Athena The Who

The Who Hits 50! is a compilation of singles by the English rock band The Who, released in 2014 by Polydor Records. The two-disc set contains every single released by the band in the United Kingdom, with the exceptions of: "A Legal Matter" and "La-La-La-Lies" from 1966; and "Long Live Rock" and the remake of "I'm One" from 1979. At the same time it also contains every single by the band released in the United States throughout their career, with the exceptions of: "The Real Me" from 1974; the reissue of "Substitute" from 1976; and "Long Live Rock" from 1979.

All of the Who's singles and EPs will be collected on a new box set, Maximum As & Bs, which is scheduled for release later this year. The five-CD set will include 90 tracks from the Brunswick, Reaction, Track and Polydor labels, and collects every single A- and B-side, as well as every EP, the Who released. It's coming out on Oct. 27.

One imagines that this collection was aimed at the total neophyte listener – taken in any other context, this is an odd collection of single sides by one of the premiere singles bands of the 1960s and early '70s. Does it start at the beginning, with either "I'm the Face" or "I Can't Explain"? No. Does it encompass many of the freestanding singles issued by this band through 1972? No. Does it even offer any of the less well-known single sides from that period? No – apart from the three-and-a-half-minute single edit of "Won't Get Fooled Again," which was hardly a sterling example of the format or the genre. Instead, listeners get all of the most familiar hits, albeit in their original mono mixes where relevant: "Substitute," "I'm a Boy," "Pictures of Lily," "I Can See for Miles," "Pinball Wizard," "Squeeze Box," etc. The best of it overlaps with Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy.

One imagines that this collection was aimed at the total neophyte listener – taken in any other context, this is an odd collection of single sides by one of the premiere singles bands of the 1960s and early '70s. Does it start at the beginning, with either "I'm the Face" or "I Can't Explain"? No. Does it encompass many of the freestanding singles issued by this band through 1972? No. Does it even offer any of the less well-known single sides from that period? No – apart from the three-and-a-half-minute single edit of "Won't Get Fooled Again," which was hardly a sterling example of the format or the genre. Instead, listeners get all of the most familiar hits, albeit in their original mono mixes where relevant: "Substitute," "I'm a Boy," "Pictures of Lily," "I Can See for Miles," "Pinball Wizard," "Squeeze Box," etc. The best of it overlaps with Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy.

One imagines that this collection was aimed at the total neophyte listener – taken in any other context, this is an odd collection of single sides by one of the premiere singles bands of the 1960s and early '70s. Does it start at the beginning, with either "I'm the Face" or "I Can't Explain"? No. Does it encompass many of the freestanding singles issued by this band through 1972? No. Does it even offer any of the less well-known single sides from that period? No – apart from the three-and-a-half-minute single edit of "Won't Get Fooled Again," which was hardly a sterling example of the format or the genre…

She first emerged as an avant-garde violinist who channeled her playing through loop pedals. Then songwriter, vocal performer, and beat-maker. She's captivated audiences at festivals around the world, touring her trail-blazing EPs Sudan Archives (2017) and Sink (2018). Sudan's many identity coalesces in her debut album, Athena: a psychedelic, magnetic take on modern R&B.

Nielsen composed most of his wind chamber music towards the latter part of his career, when his interests moved from strings to wind instruments. The disc includes the most familiar and widely recorded specimen of Nielsen’s chamber writing, the 1922 Wind Quintet, coupled with lesser known works such as Serenata in Vano, Two Fantasies Op.2 and Canto Serioso. “Both major and minor works are wonderfully played… One can urge immediate acquisition of this disc,” wrote Fanfare. Although, now longer performing publicly, the Athena Ensemble had an excellent career and reputation, “The music is expertly performed with charm, sensitivity and imagination by the Athena Ensemble” said Classic CD (on the Elgar Wind Quintet recording, CHAN 241-33) and this disc is sure to remind listeners of their back catalogue with Chandos.

Carl Nielsen (1865-1931) is Denmark's most famous composer. He studied with Niels Wilhelm Gade at Copenhagen Conservatory and went on study trips to Germany, Austria, Italy and France. Nielsen was court music director in Copenhagen and taught at the Royal Danish Conservatory. His works display strong counterpoint and polytonality as well as traditional melody shapes.