Holiday Gift Guide: Give the gift of music

As the holiday shopping season hits full stride, finding a special gift for music fans can be a challenge considering the music industry always makes sure there will be an ample selection of box sets and other special collections. This column focuses on anthology sets and genre-specific collections to help you find some of the best of these special releases.

Anthology Box Sets

Joni Mitchell: “Archives Vol. 3 – The Asylum Years 1972-1975” – This third installment of a box set series that has gone deep into Mitchell’s artistry moves forward into one of her most musically rich periods, covering the albums “For The Roses,” “Court And Spark” and “The Hissing Of Summer Lawns.” The original albums are available separately, but this 5-CD, 128-track set showcases demos and alternate takes of songs from these albums, plus two full concerts. There are plenty of treasures for fans to discover (such as a session with Graham Nash and David Crosby and versions of “You Turn Me On I’m a Radio” and “Raised On Robbery” with Neil Young & the Stray Gators) as Mitchell continues to pull from her extensive vault of unreleased material.

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Van Halen: “The Collection II” – This set could be nicknamed “The Van Hagar Years,” as it includes the five albums the band recorded with singer Sammy Hagar after he replaced David Lee Roth. This version of Van Halen produced consistently solid melodic hard rock, and this set also includes eight outtakes/unreleased songs, several of which – “Humans Being,” “It’s About Time” and “Up For Breakfast” – are keepers.

Devo: “50 Years of De-Evolution 1973-2023”/”Art Devo 1973-1977” – Devo’s history as one of the catchiest synth-pop/rock acts ever (with an affinity for offbeat experimentalism and subversive, sometimes wacky, lyricism) are chronicled in these two box sets. The “50 Years of De-Evolution” collects the band’s hits and best album tracks. For fans of songs like “Jocko Homo” or “Shrivel Up,” there’s “Art Devo,” which collects a wealth of unreleased early tracks that trace the band’s development and highlights the quirkier side of Devo.

The Spinners: “The Complete Atlantic Singles: The Thom Bell Productions 1972-79” – This 43-song set collects the hits and another two-dozen notable tracks from the peak years of the Spinners’ career, when the group worked with songwriter/producer Thom Bell and helped define the ‘70s soul sound. Another set, “Ain’t No Price on Happiness: The Thom Bell Studio Recordings 1972-79,” packages expanded versions of the eight Spinners albums released during this period.

Dionne Warwick: “The Complete Scepter Singles 1962-1973”/”Sure Thing – The Warner Bros. Recordings 1972-1977” – The Scepter set chronicles Warwick’s rise to stardom as one of pop’s finest vocalists and song stylists, while the Warner Bros. set is devoted to a less successful – and under-appreciated -- next phase of her career.

Aretha Franklin: “A Portrait of the Queen 1970-1974” – Franklin’s 1960s output established her as the “Queen of Soul.” But the five early 1970s albums included here (including “Spirt In The Dark” and “Young Gifted And Black”) ranged from solid to strong. A sixth disc of rare tracks from the period rounds out this set.

Helen Love: “Yeah Yeah We’re Helen Love” – The band Helen Love conjure thoughts of the Archies meet the Ramones. But under the hyper tempos, sugary pop hooks, buzzsaw guitars and playful keyboards, the band sprinkles in some very adult themes to go with plenty of humor. This set collects 33 of the best songs from a career that stretches back to the 1990s.

Howard Jones: “Celebrate It Together – The Very Best of Howard Jones 1983-2023” – This career-spanning set does a good job assembling most of the prime songs from this pioneering synth-pop (and more) artist.

Superchunk: “Misfits and Mistakes – Singles, B-sides and Strays 2007-2023” – The long-running punkish rock band compiles 50 songs left off of their albums, including cover songs, internet-only cuts. There may be a few misfit songs in this collection, but no mistakes. It’s just more top-shelf music from one of alt-rock’s best bands of the past three decades.

Lynyrd Skynyrd: “Fyfty” – This set collects 25 songs from the original era of Lynyrd Skynyrd and 25 songs from the second edition of the band that regrouped in the 1980s

Pet Shop Boys: “SMASH: The Singles 1985-2020” – Nearly all of the synth-pop (sometimes with orchestration) group’s singles are compiled on this 55-track set, showing a consistency in quality and style that has kept Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe relevant and successful for 35 years and counting.

Musical Eras/Genres Compilations

Each year, multiple interesting box sets emerge that survey certain periods or genres from rock music history. This year was no exception, as the releases ran the gamut from compilations of mostly familiar material to collections as off-the-beaten path as “Groove of ESSRII: Funk, Soul, Disco and Jazz from Estonia.” Here are a few releases that caught my eyes and ears.

