This 1990 release sees Atkins harking back to his country roots. While some of these songs have a dated pop sound, his distinct finger picking style retains the country twang that he is known for. Atkins has an uncanny ability to rework country classics such as "And I Love You So," "Make the World Go Away," and "Folsom Prison Blues" in ways no contemporary of his can. His rich tone and lyricism have always helped set him apart from other country guitarists, including his many imitators. Other selections, like "Java" and "Sweet Dreams," use lush string orchestras and tenor saxophone riffs to flesh out Atkins' unique improvisations. But his authentic country renditions such as "Rocky Top" and "Oh Lonesome Me" are the real jewels of COUNTRY GEMS.

Secret Alliance was founded by guitarist Gianluca Galli (Silver Horses & Mantra) initially as his solo project, but found he was wanting to create music with some extra complexity involved. He recruited the incredible Ricardo Confessori (ex-Angra) and fantastic hard rock bassist Tony Franklin to round out the constant members in every song. There are many guest musicians on this futuristic/sci-fi inspired album including Frank Gambale (Chick Corea Band) and Alex Masi. These great musicians create a incredible futuristic world in sound.

The recordings on this LP were originally supposed to be released by the Mode label in the late '50s but the company went defunct before it could come out. Released for the first time by V.S.O.P. in 1986, these 16 selections (all recorded the same day) feature five different pianists (Carl Perkins, Jimmy Rowles, Paul Smith, Gerald Wiggins and Lou Levy) in fine form on three or four songs apiece. It is interesting to compare the players' similar but individual styles and to see how they adapt their bop-based approaches to the demands of playing solo.

When Outstation split suddenly and dramatically following the 2018 album 'Entropy At The Edge Of Chaos' it appeared to be the end of the road for the UK space rockers. Now, unexpectedly, in 2021 they have reformed to record a new album 'Malevolent Energy'.
In a state of post lockdown 'Entente Cordiale' the five members: Amanda Sanderson (vocals), Kris Aylesbury (sax, flute & synths), Steve Blakeley (guitar & synths), Finlay Smythe (bass) and Mark Durrant (drums) got back in touch to catch up and ensure everyone was keeping safe and well…

'The Best of Dire Straits & Mark Knopfler: Private Investigations' is a 2005 best of album. Named after their 1982 hit single, it consists of material by Dire Straits, with songs selected from the majority of the group's six studio albums (excluding the 1979 album Communiqué) from 1978 up to the group's dissolution in 1995…

Swedish melodic hard rock band OSUKARU are 'Starbound' with their 6th full length studio offering, standing high on the success of their last record "House of Mirrors" (2018). With one foot in melodic rock & roll, the other in classic hard rock and all eyes aimed towards tomorrow, "Starbound" offers everything you want from a new OSUKARU album, if not more. Going back 11 years, OSUKARU was just an idea in the mind of guitarist Oz Hawe Petersson (formerly known as Oz Osukaru) and it would take two more years and just as many EPs before they released their debut album "Salvation" in the spring of 2012. Back then OSUKARU was merely a band formed around Oz as he saw his vision come alive.

Around for only two years in the late '60s, Kensington Market consisted of Alex Darou, Luke Gibson, Eugene Martynec, Keith McKie, John Mills-Cockell and Jimmy Watson. The Toronto band recorded several singles before their debut album Avenue Road appeared in 1968. A varied sound and excellent songwriting made the LP one of the best Canadian efforts of the decade, though Kensington Market broke up just after the release of 1969's Aardvark.

Hailing from a trio of Modern Jazz Quartet (MJQ) sessions, Django (1955) contains some of the earliest sides that Milt Jackson (vibraphone), John Lewis (piano), Percy Heath (bass) and Kenny Clarke (drums) recorded for Prestige Records. Initially, the combo was part of Dizzy Gillespie's influential backing band and after a change in drummers (to Connie Kay), they continued as one of the more sophisticated aggregates of the post-bop era. The album commences with Lewis' sublime and serene title track "Django," dedicated to the memory of guitarist extraordinaire Django Reinhardt. This musical paean aptly recaptures the essence of Reinhardt's enigmatic gypsy-like nature, especially evident within Jackson's leads, which emerge from the thoughtful opening dirge with a refined, warm tone throughout…

Bach’s famous and beloved Inventions and Sinfonias continue to captivate listeners, students and teachers today as they have throughout the generations. They are delightful discoveries playable by students of various ages and various stages of pianistic development, and provide an inexhaustible source of new ideas. Bach’s melodies sing, dance, and interact with each other and provide a path to understanding counterpoint, and specifically one of Bach’s favored forms, the fugue. These sparkling classics benefit from Paulina Zamora’s tender interpretations, as does the Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue. This is the third Delos album for the Chilean- American pianist, described by Gramophone as “a sincere and persuasive musician.”

Michael Graves, the Chairman of the Peter Warlock Society, writes: “Warlock’s songs are among the most exquisite, inventive and original to emerge in Britain in the early part of the twentieth century. Generally under-represented in today’s song repertoire, they are particularly so for the soprano voice. This very welcome collection of Warlock’s songs, many of them rarely performed or recorded, showcases the breadth of his extraordinarily diverse oeuvre. Soprano Luci Briginshaw and pianist Eleanor Meynell here offer insightful, sensitive and highly accomplished performances”.

Born Caroline Catharina Müller in the Netherlands, she moved with her family to Germany in the late '70s. In 1980, she became a member of the girl quartet Optimal, who issued two singles…