With 1986's Strong Persuader, guitarist and vocalist Robert Cray stepped to the front of the line as a smooth and intelligent practitioner of the blues genre. Strong Persuader almost worked as well as a greatest hits set, with the brilliant Willie Mitchell-influenced "I Guess I Showed Her" being best of a perfect ten. With that standard being set, Don't Be Afraid of the Dark is marred by it's lack of potent material and a tired-sounding band and Cray. The title is a steamy track punctuated by the Memphis Horns. The edgy and methodical "Don't You Even Care" finds Cray again on the losing end of a relationship. Although the relationship blues are stinging here, this album's best effort strays far from the formula. The oddly humorous "Night Patrol" has Cray playing armchair therapist wondering what went wrong with a drunk, and a 17-year-old girl on the corner…

First time on CD for this 1976 album from the jazz great. Miroslav Vitous is one of the premiere bass players in all of jazz music. At age 6 Miroslav started with the violin and switched to the piano at age 9. He then finally settled on playing the bass at age 14. He came to the United States in 1966 and became part of the New York Jazz scene. In 1970 he formed the band Weather Report and three years later formed the Miroslav Vitous Group. This album features Lenny White, David Earl Johnson and Gerry Brown.

This album is her initial solo piece that was recorded in Gent, Belgium in 1999 and is imported from Japan. Known around the world as the most promising and upcoming young artist who has the finest percussion technique and musical skills. This album explores wide ranges of percussion sound by marimba, vibraphone and multi-percussions and her perfect performance covers the signature pieces from Iannis Xenakis, Franco Donatoni, Frederic Rzewski, Joseph Schwantner and Yoichi Sugiyama.

Rhino’s seventh installment of 50th Anniversary Studio Releases for Grateful Dead. FROM THE MARS HOTEL is the 7th album and 2nd released on Dead’s own label, Grateful Dead Records. The Deluxe Edition will feature the same remastered and Plangentized audio from the 50th Remaster PLUS the previously unreleased live performance from the University of Nevada-Reno on May 12, 1974. This was the first road show for the infamous “Wall Of Sound,” which debuted mere weeks earlier at home on March 23, 1974 at the Cow Palace. remastered by GRAMMY® Award-winning engineer David Glasser, with Plangent Processes tape restoration and speed correction and Produced for Release by David Lemieux.

The Golden Age of rock'n'roll and pop music is obviously not limited to the standoff between the Beatles and The Rolling Stones. With Pink Floyd, the options are quite different. Formed in 1965 in London, the band will slalom between progressive rock and psychedelic rock, offering soaring and experimental music, engaged and satirical texts, concept albums and bigger than life concerts, as the Anglo-saxons say … the saga will have three major chapters : the Syd Barrett era, the David Gilmour/Roger Waters era, the Waters era and the Gilmour era.

On Jobim's second A&M album, Eumir Deodato takes over the chart-making tasks, and the difference between him and Claus Ogerman is quite apparent in the remake of "The Girl From Ipanema": the charts are heavier, more dramatic, and structured. Sometimes the arrangements roll back so one can hear, say, the dancing multi-phonic flute of wildman Hermeto Pascoal on "Tema Jazz," and the rhythms often veer away from the familiar ticking of the bossa nova. Jobim is his usual understated self, adding very subtle electric piano to his arsenal of acoustic piano and guitar, but the material sometimes falls short of Jobim's tip-top level (dead giveaway: "Tide" is a clever rewrite on the chord changes of "Wave"). Still, it's beautifully made and very musical at all times.

"Cantafabule" was published 1975 as double vinyl album and marks the undisputed high point in the career of this Romanian act. Phoenix blend Romanian folk vibes with classic and prog rock themes and deliver a cool mix of tunes. “Cantafabule” contains some great vocal harmonies and memorable songs full of originality and musical depth. Some great keyboard work here by Guenter Reininger with the rest of band adding nice musicianship (Nicolae Covaci (Voice, Guitar), Josef Kappl (Voice, Bass, Violin), Ovidiu Lipan and Mircea Baniciu (Voice, Guitar).

Bruce Springsteen once said he intended to make an album with words like Bob Dylan that sounded like Phil Spector where he sang like Roy Orbison, a nifty summary of many, but not all, of his artistic ambitions and a key to his appeal. Unlike any other singer/songwriters saddled with the appellation of "the new Dylan" in the early '70s, Springsteen never hid how he was raised on '60s AM radio.

