Johnny Mercer, Glenn Wallichs and Buddy DeSylva in the summer of 1942. This exquisitely designed, digitally-remastered 96-track, 6-CD boxed set pays tribute to the defining artists of popular music history - from Stan Kenton, Nat King Cole and Frank Sinatra to Peggy Lee, the Kingston Trio and the Beach Boys; from the Beatles (the first time their music has ever been included on a multi-artist compilation), the solo careers of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr, the Band and Pink Floyd to Merle Haggard and Duran Duran; from Bonnie Raitt, Everclear and Garth Brooks to Kylie Minogue, Radiohead, Coldplay and The Vines. CAPITOL RECORDS: 1942-2002 is released in two versions: the Deluxe version is packaged in a 10x10 box, with a full-size 144-page clothbound coffee table collector's volume of classic artist photographs by the world's greatest photographers. The Special version is packaged in a brick format, with a smaller 72-page photograph booklet. Both boxed set versions will contain the same CDs, along with booklets containing extensive discography information, including many track annotations that have been compiled for the very first time. Each of the six CDs cover a decade's worth of landmark performances - starting with Ella Mae Morse with Freddie Slack's Orchestra's Cow-Cow Boogie, Capitol's top 10 pop/R&B crossover hit from the summer of 1942 - to current Capitol hits from Coldplay, Kylie Minogue and The Vines. The massive compendium of hits features dozens of RIAA gold, platinum, multi-platinum, Grammy, Down Beat, Billboard, CMA, Juno, and Brit award-winning recordings. Capitol Records President and CEO Andrew Slater served as compilation producer for CAPITOL RECORDS: 1942-2002 and authored the project's introductory essay. In some ways, this collection is the story of three generations of American music, says Slater. It pays homage to the artists who make up the legacy of Capitol Records, and for anyone who has ever been touched by them. CAPITOL RECORDS: 1942-2002 also includes newly-commissioned liner note essays recalling each decade, written by a specially chosen team of respected music journalists and critics including Nat Hentoff (the '40s); Alan Light (the '50s); Anthony DeCurtis (the '60s); Ashley Kahn (the '70s); Charles M. Young (the '80s); and David Fricke (the '90s). Capitol Records was born of the friendship between hit songwriter Johnny Mercer and renowned record and electronics store owner Glenn Wallichs. Their desire to create an artist-friendly West Coast-based record company to rival the New York-based major labels came to fruition when Buddy DeSylva, the head of Paramount Pictures, agr  (less)

Johnny Mercer, Glenn Wallichs and Buddy DeSylva in the summer of 1942. This exquisitely designed, digitally-remastered 96-track, 6-CD boxed set pays tribute to the defining artists of popular music history - from Stan Kenton, Nat King Cole and Frank Sinatra to Peggy Lee, the Kingston Trio and the Beach Boys; from the Beatles (the first time their music has ever been included on a multi-artist compilation), the solo careers of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr, the Band and Pink Floyd to Merle Haggard and Duran Duran; from Bonnie Raitt, Everclear and Garth Brooks to Kylie Minogue, Radiohead, Coldplay and The Vines. CAPITOL RECORDS: 1942-2002 is released in two versions: the Deluxe version is packaged in a 10x10 box, with a full-size 144-page clothbound coffee table collector's volume of classic artist photographs by the world's greatest photographers. The Special version is packaged in a brick format, with a smaller 72-page photograph booklet. Both boxed set versions will contain the same CDs, along with booklets containing extensive discography information, including many track annotations that have been compiled for the very first time. Each of the six CDs cover a decade's worth of landmark performances - starting with Ella Mae Morse with Freddie Slack's Orchestra's Cow-Cow Boogie, Capitol's top 10 pop/R&B crossover hit from the summer of 1942 - to current Capitol hits from Coldplay, Kylie Minogue and The Vines. The massive compendium of hits features dozens of RIAA gold, platinum, multi-platinum, Grammy, Down Beat, Billboard, CMA, Juno, and Brit award-winning recordings. Capitol Records President and CEO Andrew Slater served as compilation producer for CAPITOL RECORDS: 1942-2002 and authored the project's introductory essay. In some ways, this collection is the story of three generations of American music, says Slater. It pays homage to the artists who make up the legacy of Capitol Records, and for anyone who has ever been touched by them. CAPITOL RECORDS: 1942-2002 also includes newly-commissioned liner note essays recalling each decade, written by a specially chosen team of respected music journalists and critics including Nat Hentoff (the '40s); Alan Light (the '50s); Anthony DeCurtis (the '60s); Ashley Kahn (the '70s); Charles M. Young (the '80s); and David Fricke (the '90s). Capitol Records was born of the friendship between hit songwriter Johnny Mercer and renowned record and electronics store owner Glenn Wallichs. Their desire to create an artist-friendly West Coast-based record company to rival the New York-based major labels came to fruition when Buddy DeSylva, the head of Paramount Pictures, agr  (less)