The 20 Best Box Sets of 2023
Featuring the Replacements, Neutral Milk Hotel, Prince, Jason Isbell, Charlie Parker, ABC, Pharoah Sanders and much more.
Music Lists The Who
For scholars of music and collectors, the past decade or so has pure heaven. The number of deluxe boxed set editions of classic albums, big label overviews and complete discography releases has increased exponentially. You may gripe about how it is adding to the backlog at vinyl pressing plants, and for good reason. But once you get your mitts on one of the 20 best boxed sets of 2023, you’ll feel a lot better.
With the growth of this market, narrowing our choices down to this few wasn’t easy. Some seriously great sets didn’t make the cut. Our philosophy for this list was to concentrate on those releases that have a marked historic importance or capture the work of an artist or label that is oft overlooked. So while Nirvana didn’t make the cut, Nanci Griffith did. There’s no Beatles or Stevie Nicks, but there is the Wonder Years and our artist of the year Jason Isbell. Love them or hate them, here are our picks for the best boxed sets of the year. —Robert Ham, Associate Music Editor
20. The Wonder Years: The Greatest Generation 10th Anniversary Edition
10 years ago, a Philadelphia band called The Wonder Years put out The Greatest Generation—the best pop-punk album of all time. It was huge for its era, and Dan Campbell and his bandmates have, mythically, remained as relevant as ever in the musical zeitgeist. To commemorate a decade of tunes, The Wonder Years unveiled a limited-edition, 3-LP box set in three different variants that are all packed with demos, rarities and a 32-page book of unseen photos, band notes and essays from Hanif Abdurraqib, Hannah Seidlitz and Thomas Nassiff. The voice note demos of “Need You” and “Madelyn” are especially wonderful, as is the B-side “GODDAMNITALL.” And, as always, the set is done up in that quintessential The Greatest Generation artwork. —Matt Mitchell
19. Nanci Griffith: Working In Corners
Folk / country singer / songwriter Nanci Griffith is likely best known for the success she helped other artists achieve. Bette Midler took “From a Distance,” a song Griffith recorded for a 1987 album, to #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. Other country artists like Suzy Bogguss and Kathy Mattea would score major hits with Griffith’s compositions. And during her early recording career, she provided a platform for future legends Lyle Lovett and Bela Fleck. For all that she did for others, Griffith’s own work has oft been overlooked even after years of recording many great albums for major labels. This new boxed set is a welcome step in correcting this oversight. It brings together four early albums by Griffith, which took her from a more straightforward folk sound into a grittier country mode. As much as I love the first two albums she made, I find myself constantly returning to 1984’s Once In a Very Blue Moon and 1986’s The Last of the True Believers, her country turn that makes much better use of the crystalline directness of her voice and lyrics. The plainspoken qualities of both are a subtle feint that allows the sharper point to find their target and has left a deep impression on listeners for some 40 years. This collection helps drive that message home with a wonderful booklet that features memories of Griffith’s collaborators and copious amounts of archival material, and pitch perfect remasters of the albums. —Robert Ham
18. Pharoah Sanders: Pharoah
When Samuel Shepherd signed with Luaka Bop for the release of Promises, his gorgeous collaboration with Pharoah Sanders, one thing he asked of his new benefactors was that they consider reissuing Pharoah, the saxophonist’s long out-of-print 1977 album. Thank the good lord above that they listened. The set that they dropped this year is slender but mighty — simply a remastered version of the original album in all its spacey, spiritual glory and a second LP featuring two live versions of the track “Harvest Time.” But it’s through these two discs, and a booklet filled with photos, ephemera and a conversation with Sanders undertaken just before his 2022 passing, that a near complete picture of his musical mindset is unveiled. Working in the studio with an entirely new group of musicians (including future Sugar Hill Gang collaborator Clifton Chase), Sanders bent and folded his playing to fit their psych-funk approach while holding true to his hopes of reaching a kind of breakthrough in consciousness through his horn. —RH
