Not a bad compilation - 13 songs cut by Bull City Red over a four-year stretch, which include gospel-tinged songs as well as country blues in the Blind Boy Fuller mode. The sound is reasonably good throughout, given the rarity of some of the records, and the analog-to-digital transfer fairly clean given the age of the source material - Red's guitar comes through in startling clarity, and surface noise is generally held in check, or at least to manageable levels. Among the highlights here is Red's version of "I Saw the Light," and which, in another form, entered the repertory of Hank Williams, among others…

As its title portends, Black Velvet boasts a smooth, rich texture absent from O'Donel Levy's subsequent Groove Merchant sessions - its mellow, stoned-soul sensibilities nevertheless complement the guitarist perfectly, affording him the space to weave a series of righteously beautiful solos. Like so many Groove Merchant efforts, the album relies far too much on the pop charts for material - pap like "You've Made Me So Very Happy," "I'll Be There," and "Theme from Love Story" turns up like bad pennies - but the arrangements are lovely, spotlighting contributions from organist Charles Covington, reedist Fats Theus, and trumpeter Billy Skinner. Levy also proves himself a composer of some distinction, contributing a pair of charming originals, "Granny" and "Nature's Child."

Space rock at its best! A stunning performance by SubArachnoid Space which is highly recommended to fans of this music style who don't fear some crashing droning guitars appearing here and there. This courage will be rewarded. "These Things Take Time" is a fascinating documentation of the band's live qualities, recorded 1999 in California. A set played without any break, 45 minutes lasting (unfortunately way too short) and divided in seven parts titled with the letters from A to G.

Bibio's Stephen Wilkinson is no stranger to revisiting and updating the past on his albums, whether it's the history of music in general or just his own. On Silver Wilkinson, he returned to the folktronic idylls of the Vignetting the Compost era with a newfound purpose; on A Mineral Love, he dissects the fusion of 21st century electronic music and '70s and '80s R&B, funk, and pop that made Ambivalence Avenue so compelling. The warmth of the bubbling keyboards and easy grooves on songs like the summery "Town & Country" suggest that Wilkinson spent hours crate-digging for the perfect samples…

Chet Baker lives! By taking lush string arrangements by Michel Hardy recorded after the trumpeter's death and incorporating them in what appear to be two separate quartets sessions led by Baker from 1986 to 1988, this CD is a loving tribute to an icon of 20th Century jazz. The recording of the strings is seamless, lovingly performed, and sounds as if it were recorded contemporaneously with the small groups. The ten tunes are mostly ones Baker performed before, including "Angel Eyes," "My Funny Valentine," "As Time Goes By," and "My Foolish Heart." Although Baker was not in the best of shape and has trouble with his vocalizing, his trumpet work is satisfactory and the sheer emotions produced are nearly awe-inspiring…

Somebody's Watching (1973). Esoteric Recordings follow on from the highly successful reissues of Rare Bird's first two albums in 2007 with this classic rock album from 1973. Best known for their hit single 'Sympathy,' by the time of this album Rare Bird had changed line-ups, though still retained their 'progressive' style. Somebody's Watching features guest musicians Nic Potter (of Van Der Graaf Generator) and former Family and future King Crimson member John Wetton and includes their classic interpretation of Ennio Morricone's theme to A Fistful of Dollars. This Esoteric reissue also features both sides of their 1973 single Virginia as bonus tracks…

Vol. 5 in Document's Complete Recorded Works of Leroy Carr focuses upon one of his last great periods of recording activity, from mid-August to mid-December 1934, providing the listener with 19 titles and three alternate takes. In addition to his main man Scrapper Blackwell, Carr is heard with guitarist Josh White on this collection, which is as strong as any other volume in Document's meticulously thorough Leroy Carr retrospective. Most of this music moves at an easy and unhurried pace, which is ideal for expressing simple intimate truths about loneliness, heartbreak, and interpersonal relationships…

The Jazz Club series is an attractive addition to the Verve catalogue. With it's modern design and popular choice of repertoire, the Jazz Club is not only opened for Jazz fans, but for everyone that loves good music.
German saxophonist and bandleader Max Greger is a popular and well-known musician in Europe with myriad credits to his name, including film and television work. A gift of an accordion as a child first spurred his musical inclinations, and Greger ultimately studied clarinet and saxophone at the Munich Conservatory during the late '30s. Briefly serving in the military toward the end of World War II, Greger began performing with various jazz groups…

