Vanilla Fudge - Out Through The In Door (2007)

Year: June 2007 (CD ????)
Label: FRW Music Records (???), FDDL0036
Style: Hard Rock
Country: Long Island, New York, U.S.
Time: 62:10
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 423 Mb

What an exciting moment it was in the year 2007 when I read that Vanilla Fudge, one of my favourite bands, had released an album that is dedicated to Led Zeppelin, another favourite of mine! The connection between these two pivotal rock bands started in 1968 when Led Zeppelin did their first USA tour, as a support act of USA four piece formation Vanilla Fudge. In those days this band was highly praised and got worldwide recognition one year later, due to their international chart topping single You Keep Me Hangin' On. Between 1967 and 1969 Vanilla Fudge produced five interesting studio-albums, before they called it a day in 1970. Their captivating and often compelling sound is a blend of rock, blues, jazz, soul and psychedelia with the focus on compelling floods of Hammond organ, harder-edged guitar work, inspired vocals and vocal harmonies. Keep in mind that members of Uriah Heep, Deep Purple and Yes pointed at Vanilla Fudge as their main source of inspiration. Later Vanilla Fudge reunited a few times and even released a new studio album in 1984 named Mystery, a pretty disappointing effort, far from their exciting Sixties sound. Early this year I witnessed a mind blowing gig by Vanilla Fudge (featuring three original members) at the Cultuurpodium De Boerderij in Zoetermeer (see review). More recently I took a look at my pictures of that concert and then decided to write this review. Because in my opinion Vanilla Fudge is an often overlooked progressive formation, time to tell more about Vanilla Fudge and their excellent tribute to Led Zeppelin.
Vanilla Fudge have succeeded to incorporate their distinctive sound into the covers without doing harm to the mighty Led Zeppelin sound. I notice lots of inventive ideas: a short and surprising keyboard intro on the propulsive Immigrant Song, wonderful keyboard arrangements (on the Korg Triton synthesizer) and fiery electric guitar leads on the dynamic Dazed And Confused and a funky clavinet sound, wah-wah guitar and swirling Hammond organ on the swinging Trampled Under Foot. The typical, omnipresent Vanilla Fudge Hammond B3 organ sound can be traced gloriously on Fool In The Rain, Dancing Days, Moby Dick (excellent job by drummer Carmine Appice who later worked with Jeff Beck) and Rock And Roll (less thunderous drums but strong vocals and biting electric guitar). It gives the songs a very special flavour. The most Vanilla Fudge inspired Led Zeppelin cover is the final song Your Time Is Gonna Come: it starts with churchy Hammond organ, then a thrilling blend of blues and psychedelia featuring inspired, pretty melancholic vocals. My conclusion is that this album is an excellent piece of work by Vanilla Fudge but you have to be up to their distinctive sound. In that case the Vanilla Fudge music will turn into a very pleasant discovery because, in my opinion, Vanilla Fudge delivers genuine progressive rock: adventurous, innovative and creative, worth to be checked out!
(https://www.backgroundmagazine.nl/CDreviews/VanillaFudgeOutThroughTheIndoor.html) **** Erik Neuteboom (edited by Astrid de Ronde)

01. Immigrant Song (03:20)
02. Ramble On (04:29)
03. Trampled Underfoot (04:49)
04. Dazed And Confused (05:58)
05. Black Mountain Side (03:30)
06. Fool In The Rain (05:36)
07. Babe, I'm Gonna Leave You (07:05)
08. Dancing Days (04:49)
09. Moby Dick (06:07)
10. All Of My Love (06:16)
11. Rock And Roll (04:21)
12. Your Time Is Gonna Come (05:45)

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Eloy - Ocean 2: The Answer (1998)

Year: 1998 (CD 1998)
Label: GUN Records (Germany), 74321612592
Style: Progressive Rock
Country: Hannover, West Germany
Time: 57:50
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 395 Mb

The long awaited sequel of ELOY's "Ocean" album finally arrives 21 years after the original. Contrarily to what its title may suggest, the music of "Ocean 2" is quite different from the iconic 1977 opus. It also marks an evolution in style and production quality compared to their recent previous releases. All ingredients of Bornemann and co. are present: spacey guitar and synthesizers, epic choirs... and a flute. The tracks become longer and totalise nearly one hour of music, which make "Ocean 2" the longest and most ambitious studio release by the Germans. However, compared to ELOY's typical fantasy space prog style, the compositions sound more polite and smooth, less extravagant and memorable than usual.
The short opener "Between Future And Past" reminds PINK FLOYD with its clock and spacey "Shine On"-ish overture. It introduces the melancholic "Ro Setau", one of the best passages of the record, featuring an aggressive metal riff, female voices, and a nice minimoog solo by early 80's keyboardist Hannes Folberth, invited as a guest for this track. "Paralyzed Civilisation" is another catchy song with variations and an extended guitar solo by Frank Bornemann. The beginning and end parts are in the style of the "Planets" album. "Serenity" is a calm aquatic pause before the more rhythmic "Awakening Of Consciousness". Its heroic melody fantasy space rock sounds more like typical ELOY.
The 13 minutes "Reflections From The Spheres Beyond" sound overall rather flat and fails to really lift off. Despite its various ambiances, this track has too rare good moments to justify its length. The weakest passage of the record. The first part of "Waves Of Intuition" sounds again very floyd-ish as Bornemann tries to sound like Roger Water. This song is nonetheless pretty nice. In the tradition of ELOY's 90's albums closing tracks, "The Answer" is grandiloquent and features this time the Prague Philharmonic Choir. Despite its heavy metal ambiance, this tune is a little flat and repetitive and fails at being the awaited epic ending.
"Ocean 2" is an ambitious album but could have been shortened. It's a pity the longest compositions are also the weakest. Its polite sophistication in sound and arrangements also restricts a little the fantasy and magical side typical of ELOY's musical universe. Although this last opus from the 90's does not hold all the great promises due its title, it however remains quite pleasant and unique in the German space rockers' discography.
(metalmusicarchives.com/album/eloy/ocean-2-the-answer)

01. Between Future And Past (02:42)
02. Ro Setau (07:09)
03. Paralysed Civilization (09:28)
04. Serenity (03:11)
05. Awakening Of Consciousness (06:03)
06. Reflections From The Spheres Beyond (12:59)
07. Waves Of Intuition (04:56)
08. The Answer (11:19)

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Dexter Gordon - The Best Of Dexter Gordon - The Blue Note Years (1988)

Year: November 2, 1988 (CD 1988)
Label: Blue Note (US), CDP-591139
Style: Jazz, Bop, Saxophone Jazz
Country: Los Angeles, California, U.S. (February 27, 1923 - April 25, 1990)
Time: 65:14
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 425 Mb

