Kitty, Daysi And Lewis

Three siblings from North London, Kitty, Daisy & Lewis have set the British roots rock scene on its ear with their infectious energy and authentic approach to rockabilly, vintage country, and first-generation rhythm & blues – not to mention the fact that the youngest member of the trio hadn't yet reached her teens when they released their first single in 2005. Kitty Durham, Lewis Durham, and Daisy Durham were born into a musical family – their father, Graeme Durham, is a guitarist who is also a top engineer at one of London's leading record mastering facilities, the Exchange, while their mother, Ingrid Weiss, played drums with the pioneering post-punk band the Raincoats. In 2002, while attending an afternoon rockabilly gig hosted by Big Steve and the Arlenes with their parents, Lewis was invited to sit in with the band on banjo, while Kitty hopped behind the drum kit and kept time. The next time Big Steve played at the Durhams' local pub, Lewis and Kitty were once again brought up to the stage, while Daisy joined in on accordion, and the kids decided it was time to form a band of their own.

Creating an appealing post-modern rockabilly sound for the Camden Town crowd may seem like a challenge, but the London-based siblings Kitty, Daisy, and Lewis Durham make it appear effortless. For their latest album, The Third, which is exclusively streaming below, the trio molded a nostalgia-soaked menagerie of tunes with country, jazz, blues, and straight rock- 'n'-roll melodies. The mod album opener, "Whenever You See Me," provides a punchy, riot grrrl-esque ode to female empowerment; "Good Looking Woman" evokes the '50s era Ray Charles songbook; and the horn-heavy "Turkish Delight" is infused with equal parts ska and jazz.

SOMM Recordings continues its widely acclaimed championing of the music of Charles Villiers Stanford with a captivating collection of his Children’s Songs by mezzo-soprano Kitty Whately and baritone Gareth Brynmor John, accompanied by pianist Susie Allan.

Jerry Lee Lewis - Country Class (1976) & Country Memories (1977) {BGO Records BGOCD1222 rel 2016}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC+CUE+LOG -> 388 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 158 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (png) -> 34 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1976-77, 2016 BGO Records | BGOCD1222
Rock & Roll / Country

Two fine Jerry Lee Lewis albums from 1976 and 1977 The recordings produced the US Country hits ‘Come On In’, ‘Let’s Put It Back Together Again’ and ‘Middle Age Crazy’. Jerry Lee’s longtime relationship with Mercury Records and producer Jerry Kennedy was coming to an end at the time of these recordings, and Lewis was being affected by health problems. However, Kennedy coaxed performances from Lewis, resulting in these very successful albums. Digitally remastered and slipcased, and with extensive new notes.

A characteristically humongous (8-CD) box set from the wonderful obsessive-compulsives at Bear Family, documenting the Killer's '60s tenure at Smash Records. Lewis made consistently good music during this period, but the combination of his personal scandals and the British Invasion made him a pariah to radio programmers until mid-decade, when he returned to his country roots. Highlights of the set include the entirety of a Texas live show, with Lewis and his crack band rendering various early rock standards at dangerously high (i.e., proto punk) speed, some excellent duets with his (then) wife Linda Gail, and gorgeous renditions of standards like Willie Nelson's "Funny How Time Slips Away" and Merle Haggard's "Lonesome Fugitive." Lewis fans with deep pockets should grab this one immediately…

Jerry Lee Lewis - I-40 Country (1973) & Odd Man In (1975) {BGO Records BGOCD1216 Digitally Remastered rel 2015}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC+CUE+LOG -> 366 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 147 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 50 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1973, 1975, 2015 Phonogram Inc. / BGO Records | BGOCD1216
Rock & Roll / Rockabilly / Honky Tonk / Country

BGO's 2015 two-fer pairs two mid-'70s albums from Jerry Lee Lewis – 1974's I-40 Country and 1975's Odd Man In – on a single CD. Jerry Lee Lewis didn't get much of a boost out of his 1973 return to rock & roll – a revival arriving on two separate LPs, one recorded in England (The Session) and one back home (Southern Roots) – so he slid back to country, scoring a hit with "Sometimes a Memory Ain't Enough" from the album of the same name. I-40 Country arrived a year later, easing into stores in 1974 under the guise of a truck-driving country LP. While these 11 songs do sound good on the open road, none of them are about big rigs or highways, nor do they roll along to a Bakersfield beat. No, they're straight-ahead barroom weepers punctuated by the very occasional novelty – so occasional, it doesn't extend beyond "Alcohol of Fame."