2025 In Music Part 3: Reissues, Box Sets, Compilations and Rediscoveries Part 1

There is so much of this, I’ve had to split it into (at least) two parts, with hopefully the rest being ready tomorrow. There is an incredible amount of great material to enjoy here - and it’s worth remembering the year need not be entirely about the new. 

ARTIST	TITLE	LABEL	INFO
Ahmed Essyad	Moroccan Electroacoustic Music 1972-74	Sub Rosa	Compilation of work by Moroccan composer - “Synthesis means anticipation, knowledge. I write to discover what I don’t know.”
Air	The Virgin Suicides Redux	Warner	A new analog mix of the excellent soundtrack for its 25th anniversary plus some demos and rarities.
Aksak Maboul	Before Aksak Maboul (Documents & Experiments 1969-1977)	Crammed Lab	Collection of the foundational material that resulted in the formation of the great Belgian experimental band.
Alan Lamb	Archival Recordings: Primal Image/Beauty	Room40	1981 and 1983 compositions - Primal Image (recorded on Faraway Wind Organ) being the first piece Lamb completed.
Animal Collective	Feels	Domino	Expanded 2CD edition for its 20th Anniversary - one of the group’s best records.
Arthur Russell	Open Vocal Phrases Where Songs Come In and Out (Live 12/20/85)	Audika	The continuing excavation of Russell’s vault may have become an industry in itself - but it still seems there are more gems to be heard. It’s particularly valuable to have this intimate and compelling live voice and cello recording.
Ata Kak	Obaa Sima (Anniversary Remaster)	Awesome Tapes From Africa	Ten years on from its first reissue - an improved quality remaster
Basic Unit	Timeline	Sneaker Social Club	Previously unheralded late 90s tech step/D&B treasure.
Bennie Maupin	The Jewel In The Lotus	ECM	Vinyl reissue of a masterpiece as part of the Luminscence series.
Bill Evans	Explorations		New slimline edition of one of Evans’ best recordings
Bill Evans Trio	Haunted Heart: The Legendary Riverside Studio Recordings	Craft	Essential collection of some crucial music in the development of jazz.
Bill Fay	From The Bottom Of An Old Grandfather Clock	Dead Oceans	So good to have these demos more widely available again (first digital edition for this collection). Includes templates for the first two solo albums (the songs definitely stand up in their own right without the Gibbs arrangements) as well as some otherwise unreleased songs that, on another day, might have been included. This set helps construct a clearer path to his comeback albums on Dead Oceans.
Billy Hawks	Heavy Soul!	Ace	A 1967 rediscovery  finding the exact point at which swing organ jazz bridged with soul.
Bizimungu Dieudonne	Inzovu Y’Imirindi	Mississippi	Tremendous late 80s self released cassette fusing traditional Rwandan music with drum machines and studio techniques. Tragically, Bizmungu, his wife Agnes, and two of their bandmates were all killed by Hutu militias in 1994.
Bob Dylan	The Bootleg Series Vol. 18: Through The Open Window	Columbia	It feels as if the well from Dylan’s earlier years could easily have run dry - but this latest instalment of the increasingly prohibitively expensive Bootleg Series proves otherwise. Still - release the Bromberg Sessions properly!!
Bobby Charles	Last Train To Memphis	Last Record Co.	Compilation capturing country/soul singer Charles’ lost years from 1971-2003, originally released in 2004.
Boris	Pink	Relapse	20th anniversary reissue for Japanese noise/drone rock legends
Bruce Springsteen	Tracks II: The Lost Albums	Columbia	The (very) long awaited motherlode! There’s so much of value here (although it’s probably unhelpful to approach it from the perspective of comparisons with what was actually released at the time). A fascinating journey along paths not travelled - and a  possible counterfactual in which Bruce never released BITUSA and never got propelled into stadiums. Streets of Philadelphia Sessions probably the most welcome and important album in the set for me.
Bruce Springsteen	Nebraska ‘82	Columbia	What a year in which to be a Springsteen fan - no new material as such, but a bonus extension of the tour, a box set of mostly unheard 90s music and, finally, the studio Electric Nebraska. Again, it’s best to see this as a curio rather than expecting a masterpiece - Bruce made the correct decision at the time - but take this as a set in its entirety, there are some wonderful songs in the acoustic outtakes too.
