I GUESS BY NOW YOU GOT THE GIST...

The April 23 post of Musictap.net claims Rhino has the Traveling Wilburys Volume One and Volume 3 CDs separately on the docket for June 3.  If this is true, I would not expect anything other than what's on the Traveling Wilburys Collection CDs.

Since the Traveling Wilburys Collection seemed to satisfy everyone who wanted to buy the Wilburys again, I would think it would be wise for Rhino to tack on the extended versions and other related bonus tracks (like, say, the remix of Not Alone Any More) to their respective CDs.  I would not count on it, though.

IF YOU'RE NOT TOO BUSY...

Hey Jeff,

If you're reading this and you're not busy, the Dreamliners would like you to produce their next record.

They have a website and a MySpace page.

THAT'S GOOD SHIT, MAN...

 

The last round of earlier Move CDs was roughly 10 years ago and perhaps they fit the bill back then, but the bar was raised considerably with Move, ELO and other related releases. The last time Looking On was released on CD, the liner notes encompassed the band's entire career, the pics were out-of-era and while the sound of the music was ok, the bonus tracks were also way out-of-era. All of those areas got a substantial upgrade with this 2008 Salvo/Fly edition of Looking On.

For starters, the historical record is set straight in several ways. The liner notes are mostly contained to how the album came to be and all of the fun and craziness of that particular time. That serves this package much better than a full career retro. The photos are (at last) limited to the Move circa 1970, some of those photos so bad they're good. And the bonus tracks finally fit the album. Wild Tiger Woman and Blackberry Way just didn't fit on the previous edition of Looking On. So, now that there's a nice tidy-up on the details, it's easier to put yourself in Brimingham and/or London in 1970.

Now for the remastering. The 1998 version of Looking On was, for the most part, clear sounding. The 2008 edition takes clarity, improves it and adds depth, power, and much more detail. The parts that were given muscle in the studio have muscle again. Personally, I picked out percussion parts (among others) that seemed to be buried (or distorted over) before. I suppose that's the point of remastering any album and this CD slightly exceeded my expectations.

I'm a fan of having unreleased session material as bonus tracks instead of songs that were loosely released around the time of the album. (At least Lightnin' Never Strikes Twice fits the album's sound.) There's plenty to gain from even subtle differences in the mix like the extended banter between Jeff and Roy during Turkish Tram Conductor Blues or hearing "We're clapping now aren't we?" during the count-in to Duke of Edinburgh's Lettuce. And oooooh, to have been a fly (there's a label pun in there somewhere) on the wall while track 13 was being recorded...

Another smash-bang job by the Move remastering team. Now, we go from Looking On to looking forward to the upcoming Move box set.

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IT'S ALIIIIIIVE...

Prepare to lace up the skates up again.  Hot off the wheels of a Broadway hit, Xanadu (the original movie) is being re-modeled and re-released on DVD this June.  Expect a restored picture and new 5.1 surround sound on the DVD, plus a bonus CD of the complete soundtrack in all its campy glory.  US release day is June 24.

What, no blu-ray?

LOOKING ON RELEASE DAY

Looking On is indeed an enhanced CD with bonus online content.  However, the online part isn't uploaded yet and you're not able to acess the page.  I'll post some thoughts on the release once I get a chance to go through it.

LOOKING UP LOOKING ON

 

Two immediate thoughts.

1. The sound clips suggest a HUGE improvement... and

2. Re: the bonus track Feel Too Good.  They were all clearly feeling too good.  Fantastic.

APRIL IS GETTING EXPENSIVE

 

The April re-issues are beginning to pile up for collectors.

Tuesday is supposedly re-issue day for Ole ELO.  Later in the month, a budget version of ELO's Out of the Blue is due along with Japanese mini-LP editions of Dave Edmunds' Information and Riff Raff.  Now comes word from Amazon that All Over The World: The Very Best of Electric Light Orchestra will be released on a gold disc edition on or around April 22.

