Your attention is invited to a collection of albums of the now legendary Putumayo World Music label.
Each album is supplied with a colorful booklet containing a lot of interesting information about the music styles within the chosen themes for an album (the names of the albums are always bright - they speak for themselves), and also about the musicians-performers.
David Sanborn's third album as a leader has him steering away from the N.Y.C. neo-bop, skunk funk, Seventh Avenue style he helped co-found with the Brecker Brothers band. That it is recorded in Miami speaks volumes about the sunny attitude and less jazz-oriented music he is fomenting. Guitarist/vocalist Hiram Bullock and emerging electric bass guitar star Mark Egan have something to do with this, but the extraordinary drummer Victor Lewis is the one who gives this music an R&B heft while also adding Latin flavors, like boogaloo on growth hormones. Keyboardist Rosalinda DeLeon, percussionist Jumma Santos, and four female vocalists help with the sexy Afro-Caribbean underpinning, while Sanborn plays his trusty St. Louis soul vibrato-drenched alto sax, and also experiments with sopranino sax and the lyricon.
Earth, Wind & Fire were one of the most musically accomplished, critically acclaimed, and commercially popular funk bands of the '70s. Conceived by drummer, bandleader, songwriter, kalimba player, and occasional vocalist Maurice White, EWF's all-encompassing musical vision used funk as its foundation, but also incorporated jazz, smooth soul, gospel, pop, rock & roll, psychedelia, blues, folk, African music, and, later on, disco. Cardboard sleeve (mini LP) reissue from Earth Wind & Fire featuring the high-fidelity Blu-spec CD format (compatible with standard CD players) and DSD mastering (subject to change). Comes with a reprint of the Japanese edition LP obi, a new description, and lyrics. Part of a 15-album Earth Wind & Fire Blu-spec CD cardboard sleeve reissue series featuring albums "Last Days And Time," "Head To The Sky," "Open Our Eyes," "That's The Way Of The World," "Gratitude," "Spirit," "All 'N All," "The Best Of Earth, Wind & Fire Vol.1," "I Am," "Faces," "Raise!," "Powerlight," "Electric Universe," "Touch The World," and "Heritage."
From the beating heart of the capital city Bamako to the rich musical soils of Niafunké, Mali has become synonymous with the raw desert blues sound. Featuring the likes of the legendary Tuareg band Tartit as well as Songhai bluesman Samba Touré, this Rough Guide also includes tracks by other unsung heroes, all of whom share the same goal of preserving a culture under serious threat.
British Jazz pianist George Shearing is joined onstage by Canadian bassist Neil Swanson for this legendary performance captured live at the Philharmonic Hall of Munich and featuring a wide variety of jazz favorites. Professionally shot and instantly captivating, this rare recording of Shearing and Swanson performing together offers everything from Erroll Garner's "Misty" to Duke Ellington's "Come Sunday" and even a moving rendition of Shearing's signature tune "Lullaby of Birdland."
Azel is the second studio album recorded in the West by Tuareg Ifoghas guitarist, singer, and songwriter Bombino (Omara Moctar) and fifth overall. It stands in sharp contrast to 2013's Nomad, produced by Dan Auerbach. The earlier album placed Bombino's signature playing style – directly descended from the Niger master Haja Bebe and informed by Jimi Hendrix and Mark Knopfler – inside a mélange of lap steel guitar, vibes, and a less syncopated rhythmic framework. While the songs and jams were unmistakably Bombino's, the sound and arrangements reflected the producer as much as the artist. Azel was produced by the Dirty Projectors' Dave Longstreth, a hardcore fan. Recorded in a converted barn in Woodstock, New York, this set delivers the full range of Bombino's gifts as composer, singer, and guitarist. The only Longstreth signature is the bright, canny mix. Bombino's double-tracked guitar is framed by a crack rhythm section.