Buck Owens & His Buckaroos	Adios, Farewell, Goodbye, Good Luck, So Long: On Stage 1964-1974	Omnivore	Over three and a half hours of live recordings from legendary honky tonk group.
Buckingham Nicks	Buckingham Nicks	Rhino	One of the year’s most welcome releases - an excellent album that has simply been unavailable for far too long, and deserves more than being a footnote in the Fleetwood Mac story.
Buffalo Tom	Sleepy Eyed	Beggars Banquet	Now expanded into a double album for its 30th Anniversary
Cap’n Jazz	Burritos, Inspiration Point, Fork Balloon Sports, Cards In The Spokes, Automatic Biographies, Kites, Kung Fu, Trophies, Banana Peels We’ve Slipped On, and Egg Shells We’ve Tippy Toed Over (Shmap n’ Shmazz)	Cap n’ Jazz	Welcome re-release for the emo group’s only studio album (they would splinter out into American Football).
Cardiacs	On Land & In The Sea	The Alphabet Business Concern	Remastered re-release of 1989 album on vinyl
Cecil Taylor & Tony Oxley	Flashing Spirits	Burning Ambulance	1988 live recording from duo of innovative improvising musicians.
Celia Cruz	The Queen Of Salsa	Craft	Concise 12 track compilation with hits spanning the years 1966-1993
Charles Kynard	Woga	We Want Sound	Vinyl reissue of 1972 funky gem from the organist.
Charles Mingus	Mingus In Argentina: The Buenos-Aires Concerts	Resonance	Never before released 1977 recordings
Cindy Lee	Cat O’Nine Tails	Superior Viaduct	Inevitable repackaging of the earlier catalogue in response to the deserved success of Diamond Jubilee
Culture	See Them A Come: The Joe Gibbs Singles Collection	Cherry Red	2CD compilation of the roots reggae group’s prime period (around the Two Sevens Clash album) - with 8 tracks that are new to CD.
David Bowie	I Can’t Give Everything Away (2002-2016)	Parlophone	The sixth and presumably last of the box sets collecting Bowie’s catalogue - from Heathen through to Blackstar. Includes the Reality Tour album and The Next Day extra disc, plus 41 rare non-album tracks. One of the best reissue campaigns in recent memory.
David Sylvian	Died In The Wool - Manafon Variations/Brilliant Trees/Alchemy: An Index of Possibilities/Gone To Earth/Secrets of the Beehive	Samadhi Sound	First time on vinyl for these outtakes from Sylvian’s most radical recording plus coloured vinyl reissues of his most successful earlier solo works.
Debris	Debris	Superior Viaduct	Pretty wild 1970s trio fusing punk spirit with avant garde adventuring.
Descendents	Milo Goes To College	Org	Welcome revival for key US punk album. Still pretty irresistible, as it turns out.
Dire Straits	Brothers In Arms 40th Anniversary	Mercury/UMG	Another outing (in expanded form) for the album that defined the CD era as well as 80s production values. Much to enjoy if you are able to listen beyond the production and some of Knopfler’s more regrettable choices - also includes a 1985 San Antonio live performance.
Dog Soup	Fragments	Dark Circles	Contemporary British Jazz from the pre-‘new jazz explosion’ period (group lead by trumpeter Robbie Robson and part of the Loop Collective) - fantastic to see some of this music being repackaged and recirculated on vinyl
Doug Sahm and The Sir Douglas Quintet	The Complete Mercury Recordings	Island/UMG	Epic five disc set from the great blues rock group featuring Doug Sahm and organist Augie Meyers, covering their complete recorded output for Mercury Records from 1968-1975.
Drive-By Truckers	The Definitive Decoration Day	New West	Expanded reissue of what might be the strongest DBT album - together with double live set.
Duster	Contemporary Movement	Numero	25th Anniversary edition for the slowcore band’s classic album.
