Box sets, releases and archival offerings
By Lee Zimmerman
As the year draws to a close, it’s naturally a time to look back. In what we call the music biz these days, there seems to be a continuing trend of remembering and retracing the things that made an impenetrable mark on the marketplace. In some cases, it involves another purchase of albums already in our record collections for the sake of acquiring bonus tracks, rarities, unreleased add-ons or other extras. For collectors, there’s ample incentive to do so. For the rest of us … well, it becomes a matter of picking and choosing what offerings we consider most essential.
We here at BLANK are happy to offer some input into what constitutes a must-have acquisition for those whose with an irresistible need for completion. Here, in no particular order, is a list of the most compelling collectibles of 2025.
David Bowie
The latest in a series of box sets outlining specific periods in Bowie’s chameleonlike career, “I Can’t Give Everything Away” focuses in on 2002-2016, a prolific era that allowed the artist to take flight with more experimental and obtuse intentions that satisfied his own creative impulses even as they eschewed the commercial possibilities of his earlier efforts. Indeed, the title seems to indicate that Bowie was content to pursue his ambitions without any need to acquiesce to a wide audience. Nevertheless, Bowie boosters ought to take heed: The box contains three remastered original albums; a pair of live CDs (including his performance at the Montreux Jazz Festival, released here for the first time); two Eps; and a bonus disc containing single versions, B-sides and kick recordings. A companion book sheds further light on this otherwise obscure point in Bowie’s exceptional career.
Bob Dylan
The Bootleg Series has been a continuing source of unreleased material from throughout Dylan’s nearly 70-year career, uncovering hidden gems that shine a light on each era that has made up his ever-changing trajectory. As the title implies, “The Bootleg Series Vol. 18: Through the Open Window, 1956-1963” explores the beginnings of his legacy, when his roots were securely tied to traditional music and the folk music that inspired him at an early age. Although most of the music is stripped down to the basics – usually limited to just vocals, acoustic guitar and some wheezing harmonica – it lays the foundation for what would come later. The handful of songs from his school days back in Hibbing, Minnesota, is fully fascinating in its own right.
Drive-By Truckers
DBT take a return route to “Decoration Day,” the album many consider the band’s definitive masterpiece. With expanded artwork and expansive liner notes to boot, fans are offered a double dip of treasures: the original remastered album and a special bonus disc recorded live at Flicker Bar in the band’s hometown of Athens, Georgia, a full year before the album’s release. With stripped-down takes on most of the then-forthcoming album’s tracks – many performed for the first time ever – these live recordings showcase the band at the peak of its early prowess.
Warren Zevon
This singer-songwriter’s arched wit resulted in a number of carefully crafted songs that were recognized both then and now as among the most vibrant offerings to emerge from the 1970s and ‘80s. “Lawyers, Guns and Money,” “Carmelita,” “Poor, Poor Pitiful Me,” “Excitable Boy” and, of course, “Werewolves of London” are but a few of the tunes that elevated Zevon’s ranking as one of the most talented and prolific artists to ever grace a studio or stage. Now, some 22 years after his premature passing, an all-star ensemble – Willie Nile, Freedy Johnston, Pete Mancini and Jimmy Webb among them – has been assembled by the budding independent label Paradiddle Records to pay tribute to the man and his music. Each one of the three reimaginings is indelible, and the respect and admiration served up by Zevon’s peers testify to his brilliance.
Pink Floyd
Forever masters of classic psychedelia, Pink Floyd segued from ‘60s cult status to mainstays of the masses with “Dark Side of the Moon,” one of the best-selling albums of all time. It’s follow-up, “Wish You Were Here,” didn’t quite achieve the stellar success of its predecessor, but it was no less masterful in its own right. Now, on the 50th anniversary of its original release, it’s been expanded from its original five selections to a multi-disc set featuring demos, early takes, alternative mixes and – best of all – a live 1975 concert from the Los Angeles Sports Arena. The hefty price tag notwithstanding, it’s essential for true Floyd fans.
Emmylou Harris
In one of the most prolific times in her career, Harris shifted gears and teamed up with Buddy Miller to form Spyboy, a band which also included Brady Blade on drums and Daryl Johnson on bass. Although it was a decided step away from her earlier country-leaning albums, the live recording that resulted from the group’s tour included several songs that have since become trademark tunes: “I Ain’t Living Long Like This,” “Love Hurts,” “Boulder to Birmingham” and “Born to Run.” The fact that this self-titled album was sandwiched between the release of “Wrecking Ball” and “Red Dirt Girl” confined it to cult status at the time, but this long-overdue rerelease offers the opportunity to revisit one of the most essential offerings in the entirety of the artist’s career.
