Today I saw that Monkey Grip, Stone Alone and Bill Wyman (self-titled) have been re-released with bonus tracks. I haven't had the chance to sort through them all to see what's already been put out on his Compendium collection a few years ago, but if for nothing else some single edits are included on these reissues, which I don't think have been issued on CD before.

Well, they found a way to get me to buy these one more time. Each of the 3 CDs has some singles edits/mixes, and the first 2 have some previously unreleased tracks. I'm thrilled to finally have the 45 edit of "Je Suis Un Rock Star" on CD, but couldn't they have included the 12" mix too? I guess that'll be on the next round of reissues. I don't like the way the booklet covers are designed (see below), but the liner notes are a good read, and each album's notes pick up the story from the previous one. In fact, the self-titled 1982 album concludes with "continued on the liner notes to the album Stuff", which has never been issued in the US, so it may be a good sign.

So, let me think...I bought an expensive Japanese import CD of Bill Wyman, bought less expensive import CDs of Monkey Grip and Stone Alone, bought the 2-CD Compendium that combined all the tracks from the 3 albums, bought the 2-CD Solo Collection that just came out last year with much of the same material, and bought these new reissues too. Plus my old vinyl copies, including a picture-disc of Bill Wyman. Oy vey.

Is there anything of interest on that solo collection released last year? As for the Expanded editions, I too wish they had thought to put the extended version of "Si Si" on Bill Wyman. I think they also missed a single edit or mix of "Gonna Get Me A Gun", or "White Lightning" (I can't remember offhand) -- should've been on Monkey Grip. I also wish the artwork were better -- faithful reproductions of the LPs, as much as possible anyway.

I thought the 45 edit had the line "she was a disco dancer" instead of "she said she smoked marijuana," but at least as it appears on the present reissue both versions have the marijuana line.

Wow -- I think you're right about that. I forgot about that one. I'll have to check it out. The disco dancer version wouldn't have been a PROMO only thing, would it? I think I have it (or at least have heard it) -- I'll have to check. (Unless it were on the extended version?)

I remember a 45 with the "marijuana" version on one side and the "disco dancer" version on the other. At that time I was a member of my college radio station (actually a glorified in-campus intercom, but that's another story), so it may very well have been a promotional record.

I took advantage of J&R's current all-label sale to pick up the CD reissue of Stuff, which showed up in the racks a couple weeks ago with no fanfare. As mentioned above, this album has never previously been available in the US, even on vinyl. The CD includes 12" mixes of "Blue Murder" and the title track, as well as the "Stuff" video as an "enhanced track."

Does the world need more Bill Wyman songs? Weren't the original albums bad enough?

Blimey! One fewer CD that I have that Jim doesn't. I'm probably down to 3 in that category. Jim, on the other hand, probably has only 9,700 CDs that I don't have.