The Ramones It's Alive: 1974 1996 (2007) [2xdvd9] Restored

Man's importance in the history of Welsh rock music cannot be understated. Fusing the worlds of Psychedelia, Blues, Rock and Roll and West Coast inspired rock, they were simply one of Britain's most original groups of the 1970's. Along with label-mates Hawkwind, Man were true champions of the "underground" spirit.
Man - Revelation (1969). Digitally remastered and expanded edition of the Welsh rockers' 1969 debut album including four bonus tracks. A fabulous blend of Psychedelia and Acid Rock, the set is now regarded as an early classic by the band. Featuring the French hit single "Erotica" and a loose concept inspired by the Space race. With fully restored artwork, the booklet features liner notes by Man's guitarist and resident wit Deke Leonard…

Man's importance in the history of Welsh rock music cannot be understated. Fusing the worlds of Psychedelia, Blues, Rock and Roll and West Coast inspired rock, they were simply one of Britain's most original groups of the 1970's. Along with label-mates Hawkwind, Man were true champions of the "underground" spirit.
Man - Revelation (1969). Digitally remastered and expanded edition of the Welsh rockers' 1969 debut album including four bonus tracks. A fabulous blend of Psychedelia and Acid Rock, the set is now regarded as an early classic by the band. Featuring the French hit single "Erotica" and a loose concept inspired by the Space race. With fully restored artwork, the booklet features liner notes by Man's guitarist and resident wit Deke Leonard…

Jazz -funk fans must have been taken aback when multi-instrumentalist and composer Bennie Maupin's Jewel in the Lotus was released by Manfred Eicher's ECM imprint in 1974. For starters, it sounded nothing like Herbie Hancock's Head Hunters recording, which had been released the year before to massive sales and of which Maupin had been such an integral part. Head Hunters has remained one of the most reliable sales entries in Columbia's jazz catalog into the 21st century. By contrast, Jewel in the Lotus sounded like an avant-garde jazz record, but it stood outside that hard-line camp, too, because of its open and purposeful melodies that favored composition and structured improvising over free blowing. Jazz after 1970 began to move in so many directions simultaneously it must have felt like it was tearing itself apart rather than giving birth to so many new and exciting musics…

Produced by George Martin, The Man in the Bowler Hat continues Stackridge's brand of satiric rock marbled with elements of folk and to some extent, even country. The lyrics are just as witty as in their first two releases, and the poetry glistens with a jovial Englishness that became the band's most identifiable trademark. With Martin's help, though, the album became one of their better releases, as the music rises to the top before the words do, sounding fresher, livelier, and noticeably sharper than both their debut and 1972's Friendliness. Stackridge's best song, "Dangerous Bacon," was released as a single, and it's in this song as well as "The Galloping Gaucho" and "The Indifferent Hedgehog" in which their sound comes alive…