Violated Angels (1967)

The Bar-Kays were an aggregate born of the same inspiration behind Booker T. & the MG's – performing the double-duty of being a backing combo for the significant canon of vocalists on the Memphis-based Stax and Volt labels, as well as a self-contained unit…

Recorded in 1967 and originally released that same year by Capitol Records as an LP (and re-released seasonally several times since then), Ella Fitzgerald's Christmas is a rarity among rarities in that it is a holiday album that actually holds up as a mature artistic statement. Oh, the songs are familiar, with Fitzgerald tackling 13 standards like "Silent Night," "Joy to the World," and "We Three Kings," but in her hands they become vehicles for her precise yet natural-sounding elocution and subtle, confident vocal phrasing. In other words, she sings these songs like they're fresh and new to the world, and that's no easy task. The end result is one of the best Christmas albums ever made.

The dozen signs of the Zodiac are ruminated upon during the pseudo-psychedelic Cosmic Sounds. This embarrassingly dated "concept" album was issued in late 1967 on Elektra Records . The recording – replete with equally absurd cover art – helped usher in the "age of Aquarius." Judging by the astrological psycho babble in these grooves, it may too have been the age of excess. But what should one expect from an album whose caveat reads "Must Be Played In The Dark"? Cosmic Sounds narrator Cyrus Faryar's other credits include proficiencies as a bouzouki player, bassist, guitarist, and sometimes vocalist for a plethora of diverse artists, namely Dave Guard & the Whiskeyhill Singers and the Modern Folk Quartet, as well as guest spots on albums by Mama Cass Elliot, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Buffalo Springfield, Fred Neil, and even the Firesign Theatre.

The Complete ESP-Disk Recordings of Pearls Before Swine is simply the handsomely repackaged reissue of both albums cut for the label in 1967 and 1968, One Nation Underground and Balaklava. Re-released in the U.S. by Bernard Stollman's erratically active label, the two-on-one CD package features both albums completely remastered for reissue by veteran studio wiz Joe Phillips. In addition to Phillips' own introductory tome, the package includes essays by songwriter and labelmate Randy Burns, a brief paragraph by Stollman, and complete lyrics for both recordings.
One Nation Underground (1967). Psychedelic-folk debut from one of the most erudite, literate minds in rock, Thomas D. Rapp (and the first of his ever-changing Swine)…

Brother Jack McDuff recorded an enormous number of albums during the '60s, so it can be difficult to figure out where to start digging a little deeper into his output (which Hammond B-3 fans will definitely want to do). 1967's Tobacco Road stands out from the pack for a couple of reasons. First, unlike many of his groove-centric albums, it's heavy on standards and pop/rock tunes (seven of nine cuts), which make for excellent matches with McDuff's highly melodic, piano-influenced style. What's more, about half of the album finds McDuff leading a large ten-piece ensemble arranged and conducted by J.J. Jackson, including a soulful horn section that sounds straight out of Memphis or Muscle Shoals (though this was recorded at Chess studios in Chicago)…

The early music ensemble Earthly Angels was founded by Kajsa Dahlback in 2016 and is associated with Vaasa Baroque. Its first release was awarded “Album of the Year 2018” by the Finnish Broadcasting Company. Earthly Angels ensemble performs vocal chamber music mainly from the 17th and 18th centuries.

It must have been nearly Christmas as a plethora of CDs were released to capture the market in harmonic, angelic, easy on the ears singing and here was the second offering from the teenage quartet of young ladies known as All Angels. With an almost identical sleeve design as the previous years' All Angels album, the beautiful, angelic looking girls dressed in all white against a white background, to make them all appear like, well, angels.