Regular readers will know that we like to keep up with news about the Dark Horse label – the Beatle-related record company started by George Harrison, but now run by his son Dhani.

The revitalised label signed a distribution deal with BMG and has been slowly re-releasing in physical form some of the original Dark Horse titles. It’s also embarked on an eclectic series of reissues and new titles from a range of other artists. These range from to Joe Strummer to Leon Russell, and from Billy Idol to Yusuf/Cat Stevens.

As the number of titles is starting to add up we’ve put together a catalogue of all the records and CDs released since Dhani Harrison took over in 2020. You can see that below.

In researching the list one Dark Horse title from the good old days snuck completely under our radar. It actually came out last year in strictly limited numbers through the Vinyl Me Please record club. It was Ravi Shankar’s Music Festival From India, issued on bright orange vinyl and given the new catalogue number of DH0020:

Two other Dark Horse titles are due in the next month or so. They are the reissue of a jazz LP by Nina Simone, originally released 1959:

The other is the black vinyl version of the Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros LP Live at Acton Town Hall, previously reissued by Dark Horse on clear vinyl in July last year:

Then in April we’ll finally see the long-awaited Mobile Fidelity audiophile pressing of Ravi Shankar’s Shankar Family and Friends. This one has been such a long time coming. We first reported on it back in January 2022! It has clearly been an on-again/off again prospect. So much so that Dark Horse itself seemed to get fed up and put out their own re-issue last year…..

Now it seems the Mobile Fidelity is back on again as we got this in an email last week:

Finally, another strange Dark Horse-related title that you may not have heard about. It is the mysterious duo Dick and Mary and their debut, a self-titled LP which came out late last year. It is on the Bunbun Records label, but on the shrink there’s a Dark Horse hype sticker.

Dick and Mary doesn’t get a Dark Horse catalogue number. We’d suggest its being supported by Dark Horse because people are pretty sure that the “Mary” in the band is Mereki Beach, Dhani Harrison’s partner. (She’s also Australian btw). In a separate project Mereki recorded her solo album Death of a Cloud at the Harrison’s Friar Park studio. You can see her in the studio in a series of ‘live sessions’ videos she’s released. One is here, but there are several others: 

Also, her video for the single ‘Presence’ was shot in the gardens of Friar Park:

Her solo album is only available on streaming services at the moment but there’s talk it will be released in physical form this year, so we guess it is likely to be another Bunbun Records and Dark Horse support deal. So watch out for that one too! 

For those interested, here’s a catalogue of Dark Horse releases to date, starting at catalogue number DH001. We’re still unsure of the mysterious DH0017. Could it be assigned to the long-delayed but much-anticpated album by Benmont Tench called The Melancholy Season?

DH0001 Ravi Shankar – Chants of India (RSD) (2LP Red vinyl)

DH0002 Joe Strummer – Assembly (2LP Red vinyl)
DH0002 Joe Strummer – Assembly (2LP Black vinyl)
DH0002 Joe Strummer – Assembly (CD)
DH0002 Joe Strummer – Assembly (Cassette)

DH0003 Joe Strummer – Junco Partner (12” single Picture Disc) (RSD)

DH0004 Billy Idol – The Roadside EP (12” EP Blue vinyl)
DH0004 Billy Idol – The Roadside EP (12” EP Black vinyl)
DH0004 Billy Idol – The Roadside EP (CD)

DH0005 Billy Idol – Happy Holidays (LP White vinyl)
DH0005 Billy Idol – Happy Holidays (LP Black vinyl)

DH0006 Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros – Johnny Appleseed (RSD) (12” single
Pink vinyl)

DH0007 Shankar Family & Friends – I Am Missing You (RSD) (12” single Blue vinyl)

DH0008 Billy Idol – The Cage EP (12” EP Red vinyl)
DH0008 Billy Idol – The Cage EP (12” EP Black vinyl)
DH0008 Billy Idol – The Cage EP (CD)

DH0009 Joe Strummer – 002: The Mescaleros Years (7LP Box Set)
DH0009 Joe Strummer – 002: The Mescaleros Years (7CD Box Set)

DH0010 Shankar Family & Friends – Shankar Family & Friends (LP Orchid vinyl)
DH0010 Shankar Family & Friends – Shankar Family & Friends (CD)

DH0011 Leon Russell – Signature Songs (LP Black vinyl)
DH0011 Leon Russell – Signature Songs (CD)

DH0012 The Best of Dark Horse 1974-1976 (RSD) (LP Black vinyl)

DH0013 Joe Strummer – Live at Music Millennium (RSD) (12” EP Black vinyl)

DH0014 Stairsteps – 2nd Resurrection (RSD) (LP Gold vinyl)

DH0015 Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros – Streetcore (RSD) (LP White Vinyl)

DH0016 Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros – Live at Acton Town Hall (2LP Clear vinyl)
DH0016 Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros – Live at Acton Town Hall (CD)

DH0017 ?

DH0018 Ravi Shankar & Ali Akbar Khan – In Concert 1972 (50th Anniversary) (RSD)
(2LP Black vinyl)

DH0019 Leon Russell – Hank Wilson Vol. II (RSD) (LP Red vinyl)

DH0020 Ravi Shankar – Ravi Shankar’s Music Festival From India (Vinyl Me Please
exclusive/numbered vinyl/1000 copies) (LP Orange vinyl)

DH0021 Splinter – The Place I Love (RSD) (LP Clear vinyl)

DH0022 Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros – Streetcore (20th Ann.) (LP Black vinyl)
DH0022 Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros – Streetcore (20th Anniversary) (CD)

Associated:

4 050538 868876 Yusuf/Cat Stevens – King of a Land. (Cat-O-Log Records)
(LP Green vinyl). Dark Horse Records logo on rear cover and labels.
538856902 Yusuf/Cat Stevens – King of a Land. (Cat-O-Log Records) (CD).
4 050538 856301 Yusuf/Cat Stevens – King of a Land. (Cat-O-Log Records)
(LP Black vinyl).
4 050538 874006 Yusuf/Cat Stevens – King of a Land. (Cat-O-Log Records)
(LP White vinyl) (Artist Store Exclusive).
4 050538 885453 Yusuf/Cat Stevens – King of a Land. (Cat-O-Log Records)
(LP Blue vinyl) (Barnes & Noble Exclusive).
4 050538 899870 Yusuf/Cat Stevens – King of a Land. (Cat-O-Log Records)
(LP Purple vinyl) (Spotify Fans First Exclusive)

BB0002 Dick and Mary – Dick and Mary (Bunbun Records) Dark Horse hype sticker
(LP Orchid vinyl)

Coming in 2024:

FEB: Nina Simone – Little Girl Blue (Barnes & Noble Exclusive) (LP Pink vinyl)

MAR: Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros – Live at Acton Town Hall (2LP Black vinyl)

APR: Ravi Shankar – Shankar Family & Friends (Mobile Fidelity) (LP Black vinyl)