The Breeders of Pod and the Breeders of Last Splash seemed like two very different bands, as the astringent indie rock of the band's debut seemed to take a back seat to the highly melodic riff-dealing of their commercial breakthrough. The departure of Slint drummer Britt Walford and Throwing Muses guitarist Tanya Donnelly was certainly a factor, as Jim MacPherson's straightforward drumming has a whole lot to do with the propulsive power of Last Splash. However, Kim Deal's decision to recruit her twin sister Kelley for guitar and vocals is also a big factor. While the Deal sisters' vocal harmonies are justifiably praiseworthy for giving Last Splash some of its most memorable moments (the entirety of "Cannonball," for instance), the quirky muscularity of their deceptively intricate guitar work is the album's secret weapon. The weird combination of multi-tracked and doubled guitar lines (some on acoustic guitars, some on electric guitars, some on distorted acoustic guitars) sounds like effortlessly chunky garage rock, but a close listen to the component parts of a cut like the Blondie-nod of "Flipside" is likely to cause dizziness. This studio intensity is prevalent throughout much of Last Splash, giving it a unique patina that feels as rough and loose as it does meticulously crafted. Much of the album's sonic perfectionism has been variously ascribed to Kim Deal's wish for vengeance after being rudely fired from the Pixies, her escalating drug use, or simply that she's an audiophile spirit trapped in an indie rocker's body. In all likelihood, it was all three things combined with the natural energy that comes from a band working with an exceptional set of material. While "weird Breeders" gets plenty of air time on Last Splash ("Mad Lucas" and "Hag" both could have been Pod outtakes; "Roi" manages to make Led Zeppelin riffs sound like art-rock), the ridiculous quantity of infectious melodies and top-shelf arrangements on the album ("Saints," "Cannonball," "No Aloha," "Divine Hammer" and "Do You Love Me Now?") are evidence of an artist at the peak of her powers who just happens to have a band alongside her that can absolutely deliver on the promise of that material. This 30th anniversary edition benefits from being remastered from the original, long-thought-lost analog tapes (Deal was adamant that the album was recorded in an all-analog chain, so this should be a faithful rendition) as well as two previously unreleased bonus tracks. © Jason Ferguson/Qobuz

Van Morrison grew up with Skiffle - yes, at 77 years of age that’s still possible! Skiffle is the precursor to pop music which allowed young musicians in England to learn the ropes of traditional American music, folk, jazz and blues in the 50’s and early 60’s. Skiffle bands played makeshift acoustic instruments, guitars, banjos and washboards, with big smiles and hair slicked back behind the ears. Although it was very popular at the time, the genre was soon swept away by the pop explosion (before the Beatles, John Lennon had his skiffle band, the Quarrymen), but it is remembered as a safe haven for musical learning, and a bygone golden age. More than 20 years ago, Van Morrison honoured skiffle on a live album with two of the genre’s heroes: Lonnie Donegan and Chris Barber (The Skiffle Sessions, live in Belfast). He has now returned to the studio and to the band for Moving On Skiffle, which is like an elixir of youth. The album’s 23 tracks are all covers of songs that belong to American folk and blues heritage. Van Morrison doesn’t claim to revolutionise anything here. Using cheerful, acoustic instruments, he celebrates the eternal youth of songs that will still be sung around campfires 50 years from now. Just as Dylan revisited Sinatra’s repertoire on Shadows In The Night and Fallen Angels in the mid-2010’s, Van Morrison flips through the musical album of his youth, bringing it back with a catchy simplicity and joy. © Stéphane Deschamps/Qobuz

When vocalist-guitarist Roger Hodgson left Supertramp after 1982's ...famous last words..., few could have guessed that the band would continue and solidify its pop-oriented songcraft, let alone re-embrace its progressive-rock roots on 1985's underrated Brother Where You Bound. With vocalist-keyboardist Rick Davies firmly in control -- he wrote all the music and lyrics -- the album examined tensions at the tail end of the Cold War. In a thematic sense, Brother Where You Bound is dated and hasn't aged very well -- Davies' politically oriented lyrics are heavy-handed -- but the music is a pleasure. The crystalline sound of the album, particularly Davies' piano, is breathtaking; kudos to co-producers David Kershenbaum and Supertramp and engineer Norman Hall. The hit single "Cannonball" is a jazz-rock delight, especially in full-length album form. Lyrically, it can be interpreted as Davies' feelings of betrayal at Hodgson's departure, but the piano, percussion and horns are superb. Saxophonist John A. Helliwell, bass guitarist Dougie Thomson, and drummer Bob Siebenberg all contribute vital parts, as does guest trombonist Doug Wintz. "No Inbetween" begins with a lovely, bittersweet percussion (or synthesizer?) and piano melody. "Better Days" is a rather bleak look at the unfulfilled promises of the "good life" in Western society; the dramatic music is highlighted by guest Scott Page's flute solos. The fantastic title track examines Cold War paranoia and clocks in at more than 16 minutes; after the creepy opening narration taken from George Orwell's 1984, the song becomes a composite of several complex prog-rock "movements." Pink Floyd's David Gilmour contributes the searing, distorted guitar solos. Unfortunately, Brother Where You Bound never received the attention it deserved; it isn't a perfect album, but it was a gutsy project for Supertramp to take on. © Bret Adams /TiVo