Various Artists: “Written in Their Soul – The Stax Songwriter Demos” – The record company that defined classic soul music in the 1960s featured a large stable of songwriters and demo singers – some of whom were also signed as recording artists for Stax. This massive 146-track set collects demos recorded by William Bell, Mack Rice, Eddie Floyd, Carla Thomas, Bettye Crutcher and Homer Banks, to name a few. The demos are generally stripped down to essential instrumental full-band backing and demonstrate how strong these songs are at their core. And the kicker is more than 60 of these songs were never released by artists on Stax or other record labels, adding to the revelatory experience of this set.

Various Artists: “We’re An American Band: A Journey Through the USA Hard Rock Scene 1967-1973” – This set walks the fine line between rocking hard while skirting heavy metal. Some well known acts are present and accounted for – such as Steppenwolf, ZZ Top, the MC5, Alice Cooper and Blue Cheer – but many of the 63 songs are from more obscure acts. A healthy number of tracks are pulled from the “Brown Acid” compilation series. Now on its 17th edition, those sets may interest those wanting to dig deeper into hard rock of this period.

Various Artists: “What a Groovy Day - The British Sunshine Pop Sound 1967-1972” – I consider 1967 to 1972 the most fertile, diverse and adventurous period in rock history. This 53-song set focuses on the breezy pop wing of the British scene, culling songs mainly from acts that long ago faded into obscurity. Yes, some songs sound dated, and there’s the occasional overly derivative tune. Also a few songs get a bit too light and fluffy. But this set has its share of gems and nicely documents a specific time in British pop history.

Various Artists: “Playing for the Man at the Door - Field Recordings from the Collection of Mack McCormick 1958-1971” – McCormick toured the country, recording dozens of blues artists – some familiar, including Lightnin’ Hopkins, Mance Lipscomb and CeDell Davis, others largely unknown. This is live, most solo performances, a few tunes with backing, and all as authentic as it gets.

Here are several other sets that do a good job exploring certain genres or eras (or both).

Most anticipated box sets

Several of this year’s most anticipated and intriguing box sets – all of which make for special Christmas gifts -- are collections that expand on important albums from notable bands and solo artists, with deep dives into the Who’s storied abandoned rock opera, “Life House” and Bob Dylan’s masterful “Time Out Of Mind” album among the gems that arrived in 2023.

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The Who: “Who’s Next/Life House” – For many Who fans, this is the box set they’ve been waiting nearly 50 years to hear. Fresh off the triumph of the “Tommy” rock opera, guitarist Pete Townshend embarked on his next such project, seeking to tell a prescient-for-its-time story of a dystopian future world beset by climate disaster and led by an autocratic government that puts its citizens into lockdown and sedates them with entertainment accessed via a virtual reality suit. Long story short, the “Life House” rock opera never came together, and nine songs from this era were cherry picked to form the band’s best album, 1971’s “Who’s Next.” Some of the “Life House” tracks previously surfaced on previous compilations, but this massive 10-CD box set goes well beyond those releases, debuting a number of songs, as well as multiple worthy alternative versions of songs from this fruitful period. The set is topped off by two 1971 concerts that capture the Who at their combustible live peak.

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Bob Dylan: “Fragments: “Time Out of Mind Sessions (1996-1997)” -- A string of lackluster albums during the 1980s and early 1990s had plenty of people wondering if Dylan was running on creative fumes. Then suddenly, Dylan found his mojo on 1997’s “Time Out of Mind,” beginning a fruitful run of inspired albums that has continued to this day. This five-disc set includes three discs of outtakes (including several solid songs left off of the album), alternate takes that are often notably different from the album versions of the songs and a disc of live performances of the “Time Out of Mind” tracks.

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The Replacements: “Tim (Let It Bleed Edition)” – The Replacements’ fifth studio album, “Tim,” fulfilled the considerable promise of the band’s earlier albums and confirmed Paul Westerberg as one of rock’s very finest songwriters, whose lyrics could be brash, funny and clever, yet vulnerable and full of pathos. This four-disc box set begins with a new mix by Ed Stasium of the original album that brings a new crispness and clarity to the songs. The new box set also expands on the bonus cuts that debuted on the 2008 single-disc deluxe version of “Tim,” including the rocking outtake “Having Fun,” a frenetic electric version of “Kiss Me on the Bus” and four versions of “Can’t Hardly Wait,” which surfaced on the band’s next album, “Pleased To Meet Me.” The set is rounded out by a rocking and fairly tight (by mid-80s Replacements standards, anyway) 1986 live show from Chicago.