Tedeschi Trucks Band
A belated release 10 years after the actual performance, “Mad Dogs & Englishmen Revisited (Live at LOCKN’)” marks the occasion when the surviving members of Leon Russell’s fabled ensemble, including Russell himself, reconvened under the auspices of the Tedeschi Trucks Band at the LOCKN’ Festival in Arlington, Virginia. Yours truly was in attendance for the set and can attest to the fact that it indeed was a special occasion worthy of archiving. Cameo appearances by Dave Mason, Chris Robinson, Anders Osborne, Doyle Bramhall II, Warren Haynes, John Bell and Shannon McNally ensured a classic collection of songs were dutifully rendered and etched into immortality.
Brian Wilson
When the world lost the architect of the Beach Boys and popular music as we know it this past June, we could still take consolation in the fact that his songs will live on for generations to come. “Live at the Roxy Theatre” is a sumptuous collection of some 40 songs that Wilson made famous throughout his prolific career. The tracklist says it all: “Don’t Worry Baby,” “California Girls,” “Surfer Girl,” “God Only Knows,” “Good Vibrations,” “Love and Mercy” are just a few of the included songs. Aided and abetted by his remarkable backing band, Wilson proved that music, magic and memories go hand in hand.
Bruce Springsteen
As the current biopic seems to suggest, the road to “Nebraska,” the unexpected acoustic solo album by The Boss, was strewn with false starts, troubles and tribulations. The uncertainty is manifest in the new “Nebraska ’82: Expanded Edition,” in which the sample selections uncover Springsteen’s initial attempts to create a purely unadorned acoustic album that would embed him further into the heartland. Coming hot on the heels of the even more massive “Tracks II: The Lost Albums” (seven heretofore unreleased Springsteen albums that never previously saw the light of day), it may seem like a money grab from an artist who always espoused a blue-collar sensibility, but both collections are worth the expense for true fans.
Ray Charles
‘Nuff said. Brother Ray gets his due with vinyl reissues of four essential albums: “Come Live With Me,” “No One Does It Like… Ray Charles,” “Love Country Style” and “Ingredients in a Recipe for Soul.” Charles was an innovator who could successfully segue from style to style and still lend each of his releases with his singular personality and perspective, and these reissues are proof of that. If you’ve ever wondered where Stevie Wonder, Steve Winwood and so many others got their initial inspiration, it was Ray all the way.
Jimi Hendrix
While “Electric Ladyland” is often lauded as his masterpiece, “Axis: Bold as Love” set the stage for all that might have come later had it not been for his all-too-early demise. Consequently, the “Bold as Love” boxsets allow diehard devotees to dive in deep while exploring the various recordings surrounding a masterwork of exceptional proportions. Each set features 27 previously unreleased recordings from 1967, including demos and alternate takes, as well as television and radio performances. This deluxe edition includes the stereo and mono mixes for the album, all newly remastered from the original flat master tapes. Rounding out the packaging is a 36-page booklet, complete with rare photos, detailed liner notes and track-by-track insights. Unlike the albums pieced together in the wake of Hendrix’s passing, this is a cohesive collection centered around a captivating core – and it’s even relatively reasonably priced.
The Who
“Who Are You,” the group’s final recording with Keith Moon, could be considered a swan song of sorts given that critics and fans alike consider it the last of the band’s truly great albums. Most of The Who’s earlier albums have been given the box-set treatment, making this a belated but well-deserved rediscovery. The CD version offers the most additives, including the usual array of demos, outtakes and rehearsal entries, but both it and the LP version feature the most prized possession of all: a live concert from the Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan (sadly without Keith, of course). The title track is what most people remember from the album, but the cover photo showing Moon sitting on a chair marked ‘Not to Be Taken Away’ remains an enduring epitaph.
Elton John
Choosing one classic Elton John album above all others would seem an unenviable task, and while “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” frequently gets the honors, “Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy” clearly deserves kudos of its own. It finally gets the treasured treatment courtesy of this new two-disc revival that adds demos and various live tracks to the original release. “Someone Saved My Life Tonight,” “We All Fall in Love Sometimes,” “Philadelphia Freedom” and a cover of The Beatles’ “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds” remain the highlights, but, in truth, every entry deserves rediscovery.
Caravan
Finally, we’ll end on an even more obscure note: “The Show of Our Lives – Caravan at the BBC 1968-1975,” a collection of five concert recordings by the British prog band. Hailing from the university town of Canterbury, the group shared the same English roots as other adventurous auteurs such as Soft Machine and the great Kevin Ayers. These discs offer a rare glimpse into the band’s performing prowess. Imaginative and ingenious, Caravan typifies the best of British rock.
lee@blanknews.com
