Best of August 2012 classic rock releases

Whenever Lynyrd Skynyrd release a new album or go on a concert tour, it's hard not to pause and reflect on how there was a time -- after the band's plane crashed in 1977, resulting in the deaths of three band members and three others -- that nobody expected the band to ever return. But ten years later, they re-formed, and have been performing ever since. The release of their 13th studio album, Last of a Dyin' Breed suggests that the band still has plenty of life left. Skynyrd will be on tour August through October, including several dates with ZZ Top and The Allman Brothers Band.

Available on CD, MP3 August 21, 2012

The 43rd anniversary of the 1969 Woodstock festival this month has particular significance for Alvin Lee. It was there that the band he co-founded, Ten Years After delivered a performance that propelled them to arena rock stardom. The band went on hiatus when Lee decided to leave in 1974 and, while TYA has since re-formed, Lee has celebrated what he considers his freedom, as a solo artist. Still on the Road to Freedom continues the theme of his 1973 release, On the Road to Freedom.

Available on CD August 28, 2012

What started as a one-off single to benefit a music school in Armenia has turned into a full blown studio album from from onetime Black Sabbath band mates Tony Iommi and Ian Gillan. The 2011 single, "Out of My Mind" is included, along with a mix of familiar standards, rarities and previously unreleased material.

Available on CD August 28, 2012

David Bowie
Bowie in Berlin 1976-1979
Film documenting Bowie's life in the latter part of the '70s in Berlin, living and working with Iggy Pop
^{Available on DVD August 28, 2012}
Calm Before the Storm
Covering 1969-71, the film documents the making of Space Oddity, Man Who Sold the World and Hunky Dory
^{Available on DVD August 21, 2012}

Janis Joplin
Big Brother & the Holding Company
^{Vinyl LP available August 21, 2012}
I Got Dem Ol' Kozmic Blues Again Mama
^{Vinyl LP available August 21, 2012}

Sir Douglas Quintet
Border Wave
^{CD available August 21, 2012}

Frank Zappa
Reissues of 23 albums from the Zappa catalog, in two batches
^{Avialable on CD August 1 and August 28, 2012}

The Byrds
Ballad of Easy Rider
^{Limited edition vinyl LP available August 14, 2012}

Deep Purple
Last Concert in Japan
^{Limited edition vinyl LP available August 14, 2012}

Toto
Toto
^{180 gram vinyl LP available August 21, 2012}

Mike Oldfield
QE2
Platinum
Two Sides: The Very Best of Mike Oldfield
^{CDs available August 14, 2012}