Sweet 2022

Three CD digisleeve best of collection including all the hits and classic album tracks from the band's breakthrough in 1969, up until 1978. The collection features brand new liner notes.

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 like 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 songs were written by Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman, a pair of British songwriters who had a way with silly, simple, and catchy hooks. Chinn/Chapman and Sweet were smart enough to latch on to the British glam rock fad, building a safer, radio-friendly, and teen-oriented version of Queen, T. Rex, and Gary Glitter. By the end of the '70s, the group's time at the top of the charts had expired but their hit singles lived on not only as cultural artifacts, but also as the predecessors for the pop-metal of the '80s. Originally, the Sweet were called the Sweetshop and consisted of Brian Connolly (vocals), Mick Tucker (vocals, drums), Frank Torpey (guitar), and Steve Priest (bass).

4 Blu-ray Set Featuring Remastered Hi-Res Stereo, Dolby Atmos mixes by Grammy® Award Winning producer Ken Caillat and Claus Trelby, and Quad Mixes of FOR THE ROSES (1972), COURT AND SPARK (1974), MILES OF AISLES (1974), and THE HISSING OF SUMMER LAWNS (1975). A brand new 2023 Quad Mix of FOR THE ROSES was done by Bruce Botnick.

The twin polarities upon which Use Your Illusion has always derived its unique energy from are its absolute bigness and its unparallelled sense of vindictive martyrdom.

American jazz trumpeter and composer Booker Little Jr. (April 2, 1938 - October 5, 1961), appeared on numerous recordings during his tragically short career, both as a sideman and as a leader. Little performed with Max Roach, John Coltrane, and Eric Dolphy and was strongly influenced by Sonny Rollins and Clifford Brown. He died aged just 23. This stunning new collection houses all Booker Little's albums on which he performed as leader during his tragically short career, plus the two live albums he made with Eric Dolphy recorded at the Five Spot. Celebrating and compiling the finest music this hugely underrated jazz master produced, this collection goes a long way in providing the ultimate collection of the great man's quite extraordinary work.

Review by Andy Kellman For those neither willing nor able to take the plunge, Time Life's 11-disc Sweet Soul of the ‘70s box was broken down into six volumes. Sweet Soul of the '70s: Stone in Love with You is one of the five two-disc volumes (to go with one single-disc set), and it emphasizes hits from the earlier half of the decade. It’s not particularly broad, containing five songs from Aretha Franklin, three each from George Benson, the Stylistics, and Spinners, and two from some others, but no selection is debatable. Among the highlights: Isaac Hayes' “Theme from Shaft,” Sylvia’s “Pillow Talk,” the Blackbyrds' “Walking in Rhythm,” the Staple Singers' “I’ll Take You There,” and Timmy Thomas' “Why Can’t We Live Together.”

Aretha Franklin has simply been one of the greatest singers of the modern generation, and whether bringing her powerful, passionate voice to bear on gospel standards, songs from the Great American Songbook, jazz standards, pop ditties, or deep Southern soul and R&B, she has always had the presence – much like Ray Charles – to make anything she touches unmistakably hers.