I get a new releases newsletter from Ryko. 2 of their Feb 20th releases look interesting:

I have the Canadian import of that Guess Who release. The audio quality is surprisingly good ~ the performances are really good. Randy Bachman oversaw the mastering on the version I have, not sure if Ryko will improve upon it. But it's a neat album for sure ... it's somewhat akin to Elton John's publishing demos album, in that The Guess Who do loads of covers of hits of the day, and they straddle a fine line between doing them like the original artists but also adding a little of their own flavour.

Love the Guess Who disc. Thought it was great to hear them doing covers as well as some alternate versions of some of their own material.

Highly recommended!

I've had the original Guess Who 2-cd set for a while now, and yes it's very enlightening of the period between "It's Time" (their 3rd Canada only album and the first with Cummings) and "Wheatfield Soul". Oh, and yes, the sound is excellent and it's all highly enjoyable material (love those covers).

Another interesting Guess Who related missing link are the two Brave Belt albums that Bachman recorded prior to Bachman-Turner Overdrive days.

You know, it might be a better deal to just grab a cheaper import from one of Amazon's third party dealers right now than to wait for the American Ryko:



http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0007ZP0YE?tag ... K24ZVQGW4&

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Also, if you like the early Guess Who material, this was the other release in Bachman's reissue series which did come out in the States a couple of years ago. There is some crossover with what's on the Let's Go collection:



>> Because of the success of 2003's Shakin' All Over/Hey Ho!/It's Time, Friday Music is proud to release yet another incredible Guess Who collection This Time Long Ago (The Lost Sessions 67-68). This specially priced deluxe 2 CD set is filled with almost 100 minutes of rarities, unreleased sessions and classic rock standards of which most have never been heard in the United States until now!

The Guess Who & Bachman Turner Overdrive founder Randy Bachman again has rescued these tapes from oblivion, and has carefully restored them for the Friday Music label. The packaging is superb as it includes a wonderful 14-page essay and a collection of never seen photos from Bachman's own archives. A true treasury of rare gems for loyal Guess Who fans everywhere!

This Time Long Ago continues their journey from their humble Winnipeg beginnings to becoming the superstar act which is still playing together in 2004! With songs ranging from their second U.K chart hit "His Girl" to unreleased versions of songs from their Wheatfield Soul, Canned Wheat and American Woman albums, these "lost sessions" really cover a lot of musical territory. Check out the newly discovered version of "These Eyes" with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra. Burton Cummings vocals are really in exceptional form on this classic track as well as all of the other tunes in this new package. Their rare Canadian single of the Neil Young penned "Flying On The Ground Is Wrong" receives star treatment as well earlier versions of Guess Who staples "Wednesday In Your Garden", "When Friends Fall Out" and "Of A Dropping Pin."

Another reason to rave about this collection is because of the unreleased songs unearthed from the Canadian television show Let's Go. Randy Bachman, Burton Cummings, Jim Kale and Garry Peterson appeared weekly and played not only their own material but also a selection of hit songs from the era. Their interpretations of "White Room", "Love Is All Around" and "Light My Fire" are highly interesting and enjoyable to hear after all these years of being stored in the vaults. These tracks make this collection worth its weight in gold. <<

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0001FGBBQ?tag ... P2YJQ58CZ&

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The "original original original" Guess Who albums were also reissued a while back, you can find them by poking around through the links on the listing pages above. Fair warning, the first two albums don't have Burton Cummings on them at all!

Randy released the two Brave Belt albums on a 2 disc package a few years ago.

Wonder if he'll ever get around to his other bands Ironhorse and Union?

Beauvoir, were both of those bands post-Bachman Turner? Hadn't heard of those before.

Also, i initially misunderstood about this new release. I thought it was a straight reissue of the 2-cd "This Time Long Ago". I was way off. I could only find two tracks (both covers) common to these discs; and even than cannot be 100% sure that they're the same performances. Looks like "Let's Go" goes onto the list.

Yes, after Randy left BTO he formed (I think) Ironhorse first who released two albums and then formed Union.

Union had a tune that got a bit of airplay called "Main Street USA". I always wondered if the tune was a blatent attempt to court sales in the states...

I believe that the keyboard player in Union was from the band Trooper who Randy had produced. Don't remember exactly but I think there was some connection between the two bands (besides Randy).