Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, “Live Anthology’’ Some bands are studio titans while others are kings of the road. Petty and his merry cabal of rabble rousers are both. This four-disc set collects the best live stuff - hits, covers, and rarities - into one rip-roaring, “no overdubs, no fixes’’ package.
Hall and Oates, “Do What You Want, Be What You Are: The Music of Daryl Hall/John Oates’’ Blue-eyed soul nirvana is found in this splendid collection of H&O’s biggest hits, deep cuts, and unreleased tracks. Fans who jumped ship after the duo’s ’80s peak will be pleasantly surprised by the more recent gems.
The Doors, “Live in New York: Felt Forum’’ This quartet of legendary shows from 1970 is lovingly re-created across six discs by the band’s recording engineer. Almost everything is here from (long) interludes of crowd noise to Jim Morrison’s stage banter to the LA rockers’ hits and psychedelic, acid blues meanderings.
AC/DC, “Backtracks’’ The thunder from down under have packaged and repackaged their stuff a lot. The strictly rarities two-CD part of the set convenes many of their B-sides, import-only singles, and live tracks. The DVD rounds up the videos. (For Angus super fans, the deluxe edition comes packaged in a working amplifier).
The Rolling Stones, “Get Yer Ya-Ya’s Out! The Rolling Stones in Concert’’ Think you already exorcised those Ya-Ya’s? Mick and Keith et. al. would like to persuade you otherwise with this updated box which now includes an EP of unreleased tunes and a disc containing the sizzling openers B.B. King and Tina Turner.
Elvis Presley, “Elvis 75: Good Rockin’ Tonight’’ The repackaging of the King continues. This time out it’s 100 digitally remastered songs on four CDs that span Presley’s entire career, hits and album tracks, from his first demo through the 2002 hit remix of “A Little Less Conversation.’’ (Out Dec. 8).
Nirvana, “Live at Reading’’ A CD/DVD snapshot of the moment that the Seattle grunge trio was hitting the crest of the wave. Of the 25 tracks, only two have been previously released.
Ella Fitzgerald, “Twelve Nights in Hollywood’’ A real find for Ella fanatics, this new box includes four CDs of previously unissued live recordings from Fitzgerald’s performances at LA’s Crescendo Club in the early ’60s.
Big Star, “Keep an Eye on the Sky’’ The ultimate cult ’70s rockers finally get the deluxe treatment with this four-disc collection of demos, rarities, alternate takes, and a hefty booklet. And while you’re at it, look for the new reissue of late Big Star guitarist Chris Bell’s “I Am the Cosmos,’’ repackaged as a double-CD set on Rhino Handmade.
Alan Lomax, “Alan Lomax in Haiti’’ This mammoth 10-CD set chronicles the 1936 field expedition musicologist Lomax conducted for the Library of Congress. Also included are two books (Lomax’s field journal and liner notes about the recordings) and black-and-white video footage Lomax shot on his adventures.
Frank Sinatra, “New York’’ Who knew multiple versions of “My Way’’ could be so entertaining? In the vein of Sinatra’s “Vegas’’ box of live recordings, this new five-disc collection captures Ol’ Blue Eyes saluting New York at various points in his career (1955-1990), plus a DVD of a Carnegie Hall performance in 1980.
John Coltrane, “Side Steps’’ Think everything Coltrane has been reissued and repackaged? Think again. This five-CD set from Prestige collects some of the master saxophonist’s early stints as a sideman in other jazzmen’s bands - not just with Sonny Rollins and Red Garland but lesser-known folks like Elmo Hope and Ray Draper.
The New Lost City Ramblers, “50 Years: Where Do You Come From? Where Do You Go?’’ The passing of founding member Mike Seeger a few months ago makes this comprehensive retrospective - from 1950s folk revival to the trio’s various field recordings of Southern musicians such as Dock Boggs and Elizabeth Cotten - even more poignant.
Hank Williams, “Revealed: The Unreleased Recordings’’ The second installment of Time Life’s Hank Williams preservation series, “Revealed’’ has three CDs of intimate radio performances (and amusing between-song banter) Williams recorded for Mother Best’s flour company in the early ’50s.
Billie Holiday, “The Complete Commodore & Decca Masters’’ Holiday’s masters for the Commodore and Decca labels (1939-1950) are collected for the first time in one box set, with lavish liner notes and photos.
