"Home In Your Heart: The Best Of..." by SOLOMON BURKE (July 1993 Rhino/Atlantic & Atco Remasters 2CDs - Ted Jensen Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

"...Meet Me In Church..."

For sure in 2019 - and even if they are from original master tapes as stated on the artwork - Remasters from January 1992 are 'old'. But that doesn't stop this barnstorming Solomon Burke twofer anthology (released July 1993 in the UK) from doing exactly what it says on the lame-suit lid – hitting you in the Solar Plexus and making a "Home In Your Heart".

Longstanding Audio Engineer and Associate to US reissue label giant Rhino Records - TED JENSEN did these transfers back in the day as I said and I've always loved the way they sound - full of life and oomph and that storming live-in-the-studio Sixties feel. Then throw in the fact that you get a whoop-ass 41 slices of primo Atlantic Records Soul (34 singles and 7 album tracks to be exact-a-mundo) and I'm Goodbye Baby (Baby Goodbye). And Burke had 21 children! There's a lot on here, so let's get to the prayer books and have those remorseful tear ducts a-flowing people 'cause I feel a sin coming on (Lord have mercy)...

UK released July 1993 - "Home In Your Heart: The Best Of Solomon Burke" by SOLOMON BURKE on Rhino/Atlantic 8122-70284-2 (Barcode 081227028428) is a 41-Track 2CD Anthology of 1992 Remasters that plays out as follows:

Disc 1 (57:35 minutes):

1. Home In Your Heart (February 1963 US 7"single on Atlantic 45-2180, B-side of "Words" - A-side is Track 8 on Disc 1)

2. Down In The Valley (May 1962 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2147, A-side - B-side is Track 4 on Disc 1)

3. Looking For My Baby (July 1964 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2241, B-side of "Everybody Needs Somebody To Love" - A-side is Track 18 on Disc 1)

4. I'm Hanging Up My Heart For You (May 1962 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2147, B-side - A-side is Track 2 on Disc 1)

5. Cry To Me (January 1962 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2131, A-side - B-side isn't on this compilation)

6. Just Out Of Reach (Of My Two Open Arms) (August 1961 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2114, A-side - B-side isn't on this compilation)

7. Goodbye Baby (Baby Goodbye) (April 1964 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2226, A-side - B-side is Track 15 on Disc 1)

8. Words (February 1963 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2180, A-side - B-side is Track 1 on Disc 1)

9. Stupidity (July 1963 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2196, B-side of "Can't Nobody Love You" - A-side is Track 13 on Disc 1)

10. Send Me Some Loving (from the 1963 US album "If You Need Me" on Atlantic SD 8085 in Stereo)

11. Go On Back To Him (December 1962 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2170, A-side)

12. Baby (I Wanna Be Loved) (from the 1962 US album "Solomon Burke's Greatest Hits" on Atlantic SD 8067 in Stereo)

13. Can't Nobody Love You (July 1963 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2196, A-side - B-side is Track 9 on Disc 1)

14. Got To Get You Off My Mind (February 1965 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2276, A-side)

15. Someone To Love Me (April 1964 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2226, B-side to "Goodbye Baby (Baby Goodbye)" - A-side is Track 7 on Disc 1)

16. You're Good For Me (October 1963 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2205, A-side)

17. Dance Dance Dance (August 1965 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2299, B-side of "Someone Is Watching" - A-side is Track 10 on Disc 2)

18. Everybody Needs Somebody To Love (July 1964 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2241, A-side - B-side is Track 3 on Disc 1) 

19. Tonight's The Night (May 1965 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2288, A-side)

20. Baby, Come On Home (December 1965 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2314, A-side)

21. If You Need Me (March 1963 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2185, A-side)

22. The Price (October 1964 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2259, A-side)

Disc 2 (57:53 minutes):

1. Get Out Of My Life Woman (from the 1968 album "I Wish I Knew" on Atlantic SD 8185 in Stereo)

2. Save It  (from the 1968 album "I Wish I Knew" on Atlantic SD 8185 in Stereo)

3. Take Me (Just As I Am) (June 1967 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2416, A-side - B-side is Track 13 on Disc 2)