Green Day: “Dookie” – The blockbuster album that made punk safe for the masses gets expanded with 24 demos and outtakes, the band’s Woodstock 1994 concert and a full club show from Barcelona. The demos and studio versions of several unreleased tunes – which measure up to the songs on “Dookie” -- are the stars of this set. If you want more Green Day, a similar expanded reissue of “Nimrod,” the band’s excellent 1997 album, offers multiple demos (10 of which are of unreleased songs) and a concert.

Prince & the New Power Generation: “Diamonds and Pearls” – Prince’s post-1990s albums tended to be more uneven than his mostly stellar 1980s work, but 1992’s “Diamonds And Pearls” had its share of strong songs spanning rock, pop, funk, hip-hop and gospel. The highlight of this 7-disc super deluxe set is disc 5, whose 10 tracks, coupled with a few other selections from the 47 outtakes included in this set, could have made up one of Prince’s better albums.

Steve Miller: “J50 – The Evolution of the Joker” – “The Joker,” Miller’s eighth album, gave him his commercial breakthrough. This 43-song set dissects the project, usually using demos, early studio versions. and with a few songs, live versions to illustrate the development of each song, followed by the final master. It makes for an intriguing and fun inside look at how this album took shape.

Tragically Hip: “Phantom Power 25th Anniversary Edition” – One of the best albums from Canada’s Tragically Hip is supplemented with several strong unreleased tunes and a typically taut and energetic 15-song live set.

Elton John: “Honky Chateau (50th Anniversary Edition)” – The album that really launched John on the path to stardom – thanks to the hits “Rocket Man (I Think It’s Going To Be A Long, Long Time)” and “Honky Cat” -- is expanded with demos of eight of the album’s 10 songs (some, like “Salvation,” “Honky Cat” and a fast version of “Slave,” contrast notably from the album versions) and a performance debuting the album at the Royal Festival Hall in London.

The Barracudas: “Drop Out with the Barracudas” – This deluxe version of the Barracudas’ 1981 debut album adds nearly 50 tracks to a 2005 re-release. The band, which blended garage rock, ‘60s-style pop, surf and touches of psychedelic rock, went through personnel changes after this album. This deluxe version adds a ton of unreleased demos and rehearsal takes and even a few worthy songs that didn’t make “Drop Out.” It makes for the most complete document of the early Barracudas that’s ever likely to surface.

Bob Marley and The Wailers: “Catch A Fire” – The reggae legend/cultural icon’s classic fifth album – and first for Island Records – gets expanded to three CDs, with the original album, supplemented by extended or alternate versions of several songs and a 10-song 1973 live set.

Linkin Park: “Meteora 20 Year Anniversary” – The trend-setting rap-rock (and more) band’s blockbuster second album gets a massive 89-track expansion with lots of live material, and most notably, a 12-track “Lost Demos” disc that includes several strong unreleased tunes.

Eric Clapton: “The Definitive 24 Nights” – This reissue adds 32 tracks to the original 15-song double CD documenting Clapton’s 24-night stand at London’s Royal Albert Hall in 1990/91. The added songs include a reworked version of Blind Faith’s “Can’t Find My Way Home,” solo classics like “Lay Down Sally” and “Cocaine” and Derek & the Dominos’ “Layla” (hard to believe that was omitted from the original release). It’s a major improvement on a set that captured Clapton at the top of his game.

The Black Crowes: “The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion” – This set adds a disc of outtakes and a concert to the band’s stirring second album. Highlights from the outtakes include the rough-and-ready ballad “Miserable,” the tangy acoustic-ish rocker “Darling of the Underground” and a swaggering cover of “99 Pounds.”

Stevie Nicks: “Complete Studio Albums & Rarities” – All eight of Fleetwood Mac’s magnetic singer’s solo albums are collected here, as are 23 rarities scattered across b-sides, tracks from soundtracks and her 1998 box set, “Enchanted.”

The Darkness: “Permission To Land Again 20th Anniversary Edition” – This hit debut album from the retro-ish rockers gets expanded to 66 tracks with a wealth of demos (including full-band versions of solid non-album songs), finished studio outtakes and live material from three concerts.

Supergrass: “Life On Other Planets” – The excellent fourth album from Supergrass gets expanded with a full disc of demos that offer interesting looks at album tracks in their early stages, a 13-song live set, and best of all, a half-dozen b-sides – some of which were UK-only releases – including the brash and hooky “Tishing In Windows (Kicking Down Doors),” the mid-tempo T. Rex-ish “Velvetine” and the bouncy piano-centered “I Told The Truth.”