Rah Band - Messages from the Stars, The Rah Band Story Volume One [2022] + Clouds Across the Moon, The Rah Band Story Volume Two [2023] (10 x CDs)

RAH BAND

Rah Band - Messages from the Stars, The Rah Band Story Volume One [2022] + Clouds Across the Moon, The Rah Band Story Volume Two [2023] (10 x CDs)

This fictitious studio group was masterminded by Richard A. Hewson (b. 17 November 1943, Stockton-on-Tees, Teesside, England). In the late 60s arranger, conductor and multi-instrumentalist Hewson worked with James Taylor and Herbie Hancock and arranged hits such as the Beatles ‘The Long And Winding Road’ and Mary Hopkin’s ‘Those Were The Days’. His fame as an arranger spread and in the next decade he worked with artists including Supertramp, Diana Ross, Carly Simon, Art Garfunkel, Leo Sayer, Al Stewart, Chris DeBurgh, Fleetwood Mac and Chris Rea. In 1976 he decided to produce, write and play on his own records under the name RAH Band. In 1977 the instrumental ‘The Crunch’ on Good Earth climbed into the UK Top 10. Three years later ‘Falcon’ hit the Top 40 and started a long string of dance hits for the band. In 1985 ‘Clouds Across The Moon’, with vocals by his wife Liz, gave him a second Top 10 single. Over the years the band have chalked up seven UK hits and have had records on a myriad of labels including DJM, KR, TMT, Sound, RCA, Supreme and Creole. Hewson, who in the 80s worked with Toyah and Five Star and produced big hits for Cliff Richard and Shakin’ Stevens, now concentrates on writing and producing music for UK television shows and advertisements.

Rah Band - Messages from the Stars, The Rah Band Story Volume One [2022]     This box set is a collection of the recordings of the Rah Band, a British musical project founded by Richard Anthony Hewson in 1977. The box set covers the period from 1977 to 1984 and contains expanded versions of the albums The Crunch & Beyond, RAH Band, and Going Up, plus two CDs of additional 12” mixes, 7” mixes and remixes. The box set was released on October 21, 2022 by Cherry Pop, a label that specializes in reissues of classic pop and dance music. The box set features 71 songs, spanning over six hours of music, and includes some of the Rah Band’s most popular and influential tracks, such as The Crunch, Falcon, Messages from the Stars, Perfumed Garden, and Rock Me Down to Rio. The box set also comes with a fully illustrated 20-page booklet containing brand new sleeve notes by Record Collector and MOJO’s Lois Wilson, who interviewed Richard Hewson in April 2022. The booklet provides an insight into the history and evolution of the Rah Band, as well as the creative process behind each album and song. The box set is the first of two comprehensive 5CD box sets covering the recordings of the Rah Band, with the second volume expected to be released in 2023. The box set is a must-have for fans of the Rah Band, as well as for anyone who appreciates the fusion of electronic, funk, soul, and pop music. (B)

The Rah Band - Clouds Across the Moon, The Rah Band Story Volume Two [2023]      The second box set covering the recording history of the RAH Band, specifically the period between 1985 and 1998. It contains an expanded version of the 1985 album "Mystery", as well as two previously unreleased albums, "Something About The Music" and "World Keeps Turning", which were originally intended for releases in 1987 and 1998 respectively. The former was previously issued in 2002 and 2015, but this box set marks the first time that the album was released in its originally intended form. "World Keeps Turning" was recorded in 1998 and had not seen a release of any kind until this box set. This box set features 75 songs, spanning over six hours of music, and includes some of the Rah Band’s most memorable and catchy tracks, such as Clouds Across The Moon, Time Keeps Tearing Us Apart, Nice Easy Money, and Silverbird. The final two CDs includes additional 12” mixes, 7” mixes and remixes. Overall 58 tracks are previously unreleased on CD including 29 tracks previously unreleased on any format. With ‘Something About The Music’ released how it was meant to be in 1987 with all the correct mixes and versions of each track. (B)

