Blood Buraddo (2009)

Child Is Father to the Man is keyboard player/singer/arranger Al Kooper's finest work, an album on which he moves the folk-blues-rock amalgamation of the Blues Project into even wider pastures, taking in classical and jazz elements (including strings and horns), all without losing the pop essence that makes the hybrid work. This is one of the great albums of the eclectic post-Sgt. Pepper era of the late '60s, a time when you could borrow styles from Greenwich Village contemporary folk to San Francisco acid rock and mix them into what seemed to have the potential to become a new American musical form. It's Kooper's bluesy songs, such as "I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know" and "I Can't Quit Her," and his singing that are the primary focus, but the album is an aural delight; listen to the way the bass guitar interacts with the horns on "My Days Are Numbered" or the charming arrangement and Steve Katz's vocal on Tim Buckley's "Morning Glory." Then Kooper sings Harry Nilsson's "Without Her" over a delicate, jazzy backing with flügelhorn/alto saxophone interplay by Randy Brecker and Fred Lipsius.

Tom Waits’ Glitter and Doom Live doesn't fall into the various traps that many other concert recordings do, though it does have its problems. This double-disc set marks his third live effort in his nearly 40-year career, each one summing up his career to the point of its release. The first, Nighthawks at the Diner, issued in 1975 on Asylum, is regarded by many as one of the greatest live albums of all time. Big Time, released during his tenure at Island in 1986, is hotly debated in fan circles. It is likely that Glitter and Doom Live will be too, but for different reasons. The musical performances here were culled from Waits’ historic sold-out tour of the U.S. and Europe. He compiled and sequenced the tracks himself, intending to make them sound like a single show. The material leans, understandably, on his recordings with the Anti label…

Sometimes, a greatest-hits set is timed perfectly to gather together a group's most successful and familiar performances just at the point when that group has passed the point of their maximum exposure to the public, but before the public memory has had a chance to fade. That was the case when Columbia Records assembled this compilation for release in early 1972. At that point, Blood, Sweat & Tears had released four albums and scored six Top 40 hits, each of which is heard here. But lead singer David Clayton-Thomas had just quit the group, so that the unit that recorded songs like "You've Made Me So Very Happy" was not working together anymore. And even when Clayton-Thomas returned, the band would continue to decline commercially. As such, BS&T's Greatest Hits captures the band's peak in 11 selections–seven singles chart entries, plus two album tracks from the celebrated debut album when Al Kooper helmed the group, and two more from the Grammy-winning multi-platinum second album.

Make sure you have your stereo (or iPod) at a safe level of volume when you start this disc because it kicks in full throttle and rarely lets up! That is a good thing, especially if you are a fan of great guitar driven rock n’ roll. After it warms your player up for a few seconds, then crank this as it should be. New Soul Cowboys are a hard rockin’ trio based in Nashville, Tennessee. The album kicks into overdue from the first second with “Painted Horse”. IMO, you just can’t go wrong with opening a CD with a killer track about the freedom of blazing a trail on a Harley Davidson. The subtle banjo adds an interesting flavor to the song while the gang vocals will have you chanting along in no time.

Out of the Tunnel's Mouth is the 20th studio album by musician Steve Hackett. It is his first album on his new label Wolfwork after leaving his previous label Camino. The album was announced on 30 October 2009 for sale via his website and live shows…

Coldplay are a British rock band formed in London in 1996. The band consists of vocalist, rhythm guitarist, and pianist Chris Martin; lead guitarist Jonny Buckland; bassist Guy Berryman; drummer Will Champion; and creative director Phil Harvey. They met at University College London and began playing music together from 1996 to 1998, first calling themselves Pectoralz and then Starfish…

It's tough to live down one's past, especially if that past incorporates one of music's biggest "coulda been a star" stories since Pete Best. Al Atkins has been trying to escape the shadow of Judas Priest, the band he formed in the late '60s, ever since the band took off to stardom without him, but it's been a rough road that even 2007's Demon Deceiver couldn't entirely smooth. For that solo set, his fifth, Atkins joined forces with Budgie guitarist Simon Lees, bassist Pete Emms, and drummer Mick Hales, with Diamond Head's Brian Tatler and Danté Fox's Mike De Jager among the guest support. The album was a self-financed/self-produced labor of love, and suffered somewhat from the lack of money and big-production values, but only some.