Diamonds and Coal is a studio album by the Welsh rock band Man. Despite longtime-frontman Micky Jones' lengthy lay-off from the band due to illness, his son George now steps up to the mic for this return. Diamonds And Coal is a rock 'n' roll album full of goodtime joie de vivre. The overtly proggy, labyrinthine moments have been shelved for the time being - in their place there's a warm, jangly, but still musically-dextrous tone and tempo. Like many other other bands of a similar vintage, Man have a sound informed by a 1960s blues-rock sound, as demonstrated on the title track, but they can't ignore their pedigree: the guitar skills of Jones and Ace on the atmospheric All Alone are Roger Waters-precise and clean…

Die Mensch-Maschine is closer to the sound and style that would define early new wave electro-pop - less minimalistic in its arrangements and more complex and danceable in its underlying rhythms. Like its predecessor, Trans-Europe Express, there is the feel of a divided concept album, with some songs devoted to science fiction-esque links between humans and technology, often with electronically processed vocals ("Die Roboter," "Spacelab," and the title track); others take the glamour of urbanization as their subject ("Neonlicht" and "Metropolis"). Plus, there's "Das Modell," a character sketch that falls under the latter category but takes a more cynical view of the title character's glamorous lifestyle…

Dawn of a New Day expands the Baroque funk horizons introduced on the brilliant Breeding of Mind, O'Donel Levy's previous collaboration with arranger Manny Albam. A bigger, bolder effort, Dawn's panoramic sound also borrows much from blaxploitation cinema. Joined by collaborators including trumpeter Cecil Bridgewater and organist Charles Covington, Levy's remarkable leads seem to cut and paste elements from across the history of jazz guitar, most closely recalling the lean, mean genius of Wes Montgomery and Grant Green. His solos are graceful yet muscular, each note crackling with energy. The material here is also excellent, sidestepping the usual Groove Merchant soul and pop warhorses in favor of material including "Maiden Voyage" and "People Make the World Go Around." Levy's originals are also strong, in particular the title cut.

Blues on the Range is a nice, but not particularly noteworthy, set of traditional blues. What makes the album worth a listen is Roy Rogers' facility as a slide player - he can make his guitar sing. However, the quality of the songs and performances are slightly uneven, making it only of interest to die-hard fans.
A northern California-based blues guitarist, Roy Rogers works firmly out of a Delta blues acoustic style and is particularly good with a slide. A member of John Lee Hooker's '80s Coast to Coast Band, Rogers produced and played on Hooker's Grammy-winning comeback album, The Healer, and its follow-up, Mr. Lucky…

Laurelie was one of the first bands from the Belgian progressive scene - along with Waterloo, Irish Coffee, Jenghiz Khan & Mad Curry. Their eponymous and now very expensive album was released in early 1970 on Triangle label. This minor psych-prog masterpiece (with plenty of nice flute parts) was still rooted in the late 60's songwriting tradition, when condensed tracks were preferred over improvisations. On the other hand, an amazing (and 10-minutes long) opening track was typical progressive offering - with everchanging moods and lots ofguitar, Hammond organ and flute interplay. This premiere CD is necessary for fans of early Jethro Tull, Traffic, The Moody Blues and Cressida. Laurelie split up the same year and bassist Pierre Raepsaet went to Jenghiz Khan.

Breeding of Mind pairs guitarist O'Donel Levy with arranger Manny Albam for a genre-defying set that embraces elements of jazz, funk and baroque pop - the end result is soulful and sublime, couching Levy's uncommonly expressive tone in a series of bold, lush contexts that underline the sophistication of his craft. Backed by bassist Eric Ward, organist Charles Covington and drummer Chester Thompson, Levy transcends the limitations of Groove Merchant warhorses like "Never Can Say Goodbye" and "We've Only Just Begun" with aplomb, winnowing deep inside their familiar melodies to reveal new layers of loveliness, but Breeding of Mind is undoubtedly best served by originals like "Cherries" and "The Chocolate Horse," which address contemporary funk sensibilities with remarkable imagination and intricacy.

Over ten years ago the DJ duo from Cologne (Blank & Jones) decided to strike quieter, more relaxed tones. From the passion for Ambient, Chill Out, Downbeat, Lounge Music, Beach House, Bar Grooves and Co. was created the idea of ​​Milchbar Seaside Season - a summer soundtrack for the cult Norderneyer Location milk bar. On the first compilation followed in recent years regularly further new Chillout compilation.