Various Artists
Release Date
Fri, 05/19/2017
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description:

RHINO CELEBRATES STAX RECORDS' 60TH ANNIVERSARY 

A Year-Long Salute To The Iconic Soul Label Begins Today
With Stax Classics Collections That Spotlight Essential Tracks From
Otis Redding, Carla Thomas, Sam & Dave, And Booker T. & The M.G.'s

Rhino Will Also Reissue Several Classic Stax Albums On Vinyl This Summer

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Rhino Celebrates Stax Records 60th Anniversary With Stax Classics Collections And Vinyl Reissues

Artist Name
Various Artists
Release Date

RHINO CELEBRATES STAX RECORDS’ 60TH ANNIVERSARY  

A Year-Long Salute To The Iconic Soul Label Begins Today

With Stax Classics Collections That Spotlight Essential Tracks From
Otis Redding, Carla Thomas, Sam & Dave, And Booker T. & The M.G.’s

Rhino Will Also Reissue Several Classic Stax Albums On Vinyl This Summer

LOS ANGELES – Rhino Entertainment has partnered with Concord Music Group to celebrate Stax Records’ 60th anniversary. This year-long salute to the iconic soul label will include curated collections of timeless hits from the legendary artists who helped the Memphis-based label earn its nickname, Soulsville U.S.A.

The celebration begins today with the launch of the STAX CLASSICS series. Each wallet-friendly collection will spotlight a single artist with 12 essential tracks and insightful new liner notes. The first four from Rhino celebrate the influential careers of Otis Redding, Carla Thomas, Sam & Dave and Booker T. & The M.G.’s. These albums are available now on CD and at digital retailers for $9.98 each. In addition, the music is available via digital download and streaming services. Concord also releases STAX CLASSICS titles today from William Bell, The Dramatics, Isaac Hayes, Albert King, The Staple Singers, and Johnnie Taylor.

Carla Thomas was Stax Records’ first star and the STAX CLASSICS: CARLA THOMAS collection highlights her soul-pop gems like “B-A-B-Y” and “I Like What Your Doing (To Me).” Also included are the hits “Cause I Love You” — one of many songs she recorded with her father Rufus Thomas — as well as “Tramp,” her scorching 1966 duet with Otis Redding.

Otis Redding was an R&B supernova whose body of work helped transform Stax from a small record label into a musical institution. STAX CLASSICS: OTIS REDDING distills his incredible discography down to bona fide soul classics like “Try A Little Tenderness,” “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long (To Stop Now)” and “Respect,” which was later immortalized by Aretha Franklin. Naturally, the collection also includes “(Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay,” a posthumous release that topped both the R&B and pop charts.

The soul duo of Sam Moore and Dave Prater recorded a cavalcade of memorable R&B hits for the label beginning in 1965. STAX CLASSICS: SAM & DAVE touches on many of their greatest hits, including “Hold On! I’m A Comin’” and “You Don’t Know Like I Know.” The compilation also features the dynamic duo’s signature anthem, “Soul Man,” which reached #1 on the R&B chart and #2 on the pop chart in 1967.

Booker T. & The M.G.’s was the house band and the bedrock of Stax Records. Along with providing the musical backdrop for everyone on the label, the four-piece scored a series of hits with their unique soulful instrumentals. STAX CLASSICS: BOOKER T. & THE M.G.’S spotlights irresistible grooves like “Hip Hug-Her” and “Time Is Tight.” The collection also features the band’s unforgettable #1 smash, “Green Onions.”

Rhino will continue the Stax anniversary celebration over the summer as it re-issues several stellar albums on 180-gram vinyl for $21.98 each.

The first wave arrives on June 23 and includes: Green Onions by Booker T. & The M.G.’s, Walking The Dog by Rufus Thomas, and Soul Men by Sam & Dave. A special 50th anniversary edition of King and Queen by Otis Redding and Carla Thomas will be released the same day on gold-colored vinyl.

The next round of vinyl re-issues will be released on July 7 and includes: The Soul Album and The Great Otis Redding Sings Soul by Otis Redding, Double Dynamite by Sam & Dave, Carla by Carla Thomas, Hip Hug-Her by Booker T. & The M.G.’s and Born Under A Bad Sign by Albert King.

