Eddi Reader's voice falls like a soft autumn rain. Despite its cleansing nature, it carries a touch of melancholy for the coming darkness of winter; it bears a hint of sadness and solitude for the one who longs for sunshine and warmth. Simple Soul is a sweet setting for Reader. Although it's not overflowing with catchy pop songs, it's the kind of soothing record you might listen to while making a quiet, candlelight dinner or meandering around the house on a lazy Sunday morn. While Reader's honey voice swirls beautifully around, the pristine acoustic guitar sounds dance with Indian tamboura and harmonium, creating an almost mystical ambience. Again, don't expect to tie on your dancing shoes. This is definitely more of a slipper and robe kind of thing. The main musical and production support comes from Boo Hewerdine, Roy Dodds, and Teddy Borowiecki – talented fellows one and all.

The emotional content, lyricism and direct appeal of Gavin Bryars’s music are unique, reflecting a contemporary composer’s absorption and transformation of several centuries of musical craftsmanship in order to reflect his, and our, own epoch. Originally written for harpsichord, After Handel’s Vesper is a strong illustration of Bryars’s post-minimal interests in early music repertoire. Ramble on Cortona, derived from 13th-century music, makes expressive use of the piano’s resonant qualities, while in the highly-coloured, almost impressionistic The Solway Canal, landscapes pass by as if in a dream.

The five new choral works on this album – by James MacMillan, Will Todd, Anna Semple, Eoghan Desmond and Lisa Robertson – all grew from a meditation by St John Henry Newman. Newman was a theologian of towering stature and broad influence. Canonised in October 2019, Newman's writings represent a rich and thought-provoking legacy and, alongside the new works presented, are immortalised in three well-known hymns and Sir Edward Elgar’s exquisite elegy 'They are at rest'. Also included are two of Elgar’s psalm settings – 'Great is the Lord' and 'Give unto the Lord'. These are monumental works for choir and organ, full of grandeur and drama, but also inherently simple. The album ends with a Bonus track by Bob Chilcott - also a Genesis Foundation commission - based on Psalm 139.

Balakirev worked on the second of his twosymphonies between 1900 and 1908 and it was first performed at a Free Schoolconcert in April 1909 under the direction of Liapunov. Work on his firstsymphony had been resumed thirty years after the first sketches, with no traceof a change of style. Similarly the second symphony, which makes use of theScherzo planned in the 1860s for the earlier work, is in a style that hadpassed. This, after all, was the age of Stravinsky's Firebird. It is,nevertheless, a compelling enough work, testimony to Balakirev's craftsmanshipand to the Russian source of his his inspiration.

Igor Golovschin directs his old band, and gives us a clear, no-fuss, classically informed performance; it doesn't miss out on some of the more gripping drama of this music, either, however. The symphony itself belongs firmly to the Russian romantic tradition, cast in four movements (with the scherzo placed second); it is relatively ambitious in scope but Balakirev actually manages to pull of a work that doesn't really have any dull moments. Stylistically it isn't too far away from the Borodin symphonies, is heavily influenced by folk music and is stronger on atmosphere (and orchestration) than on thematic development, but the ideas themselves are actually pretty interesting, and in particular the first movement is stirring.

Lera Lynn embodies Americana, country and modern nostalgia better than most artists in her genre. Her 8th album sees her go full on into production and composing. Her 2016 album Resistor followed her renewed spotlight success after Season 2 of True Detective cameos. She stole the scenes with her moody sombre Americana and country influence that felt like a warm embrace. This album keeps that as its central core message.

On his milestone tenth studio album, In the Spirit of Ntu, the visionary South African pianist, composer, improviser, and healer Nduduzo Makhathini condenses the thematic, sonic, and conceptual notions explored over his catalog into a layered yet accessible 10-track album. In addition to Makhathini's influences such as John Coltrane, Bheki Mseleku, McCoy Tyner and Abdullah Ibrahim, In The Spirit of Ntu pulls his most foundational cultural Influences into a space where the sounds of the South African landscape are placed at the center of the nation's evolving jazz songbook. In the Spirit of Ntu is Makhathini’s second album to be released on Blue Note Records in partnership with Universal Music Group Africa, and the very first release on the newly formed imprint Blue Note Africa.

