A guitarist worshipped by Jimi Hendrix, an insanely good falsetto singer that even Prince looked up to, an author heavily involved in the American civil rights movement and a top-tier songwriter: Curtis Mayfield was a man of many talents. His groovy symphonies helped form solid links between funk, jazz, blues, soul and traditional gospel. After making his name with The Impressions in the 60s, he embarked on a solo career in 1970. This box set named Keep On Keeping On contains the singer’s first four studio albums, each remastered in Hi-Res 24-Bit quality: Curtis (1970), Roots (1971), Back to the World (1973) and Sweet Exorcist (1974). Here, the rhythm'n'blues enjoy a second life, supported by a wah-wah guitar, careful percussion and an always airy string section. Every topic concerned is a mini-tragedy, socially engaged, anchored in traditional gospel music. The masterful arranging of these albums (especially his masterpiece Curtis, and Roots) can be considered rivals to Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On. It is worth mentioning that this 1970-1974 box set does not include the soundtrack to Superfly, Gordon Parks Jr.’s 1972 film which contains the singles Pusherman and Freddie’s Dead. © Marc Zisman/Qobuz

There's an element of Zen that's involved when listening to Nightwish -- you don't question the pageantry or analyze the music; you just let go and enjoy the experience. Perhaps it's no surprise then that End of an Era beings with "Red Warrior" from The Last Samurai booming over arena speakers while thousands of fans roar their approval. It's a dramatic introduction for a band that specializes in theatrics, all of which are captured on the album. There's the crowd, the blast of pyrotechnics, the echo of the music filling a cavernous arena. Recording a band this layered (Guitars! Drums! Vocals! Keyboards! Backing tracks!) in a setting like this is always a risky venture, but the sound quality on End of an Era is exceptional; it manages to capture the vastness of both the venue and the act without being marred by reverberation or uneven tone. Vocalists Tarja Turunen and Marco Hietala soar above it all, their delivery all the more impressive considering that this would be their last concert together -- Turunen was dismissed from the band after the show. Fortunately, Nightwish don't appear to have brought their internal tensions on-stage. The group is in its element here, and its energy doesn't diminish a bit over the course of the two discs it takes to capture the tour-ending show. The biggest strength of End of an Era is its ability to re-create the concert experience; the band is at the forefront, but the cheering, clapping, and chanting of the crowd are included as an integral element of the music, not a separate entity. There are points on the album when this becomes a detriment (particularly during slower, quiet numbers like "Stone People"), but there's nothing more authentic on a live recording than capturing the requisite concertgoer whose duty it is to break the mood by shouting at inappropriate times. In the end, this dedication to realism is a minor complaint when compared to the benefits, as demonstrated to great effect with the opening number, "Dark Chest of Wonders." This piece brings it all together -- the song itself, dark, theatrical and operatic, with Turunen's rich voice floating over power chords, a charging rhythm section, an orchestral backing track, and the enthusiastic crowd at her feet. It's a fine choice to open the concert, and the recording re-creates everything but the visuals. The vibe continues on "Planet Hell," the first of several songs to showcase a Turunen/Hietala duet and solos by keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen and guitarist Emppu Vuorinen. Powerful performances and dark, romantic themes continue to dominate throughout End of an Era, but this does not mean that the album slows down or becomes monotonous. Instead, each song plays to the band's strength and uses the crowd's energy and enthusiasm to drive forward and craft memorable moments. As in the beginning of the concert, the final songs are rousing, passionate, and dramatic. "Creek Mary's Blood," a lament inspired by Dee Brown's novel of the same name, benefits from the talent of Native American musician John Two Hawks, who also appeared on the studio version of the song. After an extended flute solo (the above-mentioned "Stone People"), Two Hawks sings and plays in a striking duet with Turunen, whose operatic tremolo stands in contrast to her partner's straighter tone. The proceedings take an abrupt turn immediately afterward as Nightwish launch into a rollicking cover of Gary Moore's "Over the Hills and Far Away," transformed into a power metal epic as Holopainen and Vuorinen trade riffs between verses and choruses. The disc comes to a close with the sprawling, gothic "Wish I Had an Angel," a looser and more straightforward rock song that sees Turunen and Hietala alternating their vocal duties for what would be the last time. It's a satisfying ending for a symphonic metal extravaganza, but the real pleasure comes in knowing that it can be experienced all over again.© Katherine Fulton /TiVo