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Volume One

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Volume Two

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Track lists

Volume 1 CD1

01 Rah Band - The Crunch 3:40

02 Rah Band - Electric Fling 4:02

03 Rah Band - Concrete 4:49

04 Rah Band - Is Anybody There? 4:20

05 Rah Band - Beyond 5:22

06 Rah Band - Spacerace 5:48

07 Rah Band - Turkey Roll 5:12

08 Rah Band - Vampire Vamp 5:35

09 Rah Band - Woogie Boogie 4:53

10 Rah Band - The Crunch (Reprise) 0:26

11 Rah Band - Jiggery Pokery 4:12

12 Rah Band - Porridge 3:58

13 Rah Band - The Crunch (Part 2) 3:32

14 Rah Band - Tokyo Flyer (7" Version) 4:10

15 Rah Band - Tokyo Flyer (Instrumental Version) 4:51

16 Rah Band - Falcon (Original 12" Mix) 6:48

17 Rah Band - Falcon 2 (Alternate Version) 3:14

Volume 1 CD2

01 Rah Band - Falcon 4:15

02 Rah Band - Downside Up 8:38

03 Rah Band - Dream On 4:57

04 Rah Band - Slide 4:23

05 Rah Band - Blue Horizon Drifter 6:49

06 Rah Band - Dancing On The Moon 6:37

07 Rah Band - Ride 8:04

08 Rah Band - Slide (12" Mix) 6:39

09 Rah Band - Drat That Cat (7" Mix) 3:43

10 Rah Band - Drat That Cat (12" Mix) 7:53

11 Rah Band - Downside Up (7" Mix) 3:52

12 Rah Band - Riding On A Fantasy (Instrumental Mix) 7:47

13 Rah Band - Ride (7" Edit) 4:18

Volume 1 CD3

01 Rah Band - Messages From The Stars 4:25

02 Rah Band - Roll Me Down To Rio 6:50

03 Rah Band - Perfumed Garden (With Scented Strings) 6:29

04 Rah Band - Hunger For Your Jungle Love (83' Version) 5:41

05 Rah Band - Sam The Samba Man 4:08

06 Rah Band - Winter Love 5:21

07 Rah Band - Tears And Rain 5:39

08 Rah Band - Two Bodies 4:30

09 Rah Band - Party Games 4:05

10 Rah Band - Riding On A Fantasy 5:53

11 Rah Band - Perfumed Garden (Original 12" Mix) 7:58

12 Rah Band - Riding On A Fantasy (7" Single Vocal Mix) 3:47

13 Rah Band - Rock Me Down To Rio (1981 Single Mix) 3:28

14 Rah Band - Messages From The Stars (Short Wave Mix) 3:58

15 Rah Band - Perfumed Garden (7" Single Mix) 3:38

Volume 1 CD4

01 Rah Band - Messages From The Stars (Long Wave 12" Mix) 6:45

02 Rah Band - Tears & Rain (12" Mix) 8:05

03 Rah Band - Riding On A Fantasy (12" Vocal Mix) 7:48

04 Rah Band - Rock Me Down To Rio (1981 12" Mix) 7:23

05 Rah Band - Sam The Samba Man (1983 12" Mix) 7:29

06 Rah Band - Tears & Rain (7" Single Mix) 4:00

07 Rah Band - Hunger For Your Jungle Love (7" Single Mix) 3:44

08 Rah Band - Party Games (12" Mix) 6:18

09 Rah Band - Sam The Samba Man (Hip Hop Music) 6:52

10 Rah Band - Messages From The Stars (Astro Mix) 6:28

11 Rah Band - Funk Me Down To Rio '82 (12" Mix) 7:13

12 Rah Band - Sam The Samba Man (Scratch Me If You Can) 5:14

Volume 1 CD5

01 Rah Band - Funky Tokyo! (7" Mix) 4:35

02 Rah Band - Funk Me Down To Rio '82 (7" Mix) 3:21

03 Rah Band - Funky Tokyo! (12" Mix) 8:43

04 Rah Band - Rising Star (12" Mix) 7:42

05 Rah Band - Winter Love '84 (12" Mix) 7:11

06 Rah Band - Rising Star (Cosmix) 5:36

07 Rah Band - Winter Love '84 (7" Mix) 3:45

08 Rah Band - Dream Street (7" Mix) 4:02

09 Rah Band - Rising Star (Remix Edit) 4:07

10 Rah Band - Dream Street (Original 12" Mix) 7:19

11 Rah Band - Sam The Samba Man '84 (Summer Samba 12" Mix) 7:23

12 Rah Band - Sam The Samba Man '84 (Summer Samba 7" Mix) 4:03

13 Rah Band - Dream Street (Street Mix) 3:50

14 Rah Band - Perfumed Garden (Remix) 6:49

Volume 2 CD1

01 Rah Band - Clouds Across The Moon 6:49

02 Rah Band - Night Wind 7:40

03 Rah Band - Sorry Doesn't Make It Anymore 4:21

04 Rah Band - Float 5:37

05 Rah Band - Mystery Boy 7:12

06 Rah Band - Are You Satisfied? (Funka Nova) 6:00