4. When She Touches Me (October 1966 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2359, A-side - B-side is Track 17 on Disc 2)

5. I Wish I Knew (April 1968 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2507, A-side - B-side is Track 14 on Disc 2)

6. Party People (February 1968 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2483, A-side)

7. Keep A Light In The Window (January 1967 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2378, A-side - B-side is Track 16 on Disc 2)

8. I Feel A Sin Coming On (March 1966 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2327, A-side)

9. Meet Me In Church (June 1968 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2527, B-side of "Save It")

10. Someone Is Watching (August 1965 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2299, A-side - B-side is Track 17 on Disc 1)

11. Detroit City (November 1967 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2459, A-side - B-side is Track 18 on Disc 2)

12. Shame On Me (from the 1968 album "I Wish I Knew" on Atlantic SD 8185 in Stereo)

13. I Stayed Away Too Long (June 1967 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2416, B-side of "Take Me (Just As I Am") - A-side is Track 3 on Disc 2)

14. It's Just A Matter Of Time (April 1968 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2507, B-side of "I Wish I Knew (How It Would Feel To Be Free)" - A-side is Track 5 on Disc 2)

15. Since I Met You Baby (from the 1968 album "I Wish I Knew" on Atlantic SD 8185 in Stereo)

16. Time Is A Thief (January 1967 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2378, B-side of "Keep A Light In The Window Until I Get Home" - A-side is Track 7 on Disc 2)

17. Woman, How Do You Make Me Love You Like I Do (October 1966 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2359, B-side of "When She Touches Me" - A-side is Track 4 on Disc 2)

18. It's Been A Change (November 1967 US 7" single on Atlantic 45-2459, B-side of "Detroit City" - A-side is Track 11 on Disc 2)

19. What'd I Say (from the 1968 album "I Wish I Knew" on Atlantic SD 8185 in Stereo)

The 22-page booklet has illuminating and often-hilarious liner notes by GERI HIRSHEY on the larger-than-life Burke of whom it was said could sing to soften or arouse on a dime. The famous Atlantic Records albums "I Wish I Knew" and "Rock 'N Soul" are given full pages and there's a hugely detailed track-by-track Sessionography where you'll spot names like King Curtis and Sam Taylor (Saxophones), Eric Gale, Reggie Young, Billy Butler, Joe South and Jimmy Johnson (Guitars) with Spooner Oldham (Organ) - creamy company indeed. The track list at the rear even gives you Master Tape Numbers and US R&B and Pop chart positions. To the music... 

"...You laughed...you called me my personal clown in front of your friends...you cost me..." - pity poor Solomon as he wails like a man with a nail in his head never mind his shoe on "The Price" - typical melodrama where he does all but weep and ask the Lord for mercy (can't unfortunately help but think that he's heard these calls before from butter-wouldn't-melt in his mouth Solomon). I'd have to say that the Bear Family "Sweet Soul Music - 1961" Remaster for "Just Out Of Reach (For My Two Empty Arms)" is far better than what's on offer here - but that doesn't stop it from being wickedly period. Even better is the sexy shuffle of "Got To Get You Off My Mind" where Solomon's gal has only gone and found someone new and better (so it ain't so papa) - Sam Taylor and Charles Brown punching out those boppin' horns.

But the beauty of this vaults-trawl is that it gives you deeper stuff than obvious compilation cuts like "Cry To Me" and the titular "Home In Your Heart" - dig those 1968 shimmy-shaker LP tracks on Disc 2 like "Save It" (when Solomon gets home he’s gonna have needs) and his call-and-response version of the Ray Charles classic "What’d I Say" – an overdone tune that he brings something new to (Bobby Emmons giving it a bit of Ray on the electric piano while Reggie Young (who only passed this year) plays cool guitar licks. He gets preachy and down with Gospel-Soul on fantastic smoochers like "Meet Me In Church", the quarrelling song "Shame On Me" and the pleader "I Stayed Away Too Long". The intro to "Detroit City" might be a tad hissy but those Joe South and Jimmy Johnson guitar flicks keep things interesting, whilst legendary kit-man Roger Hawkins anchors the brass chugging along to the backbeat like they were to the musical manor born. Burke even keeps up with changing times by covering the Staples Singer educational-call-to-arms stomper "It's Been A Change" - pleading with Washington to open their ears.

