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Top Gun: Maverick
Lady Gaga
Film Soundtracks - Released May 27, 2022 | Interscope Records
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Just One Night
Eric Clapton
Rock - Released April 1, 1980 | Polydor Records
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Although Eric Clapton has released a bevy of live albums, none of them have ever quite captured the guitarist's raw energy and dazzling virtuosity. The double live album Just One Night may have gotten closer to that elusive goal than most of its predecessors, but it is still lacking in many ways. The most notable difference between Just One Night and Clapton's other live albums is his backing band. Led by guitarist Albert Lee, the group is a collective of accomplished professionals who have managed to keep some grit in their playing. They help push Clapton along, forcing him to spit out crackling solos throughout the album. However, the performances aren't consistent on Just One Night -- there are plenty of dynamic moments like "Double Trouble" and "Rambling on My Mind," but they are weighed down by pedestrian renditions of songs like "All Our Past Times." Nevertheless, more than any other Clapton live album, Just One Night suggests the guitarist's in-concert potential. It's just too bad that the recording didn't occur on a night when he did fulfill all of that potential.
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Moving On Skiffle
Van Morrison
Blues - Released March 10, 2023 | Exile Productions Ltd.
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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
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Tattoo You
The Rolling Stones
Rock - Released August 27, 1981 | Polydor Records
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Let's set the scene: Tattoo You was released in August 1981. After an incredible run with Beggars Banquet, Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers, Exile on Main Street, the Stones were careening between highs (Goat's Head Soup, Some Girls) and lows, not to mention some real deep dips (Black and Blue, Emotional Rescue). Most of all, Mick and Keith were grating on each other more and more. But since touring is what keeps the cash register ringing, it was time to put together an album and take it around the world. That album was to be Tattoo You, in fact a bit of a counterfeit "new" record because as it was made up of scraps from the previous albums, and even old demos and embryos of songs that were never finalized. While all this did not bode well, the result was surprisingly miraculous. Indeed: for many fans Tattoo You would be the last truly good Rolling Stones record. A very rock'n'roll side A, a B side with more of a focus on ballads, and everywhere Mick and Keith's flawless expertise... After the hit Start Me Up which always plays very well in 80,000-seater stadiums, some excellent and rather edgy songs—not really Richards' thing—such as Hang Fire or Neighbours show that there is still plenty of life left in the old dogs yet! And as yet another reminder that the real source of the Stones' music is the blues, we are treated to an excellent, lively rendition of Black Limousine. In terms of the slower numbers, the soulful Top is pretty steamy, and Heaven sees Jagger's spirited falsetto reach new heights. Finally, on Waiting on a Friend, they bring on board a giant of jazz, the saxophonist Sonny Rollins, who puts out an impeccably powerful solo with Caribbean flavours (he is also present on Neighbours and Slave)… The 40th anniversary edition of Tattoo You enjoys Deluxe Edition treatment with a new mix, rarities like covers of the Chi-Lites (Troubles a' Comin), Jimmy Reed's Shame Shame Shame and Dobie Gray's Drift Away, not to mention a hearty live performance recorded in London's Wembley Stadium in 1982. © Marc Zisman/Qobuz
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Tattoo You
The Rolling Stones
Rock - Released August 27, 1981 | Polydor Records
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Let's set the scene: Tattoo You was released in August 1981. After an incredible run with Beggars Banquet, Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers, Exile on Main Street, the Stones were careening between highs (Goat's Head Soup, Some Girls) and lows, not to mention some real deep dips (Black and Blue, Emotional Rescue). Most of all, Mick and Keith were grating on each other more and more. But since touring is what keeps the cash register ringing, it was time to put together an album and take it around the world. That album was to be Tattoo You, in fact a bit of a counterfeit "new" record because as it was made up of scraps from the previous albums, and even old demos and embryos of songs that were never finalized. While all this did not bode well, the result was surprisingly miraculous. Indeed: for many fans Tattoo You would be the last truly good Rolling Stones record. A very rock'n'roll side A, a B side with more of a focus on ballads, and everywhere Mick and Keith's flawless expertise... After the hit Start Me Up which always plays very well in 80,000-seater stadiums, some excellent and rather edgy songs—not really Richards' thing—such as Hang Fire or Neighbours show that there is still plenty of life left in the old dogs yet! And as yet another reminder that the real source of the Stones' music is the blues, we are treated to an excellent, lively rendition of Black Limousine. In terms of the slower numbers, the soulful Top is pretty steamy, and Heaven sees Jagger's spirited falsetto reach new heights. Finally, on Waiting on a Friend, they bring on board a giant of jazz, the saxophonist Sonny Rollins, who puts out an impeccably powerful solo with Caribbean flavours (he is also present on Neighbours and Slave)… © Marc Zisman/Qobuz
