Following on from the highly successful first two editions of Dance Masters, featuring the classics mixes from maestros Shep Pettibone and Arthur Baker, the spotlight turns to another remix legend, John Luongo. Boston born, John is one of the truly legendary DJ's and remixers of the Disco era. John got his break at Epic by overdubbing percussion from saltshakers and spoons onto a promo and then passing them back the tape. This resulted in him being flown to New York and put in a studio (of his choice) to mix and produce Melba Moore's "You Stepped Into My Life". From this point everything he touched was a hit. He went onto remix Disco classics by Jackie Moore "This Time Baby", Dan Hartman "Vertigo Relight My Fire" and Patti Labelle "Music Is My Way Of Life". John, however, was not afraid of remixing artists that didn't fit into the disco genre, and this attitude is borne out by the tracklisting of this compilation on which Gladys Knight and The Pips rub shoulders with ZZ Top, and Billy Idol and Baltimora appears alongside Bill Nelson and I Level.

While Joseph Haydn is quite rightly regarded as the most important co-inventor of genres such as the symphony, the string quartet and the piano trio in the form in which they have been handed down since the middle of the 18th century, the instrumental concerts are somewhat different. They primarily served the purpose of giving the individually outstanding members of the Esterházy court orchestra the opportunity to perform as soloists. Nevertheless, one can always appreciate their quality and, upon closer listening, discover a variety of beautiful things in them. Developed from the tradition of the Baroque concerti grossi, Haydn probably created a total of about 40 solo concertos, probably four of them for violin.

Lost Pearls is a collection of out-takes recorded by the rock band Wishbone Ash between 1978 and 1982, released in 2004. Wishbone Ash are a British rock band who achieved success in the early and mid-1970s. Their popular albums included Wishbone Ash (1970), Pilgrimage (1971), Argus (1972), Wishbone Four (1973), There's the Rub (1974), and New England (1976). Wishbone Ash are noted for their extensive use of the harmony twin lead guitar format which had been attracting electric blues bands since Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page had played together in the Yardbirds in 1966. Their contributions helped Andy Powell and Ted Turner to be voted "Two of the Ten Most Important Guitarists in Rock History" (Traffic magazine 1989), and to appear in the "Top 20 Guitarists of All Time" (Rolling Stone).

Originally released March 2nd 1979, Sparks are celebrating the 40th anniversary of No 1 In Heaven with a specially remastered and curated double color vinyl and CD release. By the late '70s, brothers Ron and Russell Mael were at an impasse. Their outlandish and theatrical glam rock band Sparks had achieved notable success earlier in the decade when they moved from Los Angeles to England and released a string of oversexed, over-produced, over-the-top albums that would be some of their best-received work, starting with 1974's stellar (and ridiculous) Kimono My House. Things quickly cooled off after a couple years, however, as the brothers returned to their native Los Angeles, reconfigured their backing band, and put out one disappointing record after another.

Following the success of their latest album we are proud to release this double CD compilation of "Christmas Eve" and "The Christmas Album" plus a bonus track, and Christmas messages from Bill and Jill. Shakatak have enjoyed a level of success and career longevity rarely paralleled in contemporary music but then Shakatak is a particularly unusual group. Because of the nature of their music their fan base is one that is far reaching while always retaining an “underground” element. This paradox sees the band, who are known primarily for their musicality, enjoying both high “cult” status and instant recognition as a household name due to their numerous hit recordings.

The prolific and long-running De-Phazz (also known as DePhazz) is a contemporary lounge project led by Peter "Pit" Baumgartner, a German-Austrian producer who has surrounded himself with a shifting cast of collaborators that includes vocalists Barbara Lahr, Karl Frierson, and Pat Appleton. Beginning with Detunized Gravity (1997), Baumgartner and company have explored various forms of lounge music, much of it balancing samples with live instrumentation, with innumerable cross-sections of vintage jazz and soul, easy listening, and Latin music. By employing the sounds of classic percussion and jazz instruments such as the trumpet and sax, De Phazz successfully create smooth electro-groove music with an unmissable swinging jazz theme. De Phazz is a unique sound that you must check out.

Ewald Straesser's catalogue of works contains over 200 compositions, thirteen numbers for violin and piano alone some of which are presented here on this premiere recording. Gudrun Hobold and Eri Uchino have unearthed some astonishing pieces from the completely forgotten collection of this Rhinelander composer, who was seen by his contemporaries as a successor to Brahms.

Orlando Gibbons belongs to the generation of English composers which followed that of William Byrd, 40 years his senior, who died in 1623. He was a chorister at King’s College, Cambridge, where his elder brother was Master of the Choristers, and later became a Gentleman of the Chapel Royal, which he served as an organist and to which he later added the position of organist at Westminster Abbey. He wrote music for the Church of England, madrigals, consort music and keyboard works.

Following the critically acclaimed album of Byrd’s 1589 collection, Alamire returns with the completion of their survey of the early song collections with the 1589 Collection, in this, the composer’s 400th anniversary year. • Alamire is joined by viol consort Fretwork and director David Skinner. • Byrd’s first song collection was published in 1588. In following year he writes that he had ‘bene encouraged thereby, to take further paines therein, and to make the pertaker thereof, because I would shew my selfe gratefull to thee for thy loue, and desirous to delight thee with varietie, whereof (in my opinion) no Science is more plentifully adorned then Musicke.’

For those who attended any concert on the Warren Haynes Band's tour in support of the brilliant Man in Motion, this three-disc package – one DVD and two CDs – is your keepsake. The set features stretched-out versions of all but one track from that album performed live at Austin's Moody Theater in 2011. In addition, his killer sextet offers readings of two tracks from Haynes' first solo album, Tales of Ordinary Madness, a new version of Gov't Mule's "Frozen Fear," and a host of great covers: from Sam Cooke's "A Change Is Gonna Come" and Jimi Hendrix's "Spanish Castle Magic" to Steely Dan's "Pretzel Logic." Haynes' live band is a crack outfit.

Several years after the original art rock supergroup Colosseum disbanded, drummer Jon Hiseman formed Colosseum II, a more jazz fusion-oriented outfit featuring guitarist Gary Moore (Thin Lizzy) and keyboardist Don Airey. Their eclectic debut, Strange New Flesh, shows some impressive chops from all involved, with an emphasis on Moore's soulful guitar leads. Vocalist Mike Starr, while not an immensely engaging singer, does a nice job keeping up with Hiseman and bass player Neil Murray. Highlights include the technically showy but blissfully irreverent ode to Pink Floyd, "Dark Side of the Moog," a nice version of Joni Mitchell's "Down to You," and the funky "Gemini and Leo."

In 1970 Miles Davis unleashed “Bitches Brew”. It sold a million and launched a new style of music: jazz rock. It was the culmination of the work of Miles and his musicians over the previous two years. “Directions In Music” illustrates its conception and immediate aftermath. CD version packaged with 20-page booklet. Double vinyl LP version features two printed inner bags.

THIS MONTH’S COVERMOUNT CD is Buried Treasures – a compendium of tracks from the secret classic albums uncovered by MOJO’s Buried Treasures column. Features The Prisoners, R.J. McMahon, Joe Meek, Nic Jones, Connie Converse, The Beau Brummels, Third World War and more!