A fabulous wealth of Soul, Gospel, Boogie and damn it – sexiness! "...All of the time I keep saying, I'm gonna quit you, but, but, but..." - Solomon stammer-sings on "Woman, How Do You Make Me Love You Like I Do" – bemoaning his dreadful and not in the least bit self-inflicted lovelorn fate (easy on that man woman). Grooviest sounds around and then some...

"I'm Not Talkin' - The Song Stylings Of Mose Allison 1957-71" by MOSE ALLISON (October Ace/2016 BGP CD Compilation of Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

"...Swingin' Machine..."

Like myself (and so many others I suspect) - I became aware of the mighty American Jazz swinger Mose Allison via England's Modfather Georgie Fame.

In fact in a 2016 interview, Fame admits that in 1964 an introduction by a musician friend to one of Allison's imported US Hard Bop LPs, Georgie initially nicked Moses' scat vocal styles/cadences to such a point that it was hard at times to tell the two apart! Only three songs into this uber-groovy UK CD compilation brought to us hipsters by those cool types over at Ace Records on their Beat Goes Public imprint label (BGP) - and you can so hear how true that is. Lifetime fan Georgie boy was (you have to say) always on the style money – seventh son of a seventh son indeed – he knew the one.

Culling tracks from Allison albums on Prestige (Fifties) and Columbia, Epic and Atlantic (Sixties and Seventies) - you get 18 cuts in glorious Stereo and 6 in pin-sharp Mono - Allison on Piano and Vocals throughout. Let's get to the Swingin' Machine...

UK released Friday, 28 October 2016 (4 November 2016 in the USA) - "I'm Not Talkin' - The Song Stylings Of MOSE ALLISON 1957-1971" by MOSE ALLISON on Ace/Beat Goes Public (BGP) CDBGPD 304 (Barcode 029667077828) is a 24-Track CD Compilation of Remasters that plays out as follows (61:32 minutes):

