The Cars – Candy-O (1979) {2011, MFSL, Remastered}

The Cars - Candy-O (1979) {2011, MFSL, Remastered}

The Cars – Candy-O (1979) {2011, MFSL, Remastered}
EAC Rip | WavPack (.wv) Image + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 236 MB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: MFSL UltraDisc II | USA | Cat#: UDCD 782 | Genre: New Wave

Since the Cars had created a perfect album with their 1978 self-titled debut, it would be nearly impossible to top it. Instead of laboring long and hard over a follow-up like many ’70s bands did after a huge commercial success, the band cranked out their sophomore effort, Candy-O, almost exactly one year later from the first LP. Continue reading “The Cars – Candy-O (1979) {2011, MFSL, Remastered}”

The Cars – Shake It Up (1981) {2009, MFSL, Remastered}

The Cars - Shake It Up (1981) {2009, MFSL, Remastered}

The Cars – Shake It Up (1981) {2009, MFSL, Remastered}
EAC Rip | FLAC Image + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 275 MB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: MFSL UltraDisc II | USA | Cat#: UDCD 788 | Genre: New Wave

By augmenting their sound with more synthesizers, electronics, and drum machines, the Cars’ fourth release, Shake It Up, helped bridge their hard rock-based early work (1978’s The Cars) with the futuristic-pop direction of 1984’s Heartbeat City. The band’s sound may have been evolving with each succeeding album, but Ric Ocasek was still writing compelling new wave compositions despite all the change, many of which would ultimately become rock & roll standards. Continue reading “The Cars – Shake It Up (1981) {2009, MFSL, Remastered}”

VA – Grease (The Original Soundtrack) (1978) [2008, 30th Anniversary Deluxe Edition Remastered]

VA - Grease (The Original Soundtrack) (1978) [2008, 30th Anniversary Deluxe Edition Remastered]

VA – Grease (The Original Soundtrack) (1978) [2008, 30th Anniversary Deluxe Edition Remastered]
EAC Rip | 2xCD | FLAC Image + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 778 MB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Universal / Polydor | Cat#: 9809773 | Genre: Soundtrack

Grease was a huge success as a Broadway musical prior to hitting the big screen in 1978. That was the version that transformed Grease into a phenomenon — it was a runaway box office success, and then became a TV, cable, and video favorite. Continue reading “VA – Grease (The Original Soundtrack) (1978) [2008, 30th Anniversary Deluxe Edition Remastered]”

The Cars – The Cars (1978) {1993, DCC, 24-Karat Gold Disc Remastered}

The Cars - The Cars (1978) {1993, DCC, 24-Karat Gold Disc Remastered}

The Cars – The Cars (1978) {1993, DCC, 24-Karat Gold Disc Remastered}
EAC Rip | FLAC Tracks + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 230 MB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: DCC Compact Classics | USA | Cat#: GZS-1032 | Genre: New-Wave

The Cars’ 1978 self-titled debut, issued on the Elektra label, is a genuine rock masterpiece. The band jokingly referred to the album as their “true greatest-hits album,” but it’s no exaggeration — all nine tracks are new wave/rock classics, still in rotation on rock radio. Continue reading “The Cars – The Cars (1978) {1993, DCC, 24-Karat Gold Disc Remastered}”

Simon & Garfunkel – 2 Albums (1966) {2010, Audio Fidelity, HDCD Remastered}

Simon & Garfunkel - 2 Albums (1966) {2010, Audio Fidelity, HDCD Remastered}

Simon & Garfunkel – 2 Albums (1966) {2010, Audio Fidelity, HDCD Remastered}
EAC Rip | 2xCD | FLAC Image + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 402 MB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Audio Fidelity | USA | Genre: Folk Rock
 
Sounds of Silence (1966) & Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme (1966) Continue reading “Simon & Garfunkel – 2 Albums (1966) {2010, Audio Fidelity, HDCD Remastered}”

VA – Motown Classics – Gold (2005)

A - Motown Classics - Gold (2005)

A – Motown Classics – Gold (2005)
XLD Rip | 2xCD | FLAC Image + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 1.16 GB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Universal / Motown | Ukraine | Cat#: 0602498632260 | Genre: R&B

One of the most dominating forces in the history of popular music, the Motown imprint was more than a label, it was a juggernaut of soul music, a machine so finely honed and working with such efficiency that it wasn’t uncommon for several chart topping hits to be recorded in one session. Continue reading “VA – Motown Classics – Gold (2005)”

Marvin Gaye – Gold (2005)

Marvin Gaye - Gold (2005)

Marvin Gaye – Gold (2005)
EAC Rip | 2xCD | FLAC Image + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 827 MB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Universal / Motown | Ukraine | Cat#: 0602498632253 | Genre: R&B

Marvin Gaye left behind one of the greatest legacies in American pop music, a fascinating and irresistible string of chart hits and stunning album-long suites that explored the sacred/secular divide in his own soul, and by extension, the philosophical divide in the American psyche, and he did it all with grace, ease, assurance, and style. Continue reading “Marvin Gaye – Gold (2005)”

John Denver – A Song’s Best Friend: The Very Best Of (2004)

John Denver - A Song's Best Friend: The Very Best Of (2004)

