Disk Genius

Following on from 2015's "The Clockwork Universe", Thieves' Kitchen's seventh album "Genius Loci" brings the listener back down to earth, to the stories that spring from the world around us and the world within us. Over nearly an hour of music, the album's five songs take inspiration from the genius loci, or "spirit of place": the unique, defining nature of a point in space, and the essence of what makes a place speak to the human soul.

The Genius of Ray Charles is a 1959 album by Ray Charles. In 2003, the album was ranked number 263 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. Some players from Ray Charles' big band are joined by many ringers from the Count Basie and Duke Ellington bands for the first half of this program, featuring Charles belting out six songs arranged by Quincy Jones. "Let the Good Times Roll" and "Deed I Do" are highlights, and there are solos by tenorman David "Fathead" Newman, trumpeter Marcus Belgrave, and (on "Two Years of Torture") tenor Paul Gonsalves. The remaining six numbers are ballads, with Charles backed by a string orchestra arranged by Ralph Burns. Charles' voice is heard throughout in peak form, giving soul to even the veteran standards.

You can't argue with a great concept: Songs sung by Frank Sinatra are interpreted by a slew of indie rock and punk bands. A great concept, but one that makes for truly (and gloriously) unpredictable results. Chairman of the Board is, of course, not a perfect record, but it offers up some true gems.