No doubt many of you have already heard about the upcoming Neil Young albums that are planned for the upcoming Neil Young Archives, Volume 2. The albums that are being included are completed works that have long been shelved in favor of other albums during the period that range from the mid-'70s to the early '80s. Since Neil Young is in a mood to deliver the complete Neil Young (he's expected to deliver many volumes) retrospective, he has brought out these legendary reclusive titles, dusted them off with new remastering from the original analogue tapes, and - here's the surprise - plans to first offer them as vinyl LPs apart from the Archives set simply because that is the way they were originally intended.

Involved in this release are Chrome Dreams, which has been bootlegged in the past, Homegrown (shelved for Tonight's The Night, and was cannabalized to provide tracks for other releases), Oceanside-Countryside, and a Live set called Odeon-Budokan, which made way for Rust Never Sleeps, that delivers the Young 1976 tour. If you're a big fan, it might be time to either pull out that dusty turntable or pick one up.

This makes me wonder how many bands from our past have albums like these that were shelved in favor of something that seemed more edgy and current. It would not surprise me if Led Zeppelin, The Who, even The Rolling Stones, and many others have albums that were completed but never were released.

I think that fans could benefit from an official release of such albums. Yes, they may not be up to full standards but then again, there might be some real gems that many of us have not heard. I'd be pleased to be able to acquire a copy of an old unreleased album from many bands because, at this point, it isn't about perfection any longer where these older bands are concerned, it's about "...what else did they have tucked into their sleeves because i wanna hear it!"

I think that it's great that Neil Young is providing his fans with this kind of in-depth look at his creative processes throughout the years and decades. If I'm a big Young fan, I'd want them! Imagine if Bruce Springsteen had an album's worth of extra songs between Born to Run and Darkness on the Edge of Town. Or as Led Zeppelin moved between sounds on IV and Houses of The Holy, they had a lot of extra songs that had no home. Or as prolific a songwriter Pete Townshend is, the band garnered a batch of completed songs that couldn't fit on an album (although The Who tried to fill in a gap of sorts with the outtakes album, Odds and Sods). Personally, I'd want all of those.

Just a thought!

Mike Duquette of The Second Disc has turned in a review of the recently released Deluxe Edition (2CD/DVD) of So Red The Rose by Duran Duran side project, Arcadia.

I want to alert TAP readers to the fact that I have finally put together a FaceBook fan page that you can access and join by clicking on the badge below.  What this offers is the exact same thing as my Twitter feeds provide and that is first buzz on upcoming releases and free offered downloads, many announcements  that beat our main post, sometimes by days.  We also provide a Google BUZZ page that expands on most of the Twitter/FB feeds. On Buzz, you can even hear the music stream if a stream is offered.  There are still things that I'm working on in the FB page, like calender notes as well as links to great sites like The Second Disc.  I invite you to join us at our FB page and bookmark it.  Visit it daily and you'll be rewarded with much news and info.  Of course, you'll still want to come to the main MusicTAP page for our noisy commentaries.  Remember, with our Twitter feeds, you can elect to receive the news bursts as text on your mobile phone keeping you effortlessly up to date with stuff.  Lots of choices.  Find one, or two, that fits.

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Island Records will release the BD (Blu-ray) Live set from The Airborne Toxic Event to be called All I Ever Wanted: Live From The Walt Disney Concert Hall, with a planned date of September 7. The Live document also releases as a DVD, same date.

Rounder Records will release Page One by Steven Page on September 28.

Mercury Records plan the DD (Digital Download) re-release of Beauty Stab (1983), scheduling the ABC album for August 10. Other DDs coming down the pike include two Camel albums, Moonmadness (1976), and Music Inspired by The Snow Goose (1975), both in a Rarities Edition release and scheduled by Hip-O for August 10. Also coming from Hip-O is a Rarities Edition DD by John Martyn of his Solid Air (1973), same date.

Island Records plan the DD edition of Digital Box Set for Nick Drake on August 10.

Grateful Dead Warner Bros Vinyl Box retailing for $134.98 will celebrate the 40th Anniversary of Workingman's Dead and American Beauty with 180g LPs that include The Grateful Dead (1967), Workingman's Dead (1970), American Beauty (1970), Anthem of the Sun (1968), and Aoxomoxoa (1969). The set comes in a hard-shell case and includes a 12" x 12" book with photos and new liner notes. The set is available on September 21 from Rhino Records. Pre-orders from http://www.dead.net get a free 7" reproduction of "Dark Star" (1968) b/w "Born Cross-Eyed" as well as a free promotional poster of the first album. Don't miss this opportunity.

Mercury Records has the DD version of Non-Stop Erotic Cafe (1981) by Soft Cell planned for August 10, while Polydor has the DD version of The Cost of Loving (1987) by The Style Council slated for August 10.

Eagle Rock Entertainment is continuing their Rockpalast Live DVD series with one for Nils Logren from his Cry Tough tour called Cry Tough, which is planned for August 10.

Slayer will reissue some long out of print Live DVDs as well as introduce an old VHS title to DVD on August 17. The titles include War At the Warfield (2003), Still Reigning (2004), and the 'new to DVD' Live Intrusion (1995). All titles will be sold separately but will also be be issued in a Limited Edition 3-pak DVD set.

The new album by the Ryan Montbleau Band, called Heavy on the Vine, is expected on September 21.

The fourth download from Dead Heart Bloom, planned for their upcoming collection of Live takes, outtakes, and demos called Alt Takes. Live Songs. Unreleased Tracks. is now currently available for free download. The song is a cover of "Raspberry Beret" (Prince). It's easy to get. The album is planned for release on August 31.