Cannonball Adderley's most popular album, Mercy, Mercy, Mercy wasn't actually recorded "Live at 'The Club'," as its subtitle says. The hoax was meant to publicize a friend's nightclub venture in Chicago, but Adderley actually recorded the album in Los Angeles, where producer David Axelrod set up a club in the Capitol studios and furnished free drinks to an invitation-only audience. Naturally, the crowd is in an extremely good mood, and Adderley's quintet, feeding off the energy in the room, gives them something to shout about. By this point, Adderley had perfected a unique blend of earthy soul-jazz and modern, subtly advanced post-bop; very rarely did some of these harmonies and rhythms pop up in jazz so saturated with blues and gospel feeling. Those latter influences are the main inspiration for acoustic/electric pianist Joe Zawinul's legendary title cut, a genuine Top 40 pop hit that bears a passing resemblance to the Southern soul instrumentals of the mid-'60s, but works a looser, more laid-back groove (without much improvisation). The deep, moaning quality and spacy texture of "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" stand in contrast to the remainder of the record, though; Nat Adderley contributes two upbeat and challenging originals in "Fun" and "Games," while Zawinul's second piece, "Hippodelphia," is on the same level of sophistication. The leader's two selections -- the gospel-inflected "Sticks" and the hard-swinging, bluesy bop of "Sack O' Woe" (the latter of which became a staple of his repertoire) -- are terrific as well, letting the group really dig into its roots. Adderley's irrepressible exuberance was a major part of his popularity, and no document captures that quality as well -- or with such tremendous musical rewards -- as Mercy, Mercy, Mercy. © Steve Huey /TiVo

Thanks to good timing and some great singles, Last Splash turned the Breeders into the alternative rock superstars that Kim Deal's former band Pixies always seemed on the verge of becoming. Yet in some ways, the group's commercial breakthrough was the most unpredictable music they'd made up to that point. Joined by Deal's twin sister, Kelley, the band builds on the Safari EP's polished production, but instead of merely making their sound bigger or more palatable, they play with more styles, textures, and moods than ever before. Nowhere is this more evident than on the album's blockbuster single "Cannonball." From the foghorn-like vocals that announce it to Josephine Wiggs' bouncing bassline to its singsong vocals, virtually every part of this mischievously sexy, choppy yet grooving song is a hook. Though it became a symbol of the 1990s alt-rock revolution, it's so light and playful that it still sounded fresh years later. The Breeders extend "Cannonball"'s jumps, twists, and tangents to Last Splash as a whole, balancing irresistible pop with whimsical detours. They take this approach to extremes by teasing listeners with the elliptical shuffling and muttering of "Mad Lucas" before delivering two and a half minutes of flirty pop perfection with "Divine Hammer." More often, the album's patchwork offers a wealth of ideas and feelings. "Hag" and "No Aloha," a startling hybrid of desert island balladry and churning punk-pop, update Pod's surreal feminism, a mood that trickles down to the aching independence of "Invisible Man." Then there's the band's obsession with summer, which ranges from "Flipside"s high-tide surf-pop to "Saints," a sunburnt celebration of a state fair complete with braying riffs and lines like "pony in the air" that reflect Deal's brilliance at abstract yet immediately recognizable imagery. Kim and Kelley's mega-watt charm is one of the main reasons Last Splash holds together as well as it does. "Drivin' on 9" (a cover of a song by fellow Dayton, Ohio band Ed's Redeeming Qualities) provides one of the album's best showcases for the pure charisma of the former's voice, while "I Just Wanna Get Along"'s apocalyptic power pop puts the spotlight on the latter's singing and razor-sharp songwriting. Along with its emphasis on fun, Last Splash is one of the defining albums of early-'90s alternative rock precisely because of its anything-goes mood -- an attitude that the Breeders held on to for the rest of their career.© Heather Phares /TiVo

This exciting session consists of the 1959 edition of The Miles Davis Sextet minus its leader, though it was later reissued as Cannonball & Coltrane, as there was evidence that both men had considerable input into the date. A brisk "Limehouse Blues" features great exchanges between the saxophonists, while Adderley's soulful "Wabash" is more easygoing. This newly remastered CD is a distinct improvement over the earlier retitled reissue.© Ken Dryden /TiVo

