Celebrating the 40th Anniversary of THE CARS’ hit album “Heartbeat City”. Rhino is releasing a 4CD/1LP Deluxe Edition set, including the original “Mutt” Lange-produced quadruple-platinum album on both CD and LP. The remainder revisits the making of the album with unreleased studio recordings, b-sides, early mixes – most of these previously unreleased – plus a never released complete 1984 concert from the band’s Heartbeat City Tour.
“Heartbeat City [Deluxe Edition]” highlights the album sessions with a different, demo version for the Top 10 hit “Drive,” along with unreleased recordings of tracks like “Stranger Eyes” and “Jacki” (later renamed “Heartbeat City”). The set also includes multiple versions of “Shooting For You,” an outtake from the 1980s Panorama that was revived during the making of Heartbeat City.
The set also features a complete concert recorded at The Summit in Houston on September 11, 1984. Originally released on VHS and Laserdisc as The Cars – Live 1984-1985, the performance appears on CD for the first time here, expanded to include previously unreleased versions of “Candy-O” and “My Best Friend’s Girl.” The band opened the show with “Hello Again” and packed 17 songs into a 70-minute set that featured half the new album, including “You Might Think” and “Magic,” alongside earlier hits like “Good Times Roll” and “Let’s Go.”
Keyboardist Greg Hawkes recalls Ric Ocasek’s demo for “Drive” started out like a “spooky bossa nova with him sounding a little like Elvis.” By the time the band arrived in London to record, the song had evolved with Benjamin Orr taking over lead vocals. To conjure the track’s ethereal sound, Hawkes says the group spent days layering backing vocals while producer Robert John “Mutt” Lange urged, “Breathier, man, breathier!”
A Classic
Tracklist:
Disc 1 of 4
1. Hello Again (2018 Remaster) (03:46)
2. Looking for Love (2018 Remaster) (03:51)
3. Magic (2018 Remaster) (03:57)
4. Drive (2018 Remaster) (03:54)
5. Stranger Eyes (2018 Remaster) (04:24)
6. You Might Think (2018 Remaster) (03:04)
7. It's Not the Night (2018 Remaster) (03:48)
8. Why Can't I Have You (2018 Remaster) (04:03)
9. I Refuse (2018 Remaster) (03:15)
10. Heartbeat City (2018 Remaster) (04:30)
Disc 2 of 4
1. Breakaway (2017 Remaster) (03:47)
2. Hello Again (Remix) (05:56)
3. Hello Again (Dub Version) (06:11)
4. Drive (Demo) (04:44)
5. Stranger Eyes (Early Version) (06:16)
6. It's Not the Night (Early Version) (03:43)
7. One More Time (Early Version of "Why Can't I Have You") (03:59)
8. Baby I Refuse (Early Version of "I Refuse") (03:51)
9. Jacki (Early Version of "Heartbeat City") (04:15)
10. Shooting for You (First Version) (04:37)
11. Shooting for You (Re-Recorded Version) (05:23)
12. Shooting for You (Re-Recorded Version) (Alternate Mix) (04:03)
Disc 3 of 4
1. Hello Again (Early Mix) (03:58)
2. Looking for Love (Early Mix) (03:57)
3. Magic (Early Mix) (04:01)
4. Drive (Early Mix) (04:05)
5. Stranger Eyes (Early Mix) (04:56)
6. You Might Think (Early Mix) (03:09)
7. It's Not the Night (Early Mix) (03:44)
8. I Refuse (Early Version) (Early Mix) (03:07)
9. Heartbeat City (Early Mix) (04:01)
10. Breakaway (Early Mix) (03:58)
11. Shooting for You (First Version) (Early Mix) (04:08)
12. Shooting for You (Re-Recorded Version) (Early Mix) (04:41)
Disc 4 of 4
1. Hello Again (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (04:01)
2. It's Not the Night (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (03:58)
3. Touch and Go (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (05:02)
4. Candy-O (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (02:44)
5. Good Times Roll (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (03:34)
6. Jimmy Jimmy (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (04:39)
7. Moving in Stereo (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (05:33)
8. Just What I Needed (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (03:38)
9. A Dream Away (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (05:38)
10. Cruiser (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (05:10)
11. Drive (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (04:01)
12. You Might Think (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (03:10)
13. My Best Friend's Girl (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (03:43)
14. Magic (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (04:26)
15. Let's Go (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (03:45)
16. Heartbeat City (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (05:11)
17. You're All I've Got Tonight (Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 9/11/1984) (05:05)
The Cars – Heartbeat City (4CD Deluxe Edition) (2025)
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