The first solo album by the former leader of the Impressions, Curtis represented a musical apotheosis for Curtis Mayfield -- indeed, it was practically the "Sgt. Pepper's" album of '70s soul, helping with its content and its success to open the whole genre to much bigger, richer musical canvases than artists had previously worked with. All of Mayfield's years of experience of life, music, and people were pulled together into a rich, powerful, topical musical statement that reflected not only the most up-to-date soul sounds of its period, finely produced by Mayfield himself, and the immediacy of the times and their political and social concerns, but also embraced the most elegant R&B sounds of the past. As a producer, Mayfield embraced the most progressive soul sounds of the era, stretching them out compellingly on numbers like "Move on Up," but he also drew on orchestral sounds (especially harps), to achieve some striking musical timbres (check out "Wild and Free"), and wove all of these influences, plus the topical nature of the songs, into a neat, amazingly lean whole. There was only one hit single off of this record, "(Don't Worry) If There's a Hell Down Below We're All Going to Go," which made number three, but the album as a whole was a single entity and really had to be heard that way.© Bruce Eder /TiVo

Talk about timing! Though she obviously did not see it coming, Lucinda Williams’ latest release perfectly captures the shared experience of a world in the grip of a global pandemic. Early on in "Bad News Blues" she asserts, "Bad news hangin' in the air/Bad new layin' on the ground/Bad news walkin' up the stairs/Bad news all around" and the hues remain bleak later in "Shadows & Doubts": "Yeah these are the dark new days/That much is true/And there are so many ways/To crush you." With much of it set to spare, dirty blues/electric folk backing tracks courtesy of her ace road band led by guitarist Stuart Mathis, her pique and fury make for the most tuneful and best crafted set of tunes in her oeuvre, certainly some of her most heartfelt and direct. Thirty years into building one of the proudest singer-songwriter catalogs in the business, this poet's daughter now feels most comfortable in a couple of predictable songwriting modes. There are slow blues-based songs with choruses of repeated lines like the opener, "You Can't Rule Me," lyrically dense list songs like "Big Rotator" and the occasional midtempo almost rock number like "Big Rotator." Her voice has become more imploring and expressive as her vibrato has departed and her range and timbre have grown into a smoky growl. Williams effectively sing-speaks her way through the spooky, reverb-drenched "Wakin' Up," a frightening moment of realization in a bad relationship. "Man Without a Soul" is effectively, indirectly political. The album's only hopeful moment is the appropriately titled, "Big Black Train," a ballad for the ages where the towering songwriter refuses to yield to hopelessness. Williams, with much left to say, musically mulls these troubled times. © Robert Baird/Qobuz

David Byrne may be the most cerebral rock musician of his generation, but unlike most of the artists who follow close behind him, he's someone who understands the physicality of performance and the notion of giving it up for an audience; smart and arty as he may be, he understands the age-old concept of giving the audience a show, and he happens to be very good at it. Byrne's 2018 album American Utopia fared well with critics, but what really caught the attention of his audience was the tour he mounted in support, in which he performed with a small army of dancers and musicians who were in constant, carefully choreographed movement that changed it from a concert into something truly spectacular. The tour eventually led to a run on Broadway, and American Utopia on Broadway [Original Cast Recording] documents how the show sounded to the patrons who saw it on the Great White Way. Listening to this performance without seeing it puts the material at a certain disadvantage, but this is a significantly more satisfying and pleasurable experience than the American Utopia album was. Where the surfaces of the studio album were often cool and dryly ironic, the sweat and fire of a live show is apparent throughout, and Byrne's ensemble is capable of cutting his brand of funk with confidence and élan. For the show, Byrne also filled out the program with a rich variety of songs from his days with Talking Heads and his solo career, and they enhance the effect of the American Utopia numbers, as well as reminding us that the LP's view of the State of the Union in the Trump era was ultimately one more chapter in a story he's been pondering for decades now. And if American Utopia was thoughtful and whip smart, the Broadway show is thoughtful, whip smart, and fun -- an entertainment that doesn't compromise its intellect for its unique brand of showmanship and vice versa. Just as Stop Making Sense was more than just another live album from just another rock band, American Utopia on Broadway does more than document Byrne's 2018-2019 tour, it stands as a grand and powerful statement of its own from an artist who is as relevant now as he was in his salad days.© Mark Deming /TiVo

