Minnie Ripeton's voice was one of the most versatile and rich instruments ever heard. Her range, as showcased in 'Lovin You' was incredible, but it's the seductive tones of songs like 'Inside my Love' that really shine. 'Les Fleurs' and 'I Am the Black Gold of the Sun' are a triumphant and joyous psychedelic treat. Also included is a duet of 'Light my Fire' with Jose Felliciano. 14 tracks in all. EMI.

UK collection, another batch of vintage girls from the vaults of maverick producer Gary S Paxton. Keep A Hold On Him (More Garpax Girls) brings together rare singles, related releases and several unissued gems, for another fun-filled romp through the golden era of Hollywood girl groups, 1961 to 1966. Several of Paxton's female acts make repeat appearances including Beverly Williams, Beatrice Lee (previously misidentified as Beatrice Kay) and the Rev-Lons. There are names familiar to girl group aficionados such as Josephine Sunday, plus early rarities from Dorothy Berry with the Idols and the Swans. Along with Paxton's idiosyncratic production technique, it all makes for a highly entertaining program. The package benefits from first-hand interviews with many of the women featured, as well as Paxton and his associates, for an authoritative overview of a fascinating era. Keep A Hold On Him is thus a must for any serious girl group enthusiast.

With this Real Gone release, we take a long-overdue look at the career of pioneering country-pop crossover artist Jody Miller, whose mellow mix of folk, country, rock and pop influences paved the way for the radio-friendly recordings of such female singers as Olivia Newton-John, Anne Murray and Linda Ronstadt. Jody first hit the charts in 1965 with "Queen of the House," her answer song to Roger Miller's "King of the Road," but in 1970 she signed to Epic and, under the guidance of Nashville legend Billy Sherrill, notched a string of chart hits throughout the decade, all 25 of which appear on this 69-minute collection. Most of these songs have never appeared on CD before, and they come with notes featuring quotes from Jody herself as well as photos from her private collection. Pure country ear (and eye) candy!

Nils is one of the foremost artists in the Smooth Jazz genre. His catalog of albums includes 10 studio releases and 1 Best Of Nils release. He has had numerous #1 and top 10 singles on the Billboard Smooth Jazz Chart including 3 #1 singles from his last album "Caught In The Groove" (BCD-560). That album was also #1 on the smooth jazz album chart for an unprecedented 1 year! Nils new release "Cool Shades" sounds like another big hit for him. Nils' powerhouse ensemble of longtime musicians shine through on every track of Cool Shades, and his producing and composing skills make this collection of songs another must have smooth jazz album.

Push the Sky Away is the fifteenth studio album by Australian rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, released on February 18, 2013 through the band's own label, Bad Seed Ltd.
Push the Sky Away was recorded between 2011 and 2012 at La Fabrique Studios in a 19th century mansion in Saint-Remy-de-Provence, France, directed by Nick Lonet, producer of Nocturama, Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus and Dig, Lazarus, Dig!, as well as Grinderman and Grinderman. The album cover was created by French photographer Dominique Issermann and features The Bad Seeds frontman Nick Cave and his wife Susan Beek.

With their varied instrumentation, intimate song stylings, and poetic, allusive lyrics, the Dream Academy always stood apart from their 80s British rock brethren; that they dedicated their hit song, Life in a Northern Town, to Nick Drake and minimalist composer Steve Reich spoke volumes as to the reach of their intellectual and artistic ambition. Indeed, though they were together for only three albums and a handful of singles, Nick Laird-Clowes, Kate St. John and Gilbert Gabriel left behind a body of work as captivating as that of any of their contemporaries, their solid songwriting, unusual arrangements and innovative production touches (thanks in part to co-producer David Gilmour of Pink Floyd) only sounding better with age. Such a band deserves a proper retrospective; and so we at Real Gone Music enlisted none other than the band s own Nick Laird-Clowes to put together the definitive Dream Academy collection, a 2-CD, 24-track set chock-full of rarities and even including a new track ( Sunrising ) recorded for this release!

For this uniquely personal retrospective spread over twelve vinyl discs, Sven Väth takes us back to the early days of his DJ career. On What I Used To Play we meet great pioneers of electronic music, gifted percussionists, obscure wave bands, and innovative producers of a bygone ‘new electronic’ era. Rough beats and irresistible grooves from the identification stage of house, techno, and acid remind us not just how far electronic music has evolved over the past four decades, but how great it was to dance to EBM, techno, and house for the very first time.