1. I'm Not Talkin' (from the 1964 US LP "The Word From Mose" on Atlantic SD 1424 in Stereo)

2. Parchman Flying (from the 1958 US LP "Young Man Mose" on Prestige PRLP 7121 in Mono)

3. Foolkiller (from the 1964 US LP "The Word From Mose" on Atlantic SD 1424 in Stereo)

4. If You Only Knew (from the 1971 US LP "Western Man" on Atlantic SD 1584 in Stereo)

5. Baby, Please Don't Go (from the 1960 US LP "Transfiguration Of Hiram Brown" on Columbia CS 8240 in Stereo)

6. The Seventh Son (from the 1958 US LP "Creek Bank" on Prestige PRLP 7152 in Mono)

7. I'm Smashed (from the 1970 US LP "...Hello There, Universe" on Atlantic SD 1550 in Stereo)

8. Wild Man On The Loose (from the 1966 US LP "Wild Man On The Loose" on Atlantic SD 1456 in Stereo)

9. If You're Goin' To The City (from the 1963 US LP "Swingin' Machine" on Atlantic SD 1398 in Stereo)

10. Everybody Cryin' Mercy (from the 1968 US LP "I've Been Doin' Some Thinkin'" on Atlantic SD 1511 in Stereo)

11. I Love The Life I Live (from the 1960 US LP "I Love The Life I Live" on Columbia CS 8365 in Stereo)

12. Young Man's Blues (from the 1957 US LP "Back Country Suite For Piano, Bass And Drums" on Prestige PRLP 7091 in Mono)

13. Back On The Corner (from the 1962 US LP "Takes To The Hills" on Epic BA 17031 in Stereo)

14. You Can Count On Me To Do My Part (from the 1966 US LP "Wild Man On The Loose" on Atlantic SD 1456 in Stereo)

15. Lost Mind (from the 1958 US LP "Young Man Mose" on Prestige PRLP 7121 in Mono)

16. Eyesight To The Blind (from the 1959 US LP "Autumn Song" on Prestige PRLP 7189 in Mono)

17. Your Mind Is On Vacation (from the 1962 US LP "I Don't Worry About A Thing" on Atlantic SD 1389 in Stereo)

18. Jus Like Livin' (from the 1968 US LP "I've Been Doin' Some Thinkin'" on Atlantic SD 1511 in Stereo)

19. If You Live (from the 1958 US LP "Creek Bank" on Prestige PRLP 7152 in Mono)

20. V-8 Ford Blues (from the 1962 US LP "Takes To The Hills" on Epic BA 17031 in Stereo)

21. Your Molecular Structure (from the 1968 US LP "I've Been Doin' Some Thinkin'" on Atlantic SD 1511 in Stereo)

22. Hello There, Universe (from the 1970 US LP "...Hello There, Universe" on Atlantic SD 1550 in Stereo)

23. Western Man (from the 1971 US LP "Western Man" on Atlantic SD 1584 in Stereo)

24. Swingin' Machine (from the 1963 US LP "Swingin' Machine" on Atlantic SD 1398 in Stereo)

Track 11 by The Mose Allison Trio, all other tracks by Mose Allison

Tracks 1, 3 to 5, 7 to 11, 13, 14 and 17, 18 and 20 to 24 are in STEREO - Tracks 2, 6, 12, 15, 16 and 19 are in MONO

Compiled and Annotated by long-time Ace Records associate DEAN RUDLAND - the 16-page booklet features informative liner notes and all those oh-so cool 50ts and 60ts album covers - Mose sat in a wicker chair for "Young Man Mose" and our Al looking a bit more man-about-town and with-it for "The Word From Mose" - a 1964 album that contains two of his most popular tunes in Blighty - "I'm Not Talkin'" and "Foolkiller" - covered by The Yardbirds and Brian Auger & The Trinity. Those rare Esquire Records British EPs for "Back Country Suite" and "Mose Allison" are pictured as are label repros for American 7" singles you never see either like "Parchman Farm" (Prestige PR 295) and "The Seventh Son" (Prestige 150). Very tasty...

DUNCAN COWELL has done the Audio Mastering and all sounds tickety-boo (as you would expect from labels like Prestige, Columbia and Atlantic).

I’ve always loved his suave covers of the Joe Williams, Willie Dixon and Sonny Boy Williamson Blues and R&B classics "Baby Please Don't Go", "The Seventh Son" and "Eyesight To The Blind" - and the way he makes the witty lyrics sound like he penned them all along. He also gives Percy Mayfield a whirl on his version of "Lost Mind", but just in case you’re thinking he can’t cut a laugh himself – try out the sexy "Your Molecular Structure" or the deprecating "Wild Man On The Loose" or sly jabbing in "Your Mind Is On Vacation". Even in the early Seventies when he was wearing Afghans, tie-dye shirts and beads – he still managed to feel hip and swinging on cuts like "Hello There, Universe" and "I'm Smashed".

For sure his style of vocals and almost tripping-over-itself deadpan delivery may not be to everyone’s tastes, but if ever a CD compilation was an ample advertisement for why so many thought Mose Allison so influential and worthy of worship – them "I'm Not Talkin'" is it. Yeah baby and nice job done...

"On The Detroit Beat: Motor City Soul UK Style 1963-67" by VARIOUS (February 2019 UK Ace Records CD Compilation of Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

"...Sweet Thing..."

I must admit that when I copped the theme behind this 2019 Ace Records CD compilation (tuned-in and turned-on British lads and lassies and their 1963 to 1967 Blighty-released cover versions of Motown songs) - I wobbled a smidge on the basis that it would be boring or probably overly familiar (I'll already own much of it).