Roy Harper's fourth album found him in an acoustic folkie mode more often than not, though as usual (for circa late-'60s Harper) there were detours into pretty rocky items on occasion. It's not much of either a progression or a slide from the lyrically convoluted, somewhat but not incredibly melodic path he had established with his prior work. "I Hate the White Man," however, is certainly one of his most notable (and notorious) compositions, a spew of lilting verbiage that's hard to peg. It could be irony, it could be ironic self-hatred, it could be muddled reflections on the chaos that is the modern world, or it could be a combination of all of them. There are gentler items, sometimes with subdued harmony vocals and orchestration, that sound rather like Harper's most acerbic side sanded off with edges of Al Stewart, Donovan, or Tim Hardin; "Another Day" is the prettiest of those. The atypical "Hell's Angels," on the other hand, has a twisted, chunky rock feel rather like the solo work of another of producer Peter Jenner's clients, Syd Barrett. © Richie Unterberger /TiVo

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With such a nickname as Plume, the potential for metaphors is huge. There is a particular lightness to the saxophone of this Franco-American who came out of nowhere and released his first album at the age of 38 under the nickname Plume. Surrounded by experts Leonardo Montana on piano, Géraud Portal on double bass, and Antoine Paganotti on drums, Plume creates an almost classical but never conventional post-bop. Treading the line between the legacies of John Coltrane and Kenny Garrett, he creates a serene balance in which his playing evokes an endearing warmth from the beginning to the end of Escaping the Dark Side. The cherry upon this delightful debut is the trumpet of the great Ambrose Akinmusire on Falling Angels and Perseverance. © Marc Zisman/Qobuz

The John Butler Trio's U.S. debut album, Sunrise Over Sea, is phenomenal -- from the opening notes of "Treat Yo Mama," a muscular and soulfully expressive roots rocker, to the final strains of the expansive, ten-minute-long opus "Sometimes." The John Butler Trio is arguably the best musical group Australia has to offer in 2005, and Butler's superb, bluesy riffs and innovative melodies are only part of the JBT musical equation. The sturdy rhythm section of Shannon Birchall (on bass) and Michael Barker (on drums) gives added life to hit contenders like the powerful "Company Sin" and the buoyant, breezy "Better Man." If the mid-album blues vignette "Damned to Hell" seems an ill fit at first, its lo-fi, banjo-strummed presentation shifts effortlessly into the warm, heartfelt "Hello." On occasion, as with the uplifting acoustic number "Peaches & Cream," Butler's voice recalls the Red Hot Chili Peppers' Anthony Kiedis, but Butler and his bandmembers are without question on their own trip. And one only needs to hear the magical love song "Seeing Angels" to feel the trio's transcendental power.© John D. Luerssen /TiVo

After 2016's Hero won her big awards from the Academy of Country Music and the Country Music Association, Maren Morris took a left turn with the Top 40 pop smash "The Middle," a collaboration with electro producer Zedd. So it's no surprise that her follow-up blurs genre lines. "I'm cooking up my own flavor...making a mess straight outta scratch," she sings on the sassy "Flavor," which uses bro-country guitars and moody pop atmospherics to hammer home the point. There are some moments of purity: the terrific "All My Favorite People" ropes in country duo Brothers Osborne and lifts its melody from Dolly Parton's "9 to 5". With its slide guitars and shuffling drums, "To Hell and Back" would be right at home on a Miranda Lambert record. But mostly, Morris channels the queen of the middle, Sheryl Crow, as on the bouncy "Feels" and the folksy "A Song for Everything."  She also adopts the social themes du jour, calling for unity on "Common" (which features a guest turn from Brandi Carlile) and sisterhood support on "Girl." Morris tries hard at being the popular girl, and it works. © Qobuz

The Melody Makers' breakout album, and why is clear from the opening notes of the title track which kicks off the set. Producers Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth, of Talking Heads fame, gloss the record with a perfect electro-sheen, helping shine the pop edges to a sharp gleam, while still emphasizing the dance beats. The Melody Makers add the magic; veterans now after two previous albums, they've honed their sound to a fine edge. They still mix styles -- party music, cultural songs, and rootsy numbers -- but the production with its keyboard heavy emphasis and digitized beats makes the stylistic shifts less startling than in the past. A song like "New Love," a hybrid of emotional ballad, deep roots, and synthi-dance, shows how cleverly the band have become at combining seemingly opposing elements. "Have You Ever Been to Hell" is equally intriguing, with its bouncy upbeat melody, surrounded by ever more sinister effects, surely the aural illustration of how the road to hell is paved with good intentions. "Lee and Molly" is masterful dubby roots on the theme of love gone very wrong, while "Dreams of Home" is a sublime repatriation song, which blends African harmonies and rhythms to a wistful, emotive ballad. Every single track has something equally exciting to offer. And the Melody Makers are now proving that they really can be all things to all people. © Jo-Ann Greene /TiVo

