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With Eagles' second longplayer, DESPERADO, the band millions around the world would come to know and love begins to emerge more clearly. Likening the rock and roll life to that of Wild West outlaws the Doolin-Dalton gang, this concept album speaks to the ambitious reach that would become a hallmark of the group's releases. And the set's most famous songs - “Tequila Sunrise” and the title track - were collaborations between drummer Don Henley and guitarist/keyboardist Glenn Frey, a partnership that would eventually define the group. Yet with Bernie Leadon's masterful picking prominent throughout, the set will appeal to country and folk listeners as much as to fans of the band's later arena rock. Released 45 years ago today, DESPERADO sold more than 2 million copies and kept Eagles flying high.

Love's FOREVER CHANGES is the psychedelic folk-rock pioneers' finest achievement, an indispensable masterpiece inducted into both the Grammy Hall of Fame and the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry. Cut during 1967's “Summer of Love” in Hollywood, the collection features the band's original line-up on 11 tracks, including such classics as “Andmoreagain,” “Red Telephone,” “A House Is Not A Motel” and “Alone Again Or.” To celebrate the acclaimed album's golden anniversary, Rhino has just released an extensive 4-CD/DVD/LP set housed in a beautifully illustrated 12 x 12 hardbound book. Along with the first-ever CD issue of the mono mix and a remastered version made by original co-producer/engineer Bruce Botnick, FOREVER CHANGES: 50th ANNIVERSARY EDITION boasts more than a dozen rarities, including long-unavailable single versions and a pair of never-before-released backing tracks.

Mudcrutch was an up-and-coming Gainesville, Florida band that moved to L.A. in the early 1970s and cut one single on Leon Russell's Shelter label before splitting up – and sending members Tom Petty, Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench onto much bigger things. Surprisingly enough, Mudcrutch reformed long after Petty and the Heartbreakers had conquered the rock world, releasing their first album ten years ago this month. MUDCRUTCH revels in the Southern and country-rock that originally inspired the quintet, though the extra decades of experience add both ease and polish to the performances; the band sounds like they're having a blast. Petty's songwriting skills shine on such tracks as “Scare Easy,” “Oh Maria” and “The Wrong Thing To Do,” and though his voice is the most prominent, the instrumental work here is equally impressive (particularly Tench's keyboards). You might not know to pick up MUDCRUTCH if famous names weren't involved, but one listen to the music and you won't want to put it down.

Released in the summer of 1973, box office smash Enter The Dragon launched countless martial arts knock-offs and turned Bruce Lee into a star (though posthumously; Lee died of acute cerebral edema days before the film's premiere). With its suspenseful crime-busting story, an Asian setting and some blaxploitation elements, the movie evokes a variety of moods when its fists aren't flying, and composer Lalo Schifrin is largely to thank for that. Famous for the “Mission Impossible” theme and scores to such hits as Dirty Harry, Schifrin blends jazz, traditional Chinese music and funk on a set sure to please beat heads, library aficionados and film fans alike. The ENTER THE DRAGON SOUNDTRACK is available tomorrow in a limited edition picture disc as part of Record Store Day.

In 2016, Jeff Beck celebrated half a century as a hitmaker with a series of career-spanning concerts, including an August appearance at the Hollywood Bowl. Now in stores, the double-disc LIVE AT THE HOLLYWOOD BOWL does justice to both the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer's rich history and his still-dazzling fretwork. From a generous helping of Yardbirds classics (“Heart Full Of Soul,” “Shapes Of Things”) to solo favorites including “Beck’s Bolero” and more recent releases (“The Revolution Will Be Televised”), the 21 tracks are sure to please any fan. Beck's admirers include many musicians, and Aerosmith vocalist Steven Tyler, keyboardist Jan Hammer and fellow guitarist Buddy Guy are among the guest stars heard in support. With great fidelity and outstanding performances, LIVE AT THE HOLLYWOOD BOWL is an ideal showcase for one of rock's greatest instrumentalists.

On the heels of their breakthrough THE REAL THING, Faith No More headed into San Francisco's Coast Recorders with longtime producer Matt Wallace to cut this defiantly weird 1992 follow-up. Unlike its predecessor, ANGEL DUST features the full songwriting participation of frontman Mike Patton, whose twisted sense of humor finds a home in kindergartens, RV parks and operating rooms here. The rest of the band is equally inspired, with particularly fine work from keyboardist Roddy Bottum and guitarist Jim Martin (who would leave Faith No More after this album) augmented by a wild selection of samples. Highlighted by singles “Midlife Crisis,” “A Small Victory” and “Everything's Ruined,” ANGEL DUST reached the Top 10, and we'll give it another spin now to wish bassist Billy Gould a happy birthday.

It's pretty risky when a group changes lead singers, but Ozzy Osbourne's departure for a solo career and the arrival of former Rainbow vocalist Ronnie James Dio marked a new beginning for Black Sabbath. When the first Dio-led Sabbath album, HEAVEN AND HELL, hit the streets on this day in 1980, it was clear  the U.K. heavy metal quartet were firing on all cylinders. Featuring such superb songs as opener “Neon Knights,” “Die Young,” “Children Of The Sea” and the riff-driven title track, the collection became one of the band's most successful in America (and eventually went platinum). That nine albums into their career, Black Sabbath still had a stunner like HEAVEN AND HELL in them is one reason the group is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Coming three years after the U.K. band's last studio album, NOTORIOUS reflected several changes to Duran Duran; drummer Roger Taylor was out, and guitarist Andy Taylor was on his way out. The 1986 collection also signaled a new musical direction, with the group employing more muscular, R&B-derived grooves – a change facilitated by producer (and Chic co-founder) Nile Rodgers. For all that, it was business as usual in the sales department, with the set reaching #12 on the U.S. album chart on the strength of such singles as “Skin Trade,” “Meet El Presidente” and the smash hit title track. The 2-CD Deluxe Edition of NOTORIOUS adds several single versions and B-sides, remixes of album tracks and the live “Duran Goes Dutch” E.P.

In 1978, Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong made their big screen debut in UP IN SMOKE, playing wannabe musicians who unwittingly smuggle a van made of marijuana from Mexico to L.A. Inspired by their now-legendary routines of the early '70s, the film was a smash hit that established the pair as the reigning comedy duo of a new generation. Retaining surprising cultural relevance, the stoner comedy classic now celebrates its 40th anniversary, and Rhino has just reissued its soundtrack. The original album featured songs like “Earache My Eye” “Framed” and the title track along with high-larious dialogue from the movie; the 40th anniversary edition of UP IN SMOKE adds a new recording of the title song and a previously unreleased version from 1978 with an additional Spanish verse by Cheech.

Alternative-rock heroes The Flaming Lips have pushed the envelope for more than two decades with Grammy-winning music and ground-breaking concerts. Now Rhino and Warner Bros. Records celebrate Oklahoma's most famous freaks with SCRATCHING THE DOOR: THE FIRST RECORDINGS OF THE FLAMING LIPS, spotlighting the joyous weirdness the band recorded for Restless Records before signing with Warner Bros. in 1991. Along with cuts from the group's early studio albums, the 19 tracks include material from the band's first two cassette demos and first self-released E.P., as well as covers of The Who's "Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere," Led Zeppelin's "Communication Breakdown" and the theme song from the 1960s Batman television series. Featuring tracks recorded by the group's original line-up (with Wayne Coyne's brother Mark on vocals), SCRATCHING THE DOOR shows The Flaming Lips as they first caught fire.