SIRE RECORDS Releasing 40th Anniversary Set

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From Billboard.com

Sire Celebrates 40th With Four-Disc Set

By Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

With its 40th anniversary looming in 2006, Sire Records will be celebrated this fall with a four-disc boxed set. Due Sept. 13 via Sire/Rhino, "Just Say Sire: The Sire Records Story" rounds up 61 tracks on three audio CDs and another 20 music videos on a DVD.

Sire was founded in 1966 by former Billboard staffer Seymour Stein and Richard Gottehrer. The label is perhaps best known for revealing the New York underground rock scene (the Ramones, Television, the Talking Heads) to a worldwide audience in the mid and late 1970s and, years later, rearing the careers of such acts Madonna, the Pretenders and the Smiths.

All of those acts are represented on "Just Say Sire," as are Morrissey, Erasure, Soft Cell, Depeche Mode, the Tom Tom Club, Seal, the Cult, Ice-T, k.d. lang, Primal Scream, the Cure, Echo & the Bunnymen, My Bloody Valentine, the Replacements, Dinosaur Jr. and Wilco. 2005 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Stein served as the co-producer for the box, overseeing remastering of all the tracks.

The DVD features such clips as Madonna's "Like a Prayer," the Ramones' "Rock'n'Roll High School," the Pretenders' "Brass in Pocket," Echo & the Bunnymen's "The Cutter" and the Talking Heads' "Once in a Lifetime."

Here is the track list for "Just Say Sire":

Disc one:

"Everybody," Madonna
"Mirror in the Bathroom," English Beat
"Kiss Me," Tin
"Oh L'Amour," Erasure
"Tainted Love," Soft Cell
"Situation (Remix)," Yaz
"People Are People," Depeche Mode
"Living on the Ceiling," Blancmange
"That Summer Feeling," Jonathan Richman
"Young at Heart," the Bluebells
"One Step Beyond," Madness
"Genius of Love," Tom Tom Club
"Im Nin'alu," Ofra Haza
"Endicott," Kid Creole & the Coconuts
"Love and Mercy," Brian Wilson
"Each and Every One," Everything But The Girl
"All the Way," Little Jimmy Scott
"Crazy," Seal
"Fire Woman," the Cult
"Constant Craving," k.d. lang

Disc two:

"Teenage Kicks," the Undertones
"This Charming Man," the Smiths
"I Melt With You," Modern English
"Moskow Diskow," Telex
"(I'm) Stranded," the Saints
"Ca Plan Pour Moi," Plastic Bertrand
"Top of the Pops," the Rezillos
"Nowhere Girl," B-Movie
"Part of the Process," Morcheeba
"Come Together (7" Version)," Primal Scream
"Beat Dis," Bomb The Bass
"The Love Cats," the Cure
"The Killing Moon," Echo & the Bunneymen
"Warm Leatherette," the Normal
"Everyday Is Like Sunday," Morrissey
"Never Never," the Assembly
"Oblivious," Aztec Camera
"Inside Out," The Mighty Lemon Drops
"Soon," My Bloody Valentine
"Leave Them All Behind," Ride

Disc three:

"Blitzkrieg Bop," the Ramones
"Alex Chilton," the Replacements
"Come on Let's Go," Paley Brothers and Ramones
"Aloha Steve & Danno / Theme From Hawaii Five-O," Radio Birdman
"The Wagon," Dinosaur Jr.
"Sonic Reducer," Dead Boys
"White Horse," Laid Back
"Blank Generation," Richard Hell and the Voidoids
"I Want That Man," Deborah Harry
"I'll Be Your Everything," Tommy Page
"Summer Teeth," Wilco
"World Class Fad," Paul Westerberg
"Back on the Chain Gang," the Pretenders
"Give Back the Key to My Heart," Uncle Tupelo
"Shake Some Action," Flamin' Groovies
"Counting Backwards," Throwing Muses
"Boy," Book Of Love
"Romeo Had Juliette," Lou Reed
"O.G. Original Gangster," Ice-T
"Jesus Built My Hotrod," Ministry
"Burning Down the House," Talking Heads