Dexter Gordon had such a colorful and eventful life (with three separate comebacks) that his story would make a great Hollywood movie. The top tenor saxophonist to emerge during the bop era and possessor of his own distinctive sound, Gordon sometimes was long-winded and quoted excessively from other songs, but he created a large body of superior work and could battle nearly anyone successfully at a jam session. His first important gig was with Lionel Hampton (1940-1943) although, due to Illinois Jacquet also being in the sax section, Gordon did not get any solos. In 1943, he did get to stretch out on a recording session with Nat King Cole. Short stints with Lee Young, the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra, and Louis Armstrong’s big band preceded his move to New York in December 1944 and becoming part of Billy Eckstine’s Orchestra, trading off with Gene Ammons on Eckstine’s recording of “Blowin’ the Blues Away.” Gordon recorded with Dizzy Gillespie (“Blue ‘N’ Boogie”) and as a leader for Savoy before returning to Los Angeles in the summer of 1946. He was a major part of the Central Avenue scene, trading off with Wardell Gray and Teddy Edwards in many legendary tenor battles; studio recordings of “The Chase” and “The Duel” helped to document the atmosphere of the period.
After 1952, drug problems resulted in some jail time and periods of inactivity during the ’50s (although Gordon did record two albums in 1955). By 1960, he was recovered and soon he was recording a consistently rewarding series of dates for Blue Note. Just when he was regaining his former popularity, in 1962 Gordon moved to Europe where he would stay until 1976. While on the continent, he was in peak form and Gordon’s many SteepleChase recordings rank with the finest work of his career. Gordon did return to the U.S. on an occasional basis, recording in 1965, 1969-1970, and 1972, but he was to an extent forgotten in his native land. It was therefore a major surprise that his return in 1976 was treated as a major media event. A great deal of interest was suddenly shown in the living legend with long lines of people waiting at clubs in order to see him. Gordon was signed to Columbia and remained a popular figure until his gradually worsening health made him semi-active by the early ’80s. His third comeback occurred when he was picked to star in the motion picture ‘Round Midnight. Gordon’s acting was quite realistic and touching. He was nominated for an Academy Award, four years before his death after a very full life. Most of Dexter Gordon’s recordings for Savoy, Dial, Bethlehem, Dootone, Jazzland, Blue Note, SteepleChase, Black Lion, Prestige, Columbia, Who’s Who, Chiaroscuro, and Elektra Musician are currently available. ~ Scott Yanow
(bluenote.com/artist/dexter-gordon/)

01. It's You or No One (06:17)
02. Society Red (12:24)
03. Smile (03:22)
04. Cheese Cake (06:34)
05. Three O'Clock in the Morning (05:42)
06. Soy Califa (06:27)
07. Don't Explain (06:07)
08. Tanya (18:17)

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Stevie Nicks (Fleetwood Mac) - Bella Donna (1981)

Year: July 27, 1981 (CD ????)
Label: Modern Records (U.S.), 38139-2
Style: Pop, Rock
Country: Phoenix, Arizona, U.S. (May 26, 1948)
Time: 42:00
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 250 Mb

She Was At The Top Of Her Game.
Though she was still a member of Fleetwood Mac, Stevie Nicks released her debut solo album Bella Donna on July 27, 1981. From the get-go, it was clear that she meant business – even going ahead and recruiting fellow rockers like Don Henley and Tom Petty. Although honestly, at that point, no one was surprised that she launched her solo career in a spectacular fashion given that she wrote some of Fleetwood Mac’s biggest and most well-loved tracks.
Bella Donna topped the US Billboard 200 just two months after its release and a few weeks later, was awarded platinum status by the RIAA. Nicks actually began working on it in between the recording sessions for Mac’s 1979 LP Tusk. With four singles out of ten tracks, it was the kind of debut most rock acts could only hope for. Aside from the arrangements, instrumentation, and melodies, Nicks’ hauntingly beautiful vocal performance takes center stage.
The title track opens the album and is reminiscent of Fleetwood Mac’s music but the LP was definitely off to an impressive start. Kind of Woman is a near-standout with the excellent guitar work and powerful vocals. Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around is one of the highlights and is a straightforward rocker that shows the chemistry between Nicks and Petty. Think About It adds diversity and while it’s not as memorable as other tunes, it’s far from being sub-par. After the Glitter Fades is an under-appreciated track which finds Nicks dabbling in country territory. It’s enjoyable and downright beautiful.
Edge of Seventeen is a fist-pumping rock number inspired by Tom Petty’s wife. It remains one of her most popular songs. How Still My Love starts off a bit slow before it picks up and becomes a punchy tune. Leather and Lace
is a moving, romantic track with Don Henley as her duet partner. The lyrics may be cliche but it doesn’t take away any of Nicks’ credibility as a rockstar. Outside the Rain lacks the power and magic of those before it but it’s still lovely in its own way. The Highwayman is the perfect end to this enchanting record.
Bella Donna will always be remembered as one of the greatest rock albums of the ’80s. Once again, Nicks proved she was a brilliant singer-songwriter who can churn out great classics.
(societyofrock.com/album-review-bella-donna-by-stevie-nicks/)

01. Bella Donna (05:21)
02. Kind of Woman (03:12)
03. Stop Draggin' My Heart Around (04:04)
04. Think About It (03:35)
05. After the Glitter Fades (03:31)
06. Edge of Seventeen (05:28)
07. How Still My Love (03:54)
08. Leather and Lace (03:44)
09. Outside the Rain (04:18)
10. The Highwayman (04:48)

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The Beatles - Die Beatles (Please Please Me) [Vinyl Rip] (1964)

Year: 6 February 1964 (LP 19??)
Label: Horzu (Germany), SHZE 117
Style: Rock, Beat, Pop Rock
Country: Liverpool, England
Time: 32:18
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 210 Mb

Rip by PBTHAL.
Please Please Me is the debut studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Produced by George Martin, it was released in the UK on EMI's Parlophone label on 22 March 1963. The album is 14 songs in length, and contains a mixture of cover songs and original material written by the partnership of band members John Lennon and Paul McCartney.
The Beatles had signed with EMI in May 1962 and had been assigned to the Parlophone label run by Martin. They released their debut single "Love Me Do" in October, which surprised Martin and reached number 17 on what would become the official UK singles chart. Impressed with the band, Martin suggested they record a live album and helped arrange their next single, "Please Please Me", which topped multiple unofficial charts. Finding the Cavern Club, the band's home venue in their native Liverpool, unsuitable for recording, Martin changed the plan to a simple studio album. Other than the material already present in their singles, the Beatles recorded Please Please Me in one day at EMI Studios on 11 February 1963, with Martin adding overdubs to "Misery" and "Baby It's You" nine days later.
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Please_Please_Me)

