Blue 58

Blue Floyd, an all-star jam band performing variations on the material of Pink Floyd, are a spin off from Gov’t Mule, featuring Allen Woody and Matt Abts from Gov’t Mule, Berry Oakley (son of Raymond Berry Oakley from The Allman Brothers) on bass, Mark Ford (The Black Crows) on lead guitarist, and Johnny Neil (Dickey Betts Band And The Allman Brothers) on keyboards. This 3 disc set was recorded on the bands 2000 tour in Alexandria, Vancouver. Gov’t Mule have recently toured Europe, promoting their new releases including Dark Side Of The Mule, following on from Blue Floyds reinterpretation of the Pink Floyd catalogue.

Formed in 1967 by former Motions guitarist Robbie van Leeuwen, the Dutch quartet Shocking Blue originally had a lineup of VanLeeuwen on guitar, lead vocalist Fred DeWilde, bass player Klaasje Van der Wal, and drummer Cornelius Van der Beek, and the initial configuration of the band had a minor homeland hit with “Lucy Brown Is Back in Town” a year later in 1968. Things really got moving, though, when DeWilde was replaced by sultry singer Mariska Veres, whose sexy presence and solid singing brought the band a second Netherlands hit, “Send Me a Postcard,” and then a huge international smash with “Venus” in 1970 after the group had signed to Jerry Ross' Colossus Records imprint.

Trumpeter Blue Mitchell delivers a solid hard bop date with his 1967 Blue Note release Boss Horn. The Rudy Van Gelder edition of Boss Horn features remastered sound by original producer Van Gelder that does significanly improve the overall sound quality over the original release.

Formed in Glasgow in 1985, Deacon Blue recorded this debut album in London in early 1987. The album features some of the band’s best-known songs in “Dignity”, “Chocolate Girl” and “When Will You (Make My Telephone Ring)”. Issued in June 1987, the album reached # 14 and achieved Platinum status in the UK alone (300,000 sales).

By 1933, the Mills Blue Rhythm Band was entering its prime period. On the third of Classics' five "complete" CDs by the orchestra, the music is excellent, except for four okay vocals by Chuck Richards. Trumpeter Ed Anderson emerged as a strong soloist during the period; trombonist J.C. Higginbottham joined the band for the final 11 of these 23 selections; the great trumpeter Henry "Red" Allen signed up in time for the last nine numbers; tenor saxophonist Joe Garland was featured on some good spots; and the rhythm section proves that it could hold its own with most others of the time. In addition, guest singer Adelaide Hall is heard on two previously unreleased numbers that were previously unreleased…

Granted, a single-disc overview of Blue Note's finest recordings can't help but offer listeners more than a myopic view of the label's true scope, but for jazz neophytes, this nine-track collection will undoubtedly serve as a tantalizing taste of the company's riches. The song selection, though lacking few surprises, is consistently wonderful – how could a disc featuring John Coltrane's "Blue Train," Herbie Hancock's "Maiden Voyage," Horace Silver's "Song for My Father" and Lee Morgan's "The Sidewinder" be anything but? – and purists' complaints aside, for new fans it's a solid introduction to the Blue Note magic.

Weighing in at a hefty 34 tracks, this is the most exhaustive Swinging Blue Jeans anthology available…

This two-fer from Repertoire features a pair of out of print Shocking Blue LPs: Ink Pot and Attila. Originally issued in 1972, these 31 tracks were written by guitarist Robby VanLeeuwen (with the exception of "I Ain't Never" and "Tobacco Road,") and are surprisingly better than might be expected from a one-hit wonder.