But compiler Tony Rounce and those sexually keen tastemakers over at Steele Road were already one step ahead of a musical Luddite like moi. Instead of taking the lazy but commercially more viable lets go for the "My Girl" and "Baby Love" biggest-hits route - Ace have dug in deep and unearthed overlooked moments of glory - one from Herbie Goins that TR even hypostasises might exceed the Motown original (and I think he's right). Here we get Chris Clark, Barrett Strong, The Monitors, Brenda Holloway, The Spinners, R. Dean Taylor and Carolyn Crawford as well as the to-be-expected Miracles, Marvin Gaye, Temptations, Supremes and the ever impressive Martha & The Vandellas who nab three slots.

In other words even though I have Stevie Winwood in The Spencer Davis Group doing a towering torch version of Brenda Holloway's "Every Little Bit Hurts" and the mighty Steve Marriott's throat-ripping take on "You Really Got A Hold On Me" with The Small Faces (like I suspect most Soul-Rock lovers do) - much of the others are new to me. UK obscuro acts like Truly Smith (now a school head-mistress) doing a (no pun intended) truly fab cut of the Smokey Robinson penned "My Smile Is Just A Frown (Turned Upside Down)" and Guy Darrell doing a long since forgotten Marvin Gaye B-side called "One Of These Days" are just the kind of talcum powder discoveries chaps like me like to make (there goes the kitchen lino again). This is a joyful listen all the way through and the choices exceedingly clever. As with-it DJs used to pronounce, let's get to the 'New Sounds Around'...

UK released Friday, 1 February 2019 (8 February 2019 in the USA) - "On The Detroit Beat: Motor City Soul UK Style 1963-67" by VARIOUS ARTISTS on Ace Records CDTOP 1539 (Barcode 029667093422) is a 24-Track CD compilation of Remasters that plays out as follows (64:58 minutes): 

1. Mickey's Monkey - THE HOLLIES [Smokey Robinson & The Miracles cover, Mono, 1965 UK LP "Hollies" on Parlophone PMC 1261]

2. As Long As I Know He's Mine - JULIE GRANT [Marvelettes cover, Mono, 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15884]

3. Money (That's What I Want) - THE UNDERTAKERS [Barrett Strong cover, Mono, 1963 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15562] 

4. I Want A Love I Can See - JOHN LEYTON & THE LeROYS [Temptations cover, Mono, 1964 UK 7" single on HMV POP 1338]

5. Sweet Thing - GEORGIE FAME [Spinners cover, Mono, from the 1966 UK LP "Sweet Things" on Columbia SX 6043]

6. I'll Be Doggone - BILLY J KRAMER & THE DAKOTAS [Marvin Gaye cover, Mono, 1965 UK 7" single on Parlophone R 5362]

7. Two Lovers - LOUISE CORDET [Mary Wells cover, Mono, 1964 UK 7" single on Decca F.11875]

8. Shake Sherry Shake - BERN ELIOTT & THE FENMEN [Contours cover, Mono, 1963 UK 6-Track 7" EP single "Bern Elliott and The Fenmen" on Decca DFE 8561]

9. You've Really Got A Hold On Me - SMALL FACES [Miracles cover, Mono, on the 1967 UK LP "From The Beginning" on Decca LK 4879]

10. The Way You Do The Things You Do - ELKIE BROOKS [Temptations cover, Mono, 1965 UK 7" single on Decca F.12061]

11. I Want To Go Back There Again - BILL KENWRIGHT & THE RUNAWAYS [Chris Clark cover, Mono, 1967 UK 7" single on Columbia DB 8239]

12. When The Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes - DUSTY SPRINGFIELD [Supremes cover, Stereo, on the 1964 UK LP "A Girl Called Dusty" on Philips SBL 7594]