Again Grainger amazes, amuses, arouses, intrigues. These 'Songs for mezzo' originate in Britain (with an excellent sequence of Scottish songs), Jutland and Australia. Some are folksongs collected in the early years of the century; two have words by Kipling, five by Ella, Grainger's wife, and some have no words at all.

Throughout every period of musical history the artistry of outstanding singers or instrumentalists has inspired many composers to write works with their individual characteristics—technical prowess, tonal quality, imaginative range—in mind. Within a period of about twenty-five years—between about 1790 and 1815—the clarinet repertoire in particular was enriched by two major composers—Mozart and Weber—who each wrote a succession of works which remain pre-eminent in their respective genres.

Due to its disastrous Viennese premiere in 1954, Erich Wolfgang Korngold's Symphony in F sharp was quickly dropped from the repertoire. Yet this late masterpiece, along with Korngold's opera Die tote Stadt, found receptive audiences in the 1970s and has become one of his best-known works. The old criticisms against Korngold's traditional tonality, his conservative formal bent, and his professional Hollywood polish no longer matter; nor should his occasionally spicy dissonances, angular melodies, and ambitious orchestration prove an obstacle to appreciation. Korngold's dense and dramatic symphony may be regarded either as a late development of Mahlerian post-Romanticism or as an offshoot of tonal Modernism, as practiced by Shostakovich and Prokofiev.

Mojo Magazine is a great newspaper, but the compulsion to repeat certain genuflections sometimes tends to get on the nerves, especially when it comes to Who (number 261 of August 2015), but which shines with quintessential Britishness. However, the umpteenth cover for the performers of the song referred to in the title brings with it this CD which, subtitled '15 Tracks Of '60s Beat-Filled Teenage Mod Angst' lines up a handful of groups (almost) never rose to fame, but who well represent the spirit of their times in a sort of minor Nuggets: all English, with one exception, give life to a fluctuating program in quality, but overall very entertaining to listen to. Given the period, the common denominators are still blues and rhythm 'n' blues, albeit reworked from different points of view, as the initial Don't Bring Me Down of the only big name on the bill, namely the Pretty Things, immediately makes clear. Even closer to overseas models is Bo Street Runner, an eponymous song for a group in which a young Mick Fleetwood was a member, then we move towards sounds with a greater dose of pop starting from the revival of It's Not True by the New Zealanders Larry's Rebels.

As Anneleen Lenaerts proves, Nino Rota brought the same gifts to his music for harp as he did to such unforgettable film scores as The Godfather, La dolce vita and Romeo and Juliet. “What could be better than to sweep an audience away and give them a moment of pure joy?” she asks. “For me, that is Nino Rota’s most important musical message.

This ten-track compilation appeared at a time when Jennifer Warnes had released only two albums on Arista, resulting in five pop singles chart entries, including the Top Ten hit "Right Time of the Night" and the Top 40 hit "I Know a Heartache When I See One." This album contained four of the five, plus "Could It Be Love" and "Come to Me," which subsequently charted, a third newly recorded song, "Run to Her," two LP tracks composed by Warnes, and "It Goes Like It Goes," the theme from the movie Norma Rae, which had won an Academy Award. It is easy for consumers to pick it up assuming it contains later Warnes hits like "Up Where We Belong" and "(I've Had) The Time of My Life." In fact, since Warnes has been on many labels and several of her hits are one-off movie themes, there is no reliable compilation of her work; this works more as an overview of part of her career, not the whole thing.

This CD contains a fascinating collection of soundtracks by the great composer, arranger, conductor, and pianist Michel Legrand from the early stages of his long career. At the age of 84 at this writing, Legrand has written over 200 film and television scores in addition to many memorable songs. He is best known for his often haunting film music and scores, such as those from the nine movies contained here, which present a good sample of his work. Among the many highlights here is Legrand’s first version of the classic song “Watch What Happens”, which he composed as “Roland Rêve” for the 1960 film Lola.

Live at Setlist at Amalie Arena, Tampa, FL on Feb 1, 2023.