Rod Stewart ‘1975-1978’ Box Set With Rare Outtakes Coming In June
Rod Stewart will release a five LP box set, 1975-1978 featuring his first four Warner Bros albums remastered and a bonus LP of rarities and unreleased session outtakes from those albums: Atlantic Crossing (1975), A Night On The Town (1976), Footloose & Fancy Free (1977), and Blondes Have More Fun (1978).
Speaking about the box set, Rod Stewart said: “It’s extraordinary for me to look back on this era of my career. I think fans will enjoy experiencing these songs on vinyl. I know I did.”
After being out of print for decades, the studio albums look and sound better than ever as they return to vinyl, complete with replica sleeves and newly remastered sound. The albums and the bonus LP are all organised in an iridescent box with Stewart foil-stamped on the cover, his blonde shag haircut glistening in gold, and his leopard-print suit shimmering in silver. Rod Stewart 1975-1978 will be available on 4 June in shops, as well as digitally.
After brilliant stints with the Jeff Beck Group and the Faces and several outstanding solo albums, Stewart moved to Los Angeles in 1974. Rod Stewart 1975-1978 reflects the burst of creativity that followed, starting in 1975 with his label debut, Atlantic Crossing. The album was produced by the legendary Tom Dowd (who worked with artists including Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding and Eric Clapton), who produced Stewart’s next three albums.
That four-album run during the 70s was one of Stewart’s most successful. After Atlantic Crossing was certified gold, A Night On The Town went double-platinum, and Foot Loose & Fancy Free went triple-platinum, as did its follow-up Blondes Have More Fun, which became Stewart’s first No 1 album. That era introduced many of the singer’s best-known tracks: Sailing, I Don’t Want to Talk About It, I Was Only Joking, The First Cut Is The Deepest, You’re In My Heart (The Final Acclaim), Do Ya Think I’m Sexy? and Hot Legs.
The bonus LP, titled Encores 1975-1978, is a collection of 10 outtakes selected from the recording sessions for all four albums. The first side highlights five songs from the recent deluxe editions released for Atlantic Crossing and A Night On The Town. Songs include an alternate version of the B-side Rosie and a cover of the Bee Gees‘ To Love Somebody recorded with the influential Stax Records house band, Booker T & The MG’s. The flip side features five previously unreleased session outtakes from Foot Loose & Fancy Free and Blondes Have More Fun. Highlights include a cover of the Motown classic, You Really Got A Hold On Me, and the unreleased tracks Silver Tongue and Don’t Hang Up.
The box set will be available in stores and digitally on 4 June. You can also pre-order it directly from Rhino by clicking here