Though probably nobody fully appreciated it at the time - perhaps least of all the band! - Depeche Mode's debut is at once both a conservative, functional pop record and a groundbreaking release. While various synth pioneers had come before - Gary Numan, early Human League, late-'70s Euro-disco, and above all Kraftwerk all had clear influence on Speak & Spell - Depeche became the undisputed founder of straight-up synth pop with the album's 11 songs, light, hooky, and danceable numbers about love, life, and clubs. For all the claims about "dated" '80s sounds from rock purists, it should be noted that the basic guitar/bass/drums lineup of rock is almost 25 years older than the catchy keyboard lines and electronic drums making the music here…

Bruce Springsteen se tornou um ídolo nacional nos Estados Unidos por conta da sua capacidade de beber das melhores referências de diferentes épocas do rock e apresentar letras que exaltam o sentimento dos estadunidenses, tudo isso embalado por apresentações ao vivo potentes e marcantes. Sua carreira começou no final dos anos 60, mas foi em 1975 que a fama veio em todo o país, quando Springsteen lançou o álbum Born in the U.S.A, disco que, na época, foi considerado uma salvação para o rock e trouxe várias músicas que viraram hinos do estilo de vida nos EUA, se consolidando como um dos mais vendidos da história do país. A partir daí, o cantor e compositor influenciou toda uma geração de músicos.

A founder member of SOFT MACHINE, Kevin embarked on a solo career in 1969, signing to EMI’s Harvest label and recording the album ‘JOY OF A TOY’ the same year. It is a mark of Kevin’s stature that his recordings during this period would feature contributions from notable musicians such as arranger and keyboard player DAVID BEDFORD, ROBERT WYATT, SYD BARRETT, MIKE OLDFIELD, LOL COXHILL, STEVE HILLAGE, ARCHIE LEGGET and more. This boxed set includes all of the surviving BBC sessions and In Concert appearances recorded by Kevin during this period, including a previously unreleased John Peel concert from 1970 and other tracks featuring Soft Machine, Bridget St. John and Gong. Other highlights include the inclusion of a complete set recorded at a Hyde Park Free concert in 1970, newly mixed and restored by Stephen W Tayler, previously unreleased session out-takes and a segment from a 1972 concert and a performance at London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall in 1973. Rounding off the set is a region free Blu-ray video disc which includes a series of live performances recorded for French television, along with two sessions for The Old Grey Whistle Test in 1972 and 1973 (with three previous unseen alternate performances from 1972) and the ‘Caribbean Moon’ promotional film.

In 2010, Maestro Riccardo Chailly releases Johann Sebastian Bach for Decca for the very first time. Having conducted the illustrious Gewandhaus Orchestra since 1986, this esteemed conductor’s association with Leipzig is but one year less than Bach’s. Played on modern instruments, Chailly’s Bach beautifully demonstrates that vivid, stylistically aware performance is not the exclusive preserve of period instrument ensembles. Every concerto of this first release – the Brandenburg Concertos – showcases the Orchestra’s expert soloists. Collectively, they celebrate the orchestra’s renaissance under its charismatic Italian music director. This release will be followed up later in the year with new recordings of the St Matthew Passion and Christmas Oratorio.

The prospect of hearing Alina Ibragimova in two of the most important concertos written for the violin is in itself irresistibly enticing, but Shostakovich acionados will also welcome an opportunity to hear the rarely performed original opening to the Burlesque of No 1, subsequently made less fearsome for the soloist at the request of the works dedicatee, David Oistrakh.

The "Esterhazy Music Collection" is a series dedicated to presenting musical treasures largely forgotten over the centuries. It pays tribute to one of the most important Hungarian noble families, the imperial princes of Esterhazy. From the 17th to the 19th century, the Princes of Esterhazy were as generous patrons of the arts as the most influential rulers of France, England and Austria. Although the titles 'Le Matin', 'Le Midi' and 'Le Soir' have favoured the popularity of the three works in our time, they served Haydn merely as an inspiring impulse to compose. Haydn's symphonies 6 -8 (the 'Times of Day' symphonies) are programmatic music only to a limited extent.

2010 indispensible guide to the legendary Chess label. Beautifully presented, 36-page booklet with extensive sleeve notes, rare photos and track-by-track guide by Mojo writer and music expert Lois Wilson. Packaged in a compact DVD-sized hardcover book. Includes hits by Chuck Berry, Etta James, Fontella Bass & Ramsey Lewis plus key tracks by pioneers - Muddy Waters, Bo Diddley, Howlin Wolf, Willie Dixon, John Lee Hooker & more. 100 tracks.