Hidden Treasures - Rerecorded

[Scott]

 

With covers week behind us I thought a great segway would be to look at some Rerecorded tunes. Like cover albums, classic rocks artists seem to be rerecording hit songs from their back catalog. Sometimes with great success, but all the time so that they can control usage and royalties of these songs.

Case in point... KISS. When they released Sonic Boom, they included a disc of rerecorded material. Which they promptly released to Guitar Hero and Band Hero games. Also, it seemed that to strike the "Wal-Mart" deal it was something that made the deal even sweeter. Journey did it as well. So I went back and took a look at rerecorded songs and found a treasure trove of material hidden in Greatest Hits packages and recent releases.

 

And while this playlist will be more mellow and mid-tempo than what we’ve posted lately, I think you'll love the listening experience. So here's 3 of the coolest!

 

PLAYLIST --> http://snack.to/adp84nnu

	BENNY MARDONES - ST 1989 1 - Into The Night This song is so good it hit the Billboard Top 20, twice! Once in 1980 and once again in 1989. Spending a total of 37 weeks on the charts, which, at the time, broke Laura Branigans record of 36. In 1989, KZZP, a radio station in Arizona, ran a segment titled "Where Are They Now?" The most popular question was "Whatever happened to the guy who sang 'Into the Night'?" Scott Shannon, then program director for Pirate Radio in Los Angeles, added "Into the Night" to its playlist. Radio stations across the country followed suit and "Into the Night" was once again a hit. Mardones was 33 years old when the song became a hit for the first time and he still lives quite well on the royalties. Even though his lone hit charted twice, Mardones is still considered a "one-hit wonder." He continues to have a substantial fan following in Syracuse, New York with his band, the Hurricanes. This song can originally be found on his album titled "Never Run, Never Hide" released in 1980.
	THE DOOBIE BROTHERS -World Gone Crazy 2010   2 - Nobody The first single from their debut album, "Nobody," failed to chart, as did the album itself. The single was re-released in 1974 after the group had become a highly successful touring and recording act, peaking at #58 on the Billboard Hot 100. Willing to go after it a third time, the band rerecorded the song and included it on their 2010 release "World Gone Crazy". Although it may come too late for chart success, the track really work as a rerecorded song. All the hallmark acoustic geetar work is still in place just better heard.
	STYX - Greatest Hits 1995 3 - Lady 95' Previous greatest hits packages had excluded the hit song "Lady" because the song was originally recorded for and released through Wooden Nickel Records (which also had a distribution arrangement with RCA Records). Because A&M/Polygram had been unable to secure distribution rights to the song, most of the classic lineup of Styx (Dennis DeYoung, Tommy Shaw, Chuck Panozzo, and James "J.Y." Young) reunited to re-record the track at Dennis' home studio. They were joined by uncredited session drummer Todd Sucherman, who filled in for John Panozzo due to Panozzo's failing health. It was first released on Styx II and was a local hit in the band's native Chicago, but initially failed to chart nationally until the band moved to A&M Records in 1974.

[Scott]

These are really very cool!  Welcome To My Nightmare sounds fantastic!  And Elected is on point as well!  His voice is still strong, it truly compares to back when they were originally recorded.  Thanks for adding!

[Jon]

The REAL TRUE Styx did a complete album where they re-recorded over 15 songs, including some from Damn Yankees. I will be more than glad to share the whole double album with everyone so they can see how all those songs actually really truly should sound like.

[Jon]

And as for re-records from bands? Not big in my book (unless it's something done by the CURRENT REAL Styx). THey just take away from the originals, no matter that there's better technology (unless it's from the 100% TRULY TRUE MODERN Styx). Take Axe, for example. The re-records just can't hold a candle to the originals.

[RJhog (Admin)]

But like the real, true Styx, there is an "x" in the name Axe.

[Jon]

That is correct.

[Scott]

Some REAL Styx facts since the departure of LEADER Dennis DeYoung

• Styx's new lineup released the studio album Cyclorama in February 2003, which reached No. 127 on the Billboard 200 album charts failing to make much of an impact. Although a single "Waiting for Our Time" reached No. 37 on the Billboard mainstream rock chart, it charted for 1 week and failed to make much, if any, impact.
• In 2005 Styx released an album of cover tunes, Big Bang Theory. Their version of The Beatles song "I am the Walrus" received some radio play and a video was made for the song, which was subsequently featured in their live shows. Still the album had a short life on the charts and failed to make much of a dent.
• DeYoung continued his solo career by re-arranging and performing his Styx hits with a symphony orchestra. In 2005, DeYoung released a CD of re-recorded Styx hits from a solo concert with a symphony orchestra (titled The Music of Styx - Live with Symphony Orchestra). The album also contained three new DeYoung songs. DeYoung's CD became a major hit in Canada.
• DeYoung released in Canada his fifth solo album, One Hundred Years from Now marking a return to his rock roots. The first single, the title track, was a duet with Québécois singer Éric Lapointe. The single reached #1 on the Québec Radio Single and Soundscan charts

 

Hmmmmmm.....

[RJhog (Admin)]

For some strange reason, taking Jon's side for just a moment, is Canada still a country?

[Jon]

OF course it didn't make a dent in a country with American Idol obsessed music buyers. People just don't know what great music from an iconic band is, especially an iconic band that because even more iconic when it finally had the TRUE BLUE members it always needed.

[Jon]

It has to be. I can look out a window at work and see it across the river. Plus there's a tunnel & bridge to get to it from Michigan. Right???  

[Jon]

Check out "Greatest Hits & More" from Bob Welch. I saw this for a decent price so picked it up, not knowing that they were re-recordings of Welch and Fleetwood Mac songs. I wanted something with both, but when I first listened, it wasn't what I wanted, and then I read the liner notes. And then I saw this comment from Mr Welch himself on Amazon. 

I should post this album one of these days and let people decide.

[RJhog (Admin)]

Your opinion?  Better?

[Jon]

Not by a long shot.