17. a-ha: Hunting High and Low
There’s a better than average chance that Norwegian synthpoppers a-ha would have made an international splash without the help of MTV. Just think about how ubiquitous their #1 smash “Take On Me” remains on throwback playlists and the setlist of Weezer gigs. Their eye-popping video for the 1985 single certainly helped open the door for the trio but the music has helped keep them in the popular consciousness. This boxed set is further proof. Basically a vinyl edition of the 2015 multi-disc reissue of Hunting High and Low, the six-LP set contextualizes the story of the group’s debut with early demo versions that go back as far as 1982, remixes and the original single release of “Take On Me” when the song was far more raw and awkward in its execution than the slick recording we know and love. What isn’t included is the DVD from that original CD release that included their award-winning clip. The song and the album doesn’t need it. This music stands very well on its own as it is easier to track how frontman Morten Harket found the power in his voice and how his bandmates developed a pop sound that has the crispness and chilly undercurrent of a beautiful fall morning. —RH
16. Devo: 50 Years of De-Evolution
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the formation of Devo, the Akron, Ohio post-punk and new wavers who obliterated contemporary music as we know it. To commemorate such an occasion, the band—via Rhino Records—has unveiled 50 Years of De-Evolution, a career-spanning box set tracing their roots in 1973 at Kent State all the way to their initial break-up in the 1990s. Packed in-between familiar tracks like “Uncontrollable Urge” and “Whip It” are rarities, demos, alternate mixes and even pre-debut album stuff that is so crucial to Devo’s existence. On top of four LPs, the box set provides a Devo air freshener and a paper energy dome. It’s easily the coolest-looking collection on this list. —MM
15. Bob Marley and the Wailers: Catch A Fire (50th Anniversary Edition)
Released in 1973, Catch A Fire brought Bob Marley and the Wailers to the wider world beyond the folks from their home country and serious reggae collectors. For that, we have to thank Island Records who signed the group and helped knock their new album into shape. It may not have caused the conflagration of its title in the charts but with songs like “Stir It Up” and “Concrete Jungle,” the group started making some serious waves on pirate radio and set the stage for their future success. The expanded version of that LP, released this year, tells the fuller story, especially when it came to the Wailers’ dynamic live performances. The boxed set includes a disc of alternate takes of the album tracks — including some only issued in Jamaica — but the jewel is live recording of the band in London, tearing up the stage of the Paris Theatre with poise and collective strength. —RH
14. Various Artists: The Story of Cadet
The latest installment in Vinyl Me, Please’s Anthology Series takes a run through the history of Cadet Records, the label born in 1955 as the jazz arm of Chess Records that, as all good imprints do, evolved to meet the sounds of the times before closing its doors in 1974. As such, a hefty set like this can only tell so much of the story. Executive producer Stephen Anderson wisely chose to concentrate on Cadet’s impact on the history of Black popular music, tucking re-releases of classic titles by Ramsey Lewis, Muddy Waters, Dorothy Ashby, Terry Callier and others into this big box. The album choices were clearly well thought through as the set includes Waters’ wild attempt at psychedelic blues (Electric Mud), the lone full-length by Chicago funk group Shades of Brown, a very welcome reissue of Callier’s 1970 folk-soul concept album Occasional Rain and the final LP by Charles Stepney’s daring ensemble Rotary Connection. As with other editions in this series, VMP does an impressive job linking these records to one another and the history of the label via the extensive liner notes from Anderson, as well as treating the music with the white glove approach it deserves.
