The 13 Steps to Riches

Various Artists - The Complete Goldwax Singles, Vol. 3 1967-1970 (2010) {2CD Set Ace Records CDCH2 1248}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 610 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 336 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 38 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1967-70, 2010 Goldwax / Ace Records | CDCH2 1248
R&B / Soul / Deep Soul

The third volume of the Goldwax singles is the story of music industry decline. If not exactly riches to rags – Goldwax sales were never that good – it is the tale of an independent label slowly losing its way in an increasingly difficult environment. This was not just about a failure to sign talent, but about changes within the business, and that meant that it became more difficult for regional independents to survive and thrive.

This recording of lute music may be of most interest to fans of the lute and of the Renaissance-Baroque transition era, but it will be of considerable interest to them: it marks the first recording of the Libro d'intavolature di liuto, or Book of Lute Tablatures, of Vincenzo Galilei (1584). Galilei was the father of none other than astronomer Galileo. The work is given the title The Well-Tempered Lute here; that was not Galilei's title, but the music was apparently the first collection intended to demonstrate the possibilities of equal temperament that Bach would exploit so dramatically a century and a half later. Some scholars have opined that this was a primarily theoretical work; as music, it is both technically difficult and a little monotonous, consisting of groups of dances that may or may not have been danced to. Lutenist Žak Ozmo makes a good case for these little pieces as performer's music, differentiating learned counterpoint from works of a more expressive character.

French TV are back with a snappy 2-cd set. Disc One is a new studio effort continuing the meticulous twists and turns of their last two releases, with essentially the same players. Disc Two is a (mostly) live-in-the-studio affair, BBC-style, containing the set they performed at Chicago's"Protoberfest" in 2018. For music fans who always wondered what if the members of Henry Cow decided to make a fusion record.