01. A1 I Saw Her Standing There (02:53)
02. A2 Misery (01:48)
03. A3 Anna (Go To Him) (02:55)
04. A4 Chains (02:24)
05. A5 Boys (02:25)
06. A6 Ask Me Why (02:25)
07. A7 Please Please Me (01:59)
08. B1 Love Me Do (02:20)
09. B2 P.S. I Love You (02:02)
10. B3 Baby It's You (02:39)
11. B4 Do You Want To Know A Secret (01:56)
12. B5 A Taste Of Honey (02:02)
13. B6 There's A Place (01:49)
14. B7 Twist And Shout (02:33)

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Van Zant - My Kind Of Country (2007)

Year: October 9, 2007 (CD 2007)
Label: Sony BMG Music Entertainment (US), 88697-06198-2
Style: Southern Rock, Country Rock, Arena Rock
Country: Orange Park, Florida, U.S.
Time: 42:32
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 305 Mb

My Kind of Country is the fifth and final studio album released by American musical duo Van Zant. It was released in 2007 by Columbia Records. It peaked at number 10 on the Top Country Albums chart. The album includes the singles "That Scares Me" and "Goes Down Easy", both of which charted on Billboard Hot Country Songs.
Van Zant was an American musical duo composed of brothers Donnie Van Zant and Johnny Van Zant. Both are brothers of Ronnie Van Zant, the original lead singer for the Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd. Johnny became the lead vocalist for the reunited Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1987. Donnie was the leader and vocalist of .38 Special.
Initially a Southern rock band, Van Zant first recorded in the 1980s on Network /Geffen Records before disbanding. Johnny and Donnie re-established Van Zant in 1998 to record two albums for CMC International, switching their focus to country music in 2005, with two more albums on Columbia Records as a duo. The duo's first Columbia album, Get Right with the Man, produced a top ten country hit in "Help Somebody".
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Van_Zant_(duo)#Studio_albums)

01. Train (03:55)
02. These Colors Don't Run (04:23)
03. Goes Down Easy (03:41)
04. That Scares Me (03:25)
05. My Kind Of Country (03:21)
06. The Hardest Thing (04:02)
07. It's Only Money (03:20)
08. We Can't Do It Alone (04:22)
09. Friend (03:52)
10. It's All About You (03:59)
11. Headed South (04:07)

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Genesis - Nursery Cryme (1971)

Year: 12 November 1971 (CD ????)
Label: Rhino Records (US), R2 513944
Style: Progressive Rock, Art Rock, Pop Rock
Country: Surrey, England
Time: 39:29
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 256 Mb

Genesis' transitional Nursery Cryme served more as a signpost for future breakthroughs than a stand-alone accomplishment. The album eventually stood as Genesis' first U.K. Top 40 album, but that was only after it became clear how important the then-recent addition of Phil Collins and Steve Hackett really was.
They brought a wealth of new musical ideas and energy to the group, which had released two largely ignored albums before Nursery Cryme arrived on Nov. 12, 1971. But Genesis hadn't yet gelled around this new configuration, leading to an album that guitarist and bassist Mike Rutherford has said possessed "very high highs" and "very low lows."
Dexterous, content-packed tracks like "The Musical Box" (which would be part of Genesis's live set lists through the rest of Collins' tenure), "The Return of the Giant Hogweed," "Seven Stones" and "Fountain of Salmacis" pointed the way toward a string of Top 20 collaborations to come with this lineup. There is the sense, throughout Nursery Cryme, of new discovery - if not consistent success.
Both Collins - a drummer who'd later worked with the jazz-fusion group Brand X - and Hackett made significant early contributions, but nothing came easy.
“Something definitely changed when Phil joined the band," singer Peter Gabriel has said. "He was a real drummer - something I had never been too convinced of with [previous members] Chris Stewart and John Mayhew."
For his part, Hackett eventually found a creative spark as a guitar-playing collaborator with keyboardist Tony Banks. "I will say, being in the band with Steve, who is also very masterful with the guitar and could get lots of different sounds with it, the combination of the two of us produced some combinations that were kind of unusual," Banks told Ultimate Classic Rock in 2015.
(full version: altrockchick.com/2016/09/27/nursery-cryme-by-genesis/)

01. The Musical Box (10:26)
02. For Absent Friends (01:47)
03. The Return Of The Giant Hogweed (08:09)
04. Seven Stones (05:08)
05. Harold The Barrel (03:00)
06. Harlequin (02:55)
07. The Fountain Of Salmacis (08:00)

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Humble Pie - Back On Track (2002)

Year: 19 February 2002 (CD Jan 13, 2002 ?)
Label: Sanctuary Records (U.S.), 06076 84583-2
Style: Blues Rock, Hard Rock
Country: Moreton, Essex, England, UK
Time: 39:49
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 279 Mb

Back on Track is the eleventh studio album by Humble Pie recorded after Jerry Shirley re-formed the band in 2001 with a line-up including their original bassist Greg Ridley, guitarist and vocalist Bobby Tench and the new addition of rhythm guitarist Dave "Bucket" Colwell, who wrote or co-wrote seven of the ten tracks on this album. Back on Track was released by Sanctuary in UK and Europe on 19 February 2002. Keyboard players Zoot Money and Victor Martin were brought in for the Back on Track recording sessions. The album was recorded at Jacobs Studios and Astoria Studios and the CD cover cites special thanks to David Gilmour.
The album and band line up had many of the elements which had contributed to Humble Pie's musical chemistry, with two of the original sidemen to Steve Marriott, Shirley and Ridley re-united with well respected former band member Tench. The promotional Back on Track tour of UK and then Germany with Company of Snakes followed and the response to the live shows was encouraging, but Greg Ridley fell ill late in 2002 and the band split up. Back on Track was another example of a Humble Pie album whose sales were limited by the curtailment of tour schedules due to illness.
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Back_on_Track_(Humble_Pie_album))

01. Dignified (03:27)
02. Real Thing (03:34)
03. Trouble (04:07)
04. Ain't No Big Thing (03:56)
05. Stay One More Night (05:22)
06. Still Got A Story To Tell (04:13)
07. All I Ever Needed (03:21)
08. This Time (03:34)
09. Flatbusted (03:49)
10. Between Old Teddy & Your Mom (04:21)

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J.S.Bach - Johannes-Passion BWV 245 - The Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra [2CD] (1724)

Year: 7 April 1724 (CD 1994)
Label: Erato Records (Europe), 4509-94675-2
Style: Classical, Baroque
Country: Leipzig, Germany (1 March 1685 - 28 July 1750)
Time: 59:30, 49:03
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 226, 174 Mb