13. Joni Mitchell: Archives Vol. 3: The Asylum Years (1972-1975)
The latest installment in Joni Mitchell’s Archives collection zeroes in on her immediate post-Blue period. The box set focuses on For the Roses, Court and Spark and The Hissing of Summer Lawns, well-known to many as her “Asylum Years.” The Archives series has done a massive, emotional job cataloging Mitchell’s first decade of music, and Vol. 3 is the best one yet. Packed into 96 songs and a five-hour runtime, Archives Vol. 3 boasts demos, live cuts, outtakes and alternative versions of some of Mitchell’s best work—including a larger-than-life demo of “You Turn Me On I’m a Radio” performed with Neil Young. This release is for the Mitchell hive, as we get an even more vivid portrait of the greatest folk songstress of our lifetime. —MM
12. Jason Isbell: Southeastern (10th Anniversary)
This year, Jason Isbell celebrated the 10th anniversary of his breakthrough masterpiece Southeastern. The former Drive-By Truckers axeman hadn’t yet found the commercial and critical success we associate with him now, but Isbell struck gold on his first solo record after his debut album with the 400 Unit. The Southeastern box set takes the project’s original dozen tracks and fills them out even more—including Isbell’s original demos and a live performance of the entire album in Knoxville, which he recorded in 2022. There’s a booklet of handwritten lyrics by Isbell and liner notes from Charles Hughes included. It’s not a flashy box set, but an opportunity to give Isbell’s masterpiece just a few more moments in the immediate critical eye—and it’s an opportunity to show how Southeastern was made from the ground up. —MM
11. The Replacements: Tim (Let It Bleed Edition)
Whatever your feelings about the major label debut by the Replacements, the consensus tends to be that the original version sounds pretty rough. The mix done by producer Tommy Erdelyi back in 1985 took all the spine out of the music and filled the gaps with sand and straw. Ed Stadium to the rescue. Working from the original master tapes, he cleaned each song of grit and beefed up the sound to appropriately in-your-face levels. The results were revelatory, allowing listeners to home in on the nuances of Bob Stinson’s guitar work and the jabbing power of the group’s rhythm section. Centered around this new mix, this handsome set fills out the details of the album sessions with rough takes and demos and a hot shit performance by the band from Chicago that shows off all the shades of this peerless rock band’s onstage prowess from punk kiss offs to goofball covers to their most heartfelt pleas. —RH
10. Neil Young: Official Release Series #5
After a complicated stretch on Geffen Records that wound up pissing off the label for making a string of records that weren’t seen as very Neil Young-like, the beloved Canadian artist returned to Reprise Records and underwent a creative Renaissance. He came out swinging in 1989 with his electric guitar cranked up and a renewed fire boiling in his guts. The resulting albums Freedom and Ragged Glory are distorted and furious with long stretches of instrumental fireworks undertaken by Young and his cohort Frank Sampedro. Joining remastered versions of those two albums in this set are the live album Weld, a blistering document of Crazy Horse’s unbeatable chemistry and raw power (sit with their extended version of “Like A Hurricane” and see if you don’t achieve liftoff), and for the first time on wax, Arc, an experimental collage of feedback, vocal snippets and noise inspired by tourmates Sonic Youth. —RH
9. Bob Dylan: Fragments – Time Out of Mind Sessions (1996-1997): The Bootleg Series, Vol. 17
Another year, another Bob Dylan Bootleg Series release. It’s like clockwork, and it’s a nice perennial collection to look forward to. This time around, we get a look into Dylan’s comeback period—when he was making his late-career opus Time Out of Mind between 1996 and 1997. At 17 volumes, one might be growing tired of all of these outtakes and rarities, but this is the best Bootleg Series installment in a long, long time. At 60 songs and six hours of material, this is the kind of release that isn’t for the faint of heart; only real Dylanheads should proceed into the work. But, if you do dare to venture within, you’ll be greeted by a portrait of how Time Out of Mind was built from the ground up—and how Love and Theft was assembled just a few years later. As we continue to move closer towards present-day, this very well might be the last truly remarkable Bootleg Series volume until, if applicable, the Rough and Rowdy Ways era. —MM
