Porter

Four classic RCA albums from the team of Porter Wagoner & Dolly Parton – all brought together in a single set! Once More is a pivotal moment in the duo career of Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton – both solo singers who'd worked together on earlier records, but really seemed to hit their stride around the time of this set! Both Porter and Dolly gel together perfectly – often singing together, not trading back and forth as much – in ways that only make the lyrics of the songs resonate more strongly. Titles include "I Know You're Married But I Love You Still", "Daddy Was An Old Time Preacher Man", "A Good Understanding", "Let's Live For Tonight", "Once More", "Fight & Scratch", and the tear-jerker "Ragged Angel".

This recording from jazz vocalist Gregory Porter, produced by Kamau Kenyatta, is billed as a program of songs based on themes of love and protest. Whether pining, yearning, or speaking out against injustice, Porter's voice is clearly understood in his attempt to tell you how he feels emotionally. While stylistically similar to the late Gregory Hines, Porter phrases like Stevie Wonder and enunciates the lyrics similar to Kurt Elling, while also incorporating techniques of singers like Jimmy Witherspoon and Joe Williams. Porter wrote most of the material, but also borrows from the show tune legacy, or modernists like Wayne Shorter. Many of these tracks feature him only with pianist Chip Crawford in preludes or complete duets, and they are introspective, as you might expect. Then there's the ode to riot-stricken Detroit "1960 What?," a powerful and deep piece that reminds the world what happened to the once industrial capital of the world