The Passio secundum Joannem or St John Passion (German: Johannes-Passion), BWV 245, is a Passion or oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach, the earliest of the surviving Passions by Bach. It was written during his first year as director of church music in Leipzig and was first performed on 7 April 1724, at Good Friday Vespers at the St. Nicholas Church.
The structure of the work falls in two halves, intended to flank a sermon. The anonymous libretto draws on existing works (notably by Barthold Heinrich Brockes) and is compiled from recitatives and choruses narrating the Passion of Christ as told in the Gospel of John, ariosos and arias reflecting on the action, and chorales using hymn tunes and texts familiar to a congregation of Bach's contemporaries. Compared with the St Matthew Passion, the St John Passion has been described as more extravagant, with an expressive immediacy, at times more unbridled and less "finished".
The work is most often heard today in the 1739–1749 version (never performed during Bach's lifetime). Bach first performed the oratorio in 1724 and revised it in 1725, 1730, and 1749, adding several numbers. "O Mensch, bewein dein Sunde gro?", a 1725 replacement for the opening chorus, found a new home in the 1736 St Matthew Passion but several arias from the revisions are found only in the appendices to modern editions.
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_John_Passion)

TrackList CD1: Tracks 1-40
TrackList CD2: Tracks 1-28

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Willie Rodriguez Jazz Quartet - Flatjacks (1963)

Year: 1963 (CD 2003)
Label: Milestone Records (US), MCD-9331-2
Style: Jazz, International, Latin Jazz
Country: Coamo, Puerto Rico (March 18, 1935)
Time: 39:09
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 234 Mb

Flatjacks by Latin perscussionist Willie Rodriguez is one of the few dates to feature his name as a leader. Rarer still is that this is one of the few sessions where Rodriguez is the actual drummer in a quartet. This does not mean he left his arsenal of percussion instruments at home, but rather they complement his drumming in a straight jazz quartet setting. Featuring the great George Duvivier on bass, melodic genius Barry Galbraith on guitar, and saxophone wunderkind Seldon Powell, Flatjacks was recorded in New York in 1963, was released on Milestone, and quickly disappeared without a trace -- with the exception of being revered by jazz musicians of the day. Featuring tunes by everyone in the band -- including the smoking bossa nova of the tile track by Duvivier and the funky "Tasty" by Powell -- this set also features unlikely tomes from Clark Terry ("One Foot in the Gutter") and Ed Michel ("After Words"). But it is Rodriguez's compositions such as "Mr. Yosso," "Nanigo Soul," "Seafood Wally," and the legendary "Brasileira" that are the standouts here. Rodriguez's ability to walk the three lines that matter -- namely swing, Latin styles, and the blues -- with equal precision and grace as well as passion give his material a deeply textured soulful feel that is tough to match, let alone beat. This record swings on the post-bop and contemporary bossa level, yet it's always a surprise to hear the blues spoken and referred to so constantly and prominently. This is one of those reissues that should have happened years ago. Flatjacks is brilliant, sunny, and masterful.
(allmusic.com/album/flatjacks-mw0000035300)

01. Moliendo Caf (03:52)
02. Serenata (03:05)
03. aigo Soul (02:16)
04. Mr. Yosso (04:38)
05. Brasileira (02:22)
06. One Foot In the gutter (04:52)
07. It Happened In Monterey (03:32)
08. Flatjacks (Just a Minor Bass - A Nova) (03:00)
09. Seafood Wally (03:08)
10. After Words (02:42)
11. Tasty (02:47)
12. El Sueo de Frances (02:49)

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John Lennon & Yoko Ono - Milk And Honey [Japan Ed.] (1984)

Year: 27 January 1984 (CD Dec 5, 2007)
Label: EMI Records (Japan), TOCP-70400
Style: Pop Rock, Rock
Country: Liverpool, England (9 October 1940 - 8 December 1980)
Time: 76:22
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 397 Mb

Charts: UK #3, AUS #4, CAN #15, FRA #10, GER #20, ITA #16, JPN #3, NLD #4, NOR #7, US #11. Gold: US, UK and Canada.
Milk and Honey was conceived as a companion piece to Double Fantasy. Each is subtitled “A Heart Play,” and while the earlier album was meant to be something of a healing ritual (coming after John and Yoko’s eighteen-month separation and Lennon’s subsequent five-year “retirement” from recording), its successor seems designed as a portrait of domestic bliss. According to Ono’s liner notes, she and Lennon consciously adopted the image of themselves as the reincarnation of Victorian poets Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Robert Browning for Milk and Honey; the album jacket even reproduces verses by the Brownings next to lyrics by John and Yoko.
Unfortunately, the songs on the album don’t bear comparison to the work of such illustrious writers. Four of the six new Lennon compositions recycle basic rock & roll licks to accompany simple, repetitive, even cliched lyrics (“Living on borrowed time,” “I’m stepping out,” et cetera). “Nobody Told Me,” the first single from Milk and Honey, begins promisingly with an energetic riff reminiscent of the Beatles’ “Eight Days a Week,” but it immediately lapses into a routine melody with unevenly rhymed lyrics that barely make sense (“There’s Nazis in the bathroom just below the stairs/Always something happening and nothing going on”). Meanwhile, Ono’s songs range from “Sleepless Night,” a pleasantly spacey monologue, to “Your Hands,” a lumbering production number with lyrics sung in Japanese and breathily translated into English (e.g., “Your hands/Your hands/So beautiful”).
(full version: rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/milk-honey-99637/)

01. I'm Stepping Out / John Lennon (04:06)
02. Sleepless Night / Yoko Ono (02:33)
03. I Don't Wanna Face It / John Lennon (03:21)
04. Don't Be Scared / Yoko Ono (02:44)
05. Nobody Told Me / John Lennon (03:34)
06. O' Sanity / Yoko Ono (01:06)
07. Borrowed Time / John Lennon (04:28)
08. Your Hands / Yoko Ono (03:04)
09. (Forgive Me) My Little Flower Princess / John Lennon (02:28)
10. Let Me Count The Ways / Yoko Ono (02:16)
11. Glow Old With Me / John Lennon (03:09)
12. You're The One / Yoko Ono (03:55)
13. Every Man Has A Woman Who Loves Him (bonus track) (03:19)
14. Stepping Out (Home Version) (bonus track) (02:57)
15. I'm Moving On (Home Demo)  (bonus track) (01:20)
16. Interview with J & Y, December 8th, 1980 (bonus track) (21:55)

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Delaney & Bonnie & Friends - On Tour With Eric Clapton [Japan Ed. Live] (1970)

Year: March 1970 (CD Jun 25, 1998)
Label: ATCO Records (Japan), AMCY-2766
Style: Southern Rock, Country, Blues, Gospel, R&B
Country: U.S.
Time: 42:37
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 273 Mb

