Shortly after being formed by Joseph Hill Kenneth Paley and Albert Walker in the mid-seventies, Culture joined the roster of Kingston-based producer, Joe Gibbs for whom they recorded a stream of Roots classics, including the 1977 breakthrough hit, 'Two Sevens Clash'. The following year, the group signed with Sonia Pottinger, who between 1978 and 1979 provided Richard Branson's recently launched Virgin Front Line imprint with four of sublime long players: 'Harder Than The Rest', 'Cumbolo', 'International Herb' and 'Black Rose'. Widely acclaimed upon their release, the first three of these albums soon became regarded as Roots classics. Now, after over 35 years, this long-lost masterpiece finally sees its long-overdue release on this essential 2CD collection, which also features the legendary trio's three other Front Line LPs, so highlighting Culture's complete recorded works for Virgin's esteemed label.
Hundred Seventy Split are a Blues rock power trio featuring Leo Lyons bassist and founding member of Ten Years After, guitarist /vocalist Joe Gooch and drummer Damon Sawyer. This double live Cd features songs for the first two HSS cd's and Ten Years After classics. Joe Cooch & Leo Lyons - both former members of the band Ten Years After, 2002 - 2013 - formed a great singer-songwriting pair for TYA. Leaving TYA they've stayed together & formed Hundred Seventy Split and, along with regular drummer Damon Sawyer, have produced a high energy blues rock band that you must listen to.
Martin Page, who hails from Southampton, England, first gained recognition as a songwriter in the early 80’s with Top-40 hits for Kim Carnes and Earth, Wind & Fire, among others. With Bernie Taupin, whose usual partner was Elton John (and with Dennis Lambert & Peter Wolf), Page wrote “We Built This City,” a Number One Hit for Starship (their first) in 1985. Page and Taupin returned to Number One the following year with “These Dreams,” recorded by Heart (also Heart’s first chart topper). Teaming up with Peter Cox and Richard Drummie of the UK group Go West, Page wrote “King Of Wishful Thinking,” which was featured in the movie “Pretty Woman,” and became a Top Ten hit for Go West in 1990, and “Faithful,” another hit for Go West. With Robbie Robertson, Page penned the critically acclaimed “Fallen Angel,” featured in Robertson’s first solo album.
Grace Jones Disco 2015 limited edition 3CD set featuring digitally remastered editions of her Portfolio (1977), Fame (1978) and Muse (1979) albums including unreleased tracks and rare mixes. All three discs are individually packaged andhoused together inside a deluxe sealed picture boxset with lift-off lid which comes with an extensive booklet.
Portfolio (1977). Disco mix king Tom Moulton produced these tracks at Sigma Sound in Philadelphia using the same musicians Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff held hostage for their sessions. The results are quite different: though polished, these tracks don't jump out at you. It's really a producer's album. Moulton probably had these tracks completed long before he knew who was going to sing them…
As more ensembles perform and record Steve Reich's Music for 18 Musicians, its status as a minimalist masterpiece is increasingly affirmed. Ensemble Signal's 2015 release on Harmonia Mundi is one of several amazing performances that have matched Reich's original ECM New Series recording in technical brilliance and expressivity, and it has even earned the composer's approval for being, "…fast moving, spot on, and emotionally charged." Under the direction of Brad Lubman, Ensemble Signal maintains a relentlessly steady pulse and articulates the interlocking patterns with absolute precision, though the shifting tone colors are perhaps a little clearer in this performance than in other recordings. The microphone placement is not so close that individual instruments stand out, but there is enough separation of parts to allow some sense of direction and the orientation of the smaller sub-groups of pianos, xylophones, marimbas, strings, clarinets, and voices. This is a mesmerizing performance that will transfix listeners, and the music is so compelling that it will linger on well after the CD stops. Highly recommended.
In the 1990s two critically acclaimed and massively popular CDs by the great singer/songwriter Sam Dees. These were sourced from his work as a recording artist and songwriter for Clinton Moon's Showtime Productions based in Birmingham, Alabama. Some were demos and some finished masters, possibly recorded for a second album following the one released on Atlantic in 1975. More tapes of equivalent quality from this period have come to light and these are included with some tracks which only made it onto compilation CDs at the time, his Clintone 45 release, and a couple of alternate takes from The Show Must Go On LP to make the third and final release from this creative and productive era.
From the fanfare of the opening crawl to the abrupt cutaway zing of the closing credits, John Williams' soundtrack to The Force Awakens does not disappoint. Williams has always been an integral part of the Star Wars experience, as familiar as the movies themselves, comforting and nostalgic. The fan anticipation and legacy baggage that came with the seventh film in this iconic series was overwhelming, being the first new film since 2005's Revenge of the Sith and the direct sequel to 1983's Return of the Jedi, yet the results are not crushed by outlandish pressure. For The Force Awakens, Williams began work in late 2014, before recording began in Los Angeles in June 2015 (the first time a Star Wars film score was not recorded at Abbey Road). He enlisted a freelance orchestra and, with the help of William Ross and Los Angeles Philharmonic conductor Gustavo Dudamel, produced a 23-song journey connecting the past and the future of the Star Wars universe. Here, Williams combines the old and the new with expert subtlety, creating a lush experience that rewards repeat listens. Those familiar with his work on other big-budget sagas (Jurassic Park, Harry Potter, Indiana Jones) will instantly recognize the blaring horns that propel the action, the stirring strings that intensify the tension, and the bombast that contribute to the excitement as much as the scenes portrayed on the screen.