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Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music, Vols 1 & 2
Ray Charles
R&B - Released April 1, 1962 | Concord Records
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Blessed with an intuitive genius that illuminated his entire career, Ray Charles sensed that country music and the blues had a common soul that he could touch with his expressive voice and natural gifts for phrasing. Having left Atlantic Records for the ABC label where he was guaranteed artistic freedom, Charles decided to step through the looking glass; in the middle of the civil rights movement he turned country music into lush, R&B-influenced 60s pop, blurring racial and artistic barriers in the process. As proof of his success, the single, “I Can’t Stop Loving You” (written by white country star Don Gibson) spent five weeks at #1 on the pop charts and sixteen weeks at #1 on the R&B charts before winning the 1962 Grammy Award for Best Rhythm and Blues Recording. As fresh today as when they were recorded, no context is required to appreciate these sublime tracks, which have now been combined into a single package. Charles knew a hit song when he heard it and he convincingly transformed a well-known track like Hank Williams’ “Your Cheating Heart” into a sweet, sexy ballad that seems as right as the original. For instrumental backup, Charles used two modes: strings and vocal choir by arranger Marty Paich for ballads like “I Can’t Stop Loving You” and punchier swing band arrangements by famed composer/arranger Gerald Wilson for tracks like “Hey Good Lookin’.” While a snappy, brass-led version of Williams’ “Move it Over” is a revelation, the utterly transformative version of one of country music’s most storied touchstones, “You Are My Sunshine,” featuring Charles in full Atlantic-era R&B mode—complete with Raelettes—is spectacular. One of the finest moments in an acclaimed career, the expansive vision and charismatic vocals heard here are still breathtaking. © Robert Baird / Qobuz
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Live At The El Mocambo
The Rolling Stones
Rock - Released May 13, 2022 | Polydor Records
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Early in March 1977, the Rolling Stones played a pair of surprise shows at the El Mocambo, a 300-seat club in Toronto. The purpose of the gigs, the only concerts they played in 1977, was to generate source material for a live album that turned out to be Love You Live. Only four tracks from the El Mocambo performances showed up on Love You Live, amounting to a side of blues covers on that double-LP. A full album's worth of El Mocambo recordings circulated as a bootleg for years, but the overdue 2022 official release contains the entirety of the second night's show along with three bonus tracks from the first night, amounting to a whopping 23 tracks. Such an exhaustive portrait is welcome as Live at the El Mocambo does represent a bit of an odd moment for the Stones: it captures them caught between the over-sized jam session Black and Blue and the audacious revitalization of Some Girls, a period where Ron Wood was just getting his sea legs. Wood encouraged the group to play a bunch of blues standards and they agreed, balancing these chestnuts with some of their own oldies ("Let's Spend the Night Together," "Brown Sugar," "Jumpin' Jack Flash," "Honky Tonk Women"), a good chunk of Black and Blue and It's Only Rock N Roll, plus "Worried About You," a ballad that sat on the shelf until Tattoo You. This means Live at the El Mocambo presents the Stones as something between a hard-working club band and conquering heroes hawking their latest ware; the set list is very much of its time, lacking such warhorses as "Satisfaction" and "Street Fighting Man," and it's better for it. The Stones often sound as if they're enjoying hunkering down on a smaller stage, giving enthusiastic performances that avoid sloppiness. It adds up to a gas, a record that belongs alongside Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out! and Brussels Affair as among the best official live Stones albums.© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo
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Lebroba
Andrew Cyrille
Jazz - Released November 2, 2018 | ECM
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5 Sterne Fono Forum Jazz
In 2016, Andrew Cyrille brought out an album with a powerfully unambiguous title: The Declaration Of Musical Independence. This was no surprise, coming from a free jazz militant who insists on authentic material direct from the source, and who has worked alongside some of the biggest names on the scene such as Cecil Taylor, Anthony Braxton, Marion Brown, Walt Dickerson, Charlie Haden, Carla Bley, Oliver Lake and Horace Tapscott… Two years on, the New York drummer has brought in Bill Frisell for Lebroba, this time as part of a trio, with trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith. The album's title is a contraction of the names of the three men's home towns: Leland, Brooklyn and Baltimore. Their idea is undoubtedly to democratically divide responsibility and Cyrille let’s his bandmates work in whichever way they see fit. Even the writing is shared out between these three avant-garde jazz masters. The meditative tone of the work here is set by the track Turiya, dedicated to Alice Coltrane. The whole album is a kind of celebration of space and time... Lebroba will leave you feeling like you’re floating across a sublime bluesy landscape. © Marc Zisman/Qobuz
