The extraordinary series of 1998-2006 recordings of the nine published books of madrigals by Monteverdi, from Claudio Cavina and the Italian ensemble La Venexiana, is now available in limited-time and limited-number boxed set form from Glossa. This multi-award-winning cycle set new standards in textual declamation, rhetorical color and harmonic refinement. Also included is the Live in Corsica album of Monteverdi madrigals (2002) and a newly-written essay by original series essayist Stefano Russomanno of which all, along with full texts and translations in PDF form, are also included.

Recordings of Handel’s Water Music come in floods, those of Telemann’s Wassermusik (more properly titled Hamburger Ebb und Fluth) in a gradually growing stream. Couplings of the two, however, are but a trickle, which is a surprise considering that their combined length is thoroughly convenient for CD. This recording was originally released in 1996, and thus predates its only direct rival, from the King’s Consort. The orchestral playing is of a good quality throughout, the Flemish period instrumentalists of Il Fondamento showing a healthy appetite for their task – who would not in such music?

Although it's not unusual for artistic and literary communities to revisit and emulate the ideals of an earlier time (the 18th-century reverence for classical antiquity, for example), the present age has shown an interest in medieval music that's certainly unprecedented–and, on evidence of hundreds of recordings and the work of dozens of performing ensembles, its practitioners certainly are among the most accomplished and knowledgeable musicians and scholars ever known. This excellent recording from the medieval ensemble La Reverdie provides more support to such a claim. Rather than just dig up a bunch of old manuscripts, arrange a few obscure tunes, and dump them onto a program with a suitably poetic title, La Reverdie dug up a bunch of old manuscripts, arranged a few obscure tunes, and intelligently and skillfully organized them into an engaging program that brims with lively, lovely music and imaginative interpretations.

Late 60s pop rock psych record with arrangements and elaborate production, originally released on the Uni label. From the ashes of The Epics, the band Tom Hanks called The Wonders in his popular movie, the band relocated to Southern California in 1968, was signed by Universal, and became Orange Colored Sky. Sky hit big in Los Angeles, appearing in the movie "The Love God" with Don Knotts, in TV commercials with Petula Clark, on The Steve Allen Show, and in all the hot clubs. Sky soon became regulars at the Flamingo, Harrahs, and other major venues in Las Vegas, Reno, and Lake Tahoe. In 1970 Skyreplaced The Carpenters as Burt Bacharachs opening act. Sky also toured with Frank Sinatra and assisted Governor Ronald Reagans re-election campaign…

Hard Time Killin' Floor isn't the first Skip James collection, and one could bet it will not be the last. But Hard Time Killin' Floor makes a pretty good argument for itself: the hour-and-six-minute album holds all of James' early work, and it's been remastered. James' soulful vocal style, like Robert Johnson's, has often been noted, but his quick picking style is also distinctive. "I'm So Glad" is performed at an up-tempo, breakneck pace, and the finger work will leave the listener dizzy. The title cut, on the other hand, has a slow, lazy quality, with the blue notes of the guitar matching the singer's mournful cry. James was somewhat unique among blues guitarists in that he also played piano. His spunky gospel style is on full display on songs like "How Long Buck" and the bizarrely titled "Little Cow and Calf Is Gonna Die Blues"…

Shortly after Wes Montgomery's shockingly early death, Verve rummaged around in the vaults and came up with some additional tapes from the live Smokin' at the Half Note sessions with the Kind of Blue rhythm section, Wynton Kelly, Paul Chambers, and Jimmy Cobb. And then after-the-fact producer Esmond Edwards did a controversial thing - he commissioned Claus Ogerman, the arranger on Tequila, to overdub wind and brass arrangements on four tracks: the title tune, "Portrait of Jennie," "Oh! You Crazy Moon," and "Misty." The critics promptly pounced on Verve, NARAS responded by giving the album a Grammy, and the whole issue became moot when subsequent reissues of the four tracks erased the new backing charts. Yet on the whole, Ogerman did a good job; his arrangements are subtle and, in the case of the title track, swinging, with the flutes adding effective responses within Montgomery's statements of the theme…

Invisible are from Argentina and they released 3 albums in the seventies before calling it quits. Luis Spinetta was the leader and an incredible talent. He played lead guitar and sang on the first two albums, but on this the final record they brought in this virtuoso to play lead guitar while Luis sang while still adding some guitar.
With respect to the players they are all excellent with the guitarist being a true virtuoso. Tomas Gubitsch uses clean tones on his guitar and emphasizes an almost jazzy approach to his playing, which can get very fast, especially on the instrumental piece. The eight tracks on the album range in length from 3'24" to 7'08" and more or less consist of extremely interesting and thoughtfully arranged songs with "proggy" interludes scattered throughout. All in all, this is yet another fantastic and creative album from the Argentinian progressive scene.