I got an email today from eMusic about some albums they just added to their catalog. One of the new titles is Pavement‘s Wowee Zowee: Sordid Sentinels Edition. The appearance of this CD was news to me. I’m not surprised by it, since Matador released anniversary editions of Slanted and Enchanted (:Luxe and Redux) and Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain (:L.A.’s Desert Origins), but I hadn’t been aware that one was in the works.
Basically, these anniversary editions consist of the original album plus a bunch of extra material from the period during which the CD was written and recorded. This can involve B-sides from singles, Peel sessions, songs from obscure compilations, and, of course, some live tracks. On average, these anniversary editions contain about 35 songs in addition to the original album, which is generally in the vicinity of 15 songs. Finally, in addition to offering many previously unreleased or rare tracks, these CDs are priced for the miserly among us – the new album can be had from Amazon for a mere $13, though if you head to your local Borders, you might end up having to pay the $19 list price.
If you’re still not sure and feel you need a little further motivation to buy this CD, you might be interested to know that the pastor of my church used the phrase “Wowee Zowee” from the pulpit in last Sunday’s sermon. You may interpret this as you see fit.
