Leonard Cohen - Songs of Leonard Cohen (1967) (SONY 2007)
rock | 1CD | EAC Rip | FLAC+CUE+LOG | cover | 285MB
SONY | RAR +5% recovery
AMG
At a time when a growing number of pop songwriters were embracing a more explicitly poetic approach in their lyrics, the 1967 debut album from Leonard Cohen introduced a songwriter who, rather than being inspired by "serious" literature, took up music after establishing himself as a published author and poet. The ten songs on Songs of Leonard Cohen were certainly beautifully constructed, artful in a way few (if any) other lyricists would approach for some time,
Charles Mingus - Town Hall Concert (1964)
jazz | 1CD | EAC Rip | FLAC+CUE+LOG | cover | 290MB
OJC | RAR +5% recovery
AMG
The first of many live recordings made of Mingus's touring band of 1964, most in Europe, it's got one of his strongest lineups: Eric Dolphy (reeds), Johnny Coles (tpt), Clifford Jordan (ts), Jaki Byard (p), and Dannie Richmond (d). Every performance on the tour is worth listening to. The only knock against this disc is its 45-minute length.
Primus 1990 - Frizzle Fry (2002rem)
alternative | 1CD | EAC Rip | FLAC+CUE+LOG | cover | 400MB
Prawn Song Records | RAR +5% recovery
AMG
Primus' first studio album wouldn't necessarily be a surprise to anyone familiar with their Suck on This days, not least because a good chunk of that album ended up being represented here. Not that this was surprising, but what was pleasant was how well and easily the at-once frenetic and extremely precise way the trio had around its spastic rhythms, translated into a great effort away from the stage.
Eric Dolphy - The Illinois Concert (1963)
jazz | 1CD | EAC Rip | FLAC+CUE+LOG | cover | 305MB
BN | RAR +5% recovery
AMG
The 1999 discovery of a previously unknown 1963 concert by Eric Dolphy makes it one of the finds of the decade. Taped for broadcast at the University of Illinois at Champaign, it was mentioned in an Eric Dolphy Internet chat room and eventually relayed to producer Michael Cuscuna. The sound is very good, except for overly prominent drums throughout the concert and an under-miked flute on "South Street Exit."
Roy Harper - Flashes From the Archives of Oblivion (1974)
Rock | 1CD | EAC Rip | FLAC+CUE+LOG | cover | 425MB
Science Friction | RAR +5% recovery
AMG
By the time Flashes From the Archives of Oblivion was released in 1974, Roy Harper had already released seven albums and had even opened for Led Zeppelin during their ninth American tour. Nonetheless, Harper was still a virtual unknown in the States, and only a minor figure in England, albeit one with an impressive name-dropping list. While Flashes did not change Harper's obscurity, it did serve as an effective summation of his stunning live work.
Amazon:
I got blood some months back, after falling in love with It'll End In Tears years ago, then discovering Filigree and Shadow and finding the beauty in that maze of lushness. Blood is no exception, it's the most different of the three This Mortal Coil records, much more consistent in mood and much more drenched with strings. But this record takes you on a journey to another place, to places so beautiful, the tracks on this record blend so wonderfully and are so perfect. Those strings on "the lacemaker" grab me each time.
Art Pepper - The Way It Was! (MFSL) (1972)
jazz | 1CD | EAC Rip | FLAC+CUE+LOG | cover | 335MB
MFSL Ultradisc SACD | RAR +5% recovery
AMG
Despite his very erratic lifestyle, altoist Art Pepper never made a bad record. This collection is better than most. The first four titles team together Pepper with tenor saxophonist Warne Marsh, pianist Ronnie Ball, bassist Ben Tucker, and drummer Gary Frommer for generally intriguing explorations of four standards.
wikipedia
Filigree & Shadow was an album released in 1986 by Ivo Watts-Russell's supergroup, This Mortal Coil. The supergroup consists primarily of artists attached to the 4AD label, of which Ivo was the co-founder and (at the time) the owner and president. The album peaked at number two in the UK Independent Music chart, spending 16 weeks in total on the chart having entered it on 11 October 1986.
AMG
When Stan Getz visited Paris to witness the French Open tennis matches, he would hang out at the Blue Note nightclub to hear how the locals did it, being told their jazz scene was not up to snuff. In London, he would pick up the European band he heard in Paris for an engagement at Ronnie Scott's. Because of his stature, Getz was able to grab the very best musicians the continent could provide, in this case the brilliant Belgian guitarist René Thomas, organist Eddy Louiss from Martinique, and French classical and jazz drummer Bernard Lubat.
Amazon
Jarrett's recording of seven attractive Handel suites is, well, just delicious. His pianism, always at the service of the composer, is consistently lyrical, never rushed or hectic, with textures warm and rich. Each suite holds its own bounty, all of which Jarrett mines to the fullest. The pianist's jazz background complements the music, imbues it with a depth and humanity rarely found, especially in baroque keyboard. As well, it's more than apparent that Jarrett has made a conscious effort to get completely "inside" the composer, completely "inside" the music. He has succeeded incredibly well.
AMG
In the late 1950s/early '60s, baritonist Gerry Mulligan participated in several recorded "meetings" with jazz musicians whom he admired. For this set (reissued on CD in the OJC series), Mulligan teams up with pianist Thelonious Monk (who shares co-leadership), bassist Wilbur Ware, and drummer Shadow Wilson on a surprisingly successful date. Monk and Mulligan blend together quite well on what was essentially Thelonious' repertoire of the era including "'Round Midnight," "Rhythm-A-Ning," "Sweet and Lovely," and "I Mean You."
Amazon.com
In 1962, John Coltrane found himself at the center of a storm of controversy, his tumultuous, searching music branded "anti-jazz" by one virulent critic. While Coltrane would continue along that exploratory path for the remaining years of his career, part of his response to the critical venom was to record some of the most sweetly lyrical music in jazz history. The LP Ballads established him as one of the great lyric players and set the tone for his collaborations with Johnny Hartman and Duke Ellington.
wikipedia
Skylarking is XTC's eighth studio album, released on October 27, 1986. Considered by many to be their finest album, Skylarking is a "life-in-a-day" semi-concept album which displayed songwriting and arranging heavily influenced by The Beatles, The Beach Boys and The Kinks. The title of the album was inspired by Percy Bysshe Shelley's poem To a Skylark and many of the songs expand on the pastoral themes of their 1983 album, Mummer, most notably "Summer's Cauldron" and "Season Cycle".
Neil Young 2006 - Living With War (In the Beginning) Limited edition CD+DVD
rock | CD: eac-flac; DVD: 24/96 audio + video | cover | 4650+265MB
Reprise | RAR +5% recovery
Living with War: "In the Beginning" is a stripped-down version of Neil Young's 2006 album Living with War. The original title of this particular CD/DVD release, according to a press release, was called Living with War - Raw. However, the title changed when the album was finally released.
In a special CD/DVD limited-edition package, available on Reprise Records in stores on December 19, 2006 the set included videos directed by Young of every song on the album. Using a wide range of visual sources, both from the Iraq War as well as demonstrations in the United States, and Al Gore's film An Inconvenient Truth the videos are a statement of not only what has happened during the past three years of war, but also how it has affected the entire world.
