John t. Koch

Charley Pride - Country Charley Pride (1966) + Pride Of Country Music (1967) {2013 Music City Records Remaster}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 388 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 154 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 22 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1966, 2013 RCA / Music City Records / Sony Music | 05310
Country / Country Pop / Nashville Sound

A few months back, in the British magazine Country Music People, someone asked why RCA now Sony did not do a complete albums set for Waylon Jennings and Charley Pride, just as has been done for Johnny Cash and John Denver. Waylon and Charley each recorded some 3 dozen original albums for RCA but whereas Waylon has had all but a half dozen or so reissued on CD, exactly the opposite is true for Charley and of the handful of albums reissued 3 were on the now defunct Koch label and are generally unavailable. This release of his first two albums from 1966 and 1967 is therefore immensely welcome. These were fantastic mid 60s period country albums, yes quite a few covers but great renditions of songs from great writers: Harlan Howard, Cindy Walker and Mel Tillis wrote the first 3 tracks. Co-producers were Chet Atkins, Bob Ferguson and Jack Clement who sadly passed away earlier this year. The latter wrote or co-wrote 7 of the songs.

Diana's release, to Brazil with love (2011), is a tribute to the samba and bossa nova traditions of Brazil. The album features the most adventurous instrumentation to date. Maninho Costa and Silas Silva add Brazilian rhythms on drums and percussion, while Kiki Misumi on cello and Bill McBirnie on flute add colour and texture. Don and Reg are still the mainstay of the trio and provide delightful accompaniment and soloing throughout.

Franz Koglmann & Lee Konitz - We Thought About Duke (1994) {Hat Hut hatOLOGY 543 rel 2002}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 225 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 135 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 20 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1994, 2002 Hat Hut | hatOLOGY 543
Jazz / Avant-Garde Jazz / Modern Creative / Trumpet / Saxophone

Duke Ellington tributes, much like Cole Porter, George Gershwin, John Coltrane, and Miles Davis tributes, were a dime a dozen in the '80s and '90s. All too often, these Ellington tributes were unimaginative and predictable, sticking to the standards while ignoring the many lesser-known gems that were written by Ellington or his partner Billy Strayhorn. But predictability isn't a problem on We Thought About Duke, a cerebral post-bop date that trumpeter/flugelhornist Franz Koglmann co-led with alto sax master Lee Konitz.

Adolph Henselt - Piano Trio, Duo, Variations
Claudius Tanski / Benjamin Schmid / Clemens Hagen / Vincent Levesque
EAC+LOG+CUE | FLAC: 331 MB | Full Artwork: 134 MB | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: MDG "Gold, Edition IME" # 312 1022-2 | Country/Year: Germany 2000
Genre: Classical | Style: Romantic, Piano

…Tanski’s talent makes the Variations de Concert an enjoyable closer. In this, the aria “Io son ricco e tu sei bella” from Donizetti’s Elisire d’Amore is given the usual 19th century virtuoso treatment by Henselt, but Tanski never gives in to flash. He evokes a broad range of emotions, always managing to keep things from becoming kitsch. By himself, Tanski is worthy of a warm recommendation…

Paul Hindemith - Ensemble Villa Musica - Complete Sonatas Vol. 1
EAC+LOG+CUE | FLAC: 248 MB | Full Artwork: 106 MB | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: MDG "Gold" # 304 0691-2 | Country/Year: Germany 1997
Genre: Classical | Style: Early 20th Century, Contemporary

"Die Musiker des Ensembles Villa Musica spielen mit einer ansteckenden Begeisterung, mit der diese Werke geradezu wachsen und an musikalischer Bedeutsamkeit zu gewinnen scheinen." (FonoForum)

Boris Blacher & Witold Lutoslawski: String Quartets
Neues Leipziger Streichquartett
EAC+LOG+CUE | FLAC: 172 MB | Full Artwork: 46 MB | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: MDG # L 3507 | Country/Year: Germany 1994
Genre: Classical | Style: Contemporary

Witold Roman Lutosławski was a Polish composer and orchestral conductor. He was one of the major European composers of the 20th century, and one of the preeminent Polish musicians during his last three decades. / Boris Blacher was a German composer. His career was interrupted by National Socialism. He was accused of writing degenerate music and lost his teaching post at the Dresden Conservatory…

Originally intended as a side-project, Subsignal were founded back in 2007 by former Sieges Even members Arno Menses (Vocals) and Markus Steffen (Guitars). The first result of this collaboration was a song called ‘A Wallflower On The Day Of Saint Juliana’ which eventually appeared under the title ‘Eyes Wide Open’ on the 2007-Sieges Even-output ‘Paramount’. After Arno and Markus had left the band in the summer of 2008, they immediately started to look for adequate musicians to turn the project into a functional ‘real’ band. The first to join was Ralf Schwager (Bass), who was known for his work with German progmetal outfit Dreamscape. The line-up was completed by the Dutch drummer Roel van Helden (Sun Caged) and keyboarder David Bertok (also Dreamscape).

Compulsive neatnik Felix Unger (Jack Lemmon) is thrown out of his house by his divorce-bound wife. He wanders aimlessly through the streets of New York, toying with the idea of suicide, before gravitating to the apartment of his best friend, incorrigibly sloppy sportswriter Oscar Madison (Walter Matthau). Worried that Felix will try something desperate, Oscar, himself in the process of being divorced by his wife, invites Felix to move in with him. Within a few days, this mismatched pair is on the verge of mutual murder: Felix cannot abide Oscar's slovenliness, while Oscar is driven insane by Felix's obsession with cleanliness. A potentially passionate evening with Oscar's neighbors, the "coo-coo" Pigeon sisters (Monica Evans and Carole Shelley) is ruined when Felix, ruminating over his wife and children, reduces the two ladies to remorseful tears. Pushed to the brink, Oscar stalks around the apartment making as big a mess as possible.