Pantera "Cowboys from Hell: 20th Anniversary Edition" due September 14th

[D.Ingram]

Taken from Blabbermouth.net:

PANTERA found its growl and groove on "Cowboys From Hell", a landmark album whose bone-powdering intensity, razor-sharp riffing and pummeling rhythmic assault represented a turning point in modern metal when it was released in 1990. More than just PANTERA's major label debut, many consider this album to be the official debut of the PANTERA lineup with singer Philip Anselmo, guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott, his brother, drummer Vinnie Paul and bassist Rex Brown.

To celebrate the 20-year anniversary of "Cowboys From Hell", Rhino rounds up a three-disc "Ultimate Edition," a three-disc "Deluxe Edition," and a two-disc "Expanded Edition." All three editions include a newly remastered version of the original album along with unreleased and rare live performances from the "Cowboys From Hell" tour. The "Ultimate" and "Deluxe" editions will also feature a disc of unreleased demos for nearly every album track, plus, "The Will To Survive", a previously unreleased song recorded during the album's sessions.

"'The Will To Survive' is a great track. With so many killer songs, it was hard to pick and choose the ones that should make our major label debut," says Vinnie Paul. "After hearing it for the first time in about 20 years, it's a pretty stellar performance and I am definitely proud that it will see the light of day for all the die-hard PANTERA fans around the world! It shows the true musical diversity of the band at that time!"

The "Deluxe" and "Expanded" editions of "Cowboys From Hell" will be released September 14 at all retail outlets, including www.pantera.com
and www.rhino.com . The "Deluxe Edition" will be available for a suggested list price of $29.98 (physical) and $17.99 (digital) and the "Expanded Edition" for $19.98 (physical) and $12.99 (digital).

The "Ultimate Edition" will feature all three discs included in the "Deluxe Edition" and will be housed in an intricate box including several replica memorabilia pieces from the "Cowboys" era. The "Ultimate Edition" will be available on November 23 and final pre-order details, as well as the contents, will be unveiled soon on PANTERA's Facebook page.

Along with the remastered version of "Cowboys From Hell", all three sets include a disc of live music recorded during the tour for the album. It begins with seven unreleased performances from PANTERA's September 15, 1990 appearance at the Foundations Forum metal convention in California, a show recorded for radio broadcast but never released commercially. The remainder of the disc contains the five-song EP "Alive And Hostile", a collection of performances recorded in 1991 at the Monsters of Rock festival in Moscow that was previously available only in Australia as part of a 1994 boxed set.

The "Ultimate" and "Deluxe" editions of "Cowboys From Hell" include a third disc that contains the previously unreleased "The Will To Survive", along with demos for 10 of the album's 12 songs, including early versions of the title track "Psycho Holiday", "The Art Of Shredding" and "Cemetery Gates".

After being turned down "twenty-eight times by every major label on the face of the earth," ATCO Records A&R rep Mark Ross saw the band when Hurricane Hugo stranded him in Texas. The rest, as they say, is history, including another seven years and over a million miles of touring for "Cowboys" to be certified platinum (one million album sales) by the RIAA.

The album's liner notes include essays by each of the band's surviving members, producer Terry Date, and the aforementioned Ross. Recalling the first time he saw PANTERA, Ross writes, "By the end of the first song, my jaw was on the floor. The sonic power of it all — the attitude and the musicianship — blew me away. Basically, you had to be an idiot to not think they're amazing. I mean, how could you see these guys and not think, Holy shit!?"

"Cowboys From Hell" 20th-anniversary reissue track listing:

Disc One - Ultimate, Deluxe, and Expanded Editions

01. Cowboys From Hell
02. Primal Concrete Sledge
03. Psycho Holiday
04. Heresy
05. Cemetery Gates
06. Domination
07. Shattered
08. Clash With Reality
09. Medicine Man
10. Message In Blood
11. The Sleep
12. The Art Of Shredding

Disc Two - Ultimate, Deluxe, and Expanded Editions

01. Domination (live) *
02. Psycho Holiday (live) *
03. The Art Of Shredding (live) *
04. Cowboys From Hell (live) *
05. Cemetery Gates (live) *
06. Primal Concrete Sledge (live) *
07. Heresy (live) *
08. Domination (live, "Alive And Hostile" EP) †
09. Primal Concrete Sledge (live, "Alive And Hostile" EP) †
10. Cowboys From Hell (live, "Alive And Hostile" EP) †
11. Heresy (live, "Alive And Hostile" EP) †
12. Psycho Holiday (live, "Alive And Hostile" EP) †

Disc Three - Ultimate and Deluxe Editions Only

01. The Will To Survive *
02. Shattered (demo) *
03. Cowboys From Hell (demo) *
04. Heresy (demo) *
05. Cemetery Gates (demo) *
06. Psycho Holiday (demo) *
07. Medicine Man (demo) *
08. Message In Blood (demo) *
09. Domination (demo) *
10. The Sleep (demo) *
11. The Art Of Shredding (demo) *

* Previously unreleased
† Unreleased in the U.S.