The album features Delaney and Bonnie's best-known touring band, including Eric Clapton, Jim Gordon, Carl Radle, Bobby Whitlock, and Dave Mason. Many of the players on this album went on to work with George Harrison on his post-Beatles debut album All Things Must Pass and with Clapton on his solo debut. The horn players Bobby Keys and Jim Price played on the albums Sticky Fingers and Exile on Main St. by the Rolling Stones, and join them for their 1972 STP Tour. Whitlock, Radle, and Gordon formed with Clapton his band Derek and the Dominos for Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs.
As no pictures of Delaney and Bonnie were deemed good enough for the album cover, a photo was used instead of a Rolls-Royce Silver Dawn in a desert, reportedly taken by manager Barry Feinstein while working as a photographer covering a Bob Dylan tour in 1966. Dylan's feet are those hanging from the car window.
The album has received highly positive reviews, with many critics suggesting the album is superior to Clapton's prior project (Blind Faith). In the Rolling Stone Album Guide, the album is described as "a triumph", which is attributed to the fact the band was "one of the best" in "rock and roll". Writing for Rolling Stone, Mark Kemp said the album contained "wicked performances of the kind of country and boogie that would define Southern rock". Mojo described the album as "one of the two Rosetta Stones of roots rock'n'roll".
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/On_Tour_with_Eric_Clapton)

01. Things Get Better (04:29)
02. Poor Elijah - Tribute To Johnson (Medley) (05:00)
03. Only You Know And I Know (04:43)
04. I Don't Want To Discuss It (05:39)
05. That's What My Man Is For (04:52)
06. Where There's A Will, There's A Way (05:00)
07. Coming Home (06:52)
08. Little Richard Medley (Tutti-Frutti/The Girl Can't Help It/Long Tall Sally/Jenny Jenny (05:58)

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Colosseum - Festival International De Jazz Montreux Suisse 18 - 22 Juin 1969 [Live] (1969)

Year: 2020 (CD 2020)
Label: Repertoire Records (Europe), REPUK1389
Style: Jazz-Rock, Progressive Rock
Country: England
Time: 43:32
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 275 Mb

a) The sound is very good for a live album, and Repertoire is a great studio recording Company, they have good professional people working there, I am very happy to have this live album in my collection. This is 5 stars without any doubt.
b) The sound quality and quality of music is marvellous. Not only Colosseum fans should have this but all music fans should have this and all other recent Colosseum live releases.
c) I first saw Collosseum in late 1969 and it was one of the most amazing concerts I'd seen. So this release was a must have. It just reminds me of that first concert. Great CD release from a fabulous band.
(amazon.co.uk/Live-Montreux-International-Jazz-Festival/dp/B08B35X5KT)

01. January's Search (06:55)
02. February's Valentyne (04:20)
03. Beware The Ides Of March (06:46)
04. Mandarin (09:03)
05. Butty's Blues (10:22)
06. The Time Machine (06:02)

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Episode Six (Deep Purple) - Love, Hate, Revenge [2CD. 1965-1969] (2005)

Year: 1965-1969 (CD 2005)
Label: Castle Music (UK), CMEDD 894
Style: Rock, Pop Rock, Psychedelic Rock
Country: Harrow, London, England
Time: 61:19, 60:06
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 211, 226 Mb

Anyone arriving from another planet who saw this and the other various collections out on Episode Six could be forgiven for thinking that the band was a major part of the 1960s British rock & roll scene -- they could even be forgiven, after hearing a lot of the contents of this double-CD set, for again assuming that the band was a fixture on the charts, radio, and television. And even this reviewer is at a loss to explain how Episode Six never managed to chart a record, even in England, based on the contents of the first disc in this double-CD set, which contains their single A- and B-sides from 1964 through 1968. But the fact is that they didn't, and that the raison d'etre for this and the other CDs of their work is explained in the big, violet-hued sticker on the jewel case that advises, "File Under 'Deep Purple'." This is all solidly commercial and eminently listenable British pop/rock of its era, and very nicely done, whether they were belatedly emulating a Merseybeat sound ("Put Yourself in My Place") or trying to sound like the Beach Boys ("Mighty Morris Ten" -- a sort of U.K. answer to "409"). The title track is a cool piece of psychedelic pop/rock, complete with a jangling fuzz tone-laden lead guitar part and exquisite choruses adjacent to Ian Gillan's lead vocals. Most of what's here has been out before somewhere else, but that doesn't make this fascinating for fans of the period of music in which this band worked, or devotees of Deep Purple's history -- everything here is at least as relevant (and perhaps easier to take on its own musical terms) as, say, Ritchie Blackmore's work with the British instrumental outfit the Outlaws or Jon Lord's work as part of Santa Barbara Machinehead; the fact is, this is the one precursor unit to Deep Purple that should have charted records in the middle/late '60s. Disc two, designated "Rarities, Demos, and Live Recordings" is even better and more interesting, showing some of the rougher and more intriguing edges of their sound that got smoothed down in the process of completing their singles. Certainly, no first-tier U.K. band of the time ranked below, say, the Hollies or the Move would feel defensive about anything on this disc, with the possible exception of the one digression here to harmony pop, "The Way You Look Tonight."
(allmusic.com/album/love-hate-revenge-mw0000700513)

CD1: The Singles, As & Bs
01. Put Yourself In My Place (02:31)
02. That's All I Want (02:32)
03. I Hear Trumpets Blow (02:29)
04. True Love Is Funny That Way (02:30)
05. Here There And Everywhere (02:11)
06. Mighty Morris Ten (02:22)
07. Love, Hate, Revenge (02:53)
08. Baby Baby Baby (02:53)
09. Morning Dew (02:55)
10. Sunshine Girl (02:52)
11. I Can See Through You (03:25)
12. When I Fall In Love (01:56)
13. Little One (02:43)
14. Wide Smiles (01:49)
15. Lucky Sunday (03:43)
16. Mr Universe (04:17)
17. Mozart Versus The Rest (03:00)
18. Jak B'Br (03:16)
19. I Wil Warm Your Heart (02:53)
20. Incense (02:42)
21. I Won't Hurt You (02:30)
22. U.F.O (02:48)

CD2: Rarities, Demos And Live Recordings
01. Love, Hate, Revenge (02:33)
02. The Way You Look Tonight (02:19)
03. My Little Red Book (02:30)
04. Plastic Love (02:30)
05. Time And Motion Man (02:35)
06. Only Lonely People (03:16)
07. Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah (02:49)
08. Cotton Fields (01:57)
09. My Babe (02:51)
10. Love Is A Swinging Thing (02:43)
11. Steal Your Heart Away (03:14)
12. Walking To New Orleans (03:01)
13. Let The Four Winds Blow (01:44)
14. Mozart Versus The Rest (02:49)
15. Him Or Me (03:02)
16. Hazy Shade Of Winter (03:00)
17. Monster In Paradise (02:27)
18. Orange Air (02:47)
19. The Castle (03:17)
20. Slow Down (02:30)
21. I Am The Boss (02:42)
22. Morning Dew (03:20)

