Under The Radar (2004)

The second instalment of Robbie's fan special series, Under The Radar Volume 2 is a unique collection of b-sides, demos and rarities compiled exclusively for fans of Robbie Williams.

St. Paul & The Broken Bones have already garnered much attention due to their high-energy live performances, led by charismatic front man Paul Janeway. The groups sweat-soaked, take-no prisoners style has converted many, including Paste Magazine, who named St. Paul & The Broken Bones one of their 2013 Best Of Whats Next artists, and NPR Music, who included the album in their Under The Radar Albums Preview. Half The City oozes with key elements of Memphis soul, Muscle Shoals R&B and the Motown experience, which lay solid ground for Jane- ways expressive vocals. "Within ten seconds of hearing Paul Janeways voice - secondhand on a friends cellphone - I was in. The first five was spent in disbelief. I can count on one hand the times thats happened. I admit it took a bit to hear past him. The beautiful thing was that the band was and is every bit as good. The same swagger, conviction, and - dare I say - soul. Thats saying something. What sealed the deal was the songwriting, the arrangements, the dynamics - all the things that comes with having been a unit for many more years than they have. And then I experienced them live. - John Paul White

Hot Butterfly Review by Amy Hanson
Lauded for their tremendous efforts as a girl group session act throughout the 1960s, Sweet Inspirations made their own mark with two LPs and a string of hits during the late '60s and early '70s, before disappearing under the radar until 1979, when they resurfaced on RSO with Hot Butterfly. Now down to a trio of founder member Myrna Smith, with Gloria Brown and Sylvia Shemwell, the revamped Sweet Inspirations re-launched themselves on the tails of Robert Stigwood's near single-handed disco revolution. With Smith and Shemwell evenly trading lead vocal responsibilities, the band powered through a set of lukewarm disco-inflected R&B. Mid-tempo songs with flavor-of-the-year string arrangements are de rigueur from the opening "Hot Fun" to "It's the Simple Things You Do," both songs managing to overcome a desultory slip into oblivion, thanks to the powerful vocal arrangements.

Some things are worth waiting for… "Morning Star" is the first all-new album by The Prisoners since 1986. It features the original line-up of Allan Crockford – bass, vocals Graham Day – vocals, guitar Johnny Symons – drums James Taylor – Hammond organ, vocals After a phenomenally successful series of gigs in December 2022 marking the 40 th anniversary of their debut album 'A Taste of Pink', the band decided to make some new music. The recording was completed in two days, one of them in Studio 2 at Abbey Road. Their preference for recording quickly hasn't changed since they recorded that first album as teenagers, also in two days, in 1982. To celebrate, they play The Roundhouse in London on May 24th, their biggest headline gig Biography The Prisoners formed when they were still at school in Rochester, Kent.

Comprehensive 3CD overview of the American power pop scene's evolution throughout the 70s. Featuring the genre's major bands, cult names, hits, rarites and several previously unissued tracks. Although the power pop genre wasn't named and codified until late 1977, the sound and spirit had been slowly gathering steam throughout the decade. Surrounded by heavy metal and introverted singer/songwriters, the likes of The Raspberries, Big Star, Blue Ash and The Wackers spearheaded an early 70s return to the spiky, three-minute pop urgency of the mid-60s British Invasion bands. While only The Raspberries charted, such bands established a musical template that was adopted by a new raft of slightly younger acts including the Dwight Twilley Band, The Rubinoos and Shoes. The tide had turned by the late 70s, with such names as Cheap Trick and The Cars achieving success as the American music industry embraced power pop as a radio-friendly alternative to punk.

An intimate portrait of one of the most loved footballers. This documentary feature film looks at his childhood in Brazil, his breakthrough to professional football and his journey to Europe including the ground-breaking years with Barcelona. We hear from his family, teammates and peers in a truly heart-warming story of one of the games greats.