13. One Of These Days - GUY DARRELL [Marvin Gaye cover, Mono, 1965 UK 7" single on CBS 201806]

14. (Love Is Like A) Heat Wave - BEVERLEY JONES with THE PRESTONS [Martha & The Vandellas cover, Mono, 1964 UK 7" single on Parlophone R 5189]

15. No. 1 In Your Heart - HERBIE GOINS & THE NIGHT-TIMERS [The Monitors cover, Mono, 1966 UK 7" single on Parlophone R 5478]

16. Every Little Bit Hurts - THE SPENCER DAVIS GROUP [Brenda Holloway cover, Mono, 1965 UK 7" single on Fontana TF 530]

17. Stubborn Kind Of Fellow - THE ROULETTES [Miracles cover, Mono, 1964 UK 7" single on Parlophone R 5218]

18. You're My Remedy - HELEN SHAPIRO [Marvelettes cover, Mono, first released 1998 on the Various Artists CD compilation "At Abbey Road 1961-1967"]

19. No Good Without You - THE BIRDS (featuring Ron Wood) [Marvin Gaye cover, Mono, 1965 UK 7" single on Decca F.12257]

20. My Smile Is Just A Frown (Turned Upside Down) - TRULY SMITH [Carolyn Crawford cover, Mono, 1966 UK 7" single on Decca F.12373]

21. Never Leave Your Baby's Side - TONY JACKSON [Martha & The Vandellas cover, Mono, April 1966 UK 7" single on CBS 202069]

22. Let's Go Somewhere - BERYL MARSDEN [R. Dean Taylor cover, Mono, 1966 UK 7" single on Columbia DB 7888]

23. In My Lonely Room (Mono Single Version) - THE ACTION [Martha & The Vandellas cover, Mono, 1965 UK 7" single on Parlophone R 5354]

24. Shotgun - CILLA BLACK & SOUNDS INCORPORATED [Jnr. Walker And The All Stars cover, Stereo, a 1965 George Martin produced outtake from her first LP that first appeared on the April 2012 "Completely Cilla: 1963-1973" 5CD/1DVD Box Set on EMI 5099960283221]

All Tracks MONO except Tracks 12 and 24, which are STEREO

The 24-page booklet is the usual feast of publicity photos, bun haircuts, trade adverts, British demo singles (Louise Cordet's "Two Lovers" on Decca F.11875 graces the rear inlay beneath the see-through CD tray), the rare Bern Elliott EP, a foreign picture sleeve for "No Good Without You" by The Birds with a moody looking Ron Wood contemplating four or five decades in The Rolling Stones and so on. TONY ROUNCE pours on the facts and figures and it makes for a fascinating read - while the hugely experienced Audio Engineer NICK ROBBINS did the mastering - all of it sounding bright and Mono breezy.

An upbeat Julie Grant gives it some bobba-loo and doesn't care if the sun doesn't shine 'cause her baby's true in "As Long As I Know He's Mine" while The Undertakers get suitably graveyard-gritty with a boss version of Barrett Strong's "Money (That's What I Want)". The brass arrangements in George Fame's "Sweet Thing" and the 'really saying something' sway is the very definition of what a great cover should be - you can just see the dancefloor fill ten seconds into its joyful groove.

Dusty does her bopping drama thing on "When The Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes" (fab photo of la Springfield on Page 13 giving it some shimmy for the camera) while The Roulettes get yeah-yeah-yeah on "Stubborn Kind Of Fellow" informing their intended that they’ve plans for their kisses. The Truly Smith cut is fantastic Northern Soul stuff and an inexplicable flop when it was first released in 1966 – her voice expressive and yet innocent like so much of those 60ts chanteuses were. Tony Jackson and his Phil Spector-huge production on "Never Leave Your Baby’s Side" is another ribcage destroyer while "In My Room" by The Action reeks of a classy British response to magical black music.

There is so much more on here, but I’ll leave that for you to discover – and once again Ace nail it – top job boys...

"Dead Bees On A Cake" by DAVID SYLVIAN (October 2018 Virgin/UMC UK 2LP 180-Grams Black Vinyl Reissue with 4 Bonus Tracks and Digital Download Code) - A Review by Mark Barry...

