LOS ANGELES (Mercury; UMe) - Four landmark albums, from rock to country to jazz, comprise the next slate of SACD (Super Audio CD) Hybrid releases from UMe.
Issued July 13, 2004 are THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND AT FILLMORE EAST and EAT A PEACH from The Allman Brothers Band, HIGH LONESOME SOUND from Vince Gill and LOVE SCENES from Diana Krall. Each album can access not only the sonically superior SACD Stereo and SACD Surround Sound formats on SACD players but can also be played on CD and DVD-Video machines.
THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND AT FILLMORE EAST (Mercury/UMe) is one of the greatest double live albums of all time. The band's third album and first major hit, the 1971 release transformed the group from a regional fave into national superstars and ignited the fashion for double live albums. Though it peaked at just No 13 on the charts, the album quickly sold more than a million copies.
With Willie McTell's "Statesboro Blues," Elmore James' "Done Somebody Wrong," a near-nine-minute rendering of the T. Bone Walker chestnut "Stormy Monday," an epic 20-minute "You Don't Love Me," triumphant "Hot 'Lanta," 13-minute take on Dickey Betts' "In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed" and 23-minute showstopper in "Whipping Post," the album is a classic.
EAT A PEACH (Mercury/UMe) became a tribute to Duane Allman after he was killed in a motorcycle accident 14 days after the release of THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND AT FILLMORE EAST. Their second double album in a row and their first album to reach the Top 10, 1972's EAT A PEACH went platinum featuring additional cuts from the Fillmore East concerts, such as the 33-minute "Mountain Jam," and studio tracks both with and without Duane, including "Melissa."
HIGH LONESOME SOUND (MCA Nashville) did not make Vince Gill a star; he was already one of the most popular country stars of the '90s, with platinum albums, hit songs and a slew of awards. But when 1996's HIGH LONESOME SOUND went platinum, No 3 Country, and Top 30 pop, it was a high-water mark for roots Americana. Mixing bluegrass with contemporary country, the album spun off the Top 5 Country hits "Worlds Apart," "Pretty Little Adriana" and "A Little More Love." The title track, performed with Alison Krauss and Union Station, reached Top 15 Country.
LOVE SCENES (Verve) found singer/pianist Diana Krall on her way to stardom. Her fourth album, 1997's LOVE SCENES teamed her with guitarist Russell Malone and bassist Christian McBride and hit No 1 Jazz. Spotlighting love ballads such as Peggy Lee's "I Don't Know Enough About You," "I Don't Stand A Ghost Of A Chance With You," Irving Berlin's "How Deep Is The Ocean" and the Gershwins' "They Can't Take That Away From Me," the gold-certified Love Scenes preceded her 1999 masterpiece WHEN I LOOK IN YOUR EYES.