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Diablo Swing Orchestra - Sing Along Songs For The Damned & Delirious (2009)

Year: September 21, 2009 (CD Sep 21, 2009)
Label: Ascendance Records (UK), ASC23013CDSP
Style: Swing, Big Band, Avantgarde, Prog Rock, Heavy Metal
Country: Sweden
Time: 48:16
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 332 Mb

Diablo Swing Orchestra is possibly the most bizarre mix I've ever heard of metal guitars, opera vocals, and odd instrumentation. If you've not heard them, picture swing music, opera, gypsy, tango, jazz, and God only knows what else, mixed up in a blender, and seasoned with madness. THAT's Diablo Swing Orchestra!
This album would be worth listening to if the only track on it were the joyously insane "Bedlam Sticks." Describing this track is difficult, but I'll give it a try: it begins with a punchy, jazzy riff like a video game theme, followed by bizarre theatrical vocals, (male and female). This is followed by some hammering guitar work mixed with Munchkin vocals, reminiscent of the German punker Nina Hagen. The song charges headlong through all kinds of weirdness, has a little bass-powered instrumental break, and we even hear some trombone in there somewhere. The lyrics are something indecipherable about an insane asylum. It's sheer craziness, but a hell of a lot of fun.
But "Bedlam Sticks" is not the only good track on the record. We get the danceable but operatic "New World Windows," the Russian style circus sound of "Vodka Inferno" with its echoes of Fiddler on the Roof or something, and the Glenn Miller on steroids big band mania of "Tap Dancer's Dilemma" (another track that is simply hellaciously fun. The guitar work throughout the album is constantly changing in style, and always chock full of energy. The vocals--my God, the vocals are such a bizarre blend of opera, circus ringmaster, Andrews Sisters jazz, and other weirdness, they have to be heard to be believed.
Another review here called the album "clusterfuckery," and I guess that's fair, too. Definitely, not everyone is going to love this: it's too avant -garde for lots of metal fans, and too heavy for most avant-garde fans. But I have such fun listening to it, I can't keep from smiling as I listen. I guess many metal fans like to be angry or dark, but for those of us that still like a good fun time, DSO brings it in spades. If you're not afraid of something a little different, give this a listen. You may be surprised at how infectious their brand of madness is.
(metal-archives.com/reviews/Diablo_Swing_Orchestra/Sing_Along_Songs_for_the_Damned_%26_Delirious/246533/) Review by caspianrex. April 28th, 2011

01. A Tapdancer's Dilemma (05:12)
02. A Rancid Romance (04:27)
03. Lucy Fears The Morning Star (06:34)
04. Bedlam Sticks (03:29)
05. New World Widows (05:56)
06. Siberian Love Affairs (00:58)
07. Vodka Inferno (04:08)
08. Memoirs Of A Roadkill (03:30)
09. Ricerca Dell Anima (05:34)
10. Stratosphere Serenade (08:25)

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Devil Doll - The Sacrilege Of Fatal Arms [Japan Ed.] (1993)

Year: 1993 (CD Oct 17, 2008)
Label: Belle Antique (Japan), BELLE 081428
Style: Progressive Rock, Art Rock, Electronic, Symphonic Rock
Country: Venice, Italy / Ljubljana, Slovenia
Time: 79:01
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 371 Mb

This 1993 album is a reworked, longer version of Devil Doll's previous album Sacrilegium and is the soundtrack to an obscure movie of the same name. Interestingly, it was originally only a fan-club only re-release, but I guess it was remastered later or and made more widely available. All I know is that I ordered it from Century Media Records.
How can I describe a work of this magnitude? Well, I would do it effortfully, in vain, and for more my own pleasure. Of all the Devil Doll albums I now own, I'd probably say that this is my favorite. Sure, the violins and string arrangements aren't as potent as they are on TGWW...D and it's not as gloriously consummate as Dies Irae, but it's the most diverse of the three. It features everything from Mr. Doctor's often comical, sinister, twisted vocals; horn flourishes ; spoken/shouted words; screaming background crowds; loud, massive choir/s; awesome violin, cello, guitar, piano, and accordion solos/parts; and various additional oddities that help to enchant the listener. It's innately satisfying to hear so many transitions in the music itself and to mentally note the disarming juxtaposition of it with Mr. Doctor's oddly-timed performances. The band makes very good use of the professional freedom given to them to ride great waves of ideas until they have sloshed against the shore.
With this freedom, thankfully, Devil Doll has managed to make the album dark without being depressing. DD isn't about total despair, darkness, satanism, and emanating complete and utter hatred of the world. Sure, they talk about death and human suffering, but it's mostly within the confines of a thought-provoking storyline that shows what their interests are as well as giving deeper meanings. Everything is purposeful and defined . It's obvious just listening to the music.
Never ceasing to amaze, this is a work of awe-inspiring beauty, both sinister and bright. Metal purists may have extreme difficulty liking this album, however, because it's not really riff-oriented at all; riffing comes sporadically and functions merely to add zeal and power to the current idea being explored in the music.
Hopefully, though, metal listeners can enjoy this album despite its lack of influence and credibility in the genre. The Sacrilege of Fatal Arms really is Devil Doll's best work and I implore any fan of music to purchase it. I have faith that it could be appreciated by a broad spectrum of music fans.
(metal-archives.com/reviews/Devil_Doll/The_Sacrilege_of_Fatal_Arms/14308/) Review by HealthySonicDiet. February 11th, 2004

01. The Sacrilege Of Fatal Arms (1:19:01)

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Year: March 18, 1997 (LP 2010)
Label: Music On Vinyl (Europe), MOVLP102
Style: Hard Rock
Country: Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Time: 60:30
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 775 Mb

