Rock — All Formats  

A beautiful 2CD set of long buried Townes Van Zandt recordings from the early 70s – a period that you can easily argue was his peak – even though few people were buying his records at the time! You get a pretty solid representation of 2 sides of the Townes sound on this great compilation from Omnivore. Disc One features alternate studio versions of some of our favorite songs – a good deal of which were produced by Cowboy Jack Clement at his Nashville studio in 1972 – plus a handful that Townes recorded in LA a year earlier. These have a sound that are fleshed out enough instrumentally, but without the horns, strings and some of the other grander aspects of the officially released album versions in hopes of breaking Townes through to a larger audience at the time. Ironically, it's the rawness and intimacy that Townes fans are drawn to – and that's what you get here! The second disc features demos that mostly feature just Townes's voice and acoustic guitar – and it's achingly beautiful! Despite the familiar track list, every song on this 2CD set is previously unreleased – and essential for longtime Townes fans and newbies alike! Includes "T For Texas", "Who Do You Love", "Sunshine Boy", "Pancho & Lefty" (an alternate 1972 mix without strings and horns), "Sad Cinderella", "Lungs", "Mr. Mudd & Mr. Gold", "White Freight Liner Blues", "Two Hands" and more on the studio sessions disc – and the titles on the disc of demos includes "Heavenly Houseboat Blues", "Diamond Heel Blues", "Tower Song", "Hightway Kind", "Old Paint", "Standin'" and more. 28 tracks in all – and it features some excellent notes by Colin Escott.

Another vicious set of hammering, lovable skronk from Last Exit – the mighty mid 80s free group that featured Sonny Sharrock, Peter Brotzman, Bill Laswell and Shannon Jackson! This should certainly not come as a surprise, but the sound is as muscular as can be without exploding all over the place. Each player brings their most hammering torrents. Brotzmann and Sharrock get to bring the noise, and a great sense of playfulness while Laswell and Jackson keep rhythmically sound. And boy, does Jackson hit those drums! Ouch! Tracks include the 18 minute "Hard School", "Brain Damage", "Taking A Beating", "Last Call" and "Dark Heart".

Selected Poems from Russell Hoke – on vinyl! The San Antonio troubadour reads his own work here – it literally is Hoke's Poetry here, and if you're down with the idiosyncractic folk music stylings of Russell – somewhat otherworldly but always true and tuneful, you should dig this, too. It's honest and unironic, but he's clearly having fun with the format, too, making it all the more endearing. 25 in all: "Tour Guide", "Prison's Failure", "Twister", "Royalty", "To An Aborted Child", "Perversity", "The Trance", "The Desertion", "The Learning Fire", "The Hermit's Homecoming" and more.

A deep and worthy first volume of unreleased Early Takes from George Harrison – one of most spiritually-minded people to ever become a rock & roll star – and here's some of his best songs stripped to the bare, real essentials! Firstly, we must say that this set does right by George and honors his legacy – compiled by Giles Martin (son of Beatles producer George Martin), who was granted access to Harrison's personal tapes by Olivia Harrison and the family. Secondly, it's great to hear the songs in something of a root form, especially the ones that got the grand Phil Spector Wall Of Sound treatment back in the day! It's got demos and otherwise unheard versions of his best-known early solo material, and stripped down takes of some his later songs. Most of it centers around George's emotion-steeped vocals and acoustic guitars, with other stripped-down accompaniment, though nothing nearly as huge as Phil Spector's All Things Must Pass production. Includes demo versions of "My Sweet Lord", "Run Of The Mill", Dylan's "Mama You Been On My Mind", "Behind The Locked Door", "All Things Must Pass" and "The Light That Has Lighted The World", plus early takes of "I'd Have You Any Time", "Woman Don't You Cry For Me" and "Awaiting On You All".

A six track EP of unheard Gary Higgins material from the early 70s – acoustic tracks recorded prior to the landmark Red Hash. It's just voice and guitar, but the stuff cuts way deeper than we expected, with easygoing guitar playing and sharp lyricism. Higgins was quite brilliant at the time, even when he was just tossing ideas around! Just 6 tracks, but they're all effective. Includes "Stormy Weather", "Laugh A Little", "Song To Springtime", "Waiting For You", "Oxygen" and "Checklist".

A largely unheard psychedelic gem from the end of the 60s – originally private pressed by the group of suburban NY teenagers responsible for the wild sound! There's a cosmic rock groove and a bit of doe-eyed innocence in these cute odes to mind expansion – with freewheeling guitars, hand percussion, keys and a conversational vocal style that sounds like a wildly tripping, speak-singing Neil Young! Titles include "Flower", "Nostalgia Trip", "Reflections", "Do You Think About Me?", "White Light", "Relax", "My Lonely Friend", "Andrea", and "The Goodnight Song". Super heavy-vinyl reissue comes in a very cool cover with a bonus booklet – and also includes a bonus single too!

A largely unheard psychedelic gem from the end of the 60s – originally private pressed by the group of suburban NY teenagers responsible for the wild sound! There's a cosmic rock groove and a bit of doe-eyed innocence in these cute odes to mind expansion – with freewheeling guitars, hand percussion, keys and a conversational vocal style that sounds like a wildly tripping, speak-singing Neil Young! Titles include "Flower", "Nostalgia Trip", "Reflections", "Do You Think About Me?", "White Light", "Relax", "My Lonely Friend", "Andrea", and "The Goodnight Song" – plus bonus tracks that include demos and live recordings!