He's a Bad Boy," Earl-Jean's original version of "I'm Into Something Good" (covered for a hit by Herman's Hermits), the Girlfriends' "My One and Only, Jimmy Boy" (the best Wall of Sound girl-group record not produced by Phil Spector), the little-anthologized Top Ten soul hit "Hey Girl" by Freddie Scott, rare sides by Lou Christie and Duane Eddy, a silly Beatle parody by Sonny Curtis, and extremely rare (if not terribly good) singles by David Jones and Michael Nesmith before they joined the Monkees.

The Original Jazz Masters Series Volume Three is a 5CD box set of various jazz classics by some of jazz music's cherished artists. This was released in 1994 by Da Music.

The Casablanca Records Story is a 4CD box set exploring the soul and disco sides of Neil Bogart's Casablanca Records. Released in 1994, this is dedicated to just their soul and disco sides, not the rock side so no Kiss or Angel. This was taken from the promotional version of the collection so no booklet, as it was packaged in a thick case (clam shell).

Green Day’s third studio album Dookie was released in February 1994, and has since sold over 15 million copies worldwide, including 10 million in the US (RIAA Diamond certified). The album is an iconic punk-rock-pop masterpiece and one of the most influential and defining albums of the 1990’s. It spawned five hit singles that are still hugely popular songs: “Longview”, “Basket Case”, “Welcome to Paradise”, “When I Come Around”, and “She”. Limited Edition Super Deluxe Box Sets (vinyl and CD) will be released on September 29, 2023, to celebrate the 30th Anniversary of this landmark album.

Capricorn Records released this 2CD retrospective box set called The Swing Time Records Story. Subtitled R&B, Blues & Gospel 1946-1952, the box honors the music released by Jack Lauderdale, who ran Swing Time from Los Angeles, originally as the Down Beat label before changing the name to Swing Beat, before finally settling with Swing Time. The label lasted only six years but it would become the home for Ray Charles, Lowell Fulson, Percy Mayfield, and Jimmy Witherspoon. The box features 50 songs. This was a library disc so since there were stickers and handwriting on the booklet and disc, there are no scans for it, just the audio.

Washington D.C. 8/1/94 R.F.K. Stadium (opening night, 1994 US Tour)