DVD:

"Pop Muzik," M
"Rock'n'Roll High School," the Ramones
"Let's Go to Bed," the Cure
"A Little Respect," Erasure
"Brass in Pocket," the Pretenders
"The Cutter," Echo & the Bunnymen
"Bastards of Young," the Replacements
"She Sells Sanctuary," the Cult
"Once in a Lifetime," Talking Heads
"Like a Prayer," Madonna
"Enjoy the Silence," Depeche Mode
"Feed the Tree," Belly
"Drifting, Falling," the Ocean Blue
"Reach," Martini Ranch
"Groovy Train," the Farm
"Things Can Only Get Better," D:Ream
"New York City Boy," Pet Shop Boys
"In the Meantime," Spacehog
"One Week," Barenaked Ladies
"Come to Daddy," Aphex Twin

― ZionTrain (ZionTrain), Thursday, 11 August 2005 00:08 (twenty years ago)

I like a lot of the stuff Sire released but I hardly consider them worthy of having a comp of their stuff. I mean, did anyone buy shit just because it was on Sire?

― kyle (akmonday), Thursday, 11 August 2005 00:14 (twenty years ago)

although who am I to begrudge them their comp?

― kyle (akmonday), Thursday, 11 August 2005 00:15 (twenty years ago)

there's nothing very impressive about licensing artists from other (better) labels. also is reprise being written out of history?

― jimmy glass (electricsound), Thursday, 11 August 2005 00:16 (twenty years ago)

kyle's first post otm

― jimmy glass (electricsound), Thursday, 11 August 2005 00:17 (twenty years ago)

Not on this: Dinosaur's "Kiss Me Again"

― Michael Daddino (epicharmus), Thursday, 11 August 2005 00:17 (twenty years ago)

Ha ha...also not on this: anything by Boney M.

― Michael Daddino (epicharmus), Thursday, 11 August 2005 00:22 (twenty years ago)

xpost

They could have easily omitted,say, Morcheeba or Spacehog and given Arthur Russell his due space on that comp.

― Jay Vee (Manon_70), Thursday, 11 August 2005 00:46 (twenty years ago)

Also not on this: the Climax Blues Band and Focus.

I'm not a huge fan of these bands, but they WERE Sire recording artists during the classic rock years, and I'm quite sure "Couldn't Get It Right" and "Hocus Pocus" bankrolled Plastic Bertrand, know what I mean? So why hide? They afraid they might lose their punk cred if they admitted to these two bands?

It's the 40th anniversary collection but it looks like they're trying to ignore the first ten years.

― Rev. Hoodoo (Rev. Hoodoo), Thursday, 11 August 2005 00:49 (twenty years ago)

Sire drops Wilco but makes a point of including them on their 40th anniversary box set. Classy.

― mike a, Thursday, 11 August 2005 00:59 (twenty years ago)

you'd definitely think that "kiss me again" (for instance) would be more appropriate than stuff like "warm leatherette" or "(i'm) stranded", both indie singles which sire had nothing to do with other than licensing for the US.

― haitch has no respect for artists (haitch), Thursday, 11 August 2005 01:01 (twenty years ago)

there's nothing very impressive about licensing artists from other (better) labels.

In a year or two they should reissue it as "Just Say Rhino."

― walter kranz (walterkranz), Thursday, 11 August 2005 01:09 (twenty years ago)

kiss me again was what, only thier first disco 12", and artistic pinnacle? And no Fuzz Dance...shame on them.

― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Thursday, 11 August 2005 01:16 (twenty years ago)

I mean, did anyone buy shit just because it was on Sire?

HI DERE

― The Ghost of Just Say AWESOME (Dan Perry), Thursday, 11 August 2005 01:44 (twenty years ago)

I MIGHT NOT HAVE BOUGHT IT CUZ IT WAS ON SIRE BUT I AM GLAD THAT THEY PUT IT OUT CUZ LOTS OF IT WAS GREAT AND I COULDN'T ALWAYS GET TO NEW YORK OR PAY IMPORT PRICES AND THEY DIDN'T HAVE TO PUT OUT ECHO & THE BVUNNYMEN ALBUMS IF THEY DIDN'T WANT TO AND A ZILLION OTHER RECORDS THAT I BOUGHT, YOU KNOW?

although smiths on sire vinyl always sounded like shit. that i will say. and the crappy covers they gave to the 12 inches. there is no excuse for that.

