Making The Grade (1984) Dorian Walker, Judd Nelson, Jonna Lee, Gordon Jump

One of the most enigmatic figures in rock history, Scott Walker was known as Scotty Engel when he cut obscure flop records in the late '50s and early '60s in the teen idol vein. He then hooked up with John Maus and Gary Leeds to form the Walker Brothers. They weren't named Walker, they weren't brothers, and they weren't English, but they nevertheless became a part of the British Invasion after moving to the U.K. in 1965. They enjoyed a couple of years of massive success there (and a couple of hits in the U.S.) in a Righteous Brothers vein. As their full-throated lead singer and principal songwriter, Walker was the dominant artistic force in the group, who split in 1967. While remaining virtually unknown in his homeland, Walker launched a hugely successful solo career in Britain with a unique blend of orchestrated, almost MOR arrangements with idiosyncratic and morose lyrics. At the height of psychedelia, Walker openly looked to crooners like Sinatra, Jack Jones, and Tony Bennett for inspiration, and to Jacques Brel for much of his material. None of those balladeers, however, would have sung about the oddball subjects – prostitutes, transvestites, suicidal brooders, plagues, and Joseph Stalin – that populated Walker's songs.

Percussionist SANDY NELSON was not merely the biggest, but just about the only major drum star of the 'Golden Era' of the Rock & Roll Instrumental. This set, which anthologises his 1962 releases, is complementary to an earlier Jasmine compilation, 'Teen Beat, 1959-61'. 1962 was a watershed year in Nelson's early career, in that he released an astonishing six LPs, four of which ('Drums Are My Beat', 'Drummin' Up A Storm', 'Golden Hits' and 'Compelling Percussion') made the US album charts. He also issued six singles that year, of which five ('Drums Are My Beat', 'The Birth Of The Beat', 'Drummin' Up A Storm', 'All Night Long' and 'And Then There Were Drums') made the US Top 100. Due to constraints in playing time, it is not possible to include his entire 1962 output, so a couple of LP cuts have been omitted. Nonetheless this is as comprehensive a collection of his 1962 recordings as is physically possible to compile onto a 2-CD set.

Unaccompanied, *live solo* vocal album from Bobby, with covers of James Brown's "I Feel Good," the Beatles' "Blackbird," Duke Ellington's "Take the A-Train," etc. The CD really gives the flavor of his improvisational genius, and his warm sense of humor and joie de vivre.

Nick Cave launched his solo career in style with From Her to Eternity, an accomplished album mixing the frenzy and power of his Birthday Party days with a dank, moody atmosphere that showed he was not interested in simply continuing what the older group had done. To be sure, Mick Harvey joined him from the Party days, as ever playing a variety of instruments, while one-time Party guest Blixa Bargeld now became a permanent Cave partner, splitting his time between the Bad Seeds and Einsturzende Neubaten ever since. The group took wing with a harrowing version of Leonard Cohen's "Avalanche," Cave's wracked, buried tones suiting the Canadian legend's words perfectly, and never looked back. From Her to Eternity is crammed with any number of doom-laden songs, with Cave the understandable center of attention, his commanding vocals turning the blues and rural music into theatrical exhibitionism unmatched since Jim Morrison stalked stages.