Ride reissue their first four EP's 'Ride, 'Play', 'Fall', and 'Today Forever' for 30th anniversary of their debut ‘Nowhere’. "Shoegaze legends Ride have announced the details of the reissues of their early classic albums via Wichita Recordings. These will be released on the 4th November and will include the first four EPs, plus their seminal 1990 debut ‘Nowhere’, and feted 1992 album ‘Going Blank Again’ from their days on Creation Records.

Hyperion’s Romantic Violin Concerto series returns with three real rarities, rescuing them from their current neglect. All receive the strongest advocacy from Linus Roth, who plays them like the repertoire standards they may one day become.

Three composers whose contributions to the Anglican choral tradition are rich in historical significance: no less than the Abbey itself, much of this music is inseparably bound up with the national celebrations or commemorations appropriate to war, coronation and royal marriage.

Here's a fun Christmas compilation from Ace Records that includes all ten tracks from the exceedingly rare 1962 LP 'Twas The Night Before Christmas by Huey "Piano" Smith & The Clowns. Here's a review of that album:
One of the most unique Christmas holiday albums of all time, this was recorded in 1962, after Huey "Piano" Smith's small string of hits and the departure of lead singer/secret weapon Bobby Marchan from the ranks. But the band kept rockin' and the vocals are ably handled on this disc by Gerri Hall, "Scarface" John Williams and even Huey himself on the title cut. Six of the ten songs from the original album were written by Smith, and tracks like "Happy New Year," "Almost Time for Christmas" and "White Christmas Blues" closely mirror the melodies and arrangements for some of his better known hits like "We Like Birdland," "For Cryin' out Loud" and "Little Liza Jane." Even old stand-bys like "Jingle Bells" and "Silent Night" get the Crescent City groove applied to them here. Adding guitar to the Clowns' regular sax- and piano-dominated New Orleans sound is Mac Rebennack, who also chimes in vocally on "Doing the Santa Claus." –Cub Koda, All Music Guide

The Ultimate Most Relaxing Jazz Music in the Universe is a double-disc, 24-track collection containing previously released material, mainly standards, including "My Funny Valentine" by Morgana King, "My Romance" by Houston Person, "It Could Happen to You" by Kenny Burrell, and "It's Magic" by Sonny Stitt.

Once more with the Mod Jazz already. We may be stretching the title concepts a bit, but this is the genre that won’t lie down. We have lashings of Hammond, smoky sax and solid beats for the feet, the very essence of this series. This latest issue is right up there with the best.

Harry Chapin didn't spend his entire career on Elektra Records, but the years during which he found his most significant commercial success were most definitely during the Elektra era, starting with his 1971 debut album, Head & Tales. This effort is, as you'd expect from its title, one of the eight albums contained within The Elektra Collection (1971-1978). The others, in case you don't know his catalog backwards and forwards - heck, you may not know anything at all beyond “Cat's in the Cradle” - are Sniper and Other Love Songs (1972), Short Stories (1973), Verities & Balderdash (1974), Portrait Gallery (1975), On the Road to Kingdom Come (1976), Dance Band on the Titanic (1977), and Living Room Suite (1978). Chapin was one of the great singer-songwriters of the '70s, and people should know him for far more than just his signature song. Now's your chance to dive in and educate yourself.

Handel’s cantatas represent an important musical repertoire that until recently has been little known. Consisting of about 100 separate works, most were written over a period of a few years for private performance in Italy. They range from musical miniatures containing only two arias connected by recitative and accompanied by continuo to larger works with named characters, a dramatic story, and rich instrumental forces. Telling more often than not about the pangs of love, these are intimate works, with texts frequently written by (and sometimes about) members of the privileged audience for which they were composed.