Rip by Pikolo.
Nine Lives is the twelfth studio album by American rock band Aerosmith, released on March 18, 1997. The album was produced by Aerosmith and Kevin Shirley, and was the band's first studio album released by Columbia Records since 1982's Rock in a Hard Place. In the United States, it peaked at number one on the Billboard 200 and sold over two million copies. One of the album's singles, "Pink", won a Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. Until Music from Another Dimension!, Nine Lives was their longest album, at 63 minutes.
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nine_Lives_(Aerosmith_album))
The song titles and lyrics on their new album may suggest otherwise, but there are at least a few cliches that the guys in Aerosmith can’t be bothered with — “aging gracefully,” for instance. On Nine Lives, the band’s first studio effort since 1993’s Get a Grip — and its first on Columbia Records since resigning with the label for an unspecified but presumably obscene amount of moola — Liv Tyler’s dad and his forty-something cohorts continue to embrace hard-rock bombast with a lack of self-consciousness worthy of a group of high school battle-of-the-bands contestants. “There’s a new cool … that fits me like a velvet glove,” Steven Tyler howls in the thrashing title track. “She’s talkin’ to me…. The girl’s in love.” Grrrr.
Fortunately, unlike the other spiritually adolescent hair bands that were all the rage around the time of Aerosmith’s late-’80s comeback — most of whom were wiped out by the Great Alternative Music Conquest of the early ’90s — Aerosmith can be relied on to temper their puerile machismo with plenty of humor, heart and artistic ingenuity. The first single from Nine Lives, the ingeniously titled “Falling in Love (Is Hard on the Knees),” is a cheeky love-gone-wrong lament fueled by fierce, swelling horns (arranged, incidentally, by Beck’s dad, David Campbell) and by Joe Perry’s electric-guitar flash. “The Farm” features exotic, densely theatrical orchestration reminiscent of the late-period Beatles, while “Pink” has a contemporary guitar-pop feel, with sweetly grainy textures and a snappy hip-hop beat.
For those who simply can’t abide a collection of Aerosmith tunes without its share of power ballads, Nine Lives doesn’t disappoint. “Hole in My Soul,” a catchy confection in the unabashedly sentimental tradition of “Dream On” and “Crazy,” should have fans waving lighters at arenas across the country, as should “Full Circle,” with its anthemic chorus and bolerolike arrangement. The album reaches its melodramatic peak on its final track, “Fallen Angels,” an eight minute-plus opus that concludes with a flurry of wailing guitars and plaintive strings. “Sometimes your heaven is hell, and you don’t know why,” Tyler sings. Because that’s just the way the cookie crumbles, dude.
(rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/nine-lives-194137/)

01. A1 Nine Lives (04:00)
02. A2 Falling In Love (Is Hard On The Knees) (03:24)
03. A3 Hole In My Soul (06:08)
04. A4 Taste Of India (05:52)
05. B1 Full Circle (04:59)
06. B2 Something's Gotta Give (03:36)
07. B3 Ain't That A Bitch (05:22)
08. B4 The Farm (04:27)
09. C1 Crash (04:22)
10. C2 Kiss Your Past Good-Bye (04:29)
11. C3 Pink (03:53)
12. C4 Falling Off (03:02)
13. D1 Attitude Adjustment (03:44)
14. D2 Fallen Angels (08:14)
15. D3 I Don't Want To Miss A Thing (04:52)

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Steppenwolf - Steppenwolf 7 [Japan Ed.] (1970)

Year: November 1970 (CD Apr 24, 2013)
Label: Universal Music (Japan), UICY-75560
Style: Rock, Classic Rock
Country: Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Time: 50:33
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 283 Mb

Steppenwolf 7 is the fifth studio album by Canadian-American rock band Steppenwolf. The album was released in November 1970, by Dunhill Records. It is the first Steppenwolf album with new bass player George Biondo. The album’s numerical title reflects the fact that it was the band’s seventh album release for ABC/Dunhill records (including the four preceding studio LP’s, as well as two live albums). While the album featured Steppenwolf's trademark rock and roll sounds, none of the songs were able to make the top 40. The album featured a cover of Hoyt Axton's "Snowblind Friend", their second cover of one of his antidrug songs (the first being "The Pusher"). Along with "Who Needs Ya", it was one of two singles from the album which made the charts, but fell short of the top 40. The album track "Renegade" is autobiographical for lead vocalist John Kay, recounting his flight with his mother from the Soviet occupation zone to the West in 1948. The intro to "Earschplittenloudenboomer" is spoken by Kay partially in German.
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steppenwolf_7)

01. Ball Crusher (04:53)
02. Forty Days And Forty Nights (03:04)
03. Fat Jack (04:52)
04. Renegade (06:07)
05. Foggy Mental Breakdown (03:54)
06. Snow Blind Friend (03:55)
07. Who Needs Ya (02:59)
08. Earschplittenloudenboomer (05:00)
09. Hippo Stomp (05:45)
10. Screaming Night Hog / Bonus Track (03:17)
11. Snow Blind Friend (Mono Single Version) / Bonus Track (03:20)
12. Hippo Stomp (Mono Single Version) / Bonus Track (03:22)

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Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention - We're Only In It For The Money [Japan Ed.] (1968)

Year: March 4, 1968 (CD May 21, 2008)
Label: Rykodisc (Japan), VACK-1320
Style: Avant-Garde, Psychedelic Rock, Acid Rock
Country: Pomona, California, U.S.
Time: 39:19
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 237 Mb

As with the band's first two efforts, it is a concept album, and satirizes left- and right-wing politics, particularly the hippie subculture, as well as the Beatles' album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. It was conceived as part of a project called No Commercial Potential, which produced three other albums: Lumpy Gravy, Cruising with Ruben & the Jets, and Uncle Meat.
We're Only in It for the Money encompasses rock, experimental music, and psychedelic rock, with orchestral segments deriving from the recording sessions for Lumpy Gravy, which was previously issued as a solo instrumental album by Capitol Records and was subsequently reedited by frontman Frank Zappa and released by Verve.
Zappa's art director Cal Schenkel and Jerry Schatzberg photographed a collage for the album cover, which parodied the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Zappa spent US$4,000 (equivalent to $33,700 in 2022) on the photo shoot, which he stated was "a direct negative" of the Sgt. Pepper album cover. "[Sgt. Pepper] had blue skies ... we had a thunderstorm." Jimi Hendrix, a friend of Zappa, took part in the photo shoot.
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/We%27re_Only_in_It_for_the_Money)

01. Are You Hung Up? (01:25)
02. Who Needs The Peace Corps? (02:34)
03. Concentration Moon (02:22)
04. Mom & Dad (02:16)
05. Telephone Conversation (00:49)
06. Bow Tie Daddy (00:33)
07. Harry, You're A Beast (01:21)
08. What's The Ugliest Part Of Your Body? (01:03)
09. Absolutely Free (03:24)
10. Flower Punk (03:03)
11. Hot Poop (00:26)
12. Nasal Retentive Calliope Music (02:02)
13. Let's Make The Water Turn Black (02:01)
14. The Idiot Bastard Son (03:18)
15. Lonely Little Girl (01:09)
16. Take Your Clothes Off When You Dance (01:32)
17. What's The Ugliest Part Of Your Body? (reprise) (01:02)
18. Mother People (02:26)
19. The Chrome Plated Megaphone of Destiny (06:26)

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Nino Rivera and Julio Guttierez - Jam Sessions 1957-1958 (2000)

Year: 2000 (CD 2000)
Label: Promusic (? Cuba ?), CDP 0012
Style: Jazz, Latin
Country: Cuba
Time: 68:38
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 425 Mb

