Author Archives: TVD HQ

VIA PRESS RELEASE | First Real Gone Music put out all of Fanny’s Reprise albums on CD—now they’re doing the same on LP!

Yes, that’s right, Fanny fans—we’re finally giving the band’s 1973 album Mothers Pride its first vinyl reissue. All four Reprise albums have their champions among Fanny followers, but Mothers Pride is definitely the most controversial entry in the band’s catalog, as Todd Rundgren agreed to produce the album on the condition that he and he alone oversee the album mix. The result was a record that cemented Fanny’s popularity in the UK but failed to make a dent in the charts here in the States despite such classics as “Summer Song.”

The two-page insert includes not just the lyric sheet but the rare promo flyer that accompanied some copies, and they’ve had the album remastered for its baby pink vinyl release. Another seminal ‘70s rock record from everybody’s favorite “forgotten” all-female rock band!

VIA PRESS RELEASE | Few albums have defined an era and redefined a generation of pop music quite like Faith, George Michael’s groundbreaking 1987 debut solo album. Nearly four decades later, its influence continues to resonate across music, fashion, and culture, an enduring testament to the artistry, courage, and creative vision of one of the world’s most beloved and successful performers.

To celebrate its continued impact and influence, George Michael Entertainment and Sony Music have announced that on 20th February 2026, multiple limited-edition Faith vinyl variants will be available on Red + Black Marble vinyl, Picture Disc as well as 1LP and 2LP black vinyl plus audio Blu-Ray. More than a decade since Faith has been available to purchase in vinyl anywhere in the world, today’s announcement marks an exciting new era for any avid vinyl collector and George Michael fan. Pre-order here.

Written, arranged, produced, and performed almost entirely by George Michael, Faith marked the emergence of a new type of pop icon, an artist capable of blending soul, R&B, and rock into a sleek, emotionally charged, and deeply personal sound.

The album catapulted the then 24-year-old artist to global superstardom, outselling Michael Jackson, Madonna, and Prince, and earning him a GRAMMY® Award for Album of the Year, three American Music Awards, and a record-breaking run of four US No. 1 singles, including “Faith,” “Father Figure,” “One More Try,” and “Monkey.” All of which makes George the only British male solo artist ever to achieve four US number-one singles from a single album on the Billboard Hot 100, a record that remains unmatched.

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | Wewantsounds is delighted to continue its Yoshiko Sai reissue program with the release of Mikkou, the Japanese singer-songwriter’s 2nd album released in 1976 on Black Records.

The album, produced by ace arranger Isamu Haruna, keeps the same formula as Mangekyou with Yoshiko Sai’s beautiful songs and dreamy vocals over cool funky arrangements, this time featuring legendary guitarist Masayoshi Takanaka. This is the first time Mikkou is widely available outside of Japan, with remastered audio, original artwork, and a 4 page insert including new liner notes by Hashim Kotaro Bharoocha who interviewed Yoshiko Sai for this special occasion.

Yoshiko Sai holds a singular place in Japanese music history. Since her 1975 debut Mangekyou, the Japanese singer-songwriter has captivated listeners with her ethereal voice, poetic lyrics, and enigmatic presence, earning a devoted cult following that endures decades later.

Building on the highly acclaimed reissue of her debut Mangekyou, Wewantsounds is pleased to present Mikkou, Sai’s second album, originally released in 1976 on Black Records. Produced by Isamu Haruna and featuring some of Japan’s finest session musicians, including the cult guitarist Masayoshi Takanaka, the record showcases Sai’s signature blend of poetic songwriting and ethereal vocals, carried by subtly funky arrangements. Yet Mikkou represents a bold broadening of her artistic palette, drawing inspiration from the Silk Road and the rich cultural heritage of her native Nara.

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | Acclaimed filmmaker Tom Ropelewski unveils Jill Sobule: She’s Gonna Sing! You’re Gonna Listen! (working title), an intimate musical documentary that offers a rare, behind-the-scenes look at the late Jill Sobule, the “singer-songwriter’s singer-songwriter,” human rights activist, LGBTQ folk/pop icon, and groundbreaking artist best known for hits “I Kissed A Girl” and “Supermodel.”

What began as a collaboration to spotlight her next artistic era, Ropelewski and Sobule spent the last several years filming. From New York rehearsals for her one-woman-with-a-band autobiographical show, F*CK 7th GRADE, to the Nashville recording of its cast album, to candid tour footage across the US, they captured the wit, tenderness, political bite, and musical fearlessness that made Sobule, in the words of The New York Times, “among the stellar New York singer-songwriters of the last decade.”

While actively involved in the production, Sobule died unexpectedly in May 2025. The film has now become a vivid, joyful, and definitive portrait, a film Ropelewski says is “not a memorial, but a vital and intimate portrait of a once-in-a-generation artist whose voice only grows larger.”

The documentary also features friends and music collaborators, including Richard Barone (The Bongos), Nini Camps (Antigone Rising), comedian/actor Margaret Cho, John Doe (X), Kristin Ellis-Henderson (Antigone Rising), jazz guitarist Bill Frisell, Matt Groening (Creator of The Simpsons), Kay Hanley (Letters To Cleo), Michelle Lewis (singer/songwriter/composer, SONA co-founder), author David Hajdu, comedian/ host Stephanie Miller, and Tom Morello (Rage Against the Machine).