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Before the Beginning - 1968-1970 Rare Live & Demo Sessions (Remastered)
Fleetwood Mac
Rock - Released November 15, 2019 | Sony Music CG
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Before The Beginning? Before taking over the sound waves with its most popular combination (with the presence of Lindsey Buckingham, Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie) Fleetwood Mac already existed in 1968. Risen from the ashes of the Bluesbreakers, this version of the band, created by the brilliant Peter Green (with two other guitarists, Jeremy Spencer and a very young Danny Kirwan, Mick Fleetwood on drums and John McVie on the bass), took inspiration from the Delta blues by covering some of its legendary icons: Robert Johnson, Elmore James, T-Bone Walker… In three discs, Sony has uncovered thirty live rarely heard versions from 1968 to 1970 -- including four demos. These tracks are phenomenal, unlabelled and therefore entirely appraised and approved by their creators, who present a vision of contrasts over the course of the record. It begins in 1968 with lively but consistent guitars, before a more wandering feeling to the music in 1970, with Green’s signature extended instrumental sections, like the vibrant 13-minute-long Rattlesnake Shake, the fierce Oh Well or the languid tones of the famous Albatross, all in more rough-around-the-edges versions. Sadly, Spencer would go on to join the Children of God, Kirwan would be thrown out due to his alcohol dependency and Peter Green’s genius slowly evolved into madness. This is a real piece of British musical history. © Charlotte Saintoin/Qobuz
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The Bootleg Series Volumes 1-3 (Rare And Unreleased) 1961-1991
Bob Dylan
Pop/Rock - Released March 26, 1991 | Columbia
This three-disc box set is what Dylanphiles have been waiting for, sitting patiently for years, even decades. And, even after its 1991 release, it retains the feeling of being a special, shared secret among the hardcore, since -- no matter the acclaim -- it's the kind of record that only the hardcore will seek out. Of course, the great irony is that even casual Dylan fans will find much to treasure in this three-disc set of unreleased material. They'll find songs as good as anything that made the records (sometimes surpassing the official releases, especially on the last disc), plus alternate versions (including original versions of songs on Blood on the Tracks) and long-fabled songs, from the incomplete "She's Your Lover Now" to songs cut from The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan. This doesn't just function as an alternate history of Dylan, but as an expansion of Dylan's history, enriching what is already known about the greatest songwriter of his era -- after all, every song here would qualify as the best song on anybody else's album. And that's no exaggeration.© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo
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Glowing in the Dark
Django Django
Alternative & Indie - Released February 12, 2021 | Because Music Ltd.
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This London quartet's fourth album is released on a French label with an aptly-chosen English name: Because. With a title that sounds both like a gimmick and a memory, a kind of Proustian Madeleine, Glowing in the Dark recalls toys and gadgets that glow in the dark: pure magic for children... In the case of Django Django, it refers to a strange painting that drummer and producer Dave McLean found amid the dust of his parents' cellar. A present painted by a friend from art school and given to McLean long ago. This somewhat surrealist painting depicts a red camel in a dripping desert, with a skull superimposed over the beast and a ghostly rider... McLean, painting in hand, shared his discovery with his band-mates. Inspiration had arrived: it was time to embark upon a new album. And, naturally, this painting became the cover art for this new sonic adventure.The album is a post-modern patchwork that is returning to its 80s roots. Low-fi sounds reminiscent of old video games or other synthetic echoes mix with more organic sounds, and sometimes exotic rhythms that evoke the style of the great Talking Heads. This influence is everywhere in this album's sound. It is clearly there on one of the most successful tracks, Kick the Devil Out with its syncopated guitar trim. But in terms of vocals, this is closer to an airy new wave sound than it is to the nervy style of Talking Heads leader David Byrne. A playful psychedelia runs through the entire record, from the introductory Spirals and its electronic arcade arpeggios to the title track, an endless swirling, dancing and hypnotic Glowing in the Dark... It is also worth noting Waking Up, a small springtime rock outing, with label-mate Charlotte Gainsbourg making a guest appearance on the mic, as evanescent as ever. But as hinted at on the next track, Django Django is Free from Gravity, and all's well that ends well. This offers a moment of respite, in which to forget the global pandemic. © Yan Céh/Qobuz