Nino Rivera (April 18, 1919 - January 27, 1996). Julio Guttierez (January 12, 1918 - December 15, 1990).
Nino Rivera: Early in his career he played with the Sexteto Bolona and Sexteto Bolero, before forming his own conjunto in the 1940s. His music was based on popular Cuban forms such as the son montuno and the chachacha, often with notable jazz influences.
Julio Gutierrez: was a Cuban music director, pianist, composer and arranger. He was one of the main figures in the music scene of Havana in the 1940s and 1950s, and a pioneer of the descarga (Cuban jam session). As a songwriter, he is remembered for his 1944 bolero "Inolvidable", which has been performed by numerous artists.
(en.wikipedia.org)

01. Montuno Con Swing - Niсo Rivera Y Sus Cubans All Stars (09:19)
02. Montuno Guajiro - Niсo Rivera Y Sus Cubans All Stars (09:29)
03. Chachacha Montuno - Niсo Rivera Y Sus Cubans All Stars (09:08)
04. Guaguanco - Comparsa - Niсo Rivera Y Sus Cubans All Stars (06:22)
05. Descarga Caliente - Julio Gutierrez Y Su Orquesta (16:45)
06. Rhumba Theme - Julio Gutierrez Y Su Orquesta (05:06)
07. Oye Mi Ritmo Caliente - Julio Gutierrez Y Su Orquesta (06:31)
08. Bata Rhythm - Julio Gutieerez Y Su Orquesta (05:55)

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Three Dog Night - Suitable For Framing [Japan Ed.] (1969)

Year: June 11, 1969 (CD 2013)
Label: Universal Music (Japan), UICY-75563
Style: Rock, Hard Rock
Country: Los Angeles, California, U.S
Time: 28:46
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 186 Mb

As with the band's self-titled debut album, Suitable for Framing was recorded at American Recording Company, was produced by Gabriel Mekler (who produced other Dunhill artists including Steppenwolf), and was engineered by Richard Podolor (who would later become the group's producer) and Bill Cooper. The album's gatefold photo features Three Dog Night wearing greasepaint make-up, and posing with members of the Los Angeles groupie troupe The GTOs.

The album contains the top 20 hit singles "Easy to Be Hard", "Eli's Coming", and "Celebrate"; the latter of which (along with the album's opening track "Feelin' Alright") featured the Chicago horn section. It is also notable for being the first album by Three Dog Night to include songs written by band members, and for its inclusion of the Elton John / Bernie Taupin song "Lady Samantha," as the duo of John/Taupin would not become widely known in the United States for another year.

The album reached the top 10 on charts in both The United States and Canada and became certified gold by the RIAA at the end of the year.

(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suitable_for_Framing)

01. Feeling Alright (03:43)

02. Lady Samantha (02:57)

03. Dreaming Isn't Good For You (02:19)

04. Change Is Gonna Come (03:14)

05. Eli's Coming (02:44)

06. Easy To Be Hard (03:14)

07. Ain't That A Lotta Love (02:20)

08. King Solomon's Mines (02:33)

09. Circle For A Landing (02:24)

10. Celebrate (03:14)

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Yes - Close To The Edge [Japan Ed.] (1972)

Year: 8 September 1972 (CD Sep 10, 1988)
Label: Warner-Pioneer Corporation (Japan), 20P2-2053
Style: Symphonic Rock
Country: London, England
Time: 37:51
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 233 Mb

The group Yes reached their progressive pinnacle with the 1972 album Close to the Edge. Containing just three extended tracks, the album became Yes’s greatest commercial success to date, reaching the Top 5 on both the US and UK album charts. However, this success did not come without cost as the complex arrangements and stressful studio situation ultimately led to the departure of drummer Bill Bruford.

Following the success of the group’s fourth LP, Fragile, Yes went on an extensive tour. In early 1972, they recorded a cover of Paul Simon’s “America” for an Atlantic Records compilation album and by the Spring of that year, they were back at Advision Studios in London with audio engineer and co-producer Eddy Offord.

None of the tracks on this album were fully written prior to entering the studio and there were several instances where the arrangements had gotten so complex that the band members forgot where they left off the previous day. Offord had worked with Yes on tour and tried to replicate their live energy by building a large stage in the studio. However the arduous process took its toll, especially on Bruford and keyboardist Rick Wakeman, who felt like “innocent bystanders” to the thematic vision of the record.

Close to the Edge opens with the ambient noise of nature and a world at ease before this vibe is quickly demolished by a piercing, psychedelic guitar lead by Steve Howe, which is impressive technically and interesting in its style. In contrast are Bruford’s rhythms and a punchy baseline by Chris Squire, which make for a tension-filled listen at first, until the song breaks around the three minute mark with a more melodic and atmospheric guitar lead that shepherds the listener into the catchy heart of this 18-minute title track. Composed by Howe and lead vocalist Jon Anderson, the vastly differing textures and moods are taped together in an atmospheric dream-like presentation, with funk based guitar riffs giving way to a hymn-like section and church organ solo before the main theme is reprised (albeit with differing instrumental arrangement) to close out the track.

The album’s original second side, features extended tracks clocking in at ten and nine minutes respectively. “And You and I” is a brilliant suite which offers listeners a completely different feel than that of the side-long title track. It opens with a beautiful, chime-filled acoustic guitar piece by Howe, somber in tone, but quickly picked up by a strong backing rhythm. Through its four distinct sections, the song transitions from folk to rock to a spacey, atmospheric piece with Wakeman’s synths, Squire’s pointed bass, and Howe’s guitars playing hand-in-hand. Eventually the song wraps brilliantly by returning to its folksy roots but with a differing rhythm to give the whole experience a forward motion.

The closing “Siberian Khatru” is the most straight-forward and, perhaps, the the easiest listen on the album. It features Yes’s unique combination of funk bass with more beautifully prominent guitar work, which really drives the song through from beginning to end. To achieve the unique sound of Howe’s guitar, Offord used two microphones, one stationary and a second swinging around to replicate a “Doppler effect”.

Bruford left to join King Crimson following the album’s completion and was replaced by Alan White, formerly of John Lennon’s Plastic Ono Band, for the the subsequent tour and albums in the immediate future. Impressed with the commercial and critical success of Close to the Edge, Atlantic Records owner Ahmet Ertegun signed the band to a new five-year contract, which carried Yes through the rest of the decade of the 1970s.

(classicrockreview.com/2017/09/1972-yes-close-to-the-edge/)

01. Close to the Edge [I.The Solid Time of Change - II.Total Mass Retain - III.I ... (18:45)

02. And You and I [I.Cord of Life - II.Eclipse - III.The Preacher The Teacher - I... (10:11)

03. Siberian Khatru (08:54)

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