This today on icemagazine.com:
Elvis Costello
When it comes to upgrading Elvis Costello’s remarkable back catalog, there has always been space for more bonus material. But rarely has there been room for improvement to the original albums.
On August 3, Rhino reissues two-CD packages of 1981’s Almost Blue, 1984’s Goodbye Cruel World and 1995’s Kojak Variety. As with previous batches, the newly remastered original LP is preserved on Disc One while Disc Two mixes previously unreleased demos, alternates and outtakes with B-sides and other rarities that appeared on earlier Rykodisc reissues.
"This is different from other albums where we’ve had bonus discs that expand upon the record," reissue co-producer Gary Stewart tells ICE. "I personally believe we have three bonus discs that either challenge or best the original albums."
Stewart says the bonus CDs cast a revealing light on the artistic process. "Goodbye Cruel World shows how a record went wrong; Almost Blue tells the story of how The Attractions came to approach country music in different ways; and Kojak Variety is a demonstration of an artist’s loves and influences."
–David Okamoto