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Getting Ready... (World)
Freddie King
Rock - Released April 1, 1971 | EMI Music Special Markets
The first of Freddie King's three albums for Leon Russell's Shelter label set the tone for his work for the company: competent electric blues with a prominent rock/soul influence. King sings and plays well, but neither the sidemen nor the material challenge him to scale significant heights. Part of the problem is that King himself wrote none of the songs, which are divided between Chicago blues standards and material supplied by Leon Russell and Don Nix. The entire album is included on the compilation King of the Blues.© Richie Unterberger /TiVo
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Tattoo You
The Rolling Stones
Rock - Released August 27, 1981 | Polydor Records
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Tattoo You starts off strong, very strong, even. Right from the opening track, Start Me Up, the Stones do what they do best, and despite your best efforts you'll be shimmying and tapping your foot to the rhythm in no time. The first part of this album, which was released in August 1981, follows suit with rock jams (Little T&A) as well as blues jams (Black Limousine), all of which are upbeat. The second part is like a well-earned rest after the amped-up first half. While it may seem a bit bland in comparison, some of the highlights are the atmospheric and surprisingly modern ballad, Heaven, and the more classic, Waiting On A Friend. The album nevertheless maintains a sense of coherence and is still considered one of the most iconic albums of the time – something that isn’t often said about the Stones’ later material – so it’s easy to forget it’s made up of recordings that didn’t make it into their previous albums. © Iskender Fay/Qobuz
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Riding With The King
Eric Clapton
Blues - Released June 26, 2020 | Bushbranch - Surfdog Records
The potential for a collaboration between B.B. King and Eric Clapton is enormous, of course, and the real questions concern how it is organized and executed. This first recorded pairing between the 74-year-old King and the 55-year-old Clapton was put together in the most obvious way: Clapton arranged the session using many of his regular musicians, picked the songs, and co-produced with his partner Simon Climie. That ought to mean that King would be a virtual guest star rather than earning a co-billing, but because of Clapton's respect for his elder, it nearly works the other way around. The set list includes lots of King specialties -- "Ten Long Years," "Three O'Clock Blues," "Days of Old," "When My Heart Beats Like a Hammer" -- as well as standards like "Hold on I'm Coming" and "Come Rain or Come Shine," with some specially written and appropriate recent material thrown in, so King has reason to be comfortable without being complacent. The real danger is that Clapton will defer too much; though he can be inspired by a competing guitarist such as Duane Allman, he has sometimes tended to lean too heavily on accompanists such as Albert Lee and Mark Knopfler when working with them in concert. That danger is partially realized; as its title indicates, Riding With the King is more about King than it is about Clapton. But the two players turn out to have sufficiently complementary, if distinct, styles so that Clapton's supportive role fills out and surrounds King's stinging single-string playing. (It's also worth noting that there are usually another two or three guitarists on each track.) The result is an effective, if never really stunning, work.© William Ruhlmann /TiVo
Riding With The King
Eric Clapton
Blues - Released June 13, 2000 | Bushbranch - Surfdog Records
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The potential for a collaboration between B.B. King and Eric Clapton is enormous, of course, and the real questions concern how it is organized and executed. This first recorded pairing between the 74-year-old King and the 55-year-old Clapton was put together in the most obvious way: Clapton arranged the session using many of his regular musicians, picked the songs, and co-produced with his partner Simon Climie. That ought to mean that King would be a virtual guest star rather than earning a co-billing, but because of Clapton's respect for his elder, it nearly works the other way around. The set list includes lots of King specialties -- "Ten Long Years," "Three O'Clock Blues," "Days of Old," "When My Heart Beats Like a Hammer" -- as well as standards like "Hold on I'm Coming" and "Come Rain or Come Shine," with some specially written and appropriate recent material thrown in, so King has reason to be comfortable without being complacent. The real danger is that Clapton will defer too much; though he can be inspired by a competing guitarist such as Duane Allman, he has sometimes tended to lean too heavily on accompanists such as Albert Lee and Mark Knopfler when working with them in concert. That danger is partially realized; as its title indicates, Riding With the King is more about King than it is about Clapton. But the two players turn out to have sufficiently complementary, if distinct, styles so that Clapton's supportive role fills out and surrounds King's stinging single-string playing. (It's also worth noting that there are usually another two or three guitarists on each track.) The result is an effective, if never really stunning, work.© William Ruhlmann /TiVo