Dusty Springfield	Longing	Real Gone Music	While many of these songs appeared on later compilations, this is the first standalone release for Dusty’s 1974 lost album, originally intended as her second for the ABC Dunhill label. It should be noted that the album remains incomplete - and some of the songs contain practice vocal takes. Phenomenal version of Chi Coltrane’s Turn Me Around (we should talk more about Chi Coltrane, but that’s another story).
Earth	Hex: Or Printing In The Infernal Method	Southern Lord	20th anniversary reissue on vinyl.
Eels	Electro-Shock Blues	PIAS	By some distance, the best Eels album, now on (blue) vinyl.
Elton John	Captain Fantastic & The Brown Dirt Cowboy 50th Anniversary	Mercury	Two disc edition of one of the best Elton John albums, includes sessions and demos.
Emmylou Harris	Spyboy	New West	Great 90s live album from Harris’ short lived but brilliant and exploratory band.
Eternity’s Children	Eternity’s Children/Timeless	High Moon	Rediscovery of two albums of 60s sun drenched Californian pop (although the band actually came from the Mississippi Delta).
Field Music	Field Music/Write Your Own History	Memphis Industries	Anniversary reissues of the early recordings, when Field Music were still officially a coherent band.
Fine Young Cannibals	FYC40	London	A bit of a missed opportunity to make this a compilation rather than a boxed set capturing everything, but still gets the essentials of a short lived but important group in British music history.
Francis Bebey	Tresor Magnetique	Africa Seven	Compilation of unreleased tracks and ‘neglected gems’ from the vault of this excellent Cameroonian artist
Frank Sinatra	In The Wee Small Hours Tone Poet Edition (70th Anniversary)	Blue Note/UMG	Sinatra’s ninth album was particularly atmospheric and melancholy.
Frazey Ford	Indian Ocean	Nettwerk	One of two albums Ford (formerly of Be Good Tanyas) made with the Hi Records rhythm section - a wonderful combination.
Gastr Del Sol	Upgrade & Afterlife	Drag City	Welcome repress as most of the Gastr Del Sol catalogue now appears to be available again
Gene Clark & Carla Olson	So Rebellious A Lover	Sunset Blvd	Deluxe version of album first reissued in 2023
Ghostface Killah	Supreme Clientele	Sony	25th anniversary reissue of one of the best Wu-Tang adjacent albums
Grace Jones	Nightclubbing	UMR/Island	Gold vinyl reissue of Jones’ career peak
Grouper	Way Their Crept 20th Anniversary	Kranky	Staggeringly, it is the 20th anniversary of Liz Harris’ disorientating and influential debut.
Guy Clark	Looking For The Words	Truly Handmade	Fine live recording from the University of Houston Coffee House in 1970.
Harry Partch	The Wayward: First Complete Recording	Bridge	First recording of the full cycle of Partch’s “collection of compositions based on the spoken and written words of hobos and other characters - the result of my wanderings in the Western part of the United States from 1935 to 1941.”
Harvey Scales	Trying To Survive	Numero	Compilation of soul singer Scales’ Cuca and Magic Touch recordings. The story of his turbulent career is told in Bill Dahl’s liner notes.
Henry Badowski	Life is A Grand…	CTR	Post-punk album originally released on A&M in 1981
Hiroshi Yoshimura	Flora	Temporal Drift	Another pivotal ambient work from Yoshimura to file alongside Green and Surround.
Horace Silver	Silver In Seattle: Live At The Penthouse	Blue Note/UMG	Exciting and essential live recording of one of the most immediate and accessible jazz bandleaders.
Hot Chip	Joy In Repetition	Domino	Straightforward singles compilation with one excellent new track (Devotion) - but a Hot Chip singles compilation is a guarantee of excellence. A superb introduction to the group for anyone who needs it - and an essential purchase if you don’t already own all the albums.
Husker Du	1985: The Miracle Year	Numero	Outstanding box set of Husker Du live recordings from 1985.
Ibex Band	Stereo Instrumental Music	Muzikawi	Tremendous band from 70s Ethiopia.
Ida	Will You Find Me	Numero	Rediscovered American indie rock from 2000
Ike Quebec	The Complete Blue Note 45 Sessions	Blue Note	Compilation of jazz recordings for singles aimed at the jukebox market.