During its 15-year run, Stax released more than 800 singles and nearly 300 LPs, winning eight GRAMMY® Awards, plus an Academy Award along the way. The label placed more than 167 hit songs in the Top 100 pop charts, and a staggering 243 hits in the Top 100 R&B charts.

STAX CLASSICS: CARLA THOMAS
Track Listing

  1. “B-A-B-Y”
  2. “Tramp” – Otis Redding & Carla Thomas
  3. “Something Good (Is Going to Happen to You)”
  4. “I Like What You’re Doing (To Me)”
  5. “Cause I Love You” – Carla & Rufus
  6. “Let Me Be Good To You”
  7. “Comfort Me”
  8. “When Tomorrow Comes”
  9. “What Is Love?”
  10. “Pick Up the Pieces”
  11. “I’ve Got No Time to Lose”
  12. “I Play for Keeps”


STAX CLASSICS: OTIS REDDING
Track Listing

  1. “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay”
  2. “These Arms of Mine”
  3. “Try a Little Tenderness”
  4. “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long (To Stop Now)”
  5. “Mr. Pitiful”
  6. “Respect”
  7. “Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa (Sad Song)”
  8. “Pain In My Heart”
  9. “Just One More Day”
  10. “That's How Strong My Love Is”
  11. “Security”
  12. “Satisfaction”
     

STAX CLASSICS: SAM & DAVE
Track Listing

  1. “Hold On! I'm A Comin’”
  2. “Soul Man”
  3. “I Thank You”
  4. “Soothe Me”
  5. “When Something Is Wrong With My Baby”
  6. “You Don’t Know Like I Know”
  7. “Don’t Knock It”
  8. “I Can’t Stand Up For Falling Down”
  9. “You Got Me Hummin’”
  10. “A Place Nobody Can Find”
  11. “Said I Wasn’t Gonna Tell Nobody”
  12. “I Take What I Want”


STAX CLASSICS: BOOKER T. & THE M.G.’S
Track Listing

  1. “Green Onions”
  2. “Hip-Hug-Her”
  3. “Jellybread”
  4. “Time Is Tight”
  5. “Tic-Tac-Toe”
  6. “Boot-Leg”
  7. “Mo’ Onions”
  8. “Soul Dressing”
  9. “Groovin’”
  10. “Melting Pot”
  11. “Soul Limbo”
  12. “One Mint Julep”

 

 

# # #

Nickelback
Release Date
Fri, 07/07/2017
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description:

NICKELBACK

Three Of The Band's Best Will Be Reissued On Vinyl In July, Including
Silver Side Up, The Long Road, And All The Right Reasons

The Group Will Launch A Summer Tour In June

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Nickelback Silver Side Up, The Long Road, And All The Right Reasons Vinyl Reissues Available July 7

Artist Name
Nickelback
Release Date

NICKELBACK

Three Of The Band’s Best Will Be Reissued On Vinyl In July, Including

Silver Side Up, The Long Road, And All The Right Reasons

The Group Will Launch A Summer Tour In June
 

LOS ANGELES – Nickelback will reissue three of its most popular albums on vinyl this summer as the group hits to road to support its latest studio release, Feed The Machine. The band’s extensive headlining tour of North America will begin on June 23, and includes supporting acts Daughtry and Shaman’s Harvest for most of the shows.

On July 7, Rhino will release vinyl versions of SILVER SIDE UP, THE LONG ROAD, and ALL THE RIGHT REASONS for $21.98 each. All three albums will be pressed on 140-gram vinyl and presented in a standard LP jacket. The Long Road and All The Right Reasons are being released on vinyl for the first time ever.

These three records are at the core of Nickelback’s massive commercial success during the 2000s and represent combined U.S. sales of more than 16 million albums.

The vinyl reissues begin with SILVER SIDE UP. Originally released in 2001, this would become the group’s breakthrough album, reaching #2 on the Billboard albums chart. It was certified 6x platinum in the U.S. by the RIAA and spawned the singles: “Too Bad” and “Never Again.” It also featured the #1 smash “How You Remind Me,” which topped the charts in several countries and was nominated for a Grammy for Record of the Year.

