Old Releases Get New Life

Before the compact disc, there was so much new music to explore that I rarely put old albums on the turntable.

However, this new configuration--with its usually sharper sound and always more convenient programming capability--has made me find the extra time for the old albums. It’s simply so much fun listening to the records again to see whether they still deserve all the affection--or disdain--you’ve held for them over the years. The results are frequently surprising.

The good news is that hundreds of “catalogue” albums have been released recently as part of budget CD lines. Most of them retail for between $8.99 and $11.99. Added good news: Where many of the first budget catalogue items (especially from CBS) were of fairly marginal interest and quality, the trend now (especially from MCA and Warner Communications) is to put some of the most highly regarded catalogue albums in the series.

There are even enough budget catalogue albums in stock (between 750 and 1,000 pop titles) to piece together “theme” collections when shopping. On a recent visit to a store, I concentrated on debut albums by some of the most successful and/or admired artists of recent years.

Here’s a sample six-pack of debuts from the current budget CD stock. Where six CDs a year ago might have cost around $100, you can find them now for less than $70.

Elton John’s “Elton John” (MCA)--How many careers start off with an LP as immediately appealing and convincingly crafted as this 1970 package? “Your Song,” the opening track on John’s first U.S. album, was a ballad of extraordinary intimacy and innocence that made the national Top 10 (the first of 15 Top 10 singles from John in the ‘70s). But that wasn’t the only tip-off in the album that singer-composer John and lyricist Bernie Taupin had the potential to be one of the most rewarding teams of the modern pop era.

Rickie Lee Jones’ “Rickie Lee Jones” (Warner Bros.)--Here’s another album with a memorable opening track. “Chuck E.’s in Love” summarizes all the wonderful spunk and revealing warmth that ones weaves into her breathtakingly imaginative statements about wants and needs. Her jazzy folk tunes exhibit a sometimes remarkable openness and heart. Despite the brilliance of this 1979 work, the comparisons to Joni Mitchell seemed a bit cheeky at the time. The truth, however, is that Jones’ subsequent albums have been far more commanding than Mitchell’s ‘80s efforts.

Joni Mitchell’s “Joni Mitchell” (Reprise)--Speaking of the most influential female songwriter of the last two decades. . . . Mitchell exhibited in this 1968 debut much of the vocal grace and poetic energy that later characterized her most inspiring music--the albums from “Blue” through “Court and Spark.” There is a sketchiness here, however, that makes her second album, “Clouds,” a more satisfying introduction.

The Eagles’ “Desperado” (Asylum)--This 1973 collection wasn’t the Eagles’ first album, but it is so much more representative of the artistic ambition and focus of the latter-day Eagles that you might as well save your money and go straight to it. Parts--notably the title tune, “Tequila Sunrise” and “Saturday Night”--were better than the whole, but there was a preview here of the tension between dreams and disillusionment that eventually made the Eagles one of the most rewarding bands in American rock history.

Led Zeppelin’s “Led Zeppelin” (Atlantic)--Rarely has a debut album generated such a deeply rooted love-it-or-hate-it response than this 1969 package. To critics, it seemed like simply a calculating bastardization of many of the most powerful elements of ‘60s British blues-rock. For a generation of rock fans, however, it was the introduction to a band that would eventually rival the Rolling Stones and the Who as the greatest live draw. Though the band was to grow considerably, this debut still seems a calculating bastardization.

Van Morrison’s “Astral Weeks” (Warner Bros.)--Though he had earlier recordings, this was the start of Morrison’s key Warner Bros. period. The 1968 album was such a relentlessly independent artistic statement that it remains challenging even after all these years. It’s as boldly original and lyrically involving--though less universally shaped--than many of Dylan’s most prized recordings.

BONUS TRACK: Rhino Records, a leader in CD repackaging, launches next weekend6 a series of 20 oldies CD “singles.” Each 3-inch disc will include four hits by such artists as the Beach Boys, Eddie Cochran, Fats Domino, Jerry Lee Lewis and Little Richard. The discs require a plastic adapter for most CD players, a device that is being included in the initial Rhino packages. The “singles” will list for $5.98.