Kuduz (1989)

The Portuguese title of this Gilberto Gil release makes ambiguous references to "changes" and "dance." In fact, it is a dance-oriented album, basically dealing with electric funk grooves. It's a good album that has plenty of Brazilian percussion filling the gaps of the backbeat. More attention to melodies is dispensed in "Mulher de Coronel," in the samba "De Bob Dylan a Bob Marley" (with interesting lyrics dealing with racial problems), in the pop ballad "Cada Tempo em Seu Lugar" (also having good lyrics about the urge of helping), and the beautiful hit the pop ballad "Amarra o Teu Arado a Uma Estrela."

George Harrison's albums have been notoriously uneven, but despite the rough patches, his talent for songcraft never really left him, as the compilation The Best of Dark Horse (1976-1989) proves…

After making a bid to become the '80s version of Steely Dan on the delightful Flaunt the Imperfection, China Crisis offered a fuller and more pop-oriented follow-up the next year. With the duo of Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley (replacing Walter Becker) sharing the producer's chair, the songs on What Price Paradise feature warm, intricate arrangements and prominent brass and strings. But while more than one Langer/Winstanley offering of this era overwhelmed its subject with such treatment – Elvis Costello's ill-fated Goodbye Cruel World is a good example – the sophisticated and melodic songs here prosper from the attention to detail.

The best-recorded Roy Orbison live disc ever issued, taken from the soundtrack of the HBO concert from the 1980s with VIP guests like Bruce Springsteen and Elvis Costello. This was a sort of magical video, and the performances are splendid, along with the good feelings involved. On the other hand, the performances are extremely reverential to the established studio versions of the songs (all of the hits are here), and intended to mimic them, so this isn't quite the same as a live album as it would have been done back when. The pity is that neither Monument nor MGM ever taped any complete concerts by Orbison from the 1960s, and all that remains are TV appearances from Europe.

The Nice were an English progressive rock band active in the late 1960s. They blended rock, jazz and classical music and were keyboardist Keith Emerson's first commercially successful band. The group was formed in 1967 by Emerson, Lee Jackson, David O'List and Ian Hague to back soul singer P. P. Arnold. After replacing Hague with Brian Davison, the group set out on their own, quickly developing a strong live following. The group's sound was centred on Emerson's Hammond organ showmanship and abuse of the instrument, and their radical rearrangements of classical music themes and Bob Dylan songs. The band achieved commercial success with an instrumental rearrangement of Leonard Bernstein's "America", following which O'List left the group. The remaining members carried on as a trio, releasing several albums, before Emerson decided to split the band in early 1970 in order to form Emerson, Lake & Palmer. The group briefly reformed in 2002 for a series of concerts.

At age 15, Neal Schon landed job offers from both Carlos Santana and Eric Clapton – in the same week! Schon would eventually join Santana where he would meet keyboardist Gregg Rolie. After a short stint with Santana, Schon and Rolie would leave to form the super successful Journey. Despite Journey's ascension to the pinnacle of the rock world, Schon was often criticized for failing to live up to his advanced billing. The adulation of rock luminaries such as Carlos Santana and Eric Clapton left no room for anything but the Second Coming. Million's of fans saw it differently. Journey would eventually become the largest selling act in Columbia Records history; and, a 1983 Gallup Poll named Journey America's favorite band. Even in Journey, though, Schon's contributions were often eclipsed by the unique voice of Steve Perry. It would take him the better part of two decades, and the 1989 release of Late Nite, before he would finally take center stage.

Pastpresent is an anthology spanning five Clannad albums from 1982 to 1989. The full range of the band's styles are presented here, from the gorgeous a cappella song that opens the album, to slick pop/rock, acoustic guitar ballads, Irish folk strains, and sophisticated power pop crunch. Along the way, we are treated to a lyrical harp and flute instrumental, several songs sung in Gaelic, and two new pieces (recorded, in part, at Peter Gabriel's Real World Studios), designed to make this retrospective a collector's item. Pastpresent, clocking in at 65 minutes, succeeds in offering an overview of the many faces of this seminal Irish group.