Also, Face The Music Online should be going live this week with specific details and ordering info for the Move's Looking On.

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NEIL ASPINALL

This didn't get much play in the MSM today, but the Beatles' long time partner and EP of the incredible Beatles Anthology, Neil Aspinall passed away on Sunday at the age of 66.

A TRUE ELO EXPERIENCE

And you thought ELO Part2/The Orchestra was the only legal drama with ties to Electric Light Orchestra.  The ousted head of an ELO tribute band (and Jeff Lynne impressionist?) wants what he feels he's entitled to: 1,000 British Pounds.

OUT OF THE BLUE

 

ELO's Out of the Blue is being re-issued in the US as a budget release on April 29.  Another link here.  No details on this yet, but retail price (like the upcoming Ole ELO set) is a mere $6.99.  Could this be similar to the UK, where Out of the Blue was re-released with carbon neutral packaging?

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MINI-LPs IN A DISCOVERY BOX

A new round of ELO Japanese Mini-LPs are just released and this tme the complete set of CDs (On The Third Day, Eldorado, Face The Music, A New World Record, Out Of The Blue, Discovery, Time, Secret Messages and Balance Of Power) are housed in a promo glossy, hard-bound slipcase box with Discovery artwork.

From what I can tell, there are no differences with the new pressings of the mini-LP CDs themselves.  Some mini-LPs are turning up on eBay with album artwork used as the disc design.  Use caution if you order one of these.  I've been discouraged from buying anything from the "Russian Federation" because they could be fakes, so I've held back.  If you do get one of these Mini-LP CDs with album art on the disc, write me (bflat33@aol.com) and tell me whether you believe they're official or not.

Back to the topic, the set with all 9 titles is expensive, roughly $200 or more.  But if you haven't tried the Mini-LPs from Japan yet, this might be a good starting point because the Discovery slip box is incredibly well made.  If you already own the first edition Mini-LPs, then you're just getting a nice box.

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LOOKING ON, THE TRACK LIST

 

Play.com is the first to show the track list for the 2008 edition of Looking On.  Clearly, the last hope for the unreleased Jeff Lynne song Falling Forever is the upcoming Move box set.

1. Looking On
2. Turkish Tram Conductor Blues
3. What?
4. When Alice Comes Back To The Farm
5. Open Up Said The World At The Door
6. Brontosaurus
7. Feel Too Good
8. Lightnin' Never Strikes Twice (Rare B-Side)
9. Looking On Part 1 (Take 3; Rough Mix - Previously Unreleased Version)
10. Looking On Part 2 (Take 12; Rough Mix - Previously Unreleased Version)
11. Turkish Tram Conductor Blues (Take 5; Rough Mix - Previously Unreleased Version)
12. Open Up Said The World At The Door (Take 4; Rough Mix - Previously Unreleased Version)
13. Feel Too Good (Take 11 Extract; Rough Mix - Previously Unreleased Version)
14. The Duke Of Edinburgh's Lettuce (Take 2; Rough Mix - Previously Unreleased Version)

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NEW INFORMATION

The Japanese Mini-LP CDs have now extended to Dave Edmunds.  Five of his albums (two with some help from Jeff Lynne) have been re-remastered and will be available as Cardboard Mini-LP editions in Japan beginning April 23.

Information (1983) and Riff Raff (1984) feature seven produced by Jeff Lynne tracks in all and according to the description, have been remastered using JVC K2 24bit remastering.  It, however, doesn't list which record company is releasing it or which cover art they'll be replicating.  Both Information and Riff Raff have different artwork between the UK and US.

LOOKING ON IS LOOKING UP...

Pre-order links for the 2008 edition of Looking On by the Move are beginning to appear.  One here and another here.  Others are sure to follow.

The CD has 14 tracks, seven of those tracks will be bonus material and (as with the previous 2 Move remasters from Salvo) expect additonal bonus material online.

Street date is listed as April 15, which is a Tuesday.  But this may be a UK import, so this will probably be released on an adjacent Monday.