October 2018 2LP 'Black Vinyl' Reissue - Black Sleeve Artwork

"...Praise..."

When the album "Dead Bees On A Cake" was released by David Sylvian towards the tail end of March 1999 on compact disc (Virgin CDV 2876) - vinyl wasn't the order of the day. Man how things change...

The first LP outing for his 9th solo album (after fronting Japan in the 80ts) came in April 2018 on White Vinyl as a 2LP-set with four Bonus Tracks and altered artwork - Virgin 671 524-6 (Barcode 602567152460). A Record Store Day exclusive, the 'white' front cover featured photos of Sylvian hugging his then wife Ingrid Chavez, both in white shirts (she took the classy snaps).

What we have here is technically a reissue of that. For this October 2018 2LP Expanded Edition 'reissue' on 180-Gram Black Vinyl (standard coloured vinyl for the first time) - Virgin 671 524-3 (Barcode 602567152439) takes the hugging pose and flips it over to the rear sleeve (this time in black coats) and puts a face-profile photo of just Sylvian on his own (in black) on the front along with a 'hype' sticker.

The running order for both issues of the double-album (over the CD) has also been altered with four Bonus Tracks slotted in - "The Scent Of Magnolia", "Albuquerque (Dobro #6)", "Cover Me With Flowers" and "Aparna and Nimisha (Dobro #5)" - all of which first appeared as DB outtakes on the October 2000 Virgin Records 2CD retrospective "Everything & Nothing".

For those of us used to the playing order of the 14-track 1999 CD - this 'Expanded Edition' 18-Track "Dead Bees On A Cake" double vinyl album is a shocker in that it feels so damn right - the extras having made an already great album even better. For instance the CD ran "I Surrender", "Dobro #1" and "Midnight Sun" as the first three tracks - here a brilliant "The Scent Of Magnolia" slots in as Track 2 and works magically - like it was always meant to be there. 

The same applies to the newly configured Side B with the Up-period Peter Gabriel-ish "Cover Me With Flowers". The playing with his children song "Aparna and Nimisha (Dobro #5)" is admittedly only one-minute long, but it's gorgeous nonetheless and acts as a fabulously delicate lead-in to the heavy-heavy "Pollen Path" track that now ends Side C. Here are the 2LP track details (* denotes Bonus Track)...

Side A:

1. I Surrender

2. The Scent Of Magnolia *

3. Dobro #1

4. Midnight Sun

Side B:

1. Cover Me With Flowers *

2. Krishna Blue

3. Albuquerque (Dobro #6) *

Side C:

1. Thalheim

2. Alphabet Angel

3. God Man

4. Cafe Europa

5. Aparna and Nimisha (Dobro #5) *

6. Pollen Path

Side D:

1. The Shining Of Things

2. Wanderlust

3. All Of My Mother's Names (Summers With Amma)

4. Praise (Pratah Smarami)

5. Darkest Dreaming

The new gatefold artwork is gorgeous, there are two inner sleeves with track-by-track musician credits (Ryuichi Sakamoto, Marc Ribot, Steve Jansen, Talvin Singh, Kenny Wheeler, Steve Tibbetts, Bill Frisell to name but a few) and the inner gatefold gives further recording and guest info. There is also a one-time Download Redeem Card with exclusive code to get your digital copy from The Sound Of Vinyl website.

I got my copy for twenty-two quid and it sounds beautiful – even something as quiet and serene as "Praise (Pratah Smarami)" is so sweet audiowise - the Mother Earth ethereal vocals of guest singer Shree Maa aching over a lone Sylvian guitar – his treated notes slipping in and out of the soundscape like shimmering water. The album ends on the equally peaceful stay tonight hold me close song "Darkest Dreaming" – an alternative sounds love song.

As a reissue, this is the way to go, beautifully done...

The artwork for the 1999 original CD issue of "Dead Bees..." on Virgin CDV 2876