The potential for a collaboration between B.B. King and Eric Clapton is enormous, of course, and the real questions concern how it is organized and executed. This first recorded pairing between the 74-year-old King and the 55-year-old Clapton was put together in the most obvious way: Clapton arranged the session using many of his regular musicians, picked the songs, and co-produced with his partner Simon Climie. That ought to mean that King would be a virtual guest star rather than earning a co-billing, but because of Clapton's respect for his elder, it nearly works the other way around. The set list includes lots of King specialties -- "Ten Long Years," "Three O'Clock Blues," "Days of Old," "When My Heart Beats Like a Hammer" -- as well as standards like "Hold on I'm Coming" and "Come Rain or Come Shine," with some specially written and appropriate recent material thrown in, so King has reason to be comfortable without being complacent. The real danger is that Clapton will defer too much; though he can be inspired by a competing guitarist such as Duane Allman, he has sometimes tended to lean too heavily on accompanists such as Albert Lee and Mark Knopfler when working with them in concert. That danger is partially realized; as its title indicates, Riding With the King is more about King than it is about Clapton. But the two players turn out to have sufficiently complementary, if distinct, styles so that Clapton's supportive role fills out and surrounds King's stinging single-string playing. (It's also worth noting that there are usually another two or three guitarists on each track.) The result is an effective, if never really stunning, work.© William Ruhlmann /TiVo
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Patty Griffin
Patty Griffin
Blues/Country/Folk - Released March 8, 2019 | PGM
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Patty Griffin made a strong statement when she decided to give her name to her tenth album. Was it a way to make her songs even more intense? Maybe. But when one discovers that the songwriter had just won her battle with breast cancer when she wrote the album, the decision feels even stronger. In her record, Griffin compares the disease that she fought with the social and political sickness that is currently destroying America. The record is raw, and the gravity of its main themes work in favor of the magnificence of this piece of Americana. Recorded in her house in Austin, Texas, the album embraces many genres, from blues to gospel, country music, New Orleans swing, and Irish traditional songs. As always with Patty Griffin, realistic descriptions go hand in hand with pure poetry, and the artist’s intimate confessions give way to groovy tunes. For her simple and beautiful record, Griffin has called up her long-term and faithful companions. David Pulkingham is on the guitar, Conrad Choucroun on the drums, Lindsey Verrill on cello, Stephen Barber on piano and as special guest on two songs (Coins and What Now) her ex-husband and Led Zeppelin master Robert Plant. © Marc Zisman/Qobuz
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Blues In Mono
Seasick Steve
Blues - Released November 27, 2020 | There's A Dead Skunk Records
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Another artist, another lockdown album. Like so many other musicians, Seasick Steve has been compelled to make the most of the pandemic, by recording. And as this gentleman is in the business of making the most visceral blues, this exercise suits him perfectly. Especially as, as the title suggests, Blues in Mono foregrounds the genre's foundations by paying tribute to the acoustic blues, the country blues of the first half of the twentieth century with a collection of covers of songs by masters like Mississippi Fred McDowell (Fred's Worried Blues), Charlie Patton (Moon Going Down), Willie Dixon (My Babe), Mississippi Joe Callicott (Laughing to Keep From Crying), K.C. Douglas (Whisky Headed Woman), Lightnin’ Hopkins (Buddy Brown) and, closer to our times, R.L. Burnside (Goin' Down South and Miss Maybell). Nevertheless, Steve slips four strong original compositions into the deck, such as Well, Well, Well, which is sure to delight his fans. Deprivation, despoliation, loneliness: there is no artifice here to distort the conversation between him and his guitar, which he carries on in his rough-hewn voice. A back-to-the-roots record, picked up nicely on an old 1940s microphone, just to lend even more authenticity to the proceedings. Raw, brutal, lacking in surprises: but it warms the soul and the heart. © Marc Zisman/Qobuz
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Otis Spann Is The Blues
Otis Spann
Blues - Released August 23, 1960 | Candid
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Suppose you have a more precise idea of what you want. If you are searching for the album "Bad" by Michael Jackson, type michael jackson bad. The album in question will be displayed at the top, as it is the most relevant.
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