― scott seward (scott seward), Thursday, 11 August 2005 02:20 (twenty years ago)

Yaz, Madonna, & Tin Tin. That was my holy trinity for a while there.

I owned 43 singles/albums from that boxed-set list up there at one time or another.

― scott seward (scott seward), Thursday, 11 August 2005 02:30 (twenty years ago)

WHAT NO HOT HOT HEAT??!?!?!

Seymour Stein is the John Peel of A&R though. He might not have "discovered" all the bands on Sire but he sure was pretty consistent about picking out good ones.

― Aaron W (Aaron W), Thursday, 11 August 2005 02:34 (twenty years ago)

Too bad there isn't more old stuff on the DVD...and why no 'pre-Ramones' Sire stuff, just for laffs?

― SoHoLa (SoHoLa), Thursday, 11 August 2005 12:42 (twenty years ago)

Seriously, go back and review the "Just Say ____" series, especially the first three CDs. They're fucking incredible. Sire and Elektra were my first record label loves.

― The Ghost of Black Elegance (Dan Perry), Thursday, 11 August 2005 14:00 (twenty years ago)

Seymour Stein is the John Peel of A&R though.

over time he became the jann wenner of A&R, a figurehead who took credit for his underlings signings. anyway by the mid 80s Sire was in effect an imprint -- vanity label? -- of warner brothers rather than a semi-autonomous state, or so it seemed to the casual observer.

still there's great stuff on that box, staggering in its consistency and reach. some chronology & better organization would be helpful.

― m coleman (lovebug starski), Thursday, 11 August 2005 14:49 (twenty years ago)

"One Week," Barenaked Ladies
"Come to Daddy," Aphex Twin

that's pretty psychotic sequencing

― s1ocki (slutsky), Thursday, 11 August 2005 14:51 (twenty years ago)

Sometimes psychosis is a beautiful beautiful thing!

― The Ghost of Black Elegance (Dan Perry), Thursday, 11 August 2005 14:53 (twenty years ago)

"over time he became the jann wenner of A&R, a figurehead who took credit for his underlings signings"

but that's what leaders do.

― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Thursday, 11 August 2005 15:07 (twenty years ago)

They should have done the Rubayait thing like Elektra did on their 40th anniversary comp... although, granted, much of the people behind the classics have either broken up, become -- well -- less classic, or died.

― donut ferry (donut), Thursday, 11 August 2005 17:19 (twenty years ago)

Tommy Page coming after a bunch of punks is pretty funny! Maybe my wife'll want it now.

― dr. phil (josh langhoff), Thursday, 11 August 2005 21:45 (twenty years ago)

seventeen years pass...

RIP Seymour

― birdistheword, Monday, 3 April 2023 01:00 (three years ago)

yep, our world would be very different without him

― obsidian crocogolem (sleeve), Monday, 3 April 2023 04:55 (three years ago)

That's a great box set btw, but could do with a standalone "first few years" like Elektra did.

― Mark G, Monday, 3 April 2023 10:00 (three years ago)

A couple of tributes:

Madonna

Stein used to downplay his signing, saying if he didn't, someone else would have, so it's striking to see Madonna's post putting things in perspective (that she had been trying for years, and she had been rejected plenty of times). So it was Michael Rosenblatt who brought her to Stein's attention, but it sounds like Stein still had to be the one to make the call on whether to sign.

Talking Heads

I've heard each of them say that Stein went to the mat for them a number of times - wonder what issues came up where the band needed him to get behind them?

― birdistheword, Monday, 3 April 2023 20:13 (three years ago)

I hadn't been aware of Linda Stein's murder... that's horrible.

― hypnic jerk (morrisp), Monday, 3 April 2023 20:16 (three years ago)

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