Irene Schweizer/Rudger Carl/Johnny Dyani/Han Bennink	Irene’s Hot Four	Intakt	1981 Zurich concert from the pianist and activist who died last year - righteous, fiery and physical music.
Jackie Mittoo	Reggae Magic	Soul Jazz	New collection of material from 1967-1974.
Jackie-O-Motherfucker	Flags Of The Sacred Harp	Fire	20th Anniversary of the radical, droney, weird folk classic.
Jan Jelinek	Kosmicher Pitch	Fatiche	2005 hard to find album finally re-emerges on vinyl.
Jeff Mills	Live At Liquid Rooms	Axis	30th Anniversary of milestone DJ mix.
Jessica Williams	Blue Abstraction: Prepared Piano	Pre-Echo Press	One of the major discoveries of the year for me - an innovative (and transgender) jazz pianist and composer from Baltimore who died in 2022. This collects prepared piano solo experiments and is fascinating listening.
Joe Henderson	Multiple	Jazz Dispensary	Vinyl and digital reissue of masterful album that finds Henderson experimenting with electric instrumentation and studio effects.
John Prine	Lost Dogs & Mixed Blessings	Oh Boy	Deluxe edition of fine album from the much missed singer-songwriter - includes one of his truly great songs, Lake Marie
Johnnie Taylor	Who’s Making Love: The Stax Singles As and Bs 1966-1970	Ace	Fine compilation of underrated soul singer’s most popular work.
Joni Mitchell	Joni’s Jazz	Rhino	Thoughtfully curated four disc compilation of Joni’s absorption of jazz influences.
Joseph Kamaru	Heavy Combination 1966-2007	Disciples	Outstanding compilation of the significant Kenyan performer’s wide ranging work, compiled by his grandson, the sound collagist KMRU.
Julee Cruise	Fall-Float-Love: Works 1989-1993	Cherry Red	Two disc set bringing together Cruise’s first two (and most well known) albums, including the Lynch/Badalamenti collaborations for Twin Peaks
Julie Doiron	Broken Girl	Numero	Doiron’s understated songs have had a new lease of life on TikTok.
Kate & Anna McGarrigle	Kate & Anna McGarrigle/Dancer With Bruised Knees	Cherry Red	The two finest McGarrigle albums brought together. Wonderful and still under-appreciated music, but slightly superfluous if you have Nonesuch’s 2011 Tell My Sister set.
Kate Bush	Best Of The Other Sides	Noble & Brite Ltd	A compilation drawn from The Other Sides, originally part of the Remastered box set, assembling some of Bush’s finest B sides. Includes compelling re-interpretations (The Man I Love, Rocket Man), alternative mixes and unusual originals.
Kathy McCord	Kathy McCord	Ace	McCord was the first artist signed to Creed Taylor’s CTI label - a folk rock set recorded with an ensemble of great jazz musicians.
Keith Hudson & Soul Syndicate	Nuh Skin Up Dub	Week-End	1979 dub milestone
Keith Tippett Group	Dedicated To You, But You Weren’t Listening	Be With	Landmark avant garde jazz recording first issued on Vertigo in 1971.
Kevin Drumm	Sheer Hellish Miasma	Editions Mego	Brutalist noise classic from 2002.
Koko Taylor	Crown Jewels	Alligator	Concise 12 track greatest hits set from the legendary blues singer.
Kraftwerk	Autobahn	Parlophone	Multiple format 50th anniversary reissue of the landmark electronic album.
Kreidler	Early Recordings 1994-95	Bureau B	Thoughtful compilation capturing the development of the German band’s signature sound.
Lee Hazlewood	Love & Other Crimes	Reprise	Gloriously wonky 1968 album recorded with members of the Wrecking Ball crew.
Leila	Courtesy Of Choice …asides and besides (25th Anniversary)	XL	Really good to see this out again with extra material - the second album from the homespun electronic producer. Slightly more slow burning than its masterpiece predecessor (Like Weather) but ultimately a valuable companion piece to that record.
Leon Ware	Musical Massage	Elemental Music	1976 album recorded for Motown immediately after Ware worked on Marvin Gaye’s I Want You.
Lijadu Sisters	Danger	Numero	1976 first international release from the Nigerian vocalists - also important to note the key role of producer and multi-instrumentalist Biddy Wright.
