Live at the Philharmonie was the Dave Pike Set's third record for MPS in the year 1969 alone; Noisy Silence-Gentle Noise (MPS 15215) and the stellar Four Reasons (MPS 15253) preceded it. One of the most interesting ideas about this amazing set of music concerns the notorious circumstances under which it was recorded, at the 1969 Berlin Jazz Days festival. The reason for this is the year itself: Miles Davis and his group had brought their fiery brand of electricity to jazz and its reverberations were being heard the world over. At the same time, prog rock and Krautrock were making their heads (considered ugly by jazz purists) known in the guises of Can, Neu!, Amon Düül, and Faust. Add to this Charlie Mariano's great band, the new hip embracing of rock culture by the Kenny Clarke-Francy Boland Big Band, Peter Herbolzheimer's Rhythm Combination & Brass, and any number of other groups, and Berlin was in a state of tension. The wild thing is, everybody agreed on Pike's group – it was the bridge between the jazz tradition, what was transpiring, and what was to come.

As part of Universal's Colour Collection, Rod Stewart is featured on previously released tracks taken from the singer's stint with Mercury in the '70s. Among the 17 tracks are the original versions of "Maggie May," "Every Picture Tells a Story" and "Twistin' the Night Away."

Justin Hayward's Night Flight was never too impressive in its original LP release – the pressing was noisy and the sound was just different enough from his prior records to be off-putting. The quarter century since its release has allowed the recording to age well; additionally, the 2004 remastered edition finally shows off the finer points of producer Jeff Wayne's approach to serious advantage – the music comes off as lean and spacious, and Hayward's singing displays the power and richness in this reissue to carry the album properly. Additionally, one of the two bonus tracks, a live version of "Forever Autumn" from a concert at San Juan Capistrano, extends the value of the CD considerably, as a previously unreleased version of the song that started Hayward's professional relationship with Wayne and led to the recording of the original LP (in addition to being one of the prettiest songs with which Hayward has ever been associated).

Emilio de’ Cavalieri (1550-1602) might be one of the most interesting figures of his time. A diplomat; choreographer; organist and composer; his few surviving compositions are groundbreaking; and place him at the forefront of musical development; especially in terms of his connection to the new stile rappresentativo and early opera. Cavalieri's Lamentations and Responsories are extremely innovative when compared to other settings from the time: the expressive setting of the dark biblical text combines old and new musical styles - beautiful and complex polyphonic sections alternating with highly expressive monodies and duets. Profeti della Quinta has been researching and performing Cavalieri’s Lamentations over the past ten years; and are extremely happy to finally share this recording of it.

Ray Davies published a memoir chronicling his life-long affair with America in 2013. Naturally, it was called Americana, and that's also the title of this 2017 musical adaptation of the book. Davies plays a little fast and loose with his facts, which is perhaps a detriment in an autobiography but suits the condensed nature of songwriting. He doesn't tell a story with Americana – it's not a song cycle along the lines of Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire) – but rather offers a series of vignettes, some torn from the pages of his book, others expanding upon its themes. Images of highways, cowboys, and movies dance through the songs, as do sly allusions to the Kinks.

This Debut CD confirms the impression I’d formed from broadcasts of a highly talented, exceptionally well-integrated ensemble. Their excellent balance is highlighted by crystal-clear recording. The opening of the Debussy, brisk and forceful yet with plenty of variety and meticulous in observing the composer’s directions, immediately inspires confidence. After a while, though, I started to wonder whether the playing was a bit too careful and controlled; the Vertavo Quartet, not quite as slick and with more soft-edged recorded sound, give a much more spontaneous effect, with delightful and very idiomatic touches of rubato. Similarly in the Ravel, the Belcea performance brings out all the subtleties of texture and timbre, the fascinating cross-rhythms, the sweetly nostalgic emotional tone.

In his Piano Quartet and Quintet, Schumann revisited the frameworks inherited from Schubert and Beethoven to create astonishingly innovative structures. Their grandiose musical and emotional gestures place these works among his supreme achievements. The prestigious artists assembled here, with their extensive experience of performing Schumann’s chamber music and concertos, do full justice to his imaginative world.

A year on from one of the most satisfying hard rock debuts of the age, 1972's Bulletproof, Hard Stuff were hard-pressed to make such a brazen impression on their second LP, and that despite having spent the intervening time pushing themselves to the very brink of a breakthrough. Funkier than its predecessor, and more experimental too, the uncompromisingly named Bolex Dementia substituted much of its predecessor's raw power with proggier tones – John Du Cann himself compared the title track to Spooky Tooth's equally vague meanderings with Pierre Henry. And as if that were not difficult enough, the album was decked in what remains an astonishingly ugly cover, and promoted with a truly tasteless ad campaign.

Balancing mainstream adult pop, grittier rock, and the poetic influence of childhood idols Patti Smith and Kate Bush, Bermuda native Heather Nova charted in the U.K. and the U.S. with her first worldwide release, 1994's Oyster.

Following the botched collaboration with David Byrne on Mesopotamia, the B-52's decided to craft their fourth album as a return to the pop-culture funk explosion of their debut. Smartly, they decided to not simply replicate the skewed Southern funk of that album, choosing to update their signature sound with drum machines and new wave synths. As a result, it now sounds a little forced and dated, but the best moments – "Legal Tender," "Whammy Kiss," "Butterbean," "Song for a Future Generation" – rank as B-52's classics, and the entire record is certainly entertaining, even with its faults.

Bats is an album that could only be borne from Gama Bomb; on this, their eighth studio album, they have embraced their inner absurdities, they’ve taken a trust fall into each other's arms, relying on the idiosyncratic glue that has bound them together over the last 21 years to propel them forwards. Upon hitting play on the opening prologue track of Bats, it’s safe to assume that we’re about to embark on quite the journey - with Gama Bomb as our intrepid tour guides. From the tombs of Egypt to the faded glamour of old Hollywood, Philly, Domo, John, Joe and James lead us through new sonic landscapes and all manner of novel adventures on what they themselves call their "weirdest" album yet.
Sonically, Gama Bomb manage to stay true to their distinctive thrash sound, honed to perfection over two decades at the frontline of headbanging and fist-pumping…