Open Source For You – June 2015

Franz Liszt composed little chamber music, though the handful of pieces he wrote or arranged for violin and piano represent his enduring interest in that combination, from the Grand Duo concertant (1835/49) to La lugubre gondola (1882-83). This program by violinist Ulf Wallin and pianist Roland Pöntinen offers those pieces and five more selections that demonstrate Liszt's fondness for passionate, long-breathed melodies in the Magyar vein and turbulent accompaniments that allowed for virtuosity. The standout track of this hybrid SACD is the arrangement of the Hungarian Rhapsody No. 12 (ca. 1850), which gives a full treatment to those characteristics, and provides Wallin and Pöntinen their most dazzling displays. While the moods of the surrounding pieces are for the most part lyrical and subdued, the performances are compelling and the sound of the recording is close-up and focused, with the presence and clarity of a recital.

Notes Falling Slow is a box set by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies, containing remastered version of the 2001 album Open, the 2004 album One Soul Now, and the 2007 album At the End of Paths Taken on the first three discs, plus songs worked on during the creation of the three albums but not included. Some of the tracks were not previously completed, some were not demoed, and others were cut but did not make the final set. All these tracks have been newly recorded for this box set and included on the final disc, effectively creating a new Cowboy Junkies album.

One Shot was created in 1999 by keyboarder Emmanuel Borghi and guitarist James McGaw, both Ex-Magma musicians. The original duo was completed by bassist Philippe Bussonnet and drummer Daniel Jeand'heur for their first self-titled record, released in 1999…

Excellent five CD set containing albums from a quintet of Krautrock's finest bands packaged in mini LP sleeves and housed in a slipcase. Includes Parzival's Legend, L.A. Dusseldorf's Viva and self-titled albums from Message, Asterix and Gift…

Featuring 52 tracks, this box set contains the three studio albums Cutting Crew recorded between 1986 and 1992, the Grammy nominated debut, Broadcast (1986), acclaimed follow up, The Scattering (1989), and the ripe for rediscovery, Compus Mentus (1992), plus B sides, remixes and demos. It's been Cutting Crew's fate to be primarily remembered for their enormous, multi- million selling international hit, '(I Just) Died In Your Arms', and that's here in two versions, but this box set shows that there's much more to the band, whose driving pop- rock is defined by strong song writing, Nick Van Eede's soulful vocals and Kevin MacMichael's lead guitar.

As a man not familiar with the classic rock act Asia, I must say that this live concert (originally recorded back in 2012 at the Regency Ballroom) comes as a breath of fresh air and served as a bit of a break from all of the extreme heavy metal that I pound my eardrums with on a daily basis. First and foremost, the listener is getting a concert performance of ridiculously high clarity, which is always a major factor for me in live albums.

"A “Monster“ of a release – 6 CD’s and 113 tracks covering the Virgin Records career of acclaimed New Wave legends the Skids.

Having released no less than six charting Christmas albums during his career including one of the Top Ten selling Christmas albums of all time (1958 s Merry Christmas, which hit the Christmas charts 16 times!), Johnny Mathis has probably sold more Christmas records than any other artist in pop music history. And, with a half dozen releases to date on our Real Gone Music label, he is also by far our biggest selling pop vocalist. Add to that the fact that Christmas music is such a big part of what we do here at Real Gone and you can see why the chance to do a truly comprehensive collection of his Christmas music has been a glimmer in our eye ever since we started the label back in 2011. Now, after years of preparation, we are finally ready to release such a collection…and it s turned out even better than we d hoped!

In 2002, Mark Lanegan was looking to make some changes in how he approached his music – the Screaming Trees had finally collapsed at the end of the '90s, he'd found a new fan base as a frequent guest vocalist with Queens of the Stone Age, and the spare, blues-leaning solo efforts Lanegan cut for Sub Pop were no longer side projects but the first chapters of a new career. As Lanegan was strategizing his next move, he went to Houston, Texas and in five days recorded a dozen songs with a handful of talented local musicians, including guitarist Ian Moore and longtime Willie Nelson sideman Mickey Raphael on harmonica, with Justice Records founder Randall Jamail as producer. While the sessions were meant to be demos for a stack of songs Lanegan had written for Jamail's publishing house, the finished product sounded good enough to be an album, and in 2015 Lanegan finally released the material under the title Houston: Publishing Demos 2002. The jolly irony is that while these are supposed to be demos, in many respects the performances sound more polished and "commercial" than most of Lanegan's early solo efforts, capturing a laid-back but buoyant mood that's informed by country and blues as much as rock, and Lanegan seems comfortable singing with the group, rather than simply laying his vocals over the top.

Roger Waters The Wall is the second theatrical film adapted from Pink Floyd's 1979 concept album The Wall, which makes this 2015 soundtrack the fourth official full-length rendition of Roger Waters' rock opera to be released. Surprisingly, Alan Parker's 1982 film never had an accompanying soundtrack – its one original song, "When the Tigers Broke Free," appeared as a 7" but never made its way into live shows; as it happens, the 1982 film only existed because an attempted concert film fell apart (Is There Anybody Out There?, a 2000 double CD, excavated live recordings from 1980-1981) – but that movie loomed nearly as large in the legend of The Wall as the original double album, crystallizing it as an anthem of angst.