One part savage metal and one part macabre sideshow nightmare (but in a good way), Slipknot have made a career out of their larger-than-life, kitchen-sink approach to, well, everything. Offering an overview of the Iowa band's wild ride, best-of compilation Antennas to Hell provides listeners with the opportunity to dive headfirst into the weird, dark world Slipknot have created for themselves. Spanning four studio albums, as well as a track from the Resident Evil soundtrack and a pair of live cuts from their Disasterpieces album, the compilation covers a lot of ground, giving an all-inclusive look at the 13 years since the band came storming out of the Midwest with its double-platinum, self-titled debut in 1999. As a bonus, the compilation also includes a second disc featuring Slipknot's live performance from the 2009 Download Festival, which was originally released as a part of the video album (sic)nesses. Being able to hear the band both in the studio and on the stage makes Antennas to Hell a great jumping-off point for new fans looking to get the full sonic experience in one package, but the lack of real rarities might make longtime fans pause before diving in.© Gregory Heaney /TiVo

Although the double-disc Metal Works '73-'93 is an intoxicating listen, it isn't quite the definitive Judas Priest retrospective it could have been. Six of the band's 11 U.K. chart singles aren't here, and while "Johnny B. Goode" probably won't be missed, Hell Bent for Leather's "Take on the World" and "Evening Star," British Steel's "United," and Point of Entry's "Don't Go" and "Hot Rockin'" ought to have been included, especially since they were released during the band's influential prime. One could also argue for more material from the Stained Class era and less from the weaker mid- to late-'80s albums. Plus, the songs aren't arranged in chronological order, which makes it difficult to piece together the band's evolution and (sometimes trend-following) stylistic shifts. But quibbles aside, the collection makes a strong case for Judas Priest's versatility, drawing from nearly all of their albums' material, encompassing dark, driving riff rockers, melodic heavy metal, radio-ready commercial hard rock, the occasional ballad, and lyrics ranging from street-tough aggression and party anthems to sci-fi/fantasy themes and hints at Satanic posturing. The band's musicianship shines throughout; Priest's tightly controlled style was played with a sense of groove that allowed the music to breathe and kept it from sounding too tight-assed. In between the lesser-known tracks, which are often impressive, comes one metal classic after another: "Victim of Changes," "Living After Midnight," "Breaking the Law," "Hell Bent for Leather," "You've Got Another Thing Comin'," "Screaming for Vengeance," and more. Even if it isn't quite a definitive portrait of the band, it is an enjoyable one; many necessary items are here, and it rocks hard from start to finish.© Steve Huey /TiVo

His tenth album overall, Unfollow the Rules signifies an emphatic return to pop for Rufus Wainwright following a recording of his first opera (2015's Prima Donna) and a set of Shakespeare sonnets set to music (2016's Take All My Loves). It also represents a career marker of sorts; returning to Los Angeles and specifically Sound City Studios, where Wainwright recorded his 1998 eponymous debut, the songwriter has described it as a bookend to the first part of his career. A lush, theatrical, nearly hourlong 12-track set recorded with legendary producer Mitchell Froom (Paul McCartney, Elvis Costello, Crowded House), it opens with the sleek pairing of Wainwright's vocals and a drum beat by Matt Chamberlain before "Trouble in Paradise" breaks open with dense, pointed vocal harmonies. A song reportedly inspired by fashionista Anna Wintour, its expanding instrumentation includes performances by the likes of Blake Mills, pianist Randy Kerber, and Rob Moose, who did string arrangements for the album. Horns, woodwinds, keyboards, and pedal steel guitar are among other components of the song's gorgeous, volatile textures. Though there are sparer moments that follow, even tracks like the piano ballad "Unfollow the Rules" and the ominous dirge "Early Morning Madness" -- a memorable piece that stands among Wainwright's best work -- eventually swell into something more rhapsodic or, in the case of the latter, devolve into cacophony as they progress. Perhaps the most easygoing track here is "You Ain't Big," which ventures into pre-rock country stylings for a playful take on one's status in the music industry if you fail to win over the heartland. Wistful closing track "Alone Time" features just one of the many elegant melodies on Unfollow the Rules and recalls to the rich vocal harmonies of the opener. While intended to hark back to the debut, at least in subtle ways (musicians including drummer Jim Keltner appear on both albums, and much of it was recorded live in the studio), Wainwright's growth as a composer/arranger and his experiences in the classical realm are apparent here. Though, to his credit as a tunesmith, his words and melodies remain center stage.© Marcy Donelson /TiVo