Best Things First:

When Bruce Dickinson launched his solo career with 1990's Tattooed Millionaire, it was clear that not everything he did on his own would resemble his work with Iron Maiden. Some of the British headbanger's solo output has been very forceful and Maiden-like, but some of it is has been lighthearted, glossy pop-metal that wouldn't be out of place on an album by Bon Jovi, Winger, or Def Leppard. Assembled in 2001, this excellent, well-rounded collection reflects Dickinson's diversity as a solo artist…

Bruckner’s early Requiem of 1849 and the setting of Psalm 114 (really 116) were composed well before his long period of gruelling technical study with Simon Sechter, during which period he was permitted to compose almost nothing. That was followed by another stretch with Otto Kitzler, less prohibitive so far as creative work was concerned, but still severe; at this time he wrote the Overture in G minor, the ‘study’ symphony in F minor, and a number of choral pieces, including the substantial Psalm 112 (with orchestra) on this record. This period of deliberate creative abstinence has led to the belief that Bruckner was a late starter, that he wrote no music of worth before he was about forty.

Celebrated as an instrumentalist and a vocalist, Australian artist Nicki Parrott has earned acclaim as one of the most engaging talents to emerge on the jazz scene in the 21st century. Born in Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia in 1970, Parrott had a precocious talent for music, first learning to play the piano when she was four years old. She would become proficient on piano and flute, but when her sister Lisa, who plays saxophone, was looking for a bassist for her jazz combo, Nicki took up the double bass, and fell in love with the instrument…

American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, born February 26, 1932 in Kingsland, Arkansas, USA; died September 12, 2003 in Baptist Hospital, Nashville, Tennessee, USA…