BMG レコード& CD

Review: A four-CD career retrospective of Motorhead's iconic guitarist, coupled with a 320-page book, is set for release via BMG. Authoured by veteran rock journalist Kris Needs, in collaboration with Clarke's widow Mariko Fujiwara, the book provides a detailed account of Clarke's life and career. The narrative begins with Clarke's formative years, from his early musical inspirations to his significant collaborations, including recording with Curtis Knight. The story delves into his pivotal years with Motorhead (1976-1982), the formation of Fastway, and his solo endeavours. Personal insights from Mariko and Clarke's close friends enrich the biography, offering a look into his life beyond the stage. The CDs include The Early Years, featuring tracks from Zeus, Continuous Performance, and the Muggers. Motorhead Era, highlighting hits like 'Ace Of Spades,' unreleased demos and Eddie's work with Girlschool, Fastway, which showcases the band's evolution with demos, remixes, and tracks from eight albums and the Solo Years, focusing on his solo albums and collaborations. Stories don't come much more comprehensive than this.

Review: The ongoing success of the musical showcasing his work, the terrific (and very Sheffield-centric) Standing At The Sky's Edge, has done much to remind listeners of Richard Hawley's qualities as a songwriter. He's genuinely one of Britain's best of the last few decades, though the varied ways in which those are presented has not always gone down well with listeners. On In This City They Call You Love - another reference to beloved Sheffield - Hawley returns to the smooth, string-laden sound which marked out his most commercially successful album, Coles Corner. His voice - deep, rich and at this point bordering iconic - naturally takes centre stage on a set packed with touching and thoughtful ballads. It's a winner, but then the majority of his albums are.

Review: We Take No Prisoners is a definitive collection of the band's singles from 1995 to 2006, presented as a nine 7" single box set, and expanded double CD and digital editions. Spanning tracks like the relentless 'Sacrifice', their distinctive cover of the Sex Pistols' 'God Save The Queen', and the semi-acoustic 'Whorehouse Blues', the compilation highlights the band's enduring songwriting talent. The set also includes rare live and radio edits, along with a previously unreleased promo interview with Lemmy and Mikkey Dee from 2004. This collection captures the essence of an era and the songs that fuelled the success of the albums they came from.

Review: A posthumous Lee 'Scratch' Perry box set is here, designed to co-incide with the anniversary of the dub pioneer's passing, courtesy of the star's main advocates Trojan Records. Including a digital version, a CD and a 4xLP version, it also comes with a 50-page fully illustrated book written by Perry's official biographer David Katz. It contains rare and unreleased mixes and tunes alongside some of his best known work, with Junior Murvin's reggae staple 'Police And Thieves' and the Upsetters' boss reggae classic 'Return Of Django' numbering among the 109 tracks included .