Comprising the same lineup as Street Corner Talking, Savoy Brown released Hellbound Train a year later. For this effort, Kim Simmonds' guitar theatrics are toned down a bit and the rest of the band seems to be a little less vivid and passionate with their music. The songs are still draped with Savoy Brown's sleek, bluesy feel, but the deep-rooted blues essence that so easily emerged from their last album doesn't rise as high throughout Hellbound Train's tracks. The title cut is most definitely the strongest, with Dave Walker, Simmonds, and Paul Raymond sounding tighter than on any other song, and from a wider perspective, Andy Silvester's bass playing is easily Hellbound's most complimenting asset.

Jimi Hendrix's sonic assaults and attacks hypnotized, frightened, and amazed audiences in the late '60s. His studio recordings helped him attain his reputation, but his live works validated it. That's the case on the 13 songs from a 1968 Winterland concert that made their way onto CD in 1987. Whether he was doing short, biting songs like "Fire" or stretching out for sprawling blues statements like "Red House" and "Killing Floor," Jimi Hendrix turned the guitar into a battering ram, forcing everyone to notice and making every solo and note a memorable one.

At the time Rare Masters was released in 1992, most of the selections on this 37-track double-disc compilation were indeed rare. They were issued on non-LP singles, B-sides, the Friends soundtrack, one-offs; some were buried on album tracks, and some even stayed in the vault. Since then, Elton John's catalog has been remastered and reissued, with much of the best of this material appearing as bonus tracks, but the album still was worthwhile, since it not only has some songs that never appeared elsewhere on disc (such as "Step Into Christmas"' B-side, "(Ho Ho Ho) Who'd Be a Turkey at Christmas"), but it also is a hell of a listen in its own right, showcasing great songs and forgotten gems from John's prime period.

"Little Girl" is a rock & roll classic. With its sneering vocals, vague threats, crude chords and rhythms, it's a menacing, swagger masterpiece of garage rock. It's also the only good thing the Syndicate of Sound ever recorded. Little Girl – The History of the Syndicate of Sound compiles nearly everything the group recorded, yet none of it comes close to matching the power of their hit single; it's a mess of weak originals and limp covers. The patience of even the most dedicated garage rock fan will be tested by the disc.

Marko Hietala doesn’t need much of an introduction. Active in the Finnish metal scene since 1982 and in the international scene since 2001, his distinctive singing voice, expansive songwriting, and “we don’t need a second guitarist because I have this thing” approach to playing bass set him apart from a great many musicians. Since departing Nightwish in 2021, he’s reconnected with several past projects, from Raskasta Joulua to Northern Kings to Tarot—and then back to his own solo work. Roses from the Deep marks Hietala’s return to his own songwriting, following 2019’s Mustan sydämen rovio. Joined by Tuomas Wäinölä (guitars, Kotipelto), Anssi Nykänen (drums), and Vili Ollila (keys, Northern Kings and Raskasta Joulua), Hietala’s sophomore solo comes with a whole lot of talent… and very high expectations too.

A massive, 2-disc compilation featuring cover versions of virtually every Peter Green song written during his Fleetwood Mac period, and a few drawn from his mid-80s solo period. While there are some weaker moments in this 39-track collection, the majority of the interpretations feature blues guitar, piano and vocal at their very best. Rather than simply pay tribute to Peter Green by faithfully imitating his material, the artists have chosen to re-interpret these songs and in most cases the results are superb. The power of Green's influence is felt all the more deeply when so many artists use his music as a jumping-off point. A must have item for blues guitar fans.

Silk Road Blues represents the first fusion of Afghan music and jazz. The project is built around the combination of piano and the 18-stringed Afghan rebab, both played by Larry Porter, in different settings which include bass, drums, tabla, and sax.

