Had he lived into the age of recordings instead of dying in 1915, Scriabin would no doubt have relished the idea of listening to a complete cycle of his own symphonic works. Of course, had he lived into the age of recordings, Scriabin would have added only one other work to his oeuvre – the Mysterium for soloists, choruses, and orchestras along with actors, dancers, perfumers, and light projector operators plus percussionists striking bells suspended from balloons – because, according to the composer, at the conclusion of the work's premiere, the world as we know it would have come to an end with the transfiguration of humanity, thereby foreclosing further opportunities for listening to recordings.

Cavazzoni was born into a noble family in Bologna at an unknown date toward the end of the 15th century. His playing was called ‘divino’ while he was still a teenager, and his precocious talents, together with his good upbringing, must have smoothed his path into the service of the Duchess of Urbino, daughter of Isabella d’Este, before 1512; he most likely followed her into exile back at her hometown Mantua in 1516. Those early years earned him the sobriquet ‘d’Urbino’. Later he is documented as a private harpsichordist to Leo X in Rome, as colleague and eventual successor to Vincenzo da Modena, who had played a pedal harpsichord to the famous Duke of Ferrara, Ercole I (his patroness’s grandfather) on his deathbed.

Symphonic in scale and ambition, the incidental music to Shakespeare's play The Tempest was among the last orchestral works Sibelius composed before entering the mysterious 'silence of Järvenpää' that lasted until his death. Commissioned by leading Danish theatre producer Johannes Poulsen in 1925, the wide expressive demands of the play saw Sibelius calling on large musical forces. From the terrifying tone picture of the opening shipwreck via ethereal songs, boisterous character portraits and remarkable evocations of nature, Sibelius took full advantage of being set free to convert the themes of Shakespeare's magical world into his own unique sound.

David Bowie is the second studio album by the English musician David Bowie, released under that title by Philips in the UK, and as Man of Words/Man of Music by Mercury in the US, on 14 November 1969. It was reissued in 1972 by RCA Records as Space Oddity (the title of the opening track, which had reached No. 5 in the UK Singles Chart). Space Oddity was the name used for CD releases of the album in 1984, 1990 and 1999, but it reverted to the original, eponymous title for 2009 and 2015 reissues. The album came about after Bowie had made the transition from a cabaret/avant-garde-inspired musician to a hippie/folk-based sound and as such the album is a major turning point from his 1967 debut.

REO Speedwagon gets slagged regularly, but they always deliver in concert and the freewheelin' Nine Lives, their (natch) ninth, sports one cool sleeve: tight leather, suspenders, fishnets, and cat chicks. The black circle inside rocks mightily also. Bassman Bruce Hall steps up to the plate with "Back on the Road Again," a stadium stage staple that kept these Illinois boys makin' noise on the radio. The Caribbean vibe in the hard luck "Easy Money" can't touch the Scorpions' 1979 foray into reggae ("Is There Anybody There?"), but old reliable axeman Gary Richrath keeps the number burning. The obligatory ballad, "I Need You Tonight," is one of REO's best cuts ever with priceless piano from Neal Doughty, the most unsung keyboardist alive.

New Orleans legend Dr. John's Nonesuch debut, produced by Black Keys guitarist and uber-fan Dan Auerbach, distills half a century of this Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee's picaresque musical history, melding his shamanistic stage persona with the authority of a consummate studio musician, the cosmic conjurer with the street-savvy poet. The ten new songs on Locked Down, written by Dr. John with Auerbach and a handpicked crew of backing musicians, combine incantatory chants ("Ellegua") and often politically charged raps ("Revolution") with candid and soulful reflections ("My Children, My Angels"), swaggering R&B ("Big Shot"), and a healthy dose of hypnotic, simmering funk ("The King Of Izness")…

L.A. Guns have announced the release of their latest studio album, "Black Diamonds". Produced by founding member and guitarist Tracii Guns, "Black Diamonds" is a tour-de-force of rock 'n roll that fans have come to expect from the long-running hard rockers. Written and recorded over the course of 2022, "Black Diamonds" sees Tracii Guns, Phil Lewis, and company continuing on the same successful and inspiring sonic journey that they've been taking on their most recent albums, "Checkered Past", "The Devil You Know", and "The Missing Peace". The band doesn't shy away from flexing their hard rock influences as they always have, but also incorporates more introspective acoustic tracks reflective of their classic rock influences from the '70s.

Frontiers Music Srl is pleased to announce the release of Cross Country Driver's "The New Truth". Written and performed by Rob Lamothe (Riverdogs), James Harper (Fighting Friday), and Zander Lamothe (Logan Staats Band), "The New Truth" is an old-school-rock rollercoaster of an album. This gutsy, continent-and-generation-spanning musical adventure features inspired performances not only from the aforementioned trio at the core of Cross Country Driver, but by friends such as Mike Mangini (Dream Theater), Greg Chaisson (Badlands), dUg Pinnick (King's X), Rhonda Smith (Jeff Beck), Jimmy Wallace (The Wallflowers), KFigg (Extreme) and more…

Two stray Chet Baker 10" titles and a few associated alternate takes are gathered on this single disc. Grey December is one of the better CD reissues featuring Baker's early-'50s recordings on Pacific Jazz, the purveyors of West Coast cool. The instrumental sides feature two septet sessions in December of 1953 and the vocal sextet session dates to February of 1955 - all three of which feature Baker and pianist Russ Freeman. Rather than present these sides chronologically, the four vocal tracks precede the decidedly lengthier 1953 instrumental sessions - a programming decision that works remarkably well. Enthusiasts of Baker's laid-back vocals should consider the February 1955 sessions as essential. The combination of Bud Shank's ethereal flute work when married to Baker's muted vocals create an intense burst of melancholy…

Reuniting with all their original members plus original producer Stephen Street just over a decade after their swan song Wake Up and Smell the Coffee, the Cranberries recapture the sound of their earliest records on 2012's Roses. Nearly 20 years have passed since their breakthrough Everybody Else Is Doing It So Why Can't We?, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that there are some signs of age on Roses, notably in an increased sense of professionalism in the band's craft and also in a slight stripping of the ethereal echo that gave their debut an appealing floating quality. Without this dreaminess, the Cranberries are merely pretty, but unlike the turgidly ambitious Bury the Hatchet and Wake Up and Smell the Coffee – or on Dolores O'Riordan's pair of perfectly fine solo albums – Roses has definition and momentum, momentum that doesn't derive from artificially enhanced electric guitars, either.