Little Feat	The Last Record Album	Rhino	On which Lowell George began to take a back seat, and the album is perhaps one of the group’s less cohesive and essential efforts. 4CD edition comes with studio outtakes, demos and rarities - and, most impressively, a previously unreleased live show from 1975.
Lonnie Liston Smith & The Cosmic Echoes	Expansions	BGP/Flying Dutchman	50th anniversary vinyl reissue of the funk classic
Lotti Golden	Motor-Cycle	High Moon	One of my favourite discoveries of the year - an ornate and richly entertaining 60s pop song cycle. The package contains essays from Richard Hell and David Toop.
Lush	Gala (35th Anniversary Edition)	4AD	The one notable omission from the 2023 reissue series emerges for its anniversary remaster.
Madness	Hit Parade	Stirling Holdings/West Village Music Management	Updated hits collection going well into the band’s second life. Some omissions (no Waiting For The Ghost Train sadly), but pretty comprehensive on the whole
Madonna	Bedtime Stories (Deluxe Edition)		Madonna’s catalogue reissue campaign has been weirdly haphazard and under-promoted, but this remains one of her braver and more interesting records.
Majestic Arrows	The Magic of The Majestic Arrows	Numero	Rare Chicago soul reissued.
Mal Waldron	Searching In Grenoble: The 1978 Solo Piano Concert	Tompkins Square	First official release of this absorbing solo performance - lovingly presented 2CD package with photographs and essays.
Marianne Faithfully	Cast Your Fate To The Wind: The Complete Decca Recordings	Decca	First ever box set of Faithfull’s Decca recordings - includes all four albums and two further discs of B sides and rarities.
Marie Pierre	Love Affair	Cherry Red	Expanded reissue of classic lovers rock album.
Maurice Poto Doudongo	The Lost Album	Crammed Discs/Edition De Luxe	First vinyl issue for the Congolese digital/electronic funk set from 1987.
Max Romeo	War Ina Babylon	Jackpot	Vinyl reissue for this reggae all timer.
Meiko Kaji	Yadokari	Wewantsounds	1973 third album from iconic Japanese actor and singer.
Memphis Slim	At The Gate Of Horn	Craft Recordings	Very concise 33 minute recording neatly capturing Slim’s bigger band approach to the blues characterised by his relaxed phrasing and the punchy horn section.
Mercury Rev	Yerself Is Steam + Car Wash Hair	Jungle/Mint	Another outing for the Rev’s weirder, psychedelic phase with David Baker still fronting the band. Includes the essential Car Wash Hair single which still stands up alongside their more acclaimed material.
Mike Oldfield	Hergest Ridge 50th Anniversary	Mercury/UMG	Expanded edition featuring the original mix, the 2010 mix, a 1974 demo and a 2025 stereo mix from David Kosten. A haven for true audiophiles - potentially superfluous for everyone else. One of Oldfield’s best compositions though.
Mike Westbrook Orchestra	The Cortège Live At The BBC 1980	Cadillac	This BBC live recording of Westbrook’s vital large scale composition for jazz orchestra and voices actually predates the studio release.
Monolake	Hongkong	Field	1997 collection of early singles from Gerhard Behles and Robert Henke.
Moodymann	Forevernevermore	Peacefrog/KDJ	Classic slice of Detroit house from 2000.
My Morning Jacket	Z	ATO	Pivotal album from MMJ as they transitioned from the heavy classic rock vibe of their first few albums to something more amorphous. They weren’t always successful from here - and this may still be the best example of their absorption of pop and folk stylings.
Neal Casal	No One Above You (The Early Years 1991-1998)	Neal Casal Music Foundation	Early demos from the much missed guitarist and singer-songwriter - would be good if this brought his songwriting to wider attention.
Neil Young	Oceanside Countryside	Reprise	All but one of these songs eventually found their way on to later Young albums, but the Archive Series continues to provide fascinating opportunities to hear the lost studio albums as originally intended.
Neil Young	Tonight’s The Night 50th Anniversary	Reprise	Probably the most significant of the Young archive releases this year, terrible rainbow desecration of the album cover notwithstanding.
