More of a singles collection than a proper album, The World We Knew illustrates how heavily Frank Sinatra courted the pop charts in the late '60s. Much of this has a rock-oriented pop production, complete with fuzz guitars, reverb, folky acoustic guitars, wailing harmonicas, drum kits, organs, and brass and string charts that punctuate the songs rather than provide the driving force. Many of the songs recall the music Nancy Sinatra was making at the time, a comparison brought into sharp relief by the father-daughter duet "Somethin' Stupid," yet the songs Sinatra tackles with a variety of arrangers - including Nancy's hitmaker Lee Hazlewood, Billy Strange, Ernie Freeman, Don Costa, and Gordon Jenkins - are more ambitious than most middle-of-the-road, adult-oriented soft rock of the late '60s…

A Fallen Temple', the fourth full-length in the long-running career of Greek metal luminaries Septicflesh, occupied a unique space in the band's history upon its original release in '98. The album featured re-recordings from their savage debut LP 'Temple of the Lost Race' interspersed amongst some of the band's most avant-garde work to date. The heightened atmospherics, synthesized orchestration, and angelic soprano vocals affirmed the bold and adventurous creative direction the band had begun to follow, and was the perfect bridge to what was coming with 1999's 'Revolution DNA'.
Now remastered and repackaged by front-man Seth Siro Antoniou and includes four bonus tracks.

Breakthru were a powerful live act who never managed to "break through" into the record charts despite a talented and charismatic line-up. 40 years later, Circle Records has released a compilation of their recorded material that we can now hear and appreciate for the first time. Breakthru never managed to have an album released of their own which was unfortunate as their only record was a solitary single "Ice Cream Tree" that has since appeared on various 1960s compilations.
Now, decades later, the previously un-released recordings they made have been assembled into the one and only Breakthru album titled "Adventures Highway". This collection the band members say, represents how they would like the group to be best remembered…

Piano phenom Eldar Djangirov has most certainly heard it all before: his similarities to Art Tatum, Oscar Peterson, Bill Evans, his astounding speed, the way he's able to move his way through some of jazz's most intricate numbers, that he's played with some of the genre's biggest names, at some of the most important venues; that all of this has been accomplished before his 20th birthday. And the amazing thing about this is that all of these statements are completely true. Eldar is an exceptionally gifted pianist, regardless of age, very skilled at improvising upon a theme without completely obliterating it, alluding to it constantly while still adding his own distinct voice. All of this is portrayed very well on Eldar Live at the Blue Note…

In light of the 1990s post-rock scene and the often clear links back to Krautrock of all stripes, Ash Ra Tempel's monster debut album stands as being both astonishingly prescient and just flat out good, a logical extension of the space-jam-freakout ethos into rarified realms. Featuring the original trio of Hartmut Enke, Manuel Gottsching and Klaus Schulze, Ash Ra Tempel consists of only two side-long tracks, both of which are gripping examples of technical ability mixed with rock power. If more progressive music was like it, there wouldn't be as many continuing complaints about that genre as a whole. "Amboss" contains the more upfront explosions of sound, though it mixes in restraint as much as crunch. Starting with Manuel Gottsching's extended guitar notes and Klaus Schulze's cymbals, it begins with a slow, ominous build that is equally haunting, as mysterious as the cryptic artwork of temples and figures found on the inside…

Electronic trio Tangerine Dream embrace their equipment and take their audience on an actual journey through this especially good, two-part showcase recorded live in France and Britain. Featuring the early and memorable lineup of Chris Franke, Edgar Froese, and Peter Baumann, Ricochet continuously evolves to the next plateau of pulsing experimentation without getting lost or over-indulgent like other bands of the genre. This album finds the three at a time when they knew exactly what they were doing; rocking without the drums, and looking over their shoulder to make sure the audience was still enjoying themselves. It takes a snapshot of the band when they were young, influential, and at the height of the genre.