The band returned in 2003 with its fourth studio album, THE LONG ROAD. After debuting at #6 on the album charts, it was certified triple platinum and later nominated for a Grammy for Best Rock Album. Among the standout tracks are hits like “Someday,” “Figured You Out” and “Because Of You.”

Nickelback’s fifth studio album, ALL THE RIGHT REASONS, debuted at #1 on the albums chart in 2005 and currently ranks as the best-selling album of the band’s ongoing career. Since its release, the record has sold more than 18 million copies worldwide and was recently certified diamond by the RIAA.

The album’s phenomenal success can be attributed in large part to the number of singles it generated. Over a two-year period, seven of the album’s 11 songs were released as singles. Three of the biggest tracks were “Photograph,” “Far Away” and “Rockstar,” which all reached #1 on the Adult Top 40. Other highlights include: “Animals,” “Savin’ Me” and “Side Of A Bullet.”
 

SILVER SIDE UP
LP Track Listing

Side One

  1. “Never Again”
  2. “How You Remind Me” – LP Mix
  3. “Woke Up This Morning”
  4. “Too Bad”
  5. “Just For”

Side Two

  1. “Hollywood”
  2. “Money Bought”
  3. “Where Do I Hide”
  4. “Hangnail”
  5. “Good Times Gone”

THE LONG ROAD
LP Track Listing

Side One

  1. “Flat On The Floor”
  2. “Do This Anymore”
  3. “Someday”
  4. “Believe It Or Not”
  5. “Feelin’ Way Too Damn Good”
  6. “Because Of You”

Side Two

  1. “Figured You Out’
  2. “Should’ve Listened”
  3. “Throw Yourself Away”
  4. “Another Hole In The Head”
  5. “See You At The Show”

ALL THE RIGHT REASONS
LP Track Listing

Side One

  1. “Follow You Home”
  2. “Fight For All The Wrong Reasons”
  3. “Photograph”
  4. “Animals”
  5. “Savin’ Me”

Side Two

  1. “Far Away”
  2. “Next Contestant”
  3. “Side Of A Bullet”
  4. “If Everyone Cared”
  5. “Someone That You’re With”
  6. “Rockstar”

 

Pre-order at the links below:

Nickelback - Silver Side Up - https://rh-ino.co/ssulp
Nickelback - The Long Road - https://rh-ino.co/tlrlp
Nickelback - All The Right Reasons - https://rh-ino.co/atrrlp     

 

# # #

Grateful Dead Place Two Titles In The Top 15 Of Billboard’s Top Albums Chart

Artist Name
Grateful Dead
Release Date

TWO GRATEFUL DEAD TITLES
DEBUT IN THE TOP 15 OF BILLBOARD'S TOP ALBUMS CHART

Long-Awaited Release Of Their May 8, 1977 Performance At Cornell University's
Barton Hall, Revered By Many As The Best Grateful Dead Show Of All Time,
Drives The Band's Highest Chart Position In 30 Years

Cornell 5/8/77 Debuts At #10 While Dead.net Exclusive 11-Disc Boxed Set
Get Shown The Light Lands At #15;
Both Titles Are Available Now On CD And Digitally


LOS ANGELES - The official release of the Grateful Dead's May 8, 1977 show at Cornell University's Barton Hall, thought by many to be the band's finest live performance, has delivered yet another milestone for the band: their highest chart position in 30 years with two albums debuting in the top15 of Billboard's Top Albums chart. CORNELL 5/8/77 debuted at #10 while MAY 1977: GET SHOWN THE LIGHT, a dead.net exclusive 11-disc boxed set featuring the Cornell show, landed at #15. The releases have received praise from both fans and critics, with Pitchfork giving the boxed set a "Best New Reissue" designation and noting that "it's perfect for beginners and lifelong Deadheads alike."

The Grateful Dead played more than 2,000 concerts, but none continues to spark interest and provoke discussion quite like the band's performance at Cornell. It is one of the most collected, traded, and debated concerts by any band ever, has topped numerous fan polls through the years, and was a favorite of the group's longtime archivist Dick Latvala, who stated: "Enough can't be said about this superb show." Even Uncle Sam got into the act in 2011 when the recording was "deemed so important to the history and culture of the United States" that a copy was added to the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry.

