New Music Friday: Dec. 13, 2024
This Week's New Releases, Reissues + More
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NEW RELEASES
Madison Cunningham & Andrew Bird | “Cunningham Bird” (singer-songwriters join forces to cover Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks’ 1973 album “Buckingham Nicks”; new singles: “Crystal” and “Crying in the Night”; Hear here; See here; Read here; Vinyl; Amazon UK; Amazon.ca; Download released on Oct. 18; Apple Music; On Tour; Loma Vista Recordings / Concord)
DMX | “Let Us Pray: Chapter X” (posthumous album, featuring the rapper’s prayers accompanied by original music from Grammy-winning songwriter and producer Warryn Campbell; guests: Snoop Dogg, Lecrae, Killer Mike, Mary Mary, MC Lyte, RoyzNoyz Orchestra, Terrace Martin, Lena Byrd Miles; Hear/Read here; Vinyl; Download; Apple Music; Def Jam)
Niall Horan | “The Show: Live On Tour” (19 songs from 2024 world-tour venues in New York, Melbourne, Milan, Tampa, Tokyo, London, etc.; Amazon UK) + “The Show: Live From Madison Square Garden” (Translucent Yellow Vinyl; Amazon UK; On Tour; Capitol)
the innocence mission | “Midwinter Swimmers” (their 13th album and first since 2020; new single: “This Thread Is a Green Street”; See here; Read here; Vinyl; Amazon UK; Download released on Nov. 29; Apple Music; Thérèse Records / Bella Union)
Laibach | “Opus Dei Revisited” (Double CD; Slovenian collective reimagines its 1987 album, while the original album’s producer and mixer, Rico Conning, also visits the material; See here; Double Vinyl; Amazon UK; Download; Apple Music; On Tour; Mute)
Mario | “Glad You Came” (R&B artist’s sixth album and his first in six years; executive producer: James Fauntleroy; new single: “Space”; See here; Read here; Vinyl out Feb. 14, 2025; Amazon UK; Amazon.ca; Download; Apple Music; New Citizen / Epic)
The National | “Rome” (Double CD; recorded live, with no overdubs, in June 2024 at Cavea at Auditorium Parco della Musica Ennio Morricone; mixed by Peter Katis; Hear here; Double Vinyl; Amazon UK; Download; Apple Music; On Tour; 4AD)
Poppy | “Negative Spaces” (singer-songwriter’s sixth album; producers: Poppy, Jordan Fish; new single: “they’re all around us”; See here; Clear/Pink Marble Vinyl; Amazon UK; Download released on Nov. 15; Apple Music; On Tour; Sumerian)
Snoop Dogg | “Missionary” (billed as a sequel to his 1993 debut album “Doggystyle”; producer: Dr. Dre; guests: Sting, Jelly Roll, 50 Cent, Jhené Aiko, BJ the Chicago Kid, et al; new single: “Gorgeous”; Hear here; Read here; Target-Exclusive CD, with alternate artwork; Picture Disc; Target-Exclusive Vinyl, with alternate cover; Amazon UK; Download; Apple Music; Merch; Death Row / Aftermath / Interscope)
Various artists | “Mufasa: The Lion King (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)” (prequel opens in theaters Dec. 20; original songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda and original score by Dave Metzger; Trailer; Translucent Yellow/Brown Galaxy Vinyl; Download; Cinemark Showtimes; Merch; Walt Disney)
REISSUES + MORE
Blue Öyster Cult | “50th Anniversary – Live in NYC – Third Night (Deluxe Edition)” (two-CD, one-DVD set includes a complete performance of their third album, “Secret Treaties”; Triple Vinyl; On Tour; Merch; Frontiers Music s.r.l.)
Miles Davis | “Birth of the Blue” (Hybrid Stereo SACD; 1958 pre-“Kind of Blue” session with Cannonball Adderley and John Coltrane on saxophones, Bill Evans on piano, Paul Chambers on bass and Jimmy Cobb on drums; mastered by Matthew Lutthans at The Mastering Lab direct to DSD from a new 30 ips quarter-inch stereo master tape transferred from the original 3-track session tapes; Read here; Vinyl; Merch; Analogue Productions)
The Doobie Brothers | “Toulouse Street” (Blu-ray Audio with 192/24 resolution quadraphonic and hi-res stereo mixes; 1972 album, featuring “Listen to the Music,” “Jesus Is Just Alright” and “Rockin’ Down the Highway”; transferred from the original half-inch four-channel masters; Rhino)
Jerry Garcia & David Grisman | “Bare Bones (The Duo Recordings)” (three-CD, 51-track collection, curated by Grisman, containing master recordings, alternate takes, and the first performances of classic tunes the duo recorded; Hear here; Double Vinyl; Barnes & Noble-Exclusive Lavendar Eco Mix Double Vinyl; Download; Acoustic Discs)
The J. Geils Band | “Bloodshot” (Blu-ray Audio with 192/24 resolution quadraphonic and hi-res stereo mixes; 1973 album, featuring “Give It to Me” and “[Ain’t Nothin’ But A] House Party”; transferred from the original half-inch four-channel masters; Rhino)
Jefferson Starship | “Dragon Fly” (Blu-ray Audio with 192/24 resolution quadraphonic and hi-res stereo mixes; 1974 album, featuring “Ride the Tiger” and “Hyperdrive”; transferred from the original half-inch four-channel masters; Rhino)
Joni Mitchell | “Court and Spark” (Hybrid SACD; 1974 album, featuring “Help Me,” “Free Man in Paris,” “Raised on Robbery” and “Car on a Hill”; sourced from the original analog master tapes and housed in mini-LP-style gatefold packaging; Mobile Fidelity)
Luther Vandross | “Never Too Much: Greatest Hits” (Double CD; 20-song collection includes his newly discovered cover of The Beatles’ “Michelle,” recorded in June 1989; compilation coincides with “Luther: Never Too Much,” a full-length documentary directed by Dawn Porter; Hear here; Trailer; Double Vinyl; Amazon UK; Download; Apple Music; Epic / Legacy)
Various artists | “Come To My World (A Brief History of Indie Pop 1985-2023)” (34-track compilation, featuring The Soup Dragons, The Darling Buds, The Wedding Present, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, Velocity Girl, The Vaselines, Blake Babies, et al; Double Vinyl; Two-Piers)
Various artists | “Weird Scenes from The Hangout (Psychedelic & Freakbeat Dancefloor Anthems 1967-1982)” (28-song compilation, curated by Richard Norris; featuring The Turtles, The Easybeats, The Nazz, The Hombres, The Left Banke, The Music Machine, The Velvet Underground, Can, The Swinging Medallions, et al; Double Vinyl; Two-Piers)
WAR | “Greatest Hits” (Hybrid SACD; 1976 compilation; mastered direct to DSD by Ryan K. Smith at Sterling Sound from the original master tapes; On Tour; Analogue Productions)
Wham! | “Last Christmas (40th Anniversary)” (four-song EP, featuring the 1984 hit, a Pudding Mix, an instrumental version and a previously unreleased live version performed by George Michael at Wembley Arena in December 2006; Snowflake White Vinyl, 7-inch EP; Zoetrope Picture Disc; Amazon UK; Download; Epic / Legacy)
VINYL RELEASES
This Week: Mariah Carey … George Harrison … Neil Young … 5 Seconds of Summer … Gladys Knight & The Pips … LL Cool J … Jimmy Smith … Art Pepper … Vince Staples … 3 Doors Down … The Undisputed Truth ... and more. See the whole list
Release Schedule | Holiday Releases | DVD + Blu-ray | Music Books | Birthdays | R.I.P.