Thirty Tigers
Following up on their 2001 Nashville songwriting marathon that yielded more than 30 songs (13 of which ended up on 2004’s spectacular “Headed for the Hills”), Lauderdale and Grateful Dead lyricist Robert Hunter this time penned their material during three visits by Lauderdale to Hunter’s home in San Rafael, Calif.
Spark & Shine
The Portland, Ore.-based power pop quintet finally releases its sophomore effort, six years after “Comes Back to You” and four years after the stopgap “Ghost Sessions” EP.
Aglaophone
If a compilation of tone-heavy instrumental electric guitar music were ever issued (“Titans of Tone” would be a great title), it would have to include cuts by artists such as the Hellecasters, Joe Satriani, Eric Johnson, Jeff Beck, Steve Morse, Johnny Hiland, Jazz Is Dead, Ronnie Earl, Steve Howe, Redd Volkaert, Albert Lee, Danny Gatton — and Johnny A.
UnrefinedSugarBeats
The Toronto-based and “nearly instrumental” Henrys, founded in 1990 by last original member Don Rooke (reunited here on four tracks with bassist Paul Pasmore of the original duo), previously dabbled in mostly wordless vocals by elusive chanteuse Mary Margaret O’Hara.
RCA/Legacy
The King finally has a box set fit for a king. After years of such multidisc compilations as “I Believe — The Gospel Masters,” “The Complete ’68 Comeback Special,” “The Music of Elvis Presley — The 1950s,” “Elvis at the Movies” and “The Country Side of Elvis,” Legacy Recordings commemmorates what would have been the Mississippi Tupelo Flash’s 75th birthday with a career-spanning chronological sampler of 100 songs (incorporating the entire “30 #1 Hits” release) that keeps the singer’s forays in proportion to his artistic success.