CORNELL 5/8/77 is available as a three-CD set ($29.98), a limited edition five-LP set ($119.98, limited to 7,700 copies), as well as via digital download and streaming. The 11-disc boxed set MAY 1977: GET SHOWN THE LIGHT features the Cornell show along with three other previously unreleased concerts: Veterans' Memorial Coliseum, New Haven, CT (5/5/77), Boston Garden, Boston, MA (5/7/77), and Buffalo Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, NY (5/9/77). All of these recordings are sourced from the legendary Betty boards, which Jeffrey Norman has mastered in HDCD for unrivaled sound quality. The transfers from the master tapes were produced by Plangent Processes, further ensuring that this is the best, most authentic that Cornell (and the other three shows) has ever sounded.

MAY 1977: GET SHOWN THE LIGHT  is available now exclusively at dead.net. A limited edition version of 15,000 individually numbered copies is now sold out, but the "All Music Edition" is still available for $139.98. The set is also available as a digital download in Apple Lossless ($99.98) and FLAC 192/24 ($124.98) exclusively at dead.net.

"These four concerts have been the holy grail of wish-list releases both externally and internally for a long, long time," says David Lemieux, Grateful Dead archivist and the set's producer. " During the 18+ years I've worked with the Grateful Dead, no concert has garnered as much attention and as many requests for release as Cornell, with the New Haven, Boston, and Buffalo shows following very closely behind. For those who didn't know the history of these master tapes and about their absence from the band's vault, and for those who have, like us, lamented this hole in the collection, we join with you in celebrating what might be, minute-for-minute, song-for-song, the most high quality Grateful Dead release ever produced."

The now sold out, limited edition version of MAY 1977: GET SHOWN THE LIGHT comes in an ornate box crafted by Grammy®-winning graphic artist Masaki Koike. The set includes an in-depth essay by noted Dead scholar Nicholas G. Meriwether, who explores the memories and mysteries that surround this run of shows. The set also comes with Cornell '77: The Music, The Myth And The Magnificence Of The Grateful Dead's Concert At Barton Hall (Cornell Press), a new book by Peter Conners dedicated to the Cornell show. The book will also be available for purchase separately. The "All Music Edition" features all four shows, each in its own folio, housed in a slipcase which was also designed by Koike, as well as the liner notes.

Jerry Garcia, Donna Jean Godchaux, Keith Godchaux, Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann, Phil Lesh and Bob Weir had just completed Terrapin Station, the band's ninth studio album, when they hit the road for a spring tour leading up to the album's release in late July. This new set serves as a prequel of sorts to the May 1977 boxed set from 2013, which featured the next five shows from that magical tour. It adds further sonic evidence that the 1977 tour was truly a high-water mark in the Dead's history.

The set lists played at the four shows included in this set - especially Barton Hall - offer up sweeping retrospectives of the band's career, touching on the early psychedelic days ("Morning Dew" and "St. Stephen"), and the rootsy early-Seventies ("Uncle John's Band" and "Tennessee Jed") up to and including previewing songs from the group's then-unreleased album Terrapin Station ("Estimated Prophet" and "Samson and Delilah.")

Elevating this already extraordinary release is the fact that the recordings are sourced from the fabled Betty boards, which are soundboard tapes made by Betty Canton-Jackson, who was the Dead's live recording engineer for many years. Since some of her tapes began circulating in the 1980s, her live recordings of the band have become the gold standard by which others are measured. After decades in limbo, more than 350 reels of her recordings are now part of the Grateful Dead's musical vault. The July 1978 set released last year represented the first official release of the Bettys, with even more to come after MAY 1977: GET SHOWN THE LIGHT.  

