L'iniziazione (1999)

This is a very good album, no question about it. The disc covers a lot of musical territory and has a great prog sensibility. The musicianship and vocals on the CD are impeccable. The CD reviewed here is a Japanese import, and the two bonus tracks are only available on the Japanese edition. It is also important to note that these bonus tracks are separated from the rest of the CD by a long pause. A special treat on the disc is a great cover of the theme song to the old British sci-fi series Space 1999. Rocket Scientists are Erik Norlander and Mark McCrite. Tommy Amato, Neil Citron, Greg Ellis, Tony Franklin, Lana Lane, Arjen Anthony Lucassen, and Don Schiff join them on this album.

The Drift Inside (1999). Following on the heels of The Ambient Expanse, the first solo effort by Vir Unis, after collaborations with Steve Roach and Ma Ja Le, consists entirely of ambient floats and drifts, putting aside the 'fractal grooves' of Body Electric. Naturally, the closest similarity would be with the co-producer Steve Roach, yet Vir Unis already has his unique voice, already a sure hand with subtlety and nuance. There are 12 pieces here, and as with many albums of textual nature, the divisions between tracks aren't always noticeable. At times, such as on the opener "Currents Beneath the Shine" or "Resonate and Glow", the sound is crystalline and ethereally positive, reminding of early Michael Sterns with the music's shimmering, mandala-like patterning…

Carl Jackson, an accomplished bluegrass instrumentalist and songwriter, was born September 18, 1953, in Louisville, MS. While playing in his father's bluegrass band at the age of 14, he was approached by Jim & Jesse to join their backing group, the Virginia Boys. He accepted and spent most of his teenage years playing banjo for Jim & Jesse and other groups at the Grand Ole Opry…

In the late '60s, when such things mattered, Ted Nugent was quickly gaining a reputation as a young-gun guitar hotshot, largely based on the back-to-back success of two singles issued by his group, the Amboy Dukes. The first, "Baby Please Don't Go," was a hopped-up rendition of the old blues standard, which Nugent and the band had learned off the version by Van Morrison's group, Them. The second was a group original, "Journey to the Center of the Mind," one of those tunes that shows up regularly on TV record ads for "Psychedelic Groovy '60s" collections. Nugent and the group continued to make great, musically interesting albums for the tiny Mainstream label, but had no more hits.

From the Green Hill is Tomasz Stanko's ECM follow-up to the deservedly acclaimed Litania - The Music of Kryzsztof Komeda. The Polish composer and trumpeter (and former Komeda sideman) teams up with countrywoman Michelle Makarski, ECM stalwarts saxophonist John Surman, bandoneon king Dino Saluzzi, drum god Jon Christensen, and bassist Anders Jormin. The set is comprised mainly of Stanko originals, but there are also compositions by Surman, and two by Komeda, including "Litania." This chamber jazz sextet draws heavily on European jazz influences naturally, but also from Eastern Europe's folk traditions. In this way, Komeda's influence is clearly felt throughout the recording, even on Surman's "Domino"…