John Denver – A Song’s Best Friend: The Very Best Of (2004)
EAC Rip | 2xCD | FLAC Tracks + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 583 MB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: BMG Music | EU | Cat#: 82876 60765 2 | Genre: Country, Pop Rock

Coinciding with the 35th anniversary of Denver’s first album release on RCA, this two-disc, 25-track overview of the country-pop singer’s storied career is the most concise and nuanced yet. Digitally remastered from the original master tapes, road-trip classics like “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” “Rocky Mountain High,” and “Back Home Again” Continue reading “John Denver – A Song’s Best Friend: The Very Best Of (2004)”

Prince – Ultimate (2006)

Prince - Ultimate (2006)

Prince – Ultimate (2006)
EAC Rip | 2xCD | FLAC Image + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 1.12 GB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Warner Bros. | USA | Cat#: R2 73381 | Genre: Pop, R&B

Ultimate Prince is a greatest hits album by American recording artist Prince. It was released on August 22, 2006 by Warner Bros. Records. The two-disc set contains a disc of some previously released hits (some in single edit form; only “My Name Is Prince” has not been on a previous hits collection), and another of extended remixes of hits and a B-side, most of which have only been previously released as vinyl 12-inch singles. Continue reading “Prince – Ultimate (2006)”

The Clash – Hits Back (2013)

The Clash - Hits Back (2013)

The Clash – Hits Back (2013)
EAC Rip | 2xCD | FLAC Tracks + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 855 MB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Sony Music | EU | Cat#: 88725442362 | Genre: Punk

A tie-in to the exhaustive 2013 box set Sound System, the 2013 compilation The Clash Hits Back is a novel approach to a career retrospective: it mirrors the 24-song set list for the band’s July 19, 1982 concert at Brixton Fairdeal, then adds eight bonus hits at the end. The Clash Hits Back slightly tweaks the running order of the original set — “Bankrobber” arrived five songs into the concert but appears eighth here — but that doesn’t matter much, as this swap doesn’t alter the impact of the original set. Continue reading “The Clash – Hits Back (2013)”

Chicago – Chicago 17 (1984) {2011, MFSL Remastered}

Chicago - Chicago 17 (1984) {2011, MFSL Remastered}

Chicago – Chicago 17 (1984) {2011, MFSL Remastered}
EAC Rip | FLAC Image + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 323 MB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: MFSL UltraDisc II | USA | Cat#: UDCD 789 | Genre: Pop Rock

Chicago 17 is the fourteenth studio album by American band Chicago, released on May 14, 1984. It was the group’s second release for Full Moon/Warner Bros. Records, their second album to be produced by David Foster and their last with founding bassist/vocalist Peter Cetera. Continue reading “Chicago – Chicago 17 (1984) {2011, MFSL Remastered}”

The Pretenders – Pretenders (1980) {2009, Audio Fidelity, Remastered}

The Pretenders - Pretenders (1980) {2009, Audio Fidelity, Remastered}

The Pretenders – Pretenders (1980) {2009, Audio Fidelity, Remastered}
EAC Rip | FLAC Tracks + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 322 MB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Audio Fidelity | USA | Cat#: AFZ 052 | Genre: Pop Rock, New Wave

Few rock & roll records rock as hard or with as much originality as the Pretenders’ eponymous debut album. A sleek, stylish fusion of Stonesy rock & roll, new wave pop, and pure punk aggression, Pretenders is teeming with sharp hooks and a viciously cool attitude. Continue reading “The Pretenders – Pretenders (1980) {2009, Audio Fidelity, Remastered}”

Rickie Lee Jones – Flying Cowboys (1989) {2010, Audio Fidelity, HDCD Remastered}

Rickie Lee Jones - Flying Cowboys (1989) {2010, Audio Fidelity, HDCD Remastered}

Rickie Lee Jones – Flying Cowboys (1989) {2010, Audio Fidelity, HDCD Remastered}
EAC Rip | WavPack (.wv) Image + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 306 MB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Audio Fidelity | USA | Cat#: AFZ 064 | Genre: Pop Rock

Five years after the disappointing The Magazine, Rickie Lee Jones returned to form with Flying Cowboys, which shared much of the playful, childlike charm of her debut, Rickie Lee Jones, and some of the musically diffuse, lyrically ambitious form of its follow-up, Pirates. Continue reading “Rickie Lee Jones – Flying Cowboys (1989) {2010, Audio Fidelity, HDCD Remastered}”

The Cars – Heartbeat City (1984) {2009, Audio Fidelity, HDCD Remastered}

The Cars - Heartbeat City (1984) {2009, Audio Fidelity, HDCD Remastered}

The Cars – Heartbeat City (1984) {2009, Audio Fidelity, HDCD Remastered}
EAC Rip | FLAC Image + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 257 MB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Audio Fidelity | USA | Cat#: AFZ 033 | Genre: Pop Rock, New Wave

MTV had become a major marketing tool by 1984, and the Cars were one of the first bands to use the new video medium to their advantage. The band’s fifth album, Heartbeat City (Elektra), spawned several imaginative and memorable videos, which translated into massive chart and commercial success, making it one of the biggest releases of the year. Continue reading “The Cars – Heartbeat City (1984) {2009, Audio Fidelity, HDCD Remastered}”