Rahsaan Patterson Love In Stereo (1999)

After his death, Frank Sinatra's children decided they wanted to stem the tide of bootlegged live material that was flooding the market by putting out legitimate versions of the same material. The bad news is how expensive these legitimate releases are. The good news is that they are easy to find, are beautifully remastered, and feature extensive liner notes that give you inside information on the shows themselves. This disc offers up an entire show from 1957, and along with a yet to be legitimately released live date with Quincy Jones' big band, it stands up as the best Sinatra date of the 1950s. Sinatra is in excellent (if uneven) voice and obviously having as good of a time as the audience and the musicians. Highlights include amazing versions of "The Lady Is a Tramp," "I Get a Kick Out of You," and "I Won't Dance," which are even more jazz-fueled than the studio recordings, and a sumptuous reading of "My Funny Valentine"…

Wishbone Ash are a British rock band who achieved success in the early and mid-1970s. Wishbone Ash are noted for their extensive use of the harmony twin lead guitar format which had been attracting electric blues bands since Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page had played together in the Yardbirds in 1966.Their contributions helped Andy Powell and Ted Turner to be voted "Two of the Ten Most Important Guitarists in Rock History" (Traffic magazine 1989), and to appear in the "Top 20 Guitarists of All Time" (Rolling Stone). Melody Maker (1972) described Powell and Turner as "the most interesting two guitar team since the days when Beck and Page graced The Yardbirds". They have been cited as an influence by Iron Maiden founder and bassist Steve Harris, as well as Thin Lizzy and other dual guitar bands. CD1 is Liverpool 1976 concert. CD2 is the 1992 Chicago concert.

In the summer of 1999, Steps Ahead founder/vibraphonist Mike Mainieri joined Eliane Elias, Bob Berg, Marc Johnson and Peter Erskine for a reunion tour of Europe. They recorded several of those shows but Mainieri didn’t listen to the tapes for two years. He eventually did, and the result is the two-CD set Holding Together (N.Y.C.). The musicians perform the tunes with great sensitivity to one another, both as an ensemble and in solo spotlights. “Uncle Bob” just swings along, while Mainieri’s gliding vibes impart an almost magical quality to a lovely version of Ellington’s “In a Sentimental Mood,” and “The Time Is Now” is a 22-minute-plus opus that gives everyone a chance to shine. There are too many high points on this solid set to mention, but it should be noted that Berg’s playing is vigorous and inventive throughout and provides a poignant reminder of the profound loss the jazz world suffered when he was killed in a car accident.

Nach dieser Produktion könnte man durchaus auf den Gedanken kommen, die Oper müsse eigentlich Teseo in Creta heissen, so beherrschend und überlegen gestaltet Wilke te Brummelstroete die Partie des Teseo! Neben ihrer Fähigkeit, sich dem Stil von Händels Musik anzupassen kommt ihre ungeheure Bühnenpräsenz und Ausdruckskraft, die sie zur alles beherrschenden Figur der Oper werden liess.