Ole Gabrielsen Platinum

Mike Oldfield is a bit of an enigma. On the one hand is the artist who almost single-handedly ushered in the genre of new age music with his epic masterpiece Tubular Bells, and then followed that with several albums, Hergest Ridge, Ommadawn, and even Tubular Bells II and III, all with tracks that invariable meandered for half an hour or more through various musical ideas and soundscapes – and no doubt would have gone on a lot longer had it not been for the constraints of vinyl and the restrictions on the length of musical compositions that would physically fit on two sides of a piece of plastic with micro grooves…

As is evident in these works, Børresen was a highly talented Danish composer. His first symphony bears some resemblance to Tchaikovsky's Sixth, in particular in the last movement that ends quietly like Tchaikovsky's. However, it is an independent, assured symphony that is well worth hearing. Indeed, after listening to it several times, it is difficult to understand why this tuneful and highly likeable work is not played regularly in concerts anymore. Ole Schmidt and the Saarbrücken orchestra certainly make a strong case for the music.

Music for pleasure plays a vital part in our physical and mental enrichment, because only music can call to us so deeply and yet so softly, reaching through the doorway of the soul in an instant and tugging pleasantly at our sentimental heartstrings. "Peaceful Minds" is an inspired and highly creative collection of relaxing, meditative titles that 'sing' to the listener with a sweet an honest way that is distinctly intimate and also sentimental.

Norwegian composer Ole-Henrik Moe is just as happy to be referred to by his coincidentally sonically consonant initials – OHM – and Rune Grammophon's two-CD set, Ole-Henrik Moe: Ciaconna – 3 Persephone Perceptions, consists of two very long solo violin works performed by Moe's wife, violinist Kari Rønnekleiv. A one-time student of Xenakis, Moe is a very busy composer whose extensive work ranges from collaborations with the Arditti String Quartet and playing in jazz groups as violinist to his involvement in electro-acoustic projects like Deathprod and the Norwegian nouveaux-prog band Motorpsycho.

Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs is the only studio album by Anglo-American blues rock band Derek and the Dominos. Released in November 1970, the double album is best known for its title track, "Layla", and is often regarded as Eric Clapton's greatest musical achievement. The other band members were Bobby Whitlock on keyboards and vocals, Jim Gordon on drums, Carl Radle on bass, and special guest performer Duane Allman on lead and slide guitar on 11 of the 14 songs. In 2000, the album was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. In 2003, television network VH1 named Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs the 89th-greatest album of all time, and Rolling Stone ranked it number 117 on its list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Critic Robert Christgau ranked Layla the third greatest album of the 1970s.

When Kevin Godley and Lol Creme left 10cc in 1976 to pursue a solo career, many thought it was the death knell for the group. However, Eric Stewart and Graham Gouldman kept the group alive as a duo (with the assistance of percussionist Paul Burgess) and turned in a surprisingly solid album with 1977's Deceptive Bends. It may lack the devil-may-care wackiness that popped up on previous 10cc albums, but it makes up for it by crafting a series of lush, catchy pop songs that are witty in their own right. Deceptive Bends also produced a pair of notable hits for the group: "Good Morning Judge" told the comical tale of a career criminal over a hook-laden, surprisingly funky pop backing while "The Things We Do for Love" was an irresistible Beatles pastiche that showcased 10cc's mastery of pop vocal harmonies.