David Gooding

The Earl Scruggs Revue - Four Original Columbia Albums (2018) {2CD Set BGO Records BGOCD1295 rec 1972-1976}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 997 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 349 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (png) -> 41 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1972-76, 2018 Columbia / Sony Music / BGO Records | BGOCD1295
Country / Folk / Bluegrass / Banjo

Four albums by the legendary Earl Scruggs – all recorded in the years after he'd split with famous partner Lester Flatt, and moved on to work with a younger array of partners in the Earl Scruggs Revue! Given the way that Scruggs revolutionized the sound of American banjo in the postwar years, he'd always found strong interest from a younger audience – but with these records, he almost seems to give back directly to that group – by working with sons Randy and Gary, the younger of whol sings a lot of lead vocals – and almost brings a roots rock approach to the music.

In this new recording on Archiv, Paul McCreesh and the Gabrieli players have offered the polar extreme, adding much to the credibility of recent theories about the small forces Bach employed in his own performances of the work. There is no gilding the lily; just what the score prescribes: 9 singers, one on a part, and a couple dozen players. The sum is a performance that is both lighter than air and deeply moving. Brisk tempi and crystalline textures do everything to highlight what is, after all, the heart of the work: the biblical text and the artful interpolations by Christian Picander. A buoyant organ continue underpins solo playing that is articulate, imitative of the diction of the singers who, for their part, combine natural vocalism with a reverential but never pedantic faithfulness to Bach's score (this is not Handel; Bach tended to write precisely the ornamentation he wanted rather than leave it to notoriously capricious singers).

On 100 discs (99 CD & 1 DVD), this box presents the complete oeuvre of Trevor Pinnock and The English Concert on Archiv Produktion. Purcell, Vivaldi, Handel, Bach, Haydn and Mozart are the focus of the repertoire. Numerous recordings such as the Brandenburg Concertos, Corelli's Concerti Grossi or the symphonies of William Boyce are among the milestones of recording history. A Bach album from the ensemble's early days is released for the first time on CD, as well as the never-published Dead March from Handel's "Saul". A 184-page booklet with essays by Trevor Pinnock and Jonathan Freeman-Attwood, the director of the Royal Academy of Music, as well as numerous photos and documents complete the extensive portrait.

3 Compilation albums from the Soul Brother Label featuring a fine collection of Soul, Funk, Jazz & Disco tracks.