Eddie Boyd was a half-brother of Memphis Slim and a cousin of Muddy Waters. He spent his early years on Stovall’s Plantation but ran away after a dispute with an overseer. Self-taught on guitar and piano, he worked around the south during the 30s, as both ‘Little Eddie’ and ‘Ernie’ Boyd, from a base in Memphis, before settling in Chicago where he worked in a steel-mill. He was active in music, performing with Waters, Johnny Shines and John Lee ‘Sonny Boy’ Williamson before he had his first big hit under his own name with ‘Five Long Years’, on the Job label in 1952. He recorded extensively for Chess Records, having successes with ‘24 Hours’ and ‘3rd Degree’. He journeyed to Europe during the ‘Blues Boom’ of the 60s and, considering himself too assertive to live comfortably in the USA, took up residence first in Paris and later in Finland…

John Scofield has turned the corner from journeyman jazz guitarist to become one of the most inventive and witty players on the contemporary scene. This date, his first for the Blue Note label, builds on a discography following several recordings for the Gramavision label, and also progresses this contemporary jazz music into an individualism that can only bode well for his future efforts. Teamed with the rising-star saxophonist Joe Lovano and the bulletproof rhythm team of bassist Charlie Haden and drummer Jack DeJohnette, Scofield is emerging as a player of distinction on the electric guitar, and a composer whose mirthful ideas add spark and vigor to his newfound musical setting…

Quantum Fantay are a Flemish space-rock band, who formed in the early/mid 00s, and in the last few years have released a number of albums (this is their fourth). All of them are excellent and these albums, along with their NEARFest performance, have propelled them into the international arena. Like their obvious heros, Gong and the Ozric Tentacles, there's lots of flute, keyboards, guitars and a supple rhythm section, but they've got a sounds that also reflects the 00s and keeps it all new sounding.

This is an earlier dose of Iasos's cosmic aspirations. Soft, soothing, nurturing music. A "New Age classic". Love on a galactic scale and deeply soothing. Also the light-hearted playfulness characteristic of the angels. This New Age paradise music pioneer creates crystal vistas - uplifting, gorgeous, spiritually-attuned music from the heavens. His 'heavenly' musical style has been one of the pioneering branches of New Age music - helping to connect people to the heavenly realms of existence.

On Watch What Happens, Laura Fygi tackles the songbook of Michel Legrand with the assistance of Legrand himself. The composer arranged and conducted the lush, lavish music and duetted with Fygi on "Et Si Demain," but Laura remains the center of attention and her sypathetic, pretty interpretations of Legrand's songs is what makes Watch What Happens an enchanting album.

Folk rock attraction Heron was one of several groups signed to both the Red Bus agency and Dawn label, home of Mungo Jerry and Mike Cooper. Originally released in 1971, Heron's seminal "Twice as Nice & Half the Price" has since sank into almost complete obscurity. Even at the time, the band were virtually unknown and little evidence remains of their history. It's hard to see why they were so overlooked, this is a great British folk album, perfect for a sunday afternoon.

This Percy Faith two-fer combining the albums Great Folk Themes and American Serenade works well on one disc, providing pleasant, easy listening versions of folk and country themes. This is an interesting combination of albums that investigate traditional folk themes, including "Home on the Range," "Sloop John B.," and "Michael Row the Boat," with tunes written by Bob Dylan, Hoyt Axton, and Duke Ellington. These LPs were originally released on Columbia Records and had been out of print until Collectables reissued them in 2002.

Klaus Doldinger, best-known for leading the excellent fusion group Passport in the 1970s and '80s, has had a diverse and episodic career. He started out studying piano in 1947 and clarinet five years later, playing in Dixieland bands in the 1950s. By 1961, he had become a modern tenor saxophonist, working with such top visiting and expatriate Americans as Don Ellis, Johnny Griffin, Benny Bailey, Idrees Sulieman, Donald Byrd, and Kenny Clarke, recording as a leader for Philips, World Pacific, and Liberty. However, in 1970, he initiated a long series of fusion-oriented sessions for Atlantic that featured his tenor, soprano, flute, and occasional keyboards with an electric rhythm section…

In 1976, guitarists Paul A. MacDonnell and Robert Cross, bass player Trevor Darks and drummer/vocalist Dave Ball joined their considerable skills and produced one of the greatest but nearly forgotten heavy progressive projects, Automatic Fine Tuning. Doing an early form of neo-classical instrumental rock that predates the gothic harmonies and Paganini-love of Michael Schenker and Yngwie Malmsteen, the quartet boldly went where few rock ensembles had and recorded one brilliant album before disbanding.