Everyone loves this lively country song about the lasting strength of love – making it an inspiring choice for an anniversary dance.
Joseph Kahn, known for directing Taylor Swift’s “Bad Blood” music video and receiving a VMA for it, managed to rope 30 country music stars into appearing in his mashup montage from their respective archives for an epic collage.
Elvis Presley
As Elvis Presley took the stage for his famous 1968 Comeback Special, he was more than ready to rock. A string of lightweight movie musicals had rendered the once “dangerous” star nearly harmless; but four and a half years of rigorous live performances in Las Vegas had given him time to hone his mastery of musical interpretation and once more become one of the most electrifying performers of his era.
RCA Records quickly issued Aloha from Hawaii via Satellite, his first chart-topping album since 1968. Now fifty years later, Legacy Recordings and catalog division RCA Records are unveiling the definitive box set edition of that groundbreaking global concert telecast and soundtrack event.
This seven-disc box provides fans with everything they could ever wish for and more, from the original NBC-TV broadcast of Elvis’ performance on January 2, 1977, through rehearsal and dress rehearsal shows and five tracks from an early post-show session (incorporated into previous CD releases under ‘Mahalo From Elvis’ compilation) with new mixes by Memphis-based audio engineer Matt Ross-Spang that capture the sound of this legendary concert performance in all its splendor.
His opening number, ‘Suspicious Minds’, shows no inhibition and the audience was there every step of the way. Gospel Medley featuring Where Could I Go But To The Lord and Saved is an impressive demonstration of the marriage between rock ‘n’ roll and gospel music genres, something many scoffed at when first appearing mainstream music during the ’60s.
Shania Twain
Shania Twain has long been recognized as one of the greatest female country musicians ever. She achieved stardom with her 1995 release of The Woman in Me and went on to release Come on Over, which produced several chart-topping singles that became chart toppers across both country and pop charts simultaneously. Up!, released two years later as a double album featuring both country and pop versions of her most enduring hits was also an enormous hit with fans.
Twain was born Eilleen Regina Edwards in Timmins, Ontario, Canada and began singing as a way to supplement her family’s income at age 8. By age 8, she had taken on her stepfather’s surname and started focusing on music professionally; by age eight, she had started performing in clubs to support herself and her sister financially. Twain’s life changed in 1989 when Frederic Thiebaud died suddenly in a car accident; caring for her family left Twain with little time left for her own pursuits but returned in 2011 with autobiography From This Moment On and Las Vegas residency show.
Twain remains an enduring force in country music despite her long absence and personal tragedies, reinvigorating it with pop hooks that redefine genre and challenging convention with lyrics like her controversial “Pretty Liar.” Nashville’s Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum will open an exhibit dedicated to her in later this year; she is also featured on Canadian postage stamps alongside fellow country musicians k.d. lang, Tommy Hunter, and Renee Martel.
Brooks & Dunn
Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn made an explosive entrance onto the country music scene in 1991, quickly becoming one of the best-selling acts ever. Together they released 10 studio albums, 1 Christmas album and three compilations that produced twenty one #1 hits and nineteen more that made the top ten. Furthermore, they won multiple music-industry awards throughout their time together.
They blended honky-tonk dancefloor rhythms with classic rock guitar riffs and rousing arrangements to craft their unique sound. Songwriting provided them with material about hardworking men, honky-tonks, rednecks, while stage performances left fans on their feet.
After two decades together, their careers started to unravel as the grind of recording and concert touring began to wear on them. Following several disappointing albums released over time, they parted ways and went their separate ways.
Brooks joined singer-songwriter Jennifer Nettles to produce Forever Country: A Tribute Video in November 2014. This tribute featured various artists – such as several Academy of Country Music Award winners and Scotty McCreery from American Idol 2011.
This tribute song quickly became a success, reaching number one on the US Hot Country Songs chart and winning CMA’s Song of the Year award. At their CMA 50th Anniversary ceremony performance Brooks and Nettles received an exclusive trophy designed by jeweler David Yurman as recognition.
The Beatles
On September 26th, a 50th Anniversary Edition of The Beatles’ Final Album will be released with remixed studio sessions that have never been heard before as well as unreleased demos and outtakes that had previously gone unheard. Also included are 23 session recordings, 47 demos/outtakes some previously unreleased and remastered version of album plus some previously unheard tracks and demos/outtakes that may never have seen light before and also available are three CD sets as standard editions with mixes for Dolby Atmos/5.1 surround mixes plus standard three CD sets or two CD sets respectively.
This release coincides with a tour by the same name that begins Oct. 2. No matter your musical tastes or collection status, this reissue should not be overlooked; only it allows us to hear George Harrison’s raw acoustic takes of “All Things Must Pass,” an elegant ballad about band members’ continued tension regarding John Lennon-Paul McCartney songwriting disputes.
It also includes a demo of “Mean Mr. Mustard,” an iconic rocker inspired by real-life Liverpool hooligan characters; and its successor “Polythene Pam,” inspired by a young woman who consumed plastic, which closes Side 2. It provides an insightful look into how music changed during 1968 – by this point they had just grasped Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and Magical Mystery Tour; yet already it was apparent that 1967 psychedelia had gone the wayside while heavier and lighter musical terrain had taken its place.
Stevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Judkins (now Wonder), known as Little Stevie Wonder at Motown Records. Berry Gordy of Motown then signed him to an agreement as Little Stevie Wonder. Soon thereafter he began making headlines as an internationally-renowned musician.
By the 1970s, Wonder’s music provided a voice for those beginning to find their place in America. Zora Neale Thurston noted: ‘Negroes love and hate like any other people; we struggle as much and enjoy life just as other humans do.” His songs painted the picture that would come into focus as more Americans became aware of this truth.
Wonder is best known for his iconic project Songs in the Key of Life, an ambitious double album which explored diverse subjects from ethnic diversity to utopian communities and vengeful relationships to transcendent love. While much material from this session was completed or cannibalized for other albums later, its existence for over 50 years as an unpublished work remains astounding.
A new release of an album features song by song commentary from various musicians such as David Sanborn, Robert Glasper and Cory Henry as well as interactive features like clicking modulations or chord progressions to hear audio samples from them. This preview version will be made available free to readers by The New York Times before its official release date in 2022.
Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra had a career that spanned five decades and was widely considered one of the most influential artists of his era. A musical perfectionist onstage, he relied on talented arrangers to craft his signature sound while transporting audiences back in time with each performance he delivered – particularly those from lower socio-economic groups like working class Americans who often found voice through Sinatra’s performances.
By the late 1940s, Sinatra had become an international superstar – both as a solo performer and featured singer with Tommy Dorsey and Harry James big bands. When his contract with Capitol Records expired, he formed his own label called Reprise; its inaugural album for this label was Ring-a-ding-ding which recently celebrated its 50th anniversary through this remaster.
Sinatra leans more towards swing idiom in this uptempo record, with finger snapping light jazz and blaring horns providing an up-tempo vibe. He includes several songs from Ira and George Gershwin’s Great American Songbook including their popular “A Foggy Day”. A 2010 compilation called Sinatra/Jobim: The Complete Reprise Recordings included this album but the current release offers better mix quality plus extra bonus tracks.