The Cannonball EP is worth skipping for those who have the surprise hit Last Splash. The LP's "No Aloha" is re-recorded as "Cro-Aloha," and is more insane than the LP version, but no big deal. The cover or Aerosmith's "Lord of the Thighs" is the Breeders' low point, just as "Toys in the Attic" was R.E.M.'s. Not that Aerosmith inherently sucks, but these two songs sure do; this is neither funny (even with a woman ironically singing those BS lyrics), nor very good. Which leaves "900," a song Josephine Wiggs' gets a crack at writing/singing. It's nicely unnerving, but not much of a song. © Jack Rabid /TiVo

Cannonball Adderley gave up his own band in 1957 when he had the opportunity to become a sideman in Miles Davis' epic ensemble with John Coltrane, eventually resulting in some of the greatest jazz recordings of all time (including Milestones and Kind of Blue). Davis returned the favor in March of 1958, appearing as a sideman on Adderley's all-star quintet date for Blue Note, and the resulting session is indeed Somethin' Else. Both horn players are at their peak of lyrical invention, crafting gorgeous, flowing blues lines on the title tune and "One for Daddy-O," as the rhythm team (Hank Jones, Sam Jones, Art Blakey) creates a taut, focused groove (pianist Hank Jones' sly, intuitive orchestrations are studies of harmonic understatement). Adderley's lush, romantic improvisation on "Dancing in the Dark" is worthy of Charlie Parker or Johnny Hodges, while the band refurbishes "Autumn Leaves" and "Love for Sale" into cliché-free swingers. And "Alison's Uncle" puts a boppish coda on Somethin' Else, one of the most gloriously laid-back blowing sessions of the hard bop era. © TiVo

Still immersed in the burgeoning electronic jazz-rock explosion of the times, Cannonball Adderley goes further toward a rapprochement with rock and soul audiences than ever before on this fascinating, overlooked double album. For starters, he recorded it live at West Hollywood's Troubadour club, then known as a showcase for folk and rock acts. He also imported additional players into his quintet, expanding into exotic percussion effects with Airto Moreira (whom Miles Davis had previously featured), hard rock guitar with sessionman Mike Deasy, fiery tenor sax from the young Ernie Watts, and occasional seasoning from conguero Buck Clarke and clarinetist Alvin Batiste. "Now I don't give a damn whether you can count or not, we still are the Cannonball Adderley Quintet!," quoted the leader, who is in loose, loquacious form throughout the set (the jazz world badly misses his witty verbal intros). With Joe Zawinul flying off to Weather Report, his replacement is an even more electronically minded pianist, George Duke, who levitates into the outer limits with his Echoplex and ring modulator and proves to be a solid comper. But Zawinul is not forgotten, for the band pursues a long, probing, atmospheric excursion on his tune, "Dr. Honouris Causa." Adderley generously gives Deasy two contrasting feature numbers -- "Little Benny Hen," a raucous, amateurishly sung blues/rock piece and "Zanek," a great countrified tune with an avant-garde freakout at the climax -- and all of the other guests save Clarke get single solo features. Brother Nat Adderley gamely visits the outside on cornet, Cannonball doubles with increasing adventurousness on soprano and alto as bassist Walter Booker and drummer Roy McCurdy deftly handle all of the stylisyic changes. Cannonball adeptly keeps pace with Miles Davis, his former boss -- the driving "The Chocolate Nuisance" could easily be a first cousin of "Pharoah's Dance" on Bitches Brew -- while not abandoning his funky soul-jazz base nor the special audience-friendly ambience of his concerts.© Richard S. Ginell /TiVo

An excellent collaboration of Nancy Wilson's voice with Cannonball Adderley's alto sax from the early '60s. While this 1961 recording was the first time Wilson was with Adderley in the studio, it was not the first time they had worked together. After singing with Rusty Bryant's band, Wilson had worked with Adderley in Columbus, Ohio. (It was there that Adderley encouraged her to go to N.Y.C. to do some recording, eventually leading to this session.) Not entirely a vocal album, five of the 12 cuts are instrumentals. A highlight is the gentle cornet playing of Nat Adderley behind Wilson, especially on "Save Your Love for Me" and "The Old Country." Cannonball Adderley's swinging, boppish sax is heard to excellent effect throughout. Joe Zawinul's work behind Wilson on "The Masquerade Is Over" demonstrates that he is a talented, sensitive accompanist. On the instrumental side, "Teaneck" and "One Man's Dream" are especially good group blowing sessions. On the other end of the spectrum, Adderley's alto offers a lovely slow tempo treatment of the Vernon Duke-Ira Gershwin masterpiece "I Can't Get Started." To keep the listeners on their musical toes, the first couple of bars of "Save Your Love for Me" are quotes from "So What" from the Miles Davis Sextet's seminal Kind of Blue session. Given the play list and the outstanding artists performing it, why any serious jazz collection would be without this classic album is difficult to comprehend.© Dave Nathan /TiVo