Neil Young	Official Release Series #6	Reprise	Young’s 90s run was tremendous - this set includes Harvest Moon, probably the best of all the MTV Unplugged recordings (yes, even including Nirvana), the masterpiece Sleeps With Angels and Young’s underrated collaboration with Pearl Jam on Mirror Ball.
Nick Drake	The Making Of Five Leaves Left	Island/UMG	Wonderfully comprehensive box set capturing the full creative process behind one of the most beloved of debut albums.
Nicolette Larson	Look In My Direction - The Warner Bros Recordings	Cherry Red	Complete Warner Bros recordings from the excellent singer who came to attention working with Neil Young.
Nijumu	When I Sing, I Slip Into The Microphone. Into That Void…	Black Truffle	1994 recording from small ensemble featuring Keiji Haino.
Nina Simone	A Single Woman: The Complete Elektra Recordings	Omnivore	Complete version of Simone’s final studio album
Nina Simone	Let It All Out: Selected Singles 1961-1978	Ace	Wide ranging compilation of some of Simone’s most celebrated singles.
Orbital	Orbital (The Brown Album)	London	Expanded version of the electronic duo’s classic 1993 album.
Osmar Milito	Nem Paleto, Nem Gravata	ATCO/Elemental Music	1973 Brazilian jazz funk classic.
Paris 1942	Paris 1942	Superior Viaduct	Short lived band formed by guitarist Jesse Srogonocik that included Alan Bishop and Richard Bishop (Sun City Girls) and Maureen Tucker (Velvet Underground). Compiled from live recordings and rehearsal tapes, this includes most of the previously issued Majora album, their EP and 11 previously unheard tracks. Essential.
Patrick Cowley	Hard Ware	Dark Entries	Closing chapter in a set of three unreleased Cowley disco/dancefloor albums. An innovative producer whose importance is only now being appreciated.
Patsy Cline	Imagine That: The Lost Recordings 1964-1963	Elemental Music	48 previously unissued tracks from one of the all time great singers. Live recordings, demos, film versions etc.
Patti Smith	Horses (50th Anniversary Edition)	Arista	Double disc anniversary edition of one of the all time great studio recordings and a key document of the post-punk NY era.
Paul Lowe	Let’s Work It Out/Make Things Better	Stroom	Unusual to have a 7” single reissue in this review - but here is a great example of this soul side from Suriname. Also available digitally on Bandcamp.
Pentangle	The Albums 1968-1972	Cherry Red	7CD box set to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the great folk rock band’s formation.
Pete Astor	Unsent Letters (Home Recordings 1984-2024)	Tapete	Collection of unreleased material from The Loft/Weatherprophets songwriter.
Pete Shelley	Homosapien/XL-1	Domino	Post-Buzzcocks solo albums characterised by drum machine and minimal electronic interventions alongside the infectious chug.
Pharoah Sanders	The Complete Theresa Recordings	Mosaic	A bonanza of Sanders reissues this year - this collects Sanders’ underrated 1980s work.
Pharoah Sanders	Izipho Zam (His Gifts)	Strata-East	Recorded in 1969, but not released until 1973 - Sanders’ innovative third album is being released on CD and digital formats for the first time here.
Pharoah Sanders	Love Is Here: The Complete Paris 1973 ORFT Recordings	Transcendence Sounds	The complete recordings from Sanders’ November 17th performance at Maison de la Radio’s Studio 104 in Paris.
Pink Floyd	Wish You Were Here 50	CMG	Probably my favourite Floyd album (a source of shame that listening to it now requires setting aside Waters’ monumental idiocy).
Polygon Window	Surfing On Sine Waves (Expanded Edition)	Warp	Welcome reissue of 1993 Aphex Twin side project.
Popul Vuh	Hosianna Mantra	Cherry Red	New vinyl edition of 1972 third album from German group.
PP Arnold	Soul Survivor: A Life In Song	Edsel	3CD major career retrospective features demos and rarities as well as singles.
Pulp	Different Class (30th Anniversary Edition)	Island/UMG	Hard to believe this still wonderful pop record is 30 years old - the reissue also includes the legendary Glastonbury set that helped propel Pulp to new tangles of fame and success from which they subsequently attempted to unravel.