The albums are available for the first time in 50 years
Rhino has unveiled the next collection of high-quality quadraphonic releases. Unavailable for nearly half a century, four legendary titles have been digitized from their original analog four-track Quad mixes and presented as Blu-ray Discs with a quadraphonic and 192/24 stereo mix. Bette Midler’s The Divine Miss M, Bread’s Baby I’m-A Want You, Duke Ellington’s New Orleans Suite and Graham Central Station’s self-titled album are available now via Rhino and Warner Music.
Quadraphonic sound, or 4.0 surround sound, utilizes four audio channels connected to four speakers positioned at the corners of a listening space. The multi-tracked audio is mixed dimensional, immersing the listener in an expansive soundscape. Currently exclusive to Rhino.com and select Warner Music Group stores worldwide, each title retails for $24.98, with a bundle of all four available for $79.98.
Bette Midler’s platinum-certified 1972 debut studio album, The Divine Miss M, was an instant hit, peaking at No. 9 on the Billboard 200. Named after Midler’s stage persona, the album was co-produced by Barry Manilow and went on to win Midler a Grammy Award for Best New Artist and nominations for Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female.
Baby I’m-A Want You, Bread’s fourth studio release came in 1972 and was their first record to feature new keyboardist Larry Knechtel. The lead single, “Baby I’m-A-Want You,” debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard Top 100 and “Everything I Own” at No. 5, with the album becoming gold-certified.
Duke Ellington was commissioned to create the New Orleans Suite for the 1970 New Orleans Jazz Festival, marking his final recording with saxophonist Johnny Hodges. The record is regarded as one of Ellington’s greatest works, incorporating Creole influences. He won the
1970 Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance by a Big Band and received a nomination for Best Instrumental Composition.
Started by Larry Graham, bassist for Sly and the Family Stone, Graham Central Station released their self-titled debut in 1974. An exuberant hybrid of soul, funk, and pop, the album reached No. 20 on the Billboard Top Soul Albums, and their lead single, “Can You Handle It?”
hit No. 9 on the Soul Singles.
Rhino introduced the Quadio Series in June 2023, with Alice Cooper’s Billion Dollar Babies, Black Sabbath’s Paranoid, The J. Geils Band’s Nightmares…, and Jefferson Starship’s Red Octopus. This series follows the success of the sold-out Chicago and Doobie Brothers‘ Quadio
sets. Quadraphonic sound, also known as 4.0 surround sound, uses four audio channels connected to four speakers at the corners of a listening area. This type of audio provides an immersive listening experience by dimensionally mixing multi-tracked audio, creating an expansive soundscape for the listener. Rhino’s recordings are transferred from the original half-inch four-channel masters at a high resolution of 192/24 for a pristine sound.
Bette Midler – The Divine Miss M
1. Do You Want To Dance
2. Chapel Of Love
3. Superstar
4. Daytime Hustler
5. Am I Blue
6. Friends
7. Hello In There
8. Leader Of The Pack
9. Delta Dawn
10. Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy
11. Friends
Bread – Baby I’m-A Want You
1. Mother Freedom
2. Baby I’m-A Want You
3. Down On My Knees
4. Everything I Own
5. Nobody Like You
6. Diary
7. Dream Lad
8. Daughter
9. Games Of Magic
10. This Isn’t What The Governmeant
11. Just Like Yesterday
12. I Don’t Love You
Duke Ellington – New Orleans Suite
1. Blues for New Orleans
2. Bourbon Street Jingling Jollies
3. Portrait of Louis Armstrong
4. Thanks for the Beautiful Land on the Delta
5. Portrait of Wellman Braud
6. Second Line
7. Portrait of Sidney Bechet
8. Aristocracy a la Jean Lafitte
9. Portrait of Mahalia Jackson
Graham Central Station – Graham Central Station
1. We’ve Been Waiting
2. It Ain’t No Fun to Me
3. Hair
4. We Be’s Gettin’ Down
5. Tell Me What It Is
6. Can You Handle It?
7. People
8. Why?
9. Ghetto