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | Mel, the second East River Pipe album released by Merge Records, will be reissued on vinyl on January 16, 2026, as the label’s first entry in the Secretly Society Record Club.

Going beyond bringing a long out-of-print classic back to wax, the reissue features new liner notes by Barbara Powers and represents the first time Mel has been available in full on any physical format, as “Spotlight,” exclusive to Merge’s 1996 LP and CD, is joined here by “The Way They Murdered Me” and “Miracleland,” which were exclusive to the Shinkansen CD issued outside of North America. Two versions of Mel—a white vinyl edition exclusive to the Secretly Society, and a black vinyl pressing exclusive to Merge Records—are now available for pre-order.

Mel’s inclusion in the Secretly Society series was championed by Secretly Group co-founder Ben Swanson, who had this to say about the album: “In 1996, we were just about ready to put our first two records on Secretly Canadian—Songs: Ohia’s One Pronunciation of Glory and June Panic’s Glory Hole—North Dakota’s answer to the ’90s 4-track revolution. I was only a few weeks into starting my first radio show at WIUS (now WIUX) in the old house (RIP) on IU’s campus. Dozens of CDs that were coming thru the mail slot every day by all my favorite labels—Ajax, Drag City and, of course, Merge—when East River Pipe’s Mel arrived. It was a revelation.

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | Louder Than You Think: A Lo-Fi History of Gary Young & Pavement, the original motion picture soundtrack from the 2023 SXSW-winning documentary film, has been confirmed for release via digital outlets, Special Edition CD, and black and colored vinyl editions for Friday January 30, 2026 on Independent Project Records.

Proudly resistant to genres and conventions, the Louder Than You Think soundtrack tells the story of Gary Young, a true original in life and behind the drum kit, who, when he was approaching the ripe old age of 40, joined twenty-somethings Stephen Malkmus and Scott Kannberg (Spiral Stairs) to become the original drummer, as well as producer, for soon-to-be indie royalty Pavement.

More than just a soundtrack, the release features rare and never-before-heard tracks from the underappreciated Stockton music scene of the ‘80s and ‘90s, as seen through the lens of the LSD and alcohol-fueled hippie who helped define the sound of all things lo-fi, indie rock, and slacker in between headstands, including bands like Fall of Christianity (the Stockton rebels that struck a chord with a teenage Spiral Stairs), CRLLL, The Authorities, Gary Young’s Hospital, and Hot Spit Dancers. The album also includes tracks scored for the film from Edward W. Dahl (Jodorowsky’s Dune) and Noah Georgeson (Joanna Newsom, Devendra Banhart, Cate Le Bon).

“Louder Than You Think is the story of original Pavement drummer Gary Young,” said Pavement’s Scott Kannberg. “This soundtrack captures the spirit and warped vision that could only come from Gary and the ‘underbelly of California,’ Stockton!”

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | Mercury Studios proudly announces Purpose: Celebrating 30 Years of the Classic Albums Seal I and Seal II, a celebratory concert film from four-time Grammy Award-winning British soul icon Seal out February 13.

Shot live at The Venetian Theatre in Las Vegas in 2024, this performance marks three decades since the release of Seal’s groundbreaking debut album, Seal, and its acclaimed follow-up, Seal II. Purpose: Celebrating 30 Years of the Classic Albums Seal I and Seal II will be available in multiple formats, including a 4K UHD+Blu-ray combo pack, along with a Blu-ray+CD combo and digital audio and video.

The 10-track performance boasts classic chart-topping anthems such as “Crazy,” “Future Love Paradise,” “Killer,” and “Kiss From a Rose,” as well as a few surprises. The concert also features Seal’s longtime producer, Grammy Award-winning producer, musician, and songwriter Trevor Horn (Yes, LeAnn Rimes, Belle and Sebastian), who joins his six-piece band as bassist and music director.

“He is this mentor that I’ve spent the last 34 years looking up to. He knows me as an artist better than anyone else,” Seal said. “Having him on tour caused me to bring a level of professionalism and discipline that I hadn’t had before.”

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | Interscope-Capitol Records today unveils the next installment in its acclaimed Definitive Sound Series (DSS), a premium audiophile limited edition of Beck’s Morning Phase, available December 12.

Widely regarded as one of Beck’s most acclaimed works, Morning Phase earned praise for its warm harmonies, expansive arrangements and cinematic scope. Produced by Beck, the album won three Grammy Awards: Album of the Year, Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical, and Best Rock Album.

Mastered by Levi Seitz at Black Belt Mastering from the original 96kHz/24-bit vinyl file created by the legendary Bob Ludwig, the AAA 180-gram high-definition vinyl LP ($99.98) was pressed at Record Technology, Inc., using the state-of-the-art One Step process, eliminating multiple stamper stages to delivering Beck’s sweeping compositions and layered production with heightened clarity and unmatched depth and clarity.

