40th Anniversary Boxset (2023)

OHHH Thank you! Yah this has been there forever but I never took the time to translate it!

A really good chunk of this are either pre-Shanks or written for another artist so fingers crossed we get a good variety.

Isn't "Armaggedon" just Mr Big Time? Aldo Nova co-wrote that one, no?

Holy hell, thank you! I couldn't figure out what it could be.

I'd went through the ASCAP catalog a few times this years... there are new titles popping up there each month. Last week I checked something round 8-10 "new" songs with Jon marked on them.

Makes me wonder if they're really all just old songs they're compiling for the box set now or if at least some of them are also new songs for the next album - I recall Jon mentioning that he was writing for the next record a couple times last year and I believe he also mentioned that the band were planning to go into the studio last summer? I wonder if they're gonna release a new album some time this year or if they've scrapped those plans and are focusing entirely on the box set for now.

I'm also thinking about that. I feel like these April shows could lead the way.

The majority of the songs added in the last year have been a mixed bag of co-writers but all seem to point to certain eras. Quite a few from the late 90's but the most common thing is co-writers. There hasn't been a single song added that Jon wrote alone in the last year-ish. I thought I read Jon moved from ASCAP to BMI a few years ago, that was about when a lot of songs appeared.

I'd lean towards the songs not being for the next band album but either retrospective or just publishing rights changing hands. I just don't see him working with Mark Hudson, Desmond Child and the like. That and I haven't seen too many songs added since 2020 came out unless I'm looking wrong but I check every few months.

Ah with the co-writers I'll have to retract my suspicion about the songs being new. I can't really see him writing with anyone other than Shanks or Billy Falcon these days either (although it'd be interesting to hear what he would come up with working with someone else for a change nowadays).

Also - were the actual new album tracks registered that much before in the past? As far as I remember, our wild speculations rarely lead to a proper track list up until shortly before the release announcement.