Ditch the Fruitcake! Music Lovers Want Music for the Holidays: New Releases From The Rolling Stones, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, ABBA, John Mellencamp, Weezer, Soundgarden, Dinah Washington, Katharine McPhee, the Puppini Sisters and More

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Thanks to ABBA and The Rolling Stones back on vinyl; box sets for John Mellencamp and Dinah Washington; Soundgarden's first retrospective; deluxe editions of classic albums from Weezer and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers; and new Christmas albums from Katharine McPhee and the Puppini Sisters, gifting the music lover this Christmastime will be as cheery as the season.

--The iconic Rolling Stones are back in black with two vinyl box set collections spanning their entire career.  The Rolling Stones 1964-1969 (ABKCO/UMe) features nine remastered studio albums, the initial five presented in mono affording, for the first time in years, an opportunity to enjoy tracks such as "Time Is On My Side" as originally released.  Also included are two rare EPs (The Rolling Stones and Five By Five) and two rare collections--Big Hits (High Tide And Green Grass) and Through The Past, Darkly (Big Hits Vol. 2).  The Rolling Stones 1971-2005 embraces Sticky Fingers, Exile On Main Street, Goats Head Soup, It's Only Rock 'n' Roll, Black And Blue, Some Girls, Emotional Rescue, Tattoo You, Undercover, Dirty Work, Steel Wheels, Voodoo Lounge, Bridges To Babylon and A Bigger Bang.  [In stores November 22nd]

Exile On Main Street is also available in a 2-CD Deluxe Edition featuring 10 never-before-heard tracks.  [In stores now]

--Weezer's 2-CD Pinkerton – Deluxe Edition (DGC/UMe) brings together the original 1996 album--widely hailed as one of Modern Rock's greatest--and 25 contemporaneous bonus tracks, including every official B-side and 16 previously unreleased recordings.  [In stores November 2nd]

--ABBA attained global domination during the heyday of vinyl and now ABBA – The Vinyl Collection (Polar/Polydor/UMe) returns all eight 1973-1981 studio albums to their original format in a box set.  Plus a bonus album, ABBA Tracks, with the five single A-sides not on the original albums and five other non-album songs.  [In stores December 14th]

--John Mellencamp's 4-CD box set On The Rural Route 7609 (Mercury/UMe) chronicles the acclaimed singer-songwriter's career with a focus on his songwriting.  The 54 tracks include material from his early works through his most recently released Life Death Love And Freedom, the albums range from the hits "Jack And Diane," "Jackie Brown," "Pink Houses" and "Our Country" to 17 tracks previously unreleased on any Mellencamp CD, including demos for "Cherry Bomb" and "Authority Song."  [In stores now]

--Soundgarden's first retrospective, Telephantasm (A&M/UMe) includes beloved band hits, deep back catalogue cuts and a never-before-heard unreleased track entitled "Black Rain," taken from the Badmotorfinger recording sessions.  Expanded versions of Telephantasm include a double-disc Deluxe Edition with 12 additional tracks (five previously unreleased) and Soundgarden's first DVD, featuring 20 videos, 13 of which make their debuts; a 3-LP vinyl edition and an individually numbered Super-Deluxe Collector's Edition box set with the two CDs, DVD and three vinyl discs, plus a 20-page book featuring rare photos and liner notes, a poster of the album artwork and more.  [In stores now]

--The original, pre-LP era singles of Dinah Washington, the undisputed Queen of the Jukeboxes in the late '40s and early '50s, have been collected in one package for the first time with the 4-CD box set The Fabulous Miss D! The Keynote, Decca And Mercury Singles 1943-1953 (Verve Select/UMe).  Restored, remastered and presented in their release sequence are 107 tracks, including her biggest hits: "Evil Gal Blues," "Am I Asking Too Much," "Baby Get Lost"/"Long John Blues" and "Trouble In Mind."  All but five are the original 78 rpm singles from the Mercury label.  Added are four Keynote singles and a Decca one-off with the Lionel Hampton Orchestra.  [In stores November 30th]

--Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers' Damn The Torpedoes (Backstreet/Geffen/UMe), one of the greatest albums in rock history, has been expanded and remastered for a 2-CD Deluxe Edition.  Bursting with full speed ahead American rock 'n' roll, the 1979 album from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band features such classic cuts as the infectious "Don't Do Me Like That," blistering rockers "Refugee" and "Here Comes My Girl" and exhilarating "Even The Losers."  Digitally remastered, Damn The Torpedoes - Deluxe Edition adds nine bonus tracks, seven previously unreleased including "Nowhere" and "Surrender" from the album sessions.  In 2003, Rolling Stone honored Damn The Torpedoes on its list of "the greatest albums ever made."  [In stores November 9th]

--Katharine McPhee's Christmas Is The Time…To Say I Love You (Verve Forecast/UMe) is the first holiday album from the sensational singer and "American Idol" favorite who has become a fixture on television around Christmastime.  The title track is a rarely-covered song originally recorded by rocker Billy Squier. The rest of the album is filled with familiar classics, whether traditional or contemporary, from "O Holy Night" and "This Christmas" to a medley of "Away In A Manger"/"O Little Town Of Bethlehem" and an original song written by McPhee. [In stores November 9th]

--With Christmas With The Puppini Sisters (Verve/UMe), holiday music puts on red lipstick, slips into a silky cleavage-celebrating ballgown, and goes gorgeous and glamorous.  A female vocal trio featuring '40s-style close harmony, backed by a fearless jazz threesome, the retro-futuristic Puppini Sisters put their signature sequined stamp on timeless songs of the season.  [In stores now]

Several recent or soon-to-be-released packages are also sure to satisfy both the gifter and giftee this holiday season:

--Louis Armstrong: Hello Louis: The Hit Years (Verve Select/UMe): Presenting the Mame LP on CD for the first time, adding in "The Three Of Us," recorded for the album but only previously released in Europe, previously unreleased tracks & more.

--The Beatles: The 4 Complete Ed Sullivan Shows Starring The Beatles (2 DVD)(UMe): Newly remastered audio and carefully restored video includes previously unreleased material.

--Iron Maiden: The Final Frontier – Mission Edition (UMe): Released in a unique Limited Edition, Collector's "Mission Edition" CD case and will include access to extra bonus content, including the Director's Cut of this new video,  "Mission Debrief" band-interview filmed footage, wallpapers, photos and the exclusive game "Mission II: Rescue & Revenge."

--Jackson 5: Live At The Forum (Hip-O Select/UMe): 40th Anniversary of RecordBreaking Show, Plus Second Forum Show from '72, Released For The First Time.

--Queens Of The Stone Age: Rated R – Deluxe Edition (Interscope/UMe): The expanded, two-CD set marks the 10th anniversary of the release of Rated R, which was named one of Rolling Stone's top 100 albums of the decade. Added to the original album is a second disc with six B-sides and the band's memorable summer 2000 Reading Festival concert.

--The Ruffin Brothers - Jimmy & David: I Am My Brother's Keeper – Expanded Edition (Hip-O Select/UMe): special collector's package also includes two unreleased bonus tracks: "You're What I Need (Not What I Want)," a previously unheard composition from the album sessions, and an alternate mix of "Stand By Me."

--Tammi Terrell: Come On And See Me: The Complete Solo Collection (Motown/UMe): Extensive 2-CD package includes 10 previously unreleased recordings from the Motown and Chess vaults, including her only known live recordings.

--The Who: Live At Leeds – 40th Anniversary Super-Deluxe Collectors' Edition (MCA/UMe) [In stores December 7th]: Brings together not only the iconic band's concert of February 14, 1970 in Leeds but also the following night's previously unreleased concert in Hull, each with an entire performance of the "Tommy" rock opera.  In addition, the 4-CD box set features a reissue of the original vinyl LP and its seven-inch vinyl single.

--Steve Winwood: Revolutions: The Very Best Of Steve Winwood (Island/UMe): The definitive career retrospective of one of the all-time greats of rock 'n' roll. With tracklistings personally selected by Steve Winwood from his five decade career, the four CD deluxe box set also includes a 52-page book and a re-recorded version of "Spanish Dancer."

--James Brown: The Complete James Brown Christmas (Hip-O Select/UMe): A 2-CD set featuring three original James Brown Christmas albums plus rare bonus singles. While there have been Christmas collections that included some of the these tracks, this release marks the first time each of the albums - Christmas Songs, A Soulful Christmas and Hey America - have been available on CD in full.

SOURCE Universal Music Enterprises