Upcoming music box sets, reissues, remasters and vault releases

Record companies and artist estates continue to trawl the vaults in an effort to offer music lovers more of what they yearn for from archival releases.

In Pete Townshend's recently published autobiography 'Who I Am,' the rock legend recounts an incident that took place on July 5, 1969. The Who were flying high with their rock opera about a deaf, mute and blind boy named Tommy, and were set to perform it that evening at London's venerable Royal Albert Hall.

That day, Townshend was in charge of Simon, his 8-year-old brother. Instead of subjecting Simon to the potential dangers of a Who show, Pete elected to leave him in the care of a trusted friend - a wise move, as it turned out. The Who found themselves banned from playing future shows at the Albert Hall due to the group's unruly audience.

The in-concert meltdown: an unfortunate spectacle usually activated by the rigors of a life on the road sparked by exhaustion, chemicals, a fragile emotional or physical makeup and the general demeanor of the 'artiste' in question.

Audience reactions to the meltdown can range from anger to amusement - from disbelief to delight. The end result for the performer varies, but it could include a vaguely-worded apology and a trip to the ER, rehab or both.

In the mid 80s, a friend gave me a cassette containing live recordings of a February 1970 Fleetwood Mac performance (the original Fleetwood Mac - with Peter Green on guitar and lead vocals) recorded in Boston. The tape was labeled 'Live at the Boston Tea Party,' and to this day, that tape contains some of the best live rock recordings I've heard.

In those pre-internet days, information about The Boston Tea Party was hard to come by. That tape instilled an ongoing curiosity for me about the venue itself. Where was it? Who played there? What is currently occupying that space? That's where it gets a bit complicated.