Every new release by the Polish Diva Anna Maria Jopek is a celebration of Culture and a major musical event on an international scale, especially so when it involves a revered Jazz superstar like saxophonist Branford Marsalis. Jopek, famous for her consistent independent Artistic vision, managed to create her own universe, where she does not need to compare or compete with the rest of the world, which enables her complete freedom of expression and self-determination, which only very few Artists worldwide were able to achieve over time.

The Very Best of The Blues Brothers is a 1995 greatest hits album by The Blues Brothers. It is one of several compilations of the band's recordings, following Best of The Blues Brothers (1981) and Dancin' wid da Blues Brothers (1983).

Opus Nocturne is the third studio album by Swedish black metal band Marduk. It was recorded and mixed at Hellspawn Studios in September 1994 and released that December by Osmose Productions. "Opus Nocturne is a hymn to the night & it's beings". Trivia: some lines in the lyrics for the song "Materialized in Stone" were extracted from the novel "Varney the Vampire; or, The Feast of Blood", by James Malcolm Rymer (1814–1884).

The Crusher is the third full-length studio album by Swedish death metal band Amon Amarth. It was released on May 8, 2001, through Metal Blade Records."Risen from the Sea (2000)" is a re-recorded song with the same name without the 2000 from the unreleased "Thor Arise" 1993 demo.

This is the CD reissue of an album recorded in 1976. At this point, Nascimento had an experience with fusion in the Som Imaginario, and with jazzers such as Herbie Hancock (who had recorded with him in the previous year's Milton) or Wayne Shorter (Native Dancer). In this album, Nascimento experiments economically with orchestra, trying to recover his roots, the culture of the Minas Gerais state, whose already strong civilization made possible an expressive Baroque and sacred music in the 17th century. Therefore, the atmosphere here is not as swinging, but it reaches deeper emotional dimensions.

Composed in 1803, while Beethoven was also writing the ‘Eroica’ Symphony, Christ on the Mount of Olives (Christus am Ölberge) is the composer’s only oratorio and combines the emotive force of his later Missa Solemnis with the theatre of a Bach Passion. With orchestra, chorus and soloists, it tells the story of Jesus’ prayer and arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane and also reflects the emotional pressure Beethoven was under at the time.

Plenty has happened since Enrico Rava last recorded with his working quintet. All but the piano chair remained stable between Easy Living (ECM, 2004) and The Words And The Days (ECM, 2007), but trombonist Gianluca Petrella is the sole remnant on Tribe. "Change is good," they say, and if the rest of Rava's quintet consists of largely fresh (and young) faces, the lack of name power shouldn't be mistaken for lack of firepower.

"These love songs are about more than their meaning. They're about the love that these men have for the music, the joy that they find in playing together and the beauty that exists in the act of creation. And, contrary to popular belief, sequels aren't always subservient to the originals. This music is second to none."

Miles Davis - Complete Vocalist Sessions (2005) {Definitive Records DRCD44419 rec 1945-1950}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 248 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 144 Mb
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© 1945-50, 2005 Definitive Records / Disconforme | DRCD44419
Jazz / Bop / Vocal Jazz / Trumpet

A really unique set of work by Miles Davis – and one that focuses on a really neglected chapter of his career! As you'd guess from the title, the CD brings together an assortment of recordings that Miles made backing up jazz singers – mostly in the early years of his career, at a time when he was still working as a sideman in a variety of settings. The first 4 tracks on the set are from a 1945 date with saxophonist Herbie Fields, on tracks backing singer Rubberlegs Williams – including "That's The Stuff You Gotta Watch", "Pointless Mama Blues", and "Deep Sea Blues".

Phideaux Xavier is a multi-instrumentalist, singer and songwriter, employing the drumming of Rich Hutchins, producer Gabriel Moffat and a revolving cast of supporting musicians. He has released several progressive/psychedelic inspired albums since 2003 and includes Jethro Tull, David Bowie, Pink Floyd, Van Der Graaf Generator, and early Genesis (among many others) as influences.
The first proper album was "Fiendish", which introduced the folky, psychedelic sound of Phideaux. "Ghost Story" mostly consists of material from a previous musical collaboration in the 90s called Satyricon (with Rich Hutchins). "Chupacabras" might be the first album that prog fans lean towards, with the 20+ minute "epic" title track highlighting the album…

Aldo Romano - Ritual (1988) {Owl Records 7898092 rel 1993}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 292 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 125 Mb
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© 1988, 1993 Owl Records | 7898092
Jazz / Post Bop / Contemporary Jazz / Drums

Aldo Romano's Ritual has both an Italian connection and a French connection – French because the post-bop CD was recorded in Paris for a French company (Owl Records), Italian in that all of the musicians are Italian (including drummer Romano, trumpeter/flugelhornist Paolo Fresu, pianist Franco D'Andrea, and bassist Furio Di Castri). If a person could only own one of Romano's Owl releases, To Be Ornette to Be would be the logical choice – that excellent Ornette Coleman tribute is the best thing he recorded for Owl. But Ritual isn't bad. Although not as essential as To Be Ornette to Be, this is a decent post-bop outing that finds Romano performing his own compositions exclusively.

Marc Copland joins forces with a trio of fellow seasoned veterans, including guitarist John Abercrombie, bassist Drew Gress, and drummer Billy Hart for this 2007 studio session. The chemistry between the four men is apparent from the very beginning. The pianist's introspective ballad "Like You" is a complex affair, frequently showing the influence of Bill Evans in his lyrical ideas, though Copland's dark interwoven lines take in him other directions as well.

"05" is both a fresh new start for Scherzoo and a natural evolution of the keyboards driven formula introduced in its last album.
Mostly recorded in a live setting, this is the sound of a band brimming with confidence, benefiting from the stability of its line-up and strengthened by four years of playing together. Signing with Lizard Records marks a important new step for the french quartet, a perfect fit since the open mindedness of the Italian label joins perfectly the band’s desire to broaden its musical horizons…

Ron Carter - Dear Miles (2006) {Blue Note 92547}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 318 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 126 Mb
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© 2006 Blue Note | 0946 3 92547 2 9
Jazz / Post Bop / Bass

Although he has participated in a couple of Miles Davis tribute bands and Herbie Hancock's V.S.O.P., Ron Carter always resisted leading a CD of Davis tunes, until this project. Actually only seven of the ten songs that are performed by Carter's quartet on Dear Miles were associated with the trumpeter (not the two Carter originals or "As Time Goes By"), and "Bags' Groove" is a bit borderline. In any case, there are no trumpeters emulating Miles and these versions rarely hint at Davis' versions.