Foodie #69 From April 2015

Willie Nile, The Bottom Line Archive 1980-2000, is two disc set, separated by a 20 year gap, and is a great example of Nile's long term staying power, and the loyalty that Bottom Line owner/curator, Allan Pepper (booker, or talent buyer does not suffice) extends to the artists that he really believes in. Exhibit a is this double-disc affair, highlighting two distinct eras in Nile's 35-year career. It is worth noting that one of the primary reasons we can enjoy the temporal contrasts contained in this collection is simply because, when Willie was ready to come back, Allan Pepper was just as ready to welcome him back to The Bottom Line. It was a second home for me, gushes Nile. Allan and the whole vibe of the club was so musician-friendly and warm. It was just the best place to play for that reason.

10 CD set containing ten original albums plus bonus tracks by the blues legend B.B. King. It's a unique collection of hits and rarities from 1949 to 1962. The rare LP 'Twist with B.B. King' is appearing here for the first time on CD.

Mutiny Mutiny On The Mamaship/Funk Plus The One will be Expanded for the First Time Ever. Includes 8 Bonus Tracks in a Deluxe 2 CD Edition. Both albums produced by Jerome Brailey. Re-Mastered from the Original Master Tapes by Sean Brennan, at Battery Studio s, New York. Mutiny On The Mamaship is the debut album by former Parliament-Funkadelic drummer Jerome Brailey and his band Mutiny. The album was released by Columbia Records in 1979. The album was released a year after Brailey left P-Funk due to a financial dispute.

Ludwig van Beethoven - The Nine Symphonies - Pierre Monteux (2015) {6CD Set Decca 4808895 rec 1957-1962}
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© 1957-62, 2015 Eloquence / Decca / Universal | 480 8895
Classical / Symphony

Monteux’s Beethoven has been described as visionary. Respect for the spirit of the score, directness of expression, exceptionally well-drilled playing and a sense of untainted idealism that lay at the very heart of the composer’s vision – these are the qualities that typify Monteux’s interpretation of Beethoven. Eight of the symphonies were recorded for Decca; the Ninth for Westminster; and the third (Eroica) again, for Philips. Together with the rehearsal for the Ninth and an impromptu in-studio performance of ‘La Marseillaise’, they form the most complete collection of Monteux’s Beethoven recordings. Other conductors may have offered a more personalised take on the music but none made it more universal or more human. The fascinating accompanying notes to the set are by Rob Cowan and the recordings have been remastered for this release.

Charley Pride - Four Charley Pride Albums (1968-1970) {2CD Set BGO Records BGOCD1181 rel 2015}
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© 1968-70, 2015 BGO Records / RCA Victor / Sony Music | BGOCD1181
Country / Country Pop / Nashville Sound

BGO's 2015 release groups Charley Pride's second four albums onto two CDs: 1968's Songs of Pride…Charley, That Is; In Person and The Sensational Charley Pride, both from 1969; and 1970's Just Plain Charley. By this point, Pride established himself as a star and so RCA was willing to take some chances. Songs of Pride doesn't rely on well-known tunes but rather contains a bunch of new songs, largely written by Jerry Foster and Bill Rice, songs that helped align Charley closer to the modern sound of country in 1968, while In Person demonstrates his in-concert charm and skill. Sensational and Just Plain Charley pick up on Songs of Pride and they're both excellent examples of walking the line between modern sounds – the Bakersfield of Merle Haggard and the proto-outlaw of Kris Kristofferson – and the Music City machine, records that are enough of their time to evoke their era but classic enough to transcend it. This is Charley's peak in many ways and it's a pleasure to have them so easily available on this set.

Returning with a largely revamped lineup, Swedish power metallers Sabaton narrow their thematic focus on their seventh studio album, Heroes. Rather than tackling the large-scale battles they have in the past, the band focuses their lyrics on individual feats of wartime heroics…

As the first compilation covering Eric Clapton's Reprise/Warner work since 2007's Complete Clapton, 2015's Forever Man is the third collection to focus specifically on these recordings from the '80s, '90s, and 2000s, and it's by far the most extensive, weighing in at two CDs in its basic edition and three in its deluxe. The difference between the two is the addition of a disc of "Blues," a nice addition to the "Studio" and "Live" discs of the collection. These themes make sense on paper but they're a little odd in practice, with the Studio selections hopscotching between eras and the live heavy on new millennial selections. Often, the length highlights how light Forever Man is on hits: "Tears in Heaven," "I've Got a Rock N Roll Heart," "Forever Man," "Change the World," "My Father's Eyes," "Pretending," "Bad Love," "It's in the Way That You Use It," and the unplugged "Layla" are all here, but the sequencing suggests how the '70s hits are missing (or present in new live versions)…

Hiatus Kaiyote - Choose Your Weapon (2015) {Flying Buddha–Sony Music 88875 06248 2}
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© 2015 Flying Buddha / Sony Music | 88875 06248 2
Rhythm & Blues / Alternative R&B / Soul / Neo Soul / Future Soul / World Music

A stunning second set from Hiatus Kaiyote – a group we already loved the first time around, but who really blow us away with this amazing little record! The style is this incredible mix of cosmic keyboards and soulful vocals – but not in a way that's like any of the other oft-tread paths in that combination on the market at all. Instead, the group almost put the keyboards first – working from some Herbie Hancock electric 70s mode, but very much with their own style – then find a key place for the sublime singing of Nai Palm – a vocalist who's got this style that's heavenly, and almost with her own sort of electricity as well. Individual tunes are great, but the whole thing really works together as one long sonic trip – a mindbending journey through tracks that include "Prince Minikid", "Shaolin Monk Motherfunk", "Laputa", "Borderline With My Atoms", "Swamp Thing", "Fingerprints", and "The Lung".

German act Argos initially started out as a solo project by multi-instrumentalist and composer Thomas Klarmann, an experienced musician who started out in prog and fusion bands in the 70's.
Later, expanded to a trio, the band released their self-titled debut album in January 2009. The album has been divided into three parts, each highlighting a particular aspect of influences. The first of these, "Nursed by Giants", first and foremost plays out influences from Genesis and Gentle Giant. The following sequence, "Canterbury Souls", pays tribute to the so-called Canterbury tradition in British progressive rock. The final part of this venture is called "From Liverpool to Outer Space", and mainly deals with Beatles-inspired efforts…