To expand upon the intro to yesterday’s kick-off, these lists aren’t about one-upmanship. If the majority of the entries below are from lesser-known artists, they made the list legitimately, by bringing joy to the ears, which is fitting for the season. Scaling down to single disc and double disc sets, here’s part one of the Best Reissues and Archival Releases of 2022.
20. Sonic Youth, In/Out/In (Three Lobed Recordings) Sonic Youth’s disillusion in 2011 was a tough one for fans for a variety of reasons; that they were still functioning musically at a very high level (I have a particular fondness for Rather Ripped, which rates up there with the band’s finest albums) certainly contributed to the bummer deal. And so, getting this LP of mostly instrumental material recorded between 2000–2010 was a surprise and a total treat. Five tracks, two of them hovering in the ballpark of 12 minutes, underscore that the Sonic Youth stands amongst the best rock bands to ever do it.
19. Cheri Knight, American Rituals (Freedom to Spend) Later known for work in an alt-country mode solo and in Blood Oranges, Cheri Knight’s early 1980s output while based in Washington State (moving there to attend Evergreen State College) is art-pop with Minimalist tendencies that’s aligned with the fertile post-punk underground of the time. The DIY spirit is strong as the similarities to the concurrent NYC downtown thing are palpable, but the arts college ambiance lends distinctiveness to the collection. Everything here is sourced from compilations, most highly scarce, making this a real public service.
18. David Blue, Stories (eremite) The best album by Blue, released in 1971 by Asylum to no fanfare. An accomplished singer-songwriter and colorful fringe character (and sometime actor) on the scene, Blue started out in the mid-’60s as a replicator of Dylan-isms (his self-titled debut released by Elektra), but by the point of Stories was nearer to Leonard Cohen augmented with non-twang country-ish currents a la Neil Young. Maybe not the most earthshattering reissue of 2022, but it’s always nice when an early ’70s singer-songwriter album hits closer to Townes Van Zandt than to James Taylor.
17. William S. Fischer, Circles (Real Gone) Released in 1970 on Embryo, Herbie Mann’s Atlantic Records subsidiary (but with nary a heavy flute in earshot), Circles is a fascinating record from composer-arranger-multi-instrumentalist Fischer. Blending symphonic soul-funky rock with then nascent electronic composition (the serious stuff, as Fischer studied electronic composition in Vienna in the mid-’60s), Circles is a bit like Sly Stone or Shuggie Otis with a side order of Subotnick and a touches of Hot Buttered Soul. There is also a non-Mann-ish jazz connection, as Ron Carter and Billy Cobham are on board.
16. Sunburned Hand of the Man, Headdress (Three Lobed Recordings) Per Matt Krefting’s essay of appreciation for this 20th Anniversary remastering, Headdress was Sunburned’s first proper vinyl (the handful of prior releases were CD-r’s, as was common in the deep u-ground of the time). What’s captured is a terrifically bent strain of psych preferring to revel in gales of discombobulated groove rather than dishing long-codified form moves. Amid the pursuit of freedom, there are elements that do keep this tethered to rock, without ever getting too close to the standard jam-band impulse.
15. Fred Anderson & Hamid Drake, From the River to the Ocean (Thrill Jockey) Released as part of Thrill Jockey’s 30th anniversary program of reissues, this might appear to the uninitiated as a duo record, but it teams the now departed saxophonist Anderson and drummer Drake with guitar by Jeff Parker, cello, piano, and bass by Harrison Bankhead and bass and guembri by Joshua Abrams. Others unfamiliar with this album who recognize Anderson and Drake as avant-gardists might be surprised to learn that From the River to the Ocean exudes a consistent boppish flavor. But it’s deliciously non-trad in thrust.
14. Dave Brubeck, Live in Vienna 1967 (Brubeck Editions) The skinny on this set is that it’s what occurred when hard-partying alto saxophonist Paul Desmond missed a plane to Austria. Right off the bat, Brubeck, drummer Joe Morello and bassist Gene Wright stave off any potential audience disappointment by kicking it into high gear with a robust reading of “St. Louis Blues.” This is also an insanely bright recording that really puts the solos by all three players right in your ear’s lap and underscores ties to the swing era as they encore with “Take the ‘A’ Train.” Much more than a curio.
13. Andrew Cyrille, Elliott Sharp, Richard Teitelbaum, Evocation (Infrequent Seams) One of the great jazz drummers, Andrew Cyrille is still active. Electronic music pioneer Richard Teitelbaum (Musica Elettronica Viva) passed in 2020. The young one of the bunch, Elliott Sharp is also still on the scene, a guy whose creative trajectory deepened the eclecticism of the ’80s NYC Downtown scene. This first-time meeting from October 13, 2011 as part of the Thomas Bruckner-curated Interpretations series at NYC’s Roulette was fully improvised but benefits from sharp focus that insinuates a much higher level of organization.
12. Frank Sinatra, Watertown (UMe) Released in 1970 with production by Bob Gaudio (of The Four Seasons) and Jake Holmes (who wrote “Dazed and Confused”), Watertown is often the favorite Sinatra album for folks not that smitten with Sinatra. Part of the reason is that it’s an attractively downtrodden experience, right up the alley of fans of the young Scott Walker. Another reason is that Watertown is a concept album, though a very tidy one that’s “story” reads more like a literary short fiction than a rock opera. The album’s failure wasn’t inevitable, but repeating its artistic success was likely impossible.
11. Markos Vamvakaris, Death Is Bitter (Mississippi) Hailed by fans of the Greek style as the “patriarch of the rebetika” and referred to by his first name only, Markos plays the bouzouki and sings with considerable intensity and edge on these recordings sourced from 78s made between 1930–’36, at which point his productivity came to a halt due to the Axis occupation of Greece. The raw and direct nature of these tracks, like so much poor people’s music captured the globe over by a still young recording industry, is captivating. Similar to pre-Code films from the same era, this is the uncut stuff.