MINI-LP BOX

There's early word that the new set of Sony Mini-LPs from ELO will be boxed together (all 9) in a hardbound box with Disvoery artwork... Stay tuned. They're due out in Japan March 14.

JEFF LYNNE FEATURING...

I'm listening to this collection of Mark Ronson productions.  Ronson's stock as a record producer has skyrocketed with his win for Amy Winehouse's Rehab.  This collection, which I highly recommend, has him teamed up with several other artists as well as "solo" tracks.

It, of course, got me to thinking if a similar CD by Jeff Lynne would make for a viable release.  The Rossif Sutherland tracks (which have yet to be released) would be a good feature as well as other artists Jeff has worked or would like to work.  Then, for good measure, weave in some new solo Jeff Lynne tracks, maybe an instrumental... and boom!... new music from Jeff and perhaps some support for other artists' tracks he produces.  Many ELO fans never really jumped on board his productions outside of ELO, which is a bit of a shame.  Hard to believe, but Zoom is seven years old this spring.

I was just wondering if anyone in Jeff's camp ever considered such a thing.

ROUND TWO...

There's a second pressing of the Japanese Mini-LP CDs from ELO coming March 14.  They're available for pre-order, but no word on whether there will be any differences with them.  These second editions will be for On The Third Day through Balance Of Power sans Xanadu and Long Beach.

Also, on April 1, it appears Ole ELO may be re-issued by Sony.  Another pre-order link here.  At $6.99 retail, it looks like they're going all out on this one. 

For those not in the know, Ole ELO was a nice compilation album from 1976 with tracks from the group's first 5 albums.  Some LPs had all full length songs, other editions had a few edited versions. 

Oddly enough, this LP spawned some of the most cherished collectibles for ELO fans.  A version on gold vinyl and promo-only cover is rare but easy to find with some digging.  However, in honor of the USA's bi-centennial year in 1976, three other promo-only versions of Ole ELO were pressed: one on red vinyl, one on white vinyl and one on blue vinyl.  Those three are extremely rare and valuable.

AND THE GRAMMY GOES TO...

It's unrelated, I know.  But, I have to hand it to a good friend who predicted big things for Amy Winehouse a year ago when she was practically unknown, especially in the USA.  While vacationing in Mexico last March, my friend gave me his iPod and said, "listen to this..." and told me the story (true or not) about how Winehouse's label wouldn't release Back To Black until she went to rehab.  She then wrote Rehab.  The song instantly clicked with me and I spent the subsequent six months listening to that CD almost exclusively.

Then last night, after months of seeing a very wild life played out in public, she gets on stage in London, sings two songs that perfectly encapsulate her (& her turbulence)and afterwards, Rehab wins the Record of the Year Grammy.  Now, that's poetry from arguably the most fascinating figure in pop music in a long time.

Other than that, the Beatles tribute was wonderful and it was great to the Beatles' Love pick up 2 statues.  George Martin's gesture to pull Ringo up to the stage with him and his son was nice, but Ringo spent a little too much time at the mic.

TICKET TO THE SAME 'OL PLACE

Indeed, Ticket To The Moon landed in retail shops stateside today.  Besides a smaller and bolder font on the back insert and spine, nothing new to report from my previous review of this disc.  The set is also available on iTunes.

I'm frankly not sure how releases work in the few shops we can actually buy CDs anymore.  But my local Borders was already carrying the UK import of Ticket To The Moon, so they were not carrying the USA edition released today.  While stocking the import makes for a better CD retailer, I would think that's a downside to staggering worldwide release days.

So, long story short, unless you're a collector, I'd just buy the remastered albums.  They're much easier to listen to than having Eldorado cut & pasted between two 80s tracks.

TICKET TO THE MOON

Just a reminder (as the Honda commercials featuring Hold On Tight have started airing again) Ticket To The Moon: The Very Best of Electric Light Orchestra Vol. 2 is in USA stores tomorrow.  It should be in wide release, but it's also available in the FTM Shop with a bonus postcard.