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So who else is going to be getting this? I've already ordered the 3CD set, I'd buy the ultimate edition if I had £70 to spend on it but sadly not haha.

Apparently they're going to do the same with Vulgar Display of Power in about a year and a half too.

 

[metallicdistort]

All the bonus tracks look a bit meh, so seeing as I already own the album, I won't bother getting this

 

[Podgie]

My sentiments exactly. If I were a big Pantera fan, I would surely buy it though.

 

[D.Ingram]

Hence why I bought it Still, I thought a few people on here may appreciate this - I only found out myself a day or two ago, surprised this hasn't been plastered all over the place if I'm honest

 

[Vedicardi]

That's a pretty crazy tracklist. I'll at least look into it.

I also want to find out what extra stuff the Ultimate edition has

 

[D.Ingram]

The ultimate edition has an exlusive tshirt, a bunch of replica flyers/tickets/laminates and such all in a bigass box. It's actually quite awesome if you're into that sort of thing... this whole reissue malarky is mostly for people like me who're into demos and collectable shit as well as massive raging Pantera fanboys. Again, like me.


... Fuck this, I'm gonna bash my head against a wall to Domination.

 

[Keenan]

Hhhmm...... I'm interested..... I'll have to look into it.

 

[dethCR07]

WANT

 

[D.Ingram]

And again, Rex Brown has stated in an interview that they'll do the same thing with Vulgar Display of Power in about a year and a half. I'm getting a bit giddy forthis now actually, I feel like a child all over again - Pantera were one of the first 'proper' metal bands I ever heard. Fuck, I can't believe it's been 11 years since I heard them for the first time hahaha

 

[Heavy Metal Rich]

I've got a 3 disc edition on order at my local shop. He had the 2 disc in today but said the 3 disc was only going to be a couple of quid more so I said; "Get me one of them."

Cowboys is still my favourite Pantera album, first one I heard too. Thats probably why haha.

 

[D.Ingram]

I've actually got no idea which is my favourite anymore since each one has its own unique merits. I even love Reinventing the Steel, which most people seem to think is absolute gash.

 

[vMETALLICAv]

reinventing the steel is actually my favourite pantera album. i never really got into cowboys from hell. just didn't grab me like reinventing the steel did

 

[Metal375]

Not a huge fan, so I'll pass. If they were one of my top fav bands, then MAYBE I'd think a 3-disc set was worth it for ONE new (demo?) song with a bunch of different versions of songs I already know. CfH was my intro to Pantera - still my fav album by them to this day, although VDoP is pretty good also. I'd be up for purchasing "The Will to Survive" as a single on iTunes if they were offering it, but it doesn't look like that's going to happen...

 

[dethCR07]

Well, I don't know about favorite albums...

But if there has to be a favorite song, it has to be this:

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=td-v6vG2Xhs"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=td-v6vG2Xhs[/ame]

 

[Keenan]

YEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSS!


I'm so listening to that song now.

 

[metallicdistort]

Isn't the Will Survive just an intro? I swear it's been around on the internet for ages

 

[D.Ingram]

I doubt it's been around on the internet for ages - I'd have heard it if that were the case. I used to have a shitload of Pantera bootlegs etc. on my old PC, wish I had 'em now

Also, vMETALLICAv man up and give CFH another go. It's different from their later stuff sure, but it's probably their most 'fun' album.

 

[vMETALLICAv]

i may well do that dave. the super deluxe box set does look nice but i can't justify the price of it at the mo

 

[-[chop]-]

I'm considering getting the three-disc "Deluxe Edition" seems pretty nice.

 

[Heavy Metal Rich]

I've actually got no idea which is my favourite anymore since each one has its own unique merits. I even love Reinventing the Steel, which most people seem to think is absolute gash.

Yeah you're right, I might go as far as saying Reinventing The Steel is my second favourite Pantera album. I think its quite a fun album for them too.