This edition marks the first DSS title presented in a heavyweight Tip On single-pocket gatefold jacket with the original photo insert, housed inside a uniquely designed slipcase. Limited to 3,000 hand-numbered copies, each DSS edition includes a certificate of authenticity detailing the mastering, plating, and pressing chain.

“The Definitive Sound Series represents the pinnacle of vinyl craftsmanship,” says Xavier Ramos, EVP D2C and eCommerce Strategy at Interscope/Capitol. “We’re proud to invest in these collectible pieces that reflect our respect for these iconic artists, their groundbreaking music, and the fans whose passion continues to keep these albums as relevant today as when they were first released.”

VIA PRESS RELEASE | Lost Highway Records will mark the 25th anniversary of the iconic O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack by releasing a vinyl gatefold edition on February 20, 2026. The anniversary celebration will continue over the course of the year with a series of special events and activations. Pre-order O Brother, Where Art Thou? HERE.

To celebrate this milestone anniversary and new vinyl pressing, T Bone Burnett and Lost Highway will present an evening in celebration of O Brother, Where Art Thou? on the Grand Ole Opry on February 28th. As part of the Opry’s continuing 100th anniversary celebration, this special Saturday night show will feature artists from the original soundtrack and more. Certified 8x Platinum by the RIAA in 2007, the bulk of the soundtrack’s sales to date have been in CD format.

Now, the 25th anniversary edition gives vinyl collectors three new variations to choose from: Standard Black, Sunshine Gold, which will be available exclusively at the Lost Highway Records store, and Dapper Dan Red, available exclusively at independent record stores. The vinyl was pressed at David Rawlings and Gary Salstrom’s Paramount Pressing & Plating in Denver, known for its superior vinyl.

O Brother, Where Art Thou? was produced by T Bone Burnett for the 2000 Coen Brothers’ film of the same name, which was set in rural Mississippi during the Great Depression and starred George Clooney, John Turturro, and Tim Blake Nelson as three escaped convicts. The soundtrack climbed to the No. 1 position on the Billboard 200 after winning multiple GRAMMY® Awards, including Album of the Year.

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | After keyboardist/composer Bayeté a.k.a. Todd Cochran established his musical presence on the San Francisco scene playing in Bobby Hutcherson’s band, and before becoming a key member of the innovative band Automatic Man, which he co-founded with Santana drummer Michael Shrieve, he recorded a couple of solo albums for the Prestige label that feature some of the most far-out, futuristic music the legendary jazz imprint ever released.

The first, Worlds Around the Sun, created quite a critical stir and debuted his composition “Free Angela,” which was later recorded again by Santana and sampled widely by artists like Kendrick Lamar, De La Soul, and Jay Electronica. But it was this album, 1973’s Seeking Other Beauty, that represented the full flowering of his vision. As Bayeté says in the notes by Pat Thomas that accompany our Real Gone reissue, “While I’ve held space for the blues aesthetic and jazz in everything I’ve done, I was leaving one world and entering another, unmooring the ship and heading into a sea of unknowns, so to speak.”

That ship ended up at a dazzling destination reached by few; early ‘70s electric Miles is a clear point on the compass, but so are Parliament-Funkadelic and Lonnie Liston Smith, if he were playing a fuzzed-out clavinet instead of a Fender Rhodes. Bayeté went on to collaborate with everybody from Peter Gabriel to Herbie Hancock to Stanley Clarke, but Seeking Other Beauty delivers the full measure of the man.

This is a first-ever reissue, featuring an all-analog pressing in either black vinyl or “plasma” vinyl, accompanied by an added insert. In its attitude, emotion, and performance, this recording captures an urgency that people are feeling again today. If you’re a fan of music that features a mosaic of influences—spiritual jazz with a fluid futuristic slant, akin to some of the Black Jazz label titles we reissued on Real Gone—this record is for you.

VIA PRESS RELEASE | The Tom Petty Estate today announces the surprise release of a vinyl store exclusive in stormy “Cool Blue.” This mottled version of The Live Anthology – From The Vaults Vol. 1 is an ultra-limited edition pressing and a special treat for fans with tracks chosen by the man himself.

A total of just 2,000 individually numbered copies will be made available; purchase here. These recordings capture an intimate and powerful portrait of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers legendary onstage performances featuring a dynamic deep track set list featuring “Like A Diamond,” “Think About Me,” and “Ballad of Easy Rider” and more.

Tom’s personally curated disc was originally included as the final bonus disc in a limited edition 5CD box of The Live Anthology (a 2009 Best Buy–exclusive) and has never before been available as a standalone vinyl release.

On Black Friday, fans were able to purchase the turquoise version of Petty’s archival vision, retailed exclusively at indie record stores with a pressing of 11,000 internationally.

Over his 40-year career, Tom Petty became a beloved American rock & roll icon, world renowned for his songwriting and his incredible band the Heartbreakers. In addition to the 13 studio albums he made with the Heartbreakers, Petty recorded three solo albums, including the acclaimed Full Moon Fever, Wildflowers, and Highway Companion. Petty was also a member of the supergroup Traveling Wilburys and in the pre-Heartbreakers band Mudcrutch.

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