In the summer of 2010, producer Jake Langley took pianist Pinetop Perkins into the studio knowing full well that this would be among the last sessions the blues legend would ever make. Pinetop was 97 years old, and odds were good that this would be the last time he'd ever be recorded, so Langley made sure to capture him in a setting that brought out the best in him, recording him live in the studio, sometimes supported by up-and-coming blues singers from the Austin, Texas area. These young guns included Gary Clark, Jr., who would have a major-label breakthrough in 2012, the same year How Long? appeared on RockBeat Records.

The Mass in B Minor, hailed in 1818 as the “greatest musical composition of all times and all cultures” by its first publisher, Hans-Georg Nägeli of Zurich, is today revered as one of the greatest works in the history of classical music. Not only has the composition substantially shaped the contemporary relevance of Johann Sebastian Bach, but it also underpins his standing as a pre-eminent artist of universal appeal.

Stonila is a greek band established in 2015.They try to capture the sound of the olive tree leaves that fly to the rocky mountains.The myth talks about Ulysses sailing the Atlantic ocean but Stonila is real and they make a musical journey in missisipi's mud.

Originally formed by Hydrahead Records owner Aaron Turner, Isis began life as a fairly straightforward sludge/stoner metal band. Their first two EPs "The Red Sea" and "Mosquito Control" presented a brutal and loud form of heavy metal which quickly gained them a following, making their debut album "Celestial" a hit in metal circles. The first signs of what they would eventually become emerged on the "SGNL>05" EP, where their intense guitar grooves began to additionally incorporate mellow, spacey segments.
2002's "Oceanic" would prove to be their breakthrough album, perfecting the band's combination of post-rock buildups and explosive, slow metal. Their evolution came into full circle with 2003's "Panopticon", which relied more on atmosphere and gradual progressions than musicianship and technicality…

The opera is based on the play La Bataille de Toulouse by Joseph Méry.
The performance is conducted by Boris Brott, who served as Assistant Conductor to the New York Philharmonic under Leonard Bernstein, and Music Director and Conductor for the Royal Ballet.

Issued in a 4-panel Digifile. Given away for free with German magazine "RockHard" issue 07/08/2020. Exclusive Rock Hard sampler.

A beautifully-packaged 50-disc box set, released to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, one of the most important and adventurous early music labels. The set contains 50 classic recordings of baroque and ancient music, chosen to represent the breadth of this huge and varied catalogue and each disc is slip-cased with artwork replicating the original CD or LP artwork.

Sting - The Living Sea: Soundtrack from the IMAX Film (1995) {A&M Records 540 350-2}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 313 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 125 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (png) -> 56 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1995 A&M records | 540 350-2
Stage & Screen / Rock / Pop / New Age / Instrumental

I now feel somewhat deprived at not having seen this IMAX movie as of yet as if the soundtrack is anything to go by, it must be fantastic. I bought this CD purely because of Sting's name on the label and was pleasantly suprised to notice that the music herein differs from anything I have heard from any of his studio albums. Many of the songs seem to be in a similar vein to "St. Agnes and the burning train" from the Soul Cages and it is good to see the original album version included along with Fragile. The entire album is full of relaxing ocean music with a twist of some of Sting's earlier work interspersed for good measure.

Packaged in a sleeve that (not accidentally) reminds one of the Beatles' White Album, this first released collection of Belew's acoustic renderings is all around a pleasant listen…

Miles Davis - Directions (1997) {2CD Set, Sony Music Japan, Master Sound SRCS 9310~11 rec 1960-1970}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (image)+CUE+LOG -> 656 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 219 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (png) -> 38 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1960-70, 1997 Sony Music Japan | SRCS 9310~11 | Master Sound SBM
Jazz / Hard Bop / Post Bop / Fusion / Trumpet

This double album of leftover items not previously issued features Davis over a ten-year period. "Song of Our Country" is from the sessions that led to Sketches of Spain and there is a "new" version of "'Round Midnight" from 1961 along with "So Near, So Far" dating from 1963. Otherwise the remainder of this two-fer is from the transitional 1967-70 period when Davis was experimenting with combining jazz and rock. Some of the selections ramble on a bit too long but the music is mostly quite fascinating, featuring such players as Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Joe Zawinul, Chick Corea and John McLaughlin. It's most highly recommended to collectors with an open ear toward fusion.

Throughout the 1970s, Chuck Mangione was a celebrity. His purposely lightweight music was melodic pop that was upbeat, optimistic, and sometimes uplifting…

Chick Corea Elektric Band - Live From Elario's (1985) {Stretch Records Japan MVCR-239 rel 1996}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 412 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 171 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 15 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1985, 1996 Stretch Records / MCA Victor Japan | MVCR-239
Jazz / Post Bop / Fusion / Piano

The first live performance of this power-trio is evidence that they clicked right off the bat. It also has some interesting experimental sounds. A young Dave Weckl rips on drums. That said, I'm pleased to own it for its relative rarity & curiosity value if nothing else. Don't get me wrong, of course there is some phenomenal playing - these boys are the business after all, but its much more of an acoustic sound than I like. I figure Chick must have thought that too, and he decided to add Scott Henderson / Frank Gambale to give the band the harder fusion edge, and pull the job off big time.

Andrew Hill - Mosaic Select 23: Solo (2006) {3CD Set, Mosaic Records MS-023 rec 1978}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 740 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 436 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 25 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1978, 2006 Mosaic Records | MS-023
Jazz / Post Bop / Modal Music / Piano

Mosaic Select presents a limited edition containing all of the solo piano recordings made by Andrew Hill at the Fantasy studios in Berkeley, CA during August and October 1978. Only a fraction of this material – the first two titles on the third disc – had ever seen the light of day prior to this collection's release in the spring of 2007. Having operated throughout the '60s as an innovative composer, pianist and bandleader, Hill spent the first half of the following decade exercising his creativity by composing and instructing at Colgate University in Hamilton, NY, performing internationally, and making records for Freedom, East Wind and Steeplechase.