Gone Digital: New Order, The Meters, Mary Coughlan, and Chris Spedding
If it’s Tuesday, then it must be time for Gone Digital, our weekly look at five albums which may not even realize are part of Rhino’s digital catalog. As ever, the types of music we’ll be covering will be all over the place, but that’s Rhino for you: we’re all about variety!
• New Order, SUBSTANCE (1987): After being unavailable on streaming services for a fair while, the first definitive New Order best-of compilation is finally back for your listening enjoyment. And, yes, it’s the full two-disc version, so you may rejoice accordingly.
• The Meters, UPTOWN RULERS! LIVE ON THE QUEEN MARY (1992): This is a pretty momentous live album no matter how you look at it. In addition to being the only concert recording from this period of the Meters’ long career, it’s also notable for having been recorded at the album release party for Wings’ VENUS AND MARS, which was hosted by – no surprise here – Paul and Linda McCartney on board the famed vessel. So, no, it wasn’t some cleverly-named nightclub, it was the real ship!
• Mary Coughlan, UNCERTAIN PLEASURES (1990): Produced by Peter Glenister, best known at the time for his work with Terence Trent D’Arby, this was Coughlan’s third studio album and features a couple of fun covers (“Mother’s Little Helper” and “Heartbreak Hotel”), as well as some songs from Mark Nevin and backing vocals on one tune from Kirsty MacColl.
• Chris Spedding, BACKWOOD PROGRESSION (1971) / THE ONLY LICK I KNOW (1972): These two albums from early in Spedding’s career finds him still evolving as a musician, delivering a more folk-rock sound on the former but beginning a more solidly rock sound on the latter. THE ONLY LICK I KNOW is notable for having been engineered by Alan Parsons.