07 Rah Band - Shadow Of Your Love 6:23

08 Rah Band - Out On The Edge 5:26

09 Rah Band - Clouds Across The Moon (7'' Single Mix) 4:14

10 Rah Band - Night Wind (7'' Single Remix) 4:11

11 Rah Band - Sorry Doesn't Make It Anymore (7'' Single Remix) 4:00

12 Rah Band - Mystery Boy (7'' Single Mix) 3:53

13 Rah Band - Are You Satisfied? (7'' Single Mix) 3:21

14 Rah Band - Clouds Across The Moon (Solar Horizon Mix) 4:21

15 Rah Band - Clouds Across The Moon (Lunar Mix) 5:44

Volume 2 CD2

01 Rah Band - Run 4 The Sun 7:10

02 Rah Band - Something About The Music 5:48

03 Rah Band - Take Some Thyme 5:32

04 Rah Band - Nothing In This World 3:59

05 Rah Band - A Woman's Life 5:50

06 Rah Band - Adventures Of E.Man 5:39

07 Rah Band - Life After Love 6:55

08 Rah Band - Jammin' On The Byte 6:00

09 Rah Band - Across The Bay 3:30

10 Rah Band - Road Of No Return 4:55

11 Rah Band - Run 4 The Sun (7'' Single Mix) 3:59

12 Rah Band - Life After Love (7'' Single Mix) 3:48

13 Rah Band - Adventures Of E.Man (7'' Single Mix) 3:18

14 Rah Band - Run 4 The Sun (Alternative 12'' Single Mix) 7:31

15 Rah Band - Jammin' On The Byte (7'' Single Mix) 3:55

Volume 2 CD3

01 Rah Band - Turn My Love Around 6:04

02 Rah Band - Living For The Nitelife 7:05

03 Rah Band - Chained To The Rhythm 5:38

04 Rah Band - World Keeps Turning 5:33

05 Rah Band - Beyond The Sun 6:27

06 Rah Band - Could You Be The One? 6:17

07 Rah Band - Looks Like I'm In Love Again 7:12

08 Rah Band - Follow Your Lucky Star 4:08

09 Rah Band - If I Ever 6:18

10 Rah Band - Let Your Love Shine 3:43

11 Rah Band - Turn Around (La Vuelta Mix) 3:44

12 Rah Band - World Keeps Turning (Cosmos Mix) 3:37

13 Rah Band - Could You Be The One (Luv Akshun Mix) 3:53

14 Rah Band - Hungry 4 Your Love (Orkestronic Mix) 5:25

15 Rah Band - Let Your Love Shine (Gospel Stomp Mix) 3:42

Volume 2 CD4

01 Rah Band - Night Wind (12'' Remix) 7:21

02 Rah Band - Are You Satisfied? (12'' Instrumental Mix) 5:57

03 Rah Band - Sorry Doesn't Make It Anymore (12'' Single Mix) 6:03

04 Rah Band - What'll Become Of The Children (12'' Single Mix) 7:20

05 Rah Band - Float (12'' Remix) 6:42

06 Rah Band - The Crunch '85 (7'' Single Mix) 3:57

07 Rah Band - What'll Become Of The Children (7'' Single Mix) 4:12

08 Rah Band - The Crunch '85 (12'' Single Mix) 6:45

09 Rah Band - Shadow Of Your Love (7'' Single Mix) 3:32

10 Rah Band - The Crunch '85 (Jazz Mix) 6:00

11 Rah Band - Sweet Forbidden (7'' Single Mix) 3:53

12 Rah Band - Perfect Stranger (7'' Single Mix) 3:42

13 Rah Band - Sweet Forbidden (12'' Single Mix) 6:37

14 Rah Band - Perfect Stranger (12'' Single Mix) 6:08

Volume 2 CD5

01 Rah Band - Time Keeps Tearing Us Apart (12'' Single Mix) 6:26

02 Rah Band - Nice Easy Money (7'' Single Mix) 3:36

03 Rah Band - Every Little Drop (Demo Featuring Liz Hewson) 5:17

04 Rah Band - Time Keeps Tearing Us Apart (7'' Single Mix) 4:08

05 Rah Band - Nice Easy Money (2'' Single Mix) 6:02

06 Rah Band - Close To Home (Demo Featuring Liz Hewson) 2:18

07 Rah Band - Silverbird (7'' Single Mix) 4:26

08 Rah Band - I Feel Like Love Tonight (Original Club Mix) 6:48

09 Rah Band - Big Love Turnaround (Extended Mix) 5:52

10 Rah Band - This Is My Time (Alternative Mix) 4:14

11 Rah Band - It's The Rhythm (Extended Mix) 5:25

12 Rah Band - Hungry 4 Your Love (Vocal Remix) 4:09

13 Rah Band - Life After Love (Remix) 3:59

14 Rah Band - Nothing In This World (Duet Version) 3:58

15 Rah Band - Believe In The Miracle (Sncl Club Mix) 6:08

16 Rah Band - I Wanna Thank You (Wkd Club Mix) 5:52

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