America Warner

A practical, no-frills clamshell box set celebrating the soft rock/folk-pop hitmakers' '70s heyday, the Warner Bros. Years 1971-1977 rounds up seven complete studio albums and one live LP. Comprised of America (1971), Homecoming (1972), Hat Trick (1973), Holiday (1974), Hearts (1975), Hideaway (1976), Harbor (1977), and America Live (1977), all of which were remastered in 2014, the collection is aimed squarely at completists…

Originally comprised of Gerry Beckley, Dewey Bunnell, and Dan Peek, America was one of the most successful groups of the 1970s. The band blended elements of folk and rock with distinctive three part harmonies…

The Complete Greatest Hits is an awkward title, but it's more or less accurate. Less because there are two new recordings here ("World of Light," "Paradise") at the end that couldn't qualify as hits. More because it does contain all of the group's greatest hits, from their Warner recordings from the '70s ("A Horse With No Name," "Tin Man," "Ventura Highway," "Lonely People," and "Sister Golden Hair") to their smooth recordings for Capitol in the early '80s ("You Can Do Magic," "The Border"). Not counting Rhino's superb box set, Highway, this is the first collection to do this, and it makes for an excellent listen and a great, succinct summary of their strengths.

Kurt Masur's achievement is defined above all by his relationships with two orchestras exemplifying vastly different traditions. Having spent some 20 years as Kapellmeister of the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, which traces it's roots to the 15th century, he became the transformational music director of the New York Philharmonic, an embodiment of the New World. Through all this, his musical integrity remained consistent. As the New York Times wrote: "He brought to the podium the ardent conviction that music-making was a moral act that could heal the world." Masur himself put things more simply: "My goal is meaningful playing… What counts is to be able to communicate the composer's meaning to the audience… When I conduct Beethoven, I wouldn't like to replace Beethoven. He should be in your mind, not me." This 70CD set consolidates the entirety of the catalogues that Masur built for EMI and Teldec between 1974 and 2009.

Formed in 1969 by Gerry Beckley (guitar, piano, vocals), Dewey Bunnell (guitar, vocals) and Dan Peek (guitar, keyboards, vocals) who were all sons of US Servicemen stationed in England. They achieved success with their debut single "A Horse With No Name" which showcased their pop rock vocal harmony style. Further appearances in the singles charts followed with "Ventura Highway" and "Tin Man" along with album hits…