The Cuckoo 2002

Simon Preston's recordings of the complete set of Handel's organ concertos with Trevor Pinnock and The English Concert was the first to use the latest musicological research by Anthony Hicks. These recordings remain unsurpassed from a scholarly point of view, and the performances themselves remained a benchmark for at least a decade. They may not be the best versions available now but still have a lot to offer. Preston's performances are alert and still sound very vibrant and strong, yet it must be confessed that the rather harsh sound of Preston's instrument in Opus 7 verges on becoming joyless at times.

R. Crumb & His Cheap Suit Serenaders - Chasin' Rainbows (1993) {Shanachie 6002 rel 2002}
XLD rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 237 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 97 Mb
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© 1993, 2002 Shanachie Ent. | 6002
Jazz / Blues / Old-Timey / Early Jazz

The underground cartoonist's side project of a group of 78 fellow enthusiasts playing in a small 1920s-styled string band had legs enough to spawn this intriguing follow-up. Sounding like better-recorded versions of the 78s that the group so highly cherishes, there's a stark simplicity to these recordings that makes them all the more effective. With their shared vocals, cracked harmonies, and simply played accompaniment (Robert Armstrong's saw solo on the title track is a marvelous example of their musicality and offbeat humor), this is old-timey music played with some real enthusiasm and great energy. Lots of fun and well worth checking out.

Itzhak Perlman: The Complete Warner Recordings embraces every aspect of Perlman's art. It contains concertos (the ‘essential' concertos, of course, but also more rarely-heard works, including Perlman's own commissions from living composers); other pieces for violin and orchestra; chamber music; recital and crossover repertoire (including jazz, ragtime and klezmer), and even a disc that focuses on Perlman as narrator and (briefly) opera singer. The recordings document his collaborations with the world's greatest orchestras and an array of superlative fellow-soloists and conductors, including Martha Argerich, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Daniel Barenboim, Plácido Domingo, Carlo Maria Giulini, Bernard Haitink, Lynn Harrell, Yo Yo Ma, Zubin Mehta, Seiji Ozawa, André Previn and Pinchas Zukerman.

Bill Bruford's Earthworks - Footloose And Fancy Free (2002) {2CD Set, Discipline Global Mobile DGM0201}
XLD rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 832 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 283 Mb
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© 2002 Discipline Global Mobile / Bill Bruford Prod. | DGM0201
Jazz / Fusion / Post Bop / Contemporary Jazz / Drums

While the music made by Bill Bruford's earlier Earthworks band was consistently more interesting, his current lineup continues to make great strides given its more traditional stance (post-bop acoustic piano/saxophone quartet verses ultra-modern Euro-jazz fusion). On the live Footloose and Fancy Free, the group exceeds its own studio performances with room to spare. The lovely ballad "Come to Dust" is a fine showcase for pianist Steve Hamilton, and Bruford's punchy drumming moves a complex "Triplicity." Even non-Earthworks tunes from Bruford's late-'90s collaborations with Tony Levin ("Original Sin") and Ralph Towner ("If Summer Had Its Ghosts") get inspiring interpretations as well, thanks to the well-seasoned playing of both tenor/alto saxophonist Patrick Calahar and Hamilton.

R. Crumb - And His Cheap Suit Serenaders (1974) {Blue Goose Japan Mini LP AIRAC-1024 rel 2002}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 262 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 99 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 23 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1974, 2002 Blue Goose / Shanache / Air Mail Recordings Japan | AIRAC-1024
Jazz / Blues / Old-Timey / Early Jazz

Robert Crumb, Allan Dodge and Robert Armstrong, inspired by collections of 1920s jazz 78s, decided at the height of post-hippie electric madness to form an anachronistic acoustic band. Banjo, mandolins, saw, accordian, and assorted violins and brass make a sound not quite ragtime, not really bluegrass, just as loosely related to Hawaiian and klezmer but transcendent: sweet, sentimental, sometimes spooky.