Two albums I never expected to see reissued were dug out of the vaults this year: the first collaboration between Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks, plus Bruce Springsteen’s early electric version of Born in the U.S.A., which was released as part of the Nebraska 82 box.
Despite these two events, the reissues of 2025 seemed a little humdrum. That could, as always, be user error. Maybe I missed many noteworthy reissues in the past year. It’s also true that it’s easy to miss reissues, since they’re becoming increasingly slippery in format and elusive in the stores. Take the 10th Anniversary edition of Carly Rae Jepsen’s Emotion, which appears to be available on vinyl and streaming, but not on CD. Madonna’s recent Bedtime Stories (The Untold Chapter) is equally confusing, available as a double-CD with a disc of extra material; that bonus disc is available on its own on vinyl. Then there’s the issue of being able to track down some of these titles. I saw a lot of online chatter about how Nick Drake’s The Making of Five Leaves Left was difficult to find either stateside or online, its scarcity likely due to limited runs and the ordeal of importing titles from across the Atlantic.
It’s also true that the major labels focus their attention on superstars that can still move the super deluxe box sets that remain in vogue. I do listen to as many of these as I can (there is never time to hear them all, especially when they start to creep past four discs), hoping to discover something interesting among the extra material. Despite my listening habits, I do find these hefty sets that focus on a single album a bit wearying. Only a handful of records can withstand this kind of treatment (it’s remarkable that Who Are You is more interesting as a box than as a proper album) but this year the big boxes have served up some good material, such as the first official release of Pink Floyd’s legendary Los Angeles Sports Arena show from 1975 on the 50th Anniversary edition of Wish You Were Here.
And that brings us back to the first point: this phenomenal gig is available on the Wish You Were Here but as part of the BluRay, not on CD or vinyl (I can’t tell what its streaming fate is). It’s hard to keep all the release information straight, so I’m trying to focus on the reissues that offered experiences that were both entertaining and edifying. As always, the former outweighs the latter for me.
All links lead to a review I wrote earlier this year, usually for this particular newsletter (a notable exception is the big John & Yoko box).
Hüsker Dü—1985: The Miracle Year
Bob Dylan—Through the Open Window: The Bootleg Series, Vol. 18 1958-1963
Bruce Springsteen—Tracks II: The Lost Albums
You Can’t Hip a Square: The Doc Pomus Songwriting Demos
Buckingham Nicks—Buckingham Nicks
Nick Drake—The Making of Five Leaves Left
Split Enz—ENZyclopedia, Vols, 1 & 2
Little Feat—The Last Record Album [Super Deluxe Edition]
Time! Gentlemen! Pub Rock Rhythm’N’Grooves: Classic Cuts and Rarities 1974-1982
Bill Evans—Haunted Heart: The Legendary Riverside Studio Recordings ...