Hatful of Hollow is a compilation album by English rock band the Smiths, released on 12 November 1984 by Rough Trade Records. The album features BBC Radio 1 studio recordings and two contemporary singles with their B-sides. Hatful of Hollow reached number seven on the UK Albums Chart, and stayed on the chart for 46 weeks. In 2000, Q magazine placed the album at number 44 on its list of the "100 Greatest British Albums Ever". The Smiths were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1982. Consisting of vocalist Morrissey, guitarist Johnny Marr, bassist Andy Rourke, and drummer Mike Joyce, critics consider the band one of the most important to emerge from the British independent music scene of the 1980s. Internal tensions led to their break up in 1987 and subsequent offers to reunite have been refused. In 2012, all four Smiths' studio albums (and a compilation) appeared on Rolling Stone's list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time", while "William, It Was Really Nothing" and "How Soon Is Now?" were included in the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" list.

It's hard to argue with this two-fer issued by the fine Beat Goes On label from Great Britain, as it pairs two of former Traffic guitarist Dave Mason's finest records on a single disc. Alone Together featured the hit "Only You Know and I Know," as well as "Shouldn't Have Took More Than You Gave," and "Look at You, Look at Me." Headkeeper contains "Pearly Queen," his solo version of "Headkeeper," "Feelin' Alright?," and "World in Changes." What these discs most reveal is just how deep Mason's roots went into R&B, soul, and into country as well. If anything, Mason would have been right at home on a Delaney & Bonnie record as his sensibilities were closely allied with theirs. Mason was always underrated and, in America at least, under-noticed. These records are as fine as anything Eric Clapton ever issued solo. The comparison is fair because they were both digging into the same territory at the time, only Mason's delivery and understated guitar playing come off as far more emotionally honest.

Nancy Sandra Sinatra is an American singer and actress. She is the elder daughter of Frank Sinatra and Nancy (née Barbato) Sinatra, and is widely known for her 1966 signature hit "These Boots Are Made for Walkin". Other defining recordings include "Sugar Town", the 1967 number one "Somethin' Stupid" (a duet with her father), the title song from the James Bond film You Only Live Twice, several collaborations with Lee Hazlewood, such as "Jackson", "Summer Wine" and her cover of Cher's "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)".

The flute instrument is closely associated with the Prussian King Frederick the Great and his residence Sanssouci, as the Prussian king was a passionate flautist and numerous works were composed for him. For the recorder player Isaac Makhdoomi, it is a special challenge to transfer these works, which were actually composed for a transverse flute, to his instrument. The idea behind this was to bring new aspects and facets to the works originally composed for the transverse flute, which he actually succeeds in doing brilliantly.

Mastered by George Marino at Sterling Sound from the original master tapes to vinyl and PCM. It is undeniable that Billie Holiday's singing changed in her later years. Her voice darkened and shifted to a lower range. Her economy of means distilled her sound to its expressive essence - a kind of heightened speech. The classic LP Songs For Distingue Lovers has also deepened and become burnished with time. Maybe it's that still-arresting word, "distingue"; maybe it's that iconic, tinted image of Lady Day on the cover. But now that legendary LP, with the singer's best studio work of the Fifties, is available as a Hybrid SACD!

SYMPHONY NO. 3 from composer Michael Kurek is a tribute to the history and natural beauty of England. The work is fundamentally Romantic, but is also influenced by Edwardian English music. The composer draws inspiration from personal memories, nature, poetry, and art; “Upon a Walk in the English Countryside,” recalls the composer’s emotional reaction to the lush, pastoral beauty of the English countryside. “Stonehenge” reflects the austerity and timelessness of that ancient monument, while “The Lady of Shalott” nods to Waterhouse’s colorful, pre-Raphaelite depiction of Tennyson’s famous poem. The symphony’s conclusion, “The Major Oak of Sherwood Forest,” celebrates the roughly 1000-year-old tree in Nottinghamshire and is perhaps the most climactic of Kurek’s works.

“‘Blackbirds and the Sun of October’ really represents my influences, even from my past. There is everything in there: my passion for jazz, classical, progressive . music. It’s definitely a song that sets a tone for the rest of the album.” – Federico Albanese Based only on the title and the cover art, you wouldn't be weird for thinking that pianist Federico Albanese has abandoned his primary instrument and his penchant for delicate, ambient classical crossover to indulge in a folksy exploration of Harvest–inspired acoustic indie rock. Albanese has