The Band fans rejoice!
On November 15, Capitol/UMe will celebrate The Band’s eponymous second album (as some have come to coin it “The Brown Album”) with a selection of newly remixed and expanded 50th Anniversary Edition packages, including a Super Deluxe 2CD/Blu-ray/2LP/7-inch vinyl boxed set with a hardbound book; 2CD, digital, 180-gram 2LP black vinyl, and limited edition 180-gram 2LP “tiger’s eye” color vinyl packages.
The expanded set features a new stereo mix by Bob Clearmountain from the original multi-track masters, similar to the acclaimed 50th anniversary collections of last year’s Music From Big Pink releases. The 50th Anniversary Edition’s CD, digital, and box set configurations also include 13 outtakes, featuring six previously unreleased outtakes and alternate recordings from The Band sessions, as well as The Band’s legendary Woodstock performance, which has never been officially released.
Exclusively for the box set, Clearmountain has also created a new 5.1 surround mix for the album and bonus tracks, presented on Blu-ray with the new stereo, both in high resolution audio (96kHz/24bit). All the new audio mixes have been mastered by Bob Ludwig at Gateway Mastering. The box set also includes an exclusive reproduction of The Band’s 1969 7-inch vinyl single for “Rag Mama Rag” / “The Unfaithful Servant” in their new stereo mixes and a hardbound book with an extensive, illuminating new essay by author and music critic Anthony DeCurtis and classic photos by Elliott Landy which have had an inimitable influence on rock and roll. For the album’s new vinyl editions, Chris Bellman cut the vinyl lacquers for the album’s new stereo mix at 45 rpm at Bernie Grundman Mastering, expanding the album’s vinyl footprint from one LP to two.
Ironically for an album that captures the rustic essence of Americana the recording sessions took place in a Hollywood Hills mansion once owns by Judy Garland, Wally Cox and, at the time the group worked there, Sammy Davis, Jr.
According to Robbie Robertson, the location was chosen to give the songs a Basement Tapes–like feel in what was termed “a clubhouse concept.”[https://www.mixonline.com/recording/classic-tracks-bands-night-they-drove-old-dixie-down-364938] Three songs to finish the album (from “Up on Cripple Creek” through “Jemima Surrender”) and they spent a month setting up a recording studio in a backyard pool house.
Their label Capitol Records needed some convincing around the “clubhouse concept” as his was an unusual request in 1969 recording processes. Robbie Robertson had a powerful ally in co-producer John Simon. “John was really good at supporting this thing,” Robertson says, “because engineers and the people from the record company would always say, ‘Are you sure about this?’ They had their doubts. And we didn’t want to waste the money if it wasn’t going to work, although we were pretty confident that it was going to work. But John was good at giving them a sense of confidence about it, that there was no question that it was going to work and that it was going to be good.”
The Band was released on September 22, 1969 and it immediately caused a sensation Propelled by the surprise hit “Up on Cripple Creek,” and strong FM airplay for “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down,” “Rag Mama Rag” and “Across the
Great Divide,” the album rocketed into the Top 10 and established The Band as
Bona fide rock stars landing them on the cover of January 1970’s Time magazine heralding them as “The New Sound of Country Rock.”
Preorder The Band (50th Anniversary Edition)
CD1; Digital
1. Across The Great Divide
2. Rag Mama Rag
3. The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
4. When You Awake
5. Up On Cripple Creek
6. Whispering Pines
7. Jemima Surrender
8. Rockin’ Chair
9. Look Out Cleveland
10. Jawbone
11. The Unfaithful Servant
12. King Harvest (Has Surely Come)
Bonus Tracks:
1. Up On Cripple Creek (Earlier Take) *
2. Rag Mama Rag (Alternate Version) *
3. The Unfaithful Servant (Alternate Version) *
4. Look Out Cleveland (Instrumental Mix) *
5. Rockin’ Chair (A Cappella / Stripped Down) *
6. Up On Cripple Creek (Instrumental Mix) *
* Previous unreleased
CD2; Digital
Live At Woodstock, 1969 (Original Rough Mixes)
1. Chest Fever
2. Tears Of Rage
3. We Can Talk
4. Don’t Ya Tell Henry
5. Baby Don’t You Do It
6. Ain’t No More Cane On The Brazos
7. Long Black Veil
8. This Wheel’s On Fire
9. I Shall Be Released
10. The Weight
11. Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever
Additional Studio Bonus Tracks:
12. Get Up Jake (Outtake – Stereo Mix)
13. Rag Mama Rag (Alternate Vocal Take – Rough Mix)
14. The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down (Alternate Mix)
15. Up On Cripple Creek (Alternate Take)
16. Whispering Pines (Alternate Take)
17. Jemima Surrender (Alternate Take)
18. King Harvest (Has Surely Come) (Alternate Performance)
Blu-ray (Stereo and 5.1 Surround – High Resolution Audio: 96 kHz/24 bit)
1. Across The Great Divide
2. Rag Mama Rag
3. The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
4. When You Awake
5. Up On Cripple Creek
6. Whispering Pines
7. Jemima Surrender
8. Rockin’ Chair
9. Look Out Cleveland
10. Jawbone
11. The Unfaithful Servant
12. King Harvest (Has Surely Come)
Bonus Tracks:
13. Up On Cripple Creek (Earlier Version)
14. Rag Mama Rag (Alternate Version)
15. The Unfaithful Servant Alternate Version)
16. Look Out Cleveland (Instrumental Mix)
17. Rockin’ Chair (A Cappella / Stripped Down)
18. Up On Cripple Creek (Instrumental Mix)
“Classic Albums – The Band” (Documentary)
2LP (45 RPM)
180g black vinyl (included in the box set and available individually); ltd. edition 180g pink vinyl (available individually)
Side One
1. Across The Great Divide
2. Rag Mama Rag
3. The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
Side Two
1. When You Awake
2. Up On Cripple Creek
3. Whispering Pines
Side Three
1. Jemima Surrender
2. Rockin’ Chair
3. Look Out Cleveland
Side Four
1. Jawbone
2. The Unfaithful Servant
3. King Harvest (Has Surely Come)
“Rag Mama Rag” (Original 1969 7” Capitol Single)
A. Rag Mama Rag
B. The Unfaithful Servant