8. Charlie Parker: Bird In L.A.
Originally issued for the 2021 Record Store Day, this four LP set compiling the many sessions and live recordings capturing the great Charlie Parker in Los Angeles was mercifully given a wider release this month after the initial limited run went immediately out of print. Unlike, say, the Cu-Bop Sessions release that dropped last month, this collection was put together with great care. The music is laid out chronologically, starting with his 1945 appearances in Hollywood as a member of Dizzy Gillespie’s Orchestra and wrapping up with Bird as band leader in 1952 performing at Jirayr Zorthian’s ranch. This boxed set is a triumph of production and presentation. Engineer Doug Benson performs miracles to bring these rough tapes back to breathing life. Even with the sometimes harsh edits he had to make and the inescapable hiss of some recordings, the music feels immediate and thrilling. The producers even dared to include a previously unknown 1948 recording of Parker as part of the Jazz at the Philharmonic series when the saxophonist was not at his best. They understood the historical importance of that moment, knowing that even the greatest players have an off night and that those flat performances only make the rest of the set’s highlights shine that much brighter. —RH
7. ABC: Lexicon of Love (40th Anniversary Edition)
Way back when, England’s ABC put out one of the very best synth-pop albums of all time. Lexicon of Love, the sextet’s debut, was a project that saw the potential of the genre transcend to heights that obliterate it completely. Lead vocalist Martin Fry employed a cabaret singer-like bravado, as he transported listeners in and out of every song like a grand curator of divine grooviness. At many points a prime example of sophisti-pop, The Lexicon of Love took rich synthesizers and applied them to a full ecosystem of swooning, unforgettable soundscapes. To celebrate its 40th anniversary, ABC has re-packaged it into a great, expanded edition that features demos, remixes, rarities and live mixes and a Blu-ray disc by Steven Wilson. This box set will leave you awestruck by just how brilliantly The Lexicon of Love touches every fabric of the DNA that flooded the pop charts at the time. —MM
6. The Velvet Underground: Loaded: Fully Loaded Edition
The final statement from the Lou Reed era is given its flowers in a major way with this expanded — and expansive — collection. The story of Loaded is fleshed out considerably with multiple iterations of the original LP, including a mono mix and the “Full Length” version that features longer takes of “Sweet Jane” and “Rock & Roll.” Throw in a mess of outtakes and demos, and fans get a fuller view of how Reed and newest member Doug Yule were incorporating the influences of country and doo-wop in a more direct fashion than the group had ever attempted before. The real jewels of this big box are the two live albums: the previously released set from Max’s Kansas City (expanded comfortably here) and, for the first time on vinyl, a scorching 1970 gig at Philly’s Second Fret that closes with a mournful take on “Oh! Sweet Nuthin’” that sounds like the final cry of a man on death row. —RH
5. Otis Redding: Otis Forever
One of the most emotional box set releases in recent memory, Otis Forever compiles all four of Otis Redding’s posthumous albums—The Dock of the Bay, The Immortal Otis Redding, Love Man and Tell the Truth—into one massive, limited-edition collection. Each album is pressed in a different variant color (yellow, silver, green and blue), as is the accompanying The Singles 1968-1970 mono set. It’s a celebratory archival of the late soul titan’s triumphs gifted to listeners after his passing, and it features some of his most iconic songs. Like Jason Isbell’s box set this year, Otis Forever isn’t too flashy. The joy is in the work itself and how it’s now available all in one place. The color variants are an added bonus that give an extra glow to the collection altogether. But Otis is immortal, and we’d be raving about Otis Forever even if it was released on all black wax. —MM
4. Neutral Milk Hotel: The Collected Works
On one hand, it’s a real crime that Neutral Milk Hotel’s first ever Grammy nomination comes in celebration of a box set. But, anytime Jeff Mangum can get his due is a good move in my book. The Collected Works is exactly as the title illustrates: On Avery Island, In the Aeroplane Over the Sea, the Everything Is EP, the Ferrish Wheel on Fire EP, three singles and the Live at Jittery Joe’s album. Oh, and you are also treated to two 24×24 posters. This definitive box set is a dynamic release, as it works as a gold-standard compilation of Neutral Milk Hotel’s brief brilliance for longtime admirers and as an ace entry point for new listeners. The layout of the collection is stunning, fully leaning on the iconic aesthetic of the In the Aeroplane Over the Sea artwork. But within the parameters of those colors is a start-to-finish assembly of Mangum and the band’s revered, unforgettable mark made on indie folk as we know it in 2023. —MM
