Brilliant Disguise

Great albums of original material within the Rock era that never received a proper release or ultimately received one but an ex post facto release many years after the time the material was recorded (usually as a compilation).

1. Modern Lovers - Modern Lovers
2. Sun Sessions - Elvis Presley
3. VU - Velvet Underground
4. I'm Sick Of You - Iggy And The Stooges
5. The Day The Earth Met Rocket From The Tombs - Rocket From The Tombs
6. Legacy Of Brutality - Misfits
7. What Goes Around - Heartbreakers
8. Fatal Charm - Mumps
9. Shit Street - Pagans
10. Nothing For All - Replacements
11. Actress : Birth Of The New York Dolls - Actress/New York Dolls
12. Another Nail In The Remodeled Coffin - Mirrors
13. Early On (1964-66) - David Bowie
14. Mainliner (Wreckage From The Past) - Social Distortion
15. The Pink Album...Plus - Pagans
16. Beast 999 Presents The Electric Eels In Their Organic Majesty's Request - Electric Eels
17. It's Still Artastic - Styrenes



Post Edited (04-24-06 12:42)

Modern Lovers, no?

I guess it depends what classifies as "many years". I always say the Modern lovers & Sister/Lovers are the great "unfinished" albums in Rock history....with I guess "Smile" , in it's original incarnation, also being one.

I intentionally left off Sister Lovers since it was released only a few years after it was recorded and I guess also because I always looked it that album as a "proper" album in its 14 song form. I suppose a case could be made for it though.

Modern Lovers is another case which I didn't think of (again, because I always think of it as a "proper" release). But since it is compiled from demos recorded a few years earlier you've persuaded me to include it. I will revise my list.

A better Misfits example ... Static Age ... Mercury began an imprint called Blank in the late '70s (I believe Violent Femmes and Suicide Commandos ended up on it). Problem was, that was already the name of the Misfits' label. Mercury offered 30 hours of studio time in exchange for the name, so the group changed the label name to Plan 9 and recorded Static Age with the free studio time ... But no label, indie or major, wanted to release the thing, so we had to wait about 20 years for a legit release ... The sides did end up on various singles (the Bullet EP, for example) ...

I think Static Age and Legacy Of Brutality are comparable each containing some tracks the other one doesn't which is why both are essential to a Misfits fan (I have both).

Static Age does have some greats like Attitude and Last Caress but I ultimately chose Legacy because Static Age doesn't contain Who Killed Marilyn, American Nightmare and what is the ultimate Misfits track for me, Where Eagles Dare.

Everyone Wants to Shag...The Teardrop Explodes

I always thought the songs that overlap on Static Age and Legacy of Brutality sound like they are the same studio takes...except I've read that Glenn Danzig re-recorded the bass tracks himself for Legacy (possibly some guitar too), and Legacy also has that terrible reverb on everything.

Static Age gets my vote for sure, much more legit.

Simply Saucer
Michael Yonkers Band
Zolar X
Raymond Scott

Quote

12. Another Nail In The Remodeled Coffin - Mirrors

i suppose we could debate what exactly constitutes a "proper release", but if this one doesn't count, we're almost gonna have to toss the last couple db's albums (certainly like this) on the list, too.


ain't no debating this one:


little richard - southern child

did the cure's boys don't cry 1980 album have a "proper release," or did it just take years for it to become popular here in the states?

Boys Don't Cry was released on the PVC label (I think) in the US in 1980. I don't know if it was a huge release but it wasn't too hard to find if you were looking for it. Not many people looked for it, though. But if it was buyable in my podunk town in Illinois it couldn't have been too obscure. Faith & Seventeen Seconds were unreleased in the US for a couple of years then issued as a double album called Happily Ever After (I think).

it was easy to find, but didn't seem to catch on until years later.

I thought Boys Don't Cry was released in 1980 as well. However, even if it had been released years later thus qualifying as an "improper release," I think an argument could be made for its exclusion from this list because it wasn't an album of completely original material gleaning several tracks from Three Imaginary Boys.

In addition to the glaring omission of Pere Ubu's Terminal Tower, I would like to add The Zeros' (Don't Push Me Around) as well.