When Pam Tillis was at her commercial peak, I thought it was only a matter of time before Warner Bros. capitalized on her sucess by issuing the 1983 pop album she made for the label, Above and Beyond the Doll of Cutey.
They didn’t, so I had to settle for a cassette copy that a friend transferred to CD for me. Now, a full 26 years after its initial release, the album is being issued on CD for the first time, courtesy of Wounded Bird Records. It streets June 9.
It’s far from the best album that Tillis has released, but the completist in me will appreciate having it in digitally remastered sound. I’ve spent the past two weeks transferring old Dolly Parton albums, with and without Porter Wagoner, from vinyl to CD. It’s nice to finally have the songs in some form, and Paul W. Dennis of The 9513 was generous enough to fill in the gaps.
But not all albums are easily available even on vinyl, and I’d buy all of these albums again on CD or digitally if they were ever issued. What albums would you like to see re-released on CD or in digital format?
Great minds think alike; I was considering doing a similar topic on MKOC. I’d really like to see more of Dolly’s work re-released, particularly her late 60s and early 70s work. I’d also like to see more of Loretta’s and Tammy’s studio albums re-released. They were both making solid albums in the 80s, even when they were past their commercial peaks. When these three ladies teamed up for the Honky Tonk Angels project in 1993, they reportedly recorded enough material for a second album, which has been collecting dust in the Sony vaults ever since. There’s a treasure trove of Charley Pride’s material that deserves to see the light of day, and ditto for Barbara Mandrell’s catalog.
I was staggered to realise recently that a lot of Keith Whitley’s RCA output is not commercially available at all (either on CD or digitally), and that’s not even all that long ago.
The one I’m most miffed about right now is Jerry Jeff Walker. His catalog is a total mess, with some of his best albums basically only available as MP3s (Gettin’ By, Gypsy Songman, A Man Must Carry On), one only on cassette or vinyl (Jerry Jeff Walker), and one just totally out of print (It’s a Good Night For Singin’). And only one of the classics on CD is remastered (Five Years Gone).
What his fans really need is a big, well thought-out box set of remastered material. Ditto to Dolly Parton.
Only two of his studio albums for RCA are still available — L.A. to Miami and Don’t Close Your Eyes. . I would have thought that I Wonder Do You Think Of Me , which outsold L.A. to Miami would still be available, but it isn’t.
I’d also like to add to my previous post that I’d like to see more of Connie Smith’s work released on CD.
Wow! I can’t believe they’re actually releasing this on CD. I had kind of given up hope that any label would consider re-releasing some of the CDs I’ve missed over the years on this dying format. The completist hidden in me would also like to collect a couple of Mark Chesnutt’s, George Strait’s and Vince Gill’s. I would also love a deluxe version of some of Reba’s alums (Rumor Has It, For My Broken Heart) and Rosanne Cash’s Rhythm & Romance.
If they would just sell Barbara Mandrell’s tracks on itunes or one of those site would be nice
Where do I start ??
All Henson Cargill and Johnny Darrell albums
Bobby Lord’s Columbia 45s most not ever collected)
A Kenny Price anthology of his RCA material
Cal Smith’s albums on Kapp and MCA/Decca
Freddie Hart’s recordings on Kapp
Billy Walker’s RCA and MGM albums
Jack Greene’s MCA/Decca albums, especially LORD IS THAT ME and THERE GOES MY EVERYTHING
George Hamilton IV’s CANADIAN PACIFIC,STEEL RAIL BLUES and IN THE FOURTH DIMENSION
Harlow Wilcox and the Oakies – GROOVY GRUBWORM
Jeannie C RIley – all albums on MGM