In the set's liner notes, Meriwether captures how the Cornell show pulls together many of the disparate strands of the Grateful Dead phenomenon and the Deadhead experience, from the music and experience of the show to its recording and dissemination. "The story of Cornell '77 is more than just a tale of another great Dead show, another enduring example of what [Dick] Latvala called 'primal Dead': It is the stuff of history and legend, myth and mystery, and how those all played out to finally produce this long-awaited, much anticipated release, forty years after the last notes of 'One More Saturday Night' rang out in the drafty, cavernous confines of Barton Hall that night."
 

MAY 1977: GET SHOWN THE LIGHT
Track Listing

Veterans' Memorial Coliseum
New Haven, CT (5/5/77)

Disc One
"Promised Land"
"Sugaree"
"Mama Tried"
"El Paso"
"Tennessee Jed"
"Looks Like Rain"
"Deal"
"Lazy Lightning>"
"Supplication"
"Peggy-O"
"The Music Never Stopped"

Disc Two
"Bertha"
"Estimated Prophet"
"Scarlet Begonias>"
"Fire On The Mountain>"
"Good Lovin'"
"St. Stephen>"
"Sugar Magnolia"
"Johnny B. Goode"

Boston Garden
Boston, MA (5/7/77)

Disc Three
"Bertha"
"Cassidy"
"Deal"
"Jack Straw"
"Peggy-O"
"New Minglewood Blues"
"Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo>"
"Big River"
"Tennessee Jed"
"The Music Never Stopped"

Disc Four
"Terrapin Station"
"Samson and Delilah"
"Friend Of The Devil"
"Estimated Prophet"

Disc Five
"Eyes Of The World>"
Drums>
"The Wheel>"
"Wharf Rat>"
"Around and Around"
"U.S. Blues"

Barton Hall (Cornell University)                                   
Ithaca, NY (5/8/77)

Disc Six
"New Minglewood Blues"
"Loser"
"El Paso"
"They Love Each Other"
"Jack Straw"
"Deal"
"Lazy Lightning>"
"Supplication"
"Brown-Eyed Women"
"Mama Tried"
"Row Jimmy"

Disc Seven
"Dancing In The Street"
"Scarlet Begonias>"
"Fire On The Mountain"
"Estimated Prophet"

Disc Eight
"St. Stephen>"
"Not Fade Away>"
"St. Stephen>"
"Morning Dew"
"One More Saturday Night"

Buffalo Memorial Auditorium
Buffalo, NY (5/9/77)

Disc Nine
"Help On The Way>"
"Slipknot>"
"Franklin's Tower"
"Cassidy"
"Brown-Eyed Women"
"Mexicali Blues"
"Tennessee Jed"
"Big River"
"Peggy-O"
"Sunrise"
"The Music Never Stopped"

Disc Ten
"Bertha>"
"Good Lovin'"
"Ship Of Fools"

Disc Eleven
"Estimated Prophet>"
"The Other One>"
Drums>
"Not Fade Away>"
"Comes A Time>"
"Sugar Magnolia"
"Uncle Johns Band"



# # #

The Cars
Release Date
Fri, 07/28/2017
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description:

THE CARS: EXPANDED EDITIONS

Remastered And Newly Expanded Versions Candy-O And Panorama
Feature The Original Album Plus Rare And Unreleased Recordings

CD, Vinyl, And Digital Versions Available From Rhino On July 28

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The Cars
Release Date
Fri, 07/28/2017
main product image [right click to download]
description:

THE CARS: EXPANDED EDITIONS

Remastered And Newly Expanded Versions Candy-O And Panorama
Feature The Original Album Plus Rare And Unreleased Recordings

CD, Vinyl, And Digital Versions Available From Rhino On July 28

additional product images:

The Cars Candy-O And Panorama Expanded Editions Available July 28

Artist Name
The Cars
Release Date

THE CARS: EXPANDED EDITIONS

Remastered And Newly Expanded Versions Candy-O And Panorama
Feature The Original Album Plus Rare And Unreleased Recordings

CD, Vinyl, And Digital Versions Available From Rhino On July 28


LOS ANGELES - Following the massive success of The Cars' multi-platinum debut in 1978, the band kept its platinum-album streak rolling with Candy-O and Panorama, releases that include memorable hits like "Let's Go," "It's All I Can Do" and "Touch and Go."

For the first time ever, the band has expanded those classics to create versions that include rare and unreleased recordings taken from the sessions for each album. Band member Ric Ocasek recently supervised the remastering of these albums for last year's boxed set The Cars: The Elektra Years, ensuring superior sound quality on these new versions.

Expanded editions of CANDY-O and PANORAMA will be available on July 28 for $14.98 (CD) and $24.98 (2LP). Presented in gatefold sleeves, the vinyl versions include music on three sides with an etching on the fourth. In addition, the music on these expanded editions will be released digitally and available via streaming outlets.

For the follow-up to its eponymous debut, The Cars teamed up one again with producer Roy Thomas Baker (Queen) to record Candy-O. The album was released in the summer of 1979 and became a huge hit, peaking at #3 on the Billboard Album Chart and eventually earned quadruple-platinum certification in the U.S. alone. One of the singles, "Let's Go," was the band's first Top 15 hit on the Billboard singles chart.

CANDY-O: EXPANDED EDITION goes beyond the original album's 11 tracks with seven bonus tracks. Among the highlights are unreleased alternate mixes of "Let's Go" and "Lust For Kicks," as well as the previously unissued song "They Won't See You (The Northern Studios Version)." The album's liner notes were written by David Wild and include a new interview with guitarist Elliot Easton.

The Cars returned in the summer of 1980 with Panorama, which became the band's third consecutive platinum album and peaked at #3 on the Billboard Album Chart. The album became a fan favorite thanks to songs like "Touch And Go," "Up And Down," and "Gimme Some Slack."

PANORAMA:EXPANDED EDITION builds on the original album's 10 songs with four bonus tracks. They include the B-side "Don't Go To Pieces," as well as unreleased songs like "Shooting For You," and "Be My Baby." For this release, Wild once again pens the liner notes, along with reminisces from keyboardist Greg Hawkes."

The five original members of The Cars - Ric Ocasek, the late Benjamin Orr, Elliot Easton, Greg Hawkes and David Robinson - recorded six studio albums together for Elektra Records and have sold more than 23 million albums in the U.S. alone.

CANDY-O
Track Listing:

1.    "Let's Go"
2.    "Since I Held You"
3.    "It's All I Can Do"
4.    "Double Life"
5.    "Shoo Be Doo"
6.    "Candy-O"
7.    "Night Spots"
8.    "You Can't Hold On Too Long"
9.    "Lust For Kicks"
10.  "Got A Lot On My Head"
11.  "Dangerous Type"
Bonus Tracks
12.  "Let's Go" - Roy Thomas Baker Monitor Mix
13.  "Candy-O" - Northern Studios Version
14.  "Nights Spots" - Northern Studios Version
15.  "Lust for Kicks" - Roy Thomas Baker Monitor Mix
16.  "Dangerous Type" - Northern Studios Version
17.  "They Won't See You" - Northern Studios Version, Previously Unissued
18.  "That's It" - "Let's Go" B-side

PANORAMA
Track Listing

1.    "Panorama"
2.    "Touch and Go"
3.    "Gimme Some Slack"
4.    "Don't Tell Me No"
5.    "Getting Through"
6.    "Misfit Kid"
7.    "Down Boys"
8.    "You Wear Those Eyes"
9.    "Running Up To You"
10.  "Up and Down"
Bonus Tracks
11.  "Shooting For You" - Previously Unissued
12.  "Be My Baby" - Previously Unissued
13.  "The Edge" - Previously Unissued
14.  "Don't Go To Pieces" - "Don't Tell Me No" B-side

 

 # # #

ZZ TOP
Release Date
Fri, 06/09/2017
main product image [right click to download]
description:

ZZ TOP ON WAX

Texas Trio's Early Albums Will Be Pressed On 180-Gram Vinyl
For The New Boxed Set, Cinco: The First Five LPs

The 5-LP Collection Arrives June 9

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ZZ Top Cinco - The First Five LPs Available June 9

Artist Name
ZZ TOP
Release Date

ZZ TOP ON WAX

Texas Trio’s Early Albums Will Be Pressed On 180-Gram Vinyl
For The New Boxed Set, Cinco: The First Five LPs

The 5-LP Collection Arrives June 9

LOS ANGELES – ZZ TOP will drop the needle into the groove for a new vinyl set that takes listeners on a rocking ride through the long running Texas trio’s early years. It includes the band’s first five albums pressed on heavyweight 180-gram vinyl, presented in a box made to look like the custom “Nudie Suits” worn by “That Little Ol’ Band From Texas” on stage… around the world.

CINCO: THE FIRST FIVE LPs will be available on June 9 from Warner Bros. Records for a suggested retail price of $114.98. During the weeks leading up to the set’s release, the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers will be on tour in the U.S. and will follow-up in July in Europe.

Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill, and Frank Beard released five albums between 1971 and 1976, including ZZ Top’s First Album, Rio Grande Mud, Tres Hombres, Fandango! and Tejas.

CINCO begins with the band’s 1971 debut, ZZ Top’s First Album. Recorded at Robin Hood Studios in Tyler, Texas, the record helped establish the group’s signature blues-rock sound with tracks like “(Somebody Else Been) Shaking Your Tree,” and “Brown Sugar.”

The group returned to Tyler to record its follow-up, Rio Grande Mud, which was released in April 1972. Some fan favorites included here are “Just Got Paid” and “Bar-B-Q” as well as the lead single “Francine.”

ZZ TOP’s third album, Tres Hombres was the band’s commercial breakthrough. Released in the summer of 1973, it was the trio’s first Top 10 record and earned gold status thanks to hit “La Grange” and radio staples like “Jesus Just Left Chicago” and “Waitin’ For The Bus,” all of which still staples of the group’s tour set list to this day.

Released in 1975, Fandango! was the band’s second consecutive gold album and featured its first Top 40 single “Tush,” which was spontaneously written in just a few minutes during sound check at a dirt-floored rodeo arena in Florence, Alabama.  The album is a combination of the live tracks that comprise Side1, recorded at The Warehouse in New Orleans, and studio recordings on Side 2. The album also included standouts like “Mexican Blackbird” and “Heard It On The X,” the band’s tribute to mega-wattage radio stations just south of the border.

The final album included in CINCO is Tejas, which became ZZ TOP’s third gold album when it was released in 1976. It hit the Top 20 on the album chart on the strength of tracks like “It’s Only Love” and “Arrested For Driving While Blind.”

 

ZZ TOP’S FIRST ALBUM

Side One
“(Someone Else Been) Shaking Your Tree”
“Brown Sugar”
“Squank”
“Goin’ Down To Mexico”
“Old Man”

Side Two
“Neighbor, Neighbor”
“Certified Blues”
“Bedroom Thang”
“Just Got Back From Baby’s”
“Backdoor Love Affair”

RIO GRANDE MUD

Side One
“Francine”
“Just Got Paid”
“Mushmouth Shoutin’”
“Ko Ko Blue”
“Chevrolet”

Side Two
“Apologies To Pearly”
“Bar-B-Q
“Sure Got Cold After The Rain Fell”
“Whiskey’n Mama”
“Down Brownie”

TRES HOMBRES

Side One
“Waitin’ For The Bus”
“Jesus Just Left Chicago”
“Beer Drinkers & Hell Raisers”
“Master of Sparks”
“Hot, Blue And Righteous”

Side Two
“Move Me On Down The Line”
“Precious And Grace”
“La Grange”
“Shiek”
“Have You Heard?”

FANDANGO!

Side One
“Thunderbird”
“Jailhouse Rock”
“Backdoor Medley”
        “Backdoor Love Affair”
        “Mellow Down Easy”
        “Backdoor Love Affair No. 2”
        “Long Distance Boogie”

Side Two
“Nasty Dogs And Funky Kings”
“Blue Jean Blues”
“Balinese”
“Mexican Blackbird”
“Heard It On The X”
“Tush”

TEJAS

Side One
“It’s Only Love”
“Arrested For Driving While Blind”
“El Diablo”
“Snappy Kakkie”
“Enjoy And Get It On”

Side Two
“Ten Dollar Man”
“Pan Am Highway Blues”
“Avalon Hideaway”
“She’s A Heartbreaker”
“Asleep In The Desert”

 

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