\jewel

25th anniversary Deluxe Edition of Jewel’s second album, Spirit. The 2-CD set includes the singles, “Hands,” “Down So Long” and “Jupiter.” The Deluxe Edition features eight previously unreleased demos and outtakes, rare live performances, and a collection of singles. The original 1998 release debuted at number 3 on the Billboard 200. “Hands” was named Music Week’s Single of the Week, who stated that it “is a delicious, softly-sung number, showcasing this talented Alaskan’s songwriting skills.”

Bennie Maupin - The Jewel In The Lotus (1974) {ECM 1043}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 222 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 106 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 14 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1974, 2007 ECM Records | ECM 1043 / 172 3520
Jazz / Post Bop / Jazz Funk / Modal Music / Reeds

Jazz -funk fans must have been taken aback when multi-instrumentalist and composer Bennie Maupin's Jewel in the Lotus was released by Manfred Eicher's ECM imprint in 1974. For starters, it sounded nothing like Herbie Hancock's Head Hunters recording, which had been released the year before to massive sales and of which Maupin had been such an integral part. Head Hunters has remained one of the most reliable sales entries in Columbia's jazz catalog into the 21st century. By contrast, Jewel in the Lotus sounded like an avant-garde jazz record, but it stood outside that hard-line camp, too, because of its open and purposeful melodies that favored composition and structured improvising over free blowing.

Johnny Jewel of Chromatics has announced a new album called Windswept. It features music from the upcoming third season of Twin Peaks, and it’s set to be released May 10, shortly before the show’s Showtime premiere on May 21.