3. The Who: Who’s Next / Life House Super Deluxe Edition
Likely the most massive box set released this year—in terms of quality and quantity—The Who’s Who’s Next / Life House Super Deluxe is a mammoth undertaking, clocking in at 10 CDS, 155 tracks and a 100-page hardback book designed by Richard Evans and fit with an intro from Pete Townshend and liner notes from Andy Neil and Matt Kent. Also included is the 172-page Life House graphic novel, which is an interpretation of the album’s narrative arc into an incredible design that turns the songs into a larger-than-life slice of art. But that set doesn’t end there, as it also yields two posters, a 20-page concert program from a 1971 show at the Rainbow in London, a 16-page UK tour program from 1971, a button set and a color photo of The Who with facsimile autographs. It’s a triumphant collection of Townshend’s unfinished rock opera fused with the legacy of the band’s greatest album. Few moments in rock ‘n’ roll history have ever been presented in such a caring, extravagant way. The Who make certain that their apex (and the once-abandoned next chapter) is never forgotten. —MM
2. Various Artists: Wattstax ’72: Soul’d Out: The Complete Wattsax Collection
Wattstax, the 1972 event held in L.A.’s Memorial Coliseum, was more than just an event to commemorate the 7th anniversary of the Watts riots and more than just a concert. It was, as organizer William Bell reminded the more than 100,000 people in attendance prior to an appearance by singer Carla Thomas, a gathering “for love, for happiness, for enjoyment and, above all, for peace.” There were powerful speeches throughout the day by Reverend Jesse Jackson, filmmaker Melvin Van Peebles, actor Fred Williamson and others that hopefully inspired those in attendance to keep up the struggle for civil rights in the U.S. and beyond. The inclusion of those moments of empowering oratory is one of the biggest draws for this enormous boxed set from Craft Recordings collecting every scrap of audio from Wattstax. Folks are rightfully falling all over themselves to praise the performances by the many Stax artists that performed on that August day, including Isaac Hayes, at the time still riding high from the dual successes of Shaft and Black Moses; Thomas; David Porter; Albert King and a raft of amazing gospel stars. But take heed of everything else on offer here as the messages that the speakers impart still feel relevant 50 years later. —RH
1. Prince: Diamonds and Pearls Super Deluxe Edition
At 75 songs and a seven-hour runtime, the new super deluxe release of Prince and the New Power Generation’s Diamonds and Pearls is a mammoth project to tackle for any listener, let alone a devotee of the Purple One like myself.Diamonds and Pearls has always sat in Prince’s canon peculiarly. In many ways, it was the most important record he ever made, at least from an artistry standpoint. And I’m not saying that it’s more important to the musical zeitgeist than 1999 or Purple Rain. No, what I mean is that, in October 1991, Prince was on the brink of losing his grip on his own cultural reverence—you might even argue that, by that time, he’d already fallen out of the pop mainstream’s good graces. Acts like Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men were quickly becoming synonymous with R&B, Prince was becoming a walking relic.
This super deluxe edition of Diamonds and Pearls is par for the course of any release of its kind. Most of the unvaulted material includes longer cuts of songs from the original tracklist (there’s a version of “Gett Off” that’s 10 minutes, a Houstyle version of it that’s eight; a six-minute cut of “Daddy Pop”), remixes, live mixes, demos, edits and DJ renditions. Any type of flair you could want on a Prince album is available right here—and that’s not a bad thing. The 13 songs that comprise the initial version of Diamonds and Pearls remain intact, and it sounds just as great as it did 32 years ago. Songs like “Money Don’t Matter 2 Night,” “Thunder” and the title track are benchmarks in Prince’s catalog for a reason; this album is brimming with some of the most exciting, sensual stuff he ever made. “Insatiable” is one of those Prince cuts I don’t revisit enough, but it sounds especially choice in the context of this release—and his falsetto is unbelievably beautiful, rivaling “Adore” as one of his greatest all-time ballads. In short, Diamonds and Pearls sounds like Sign o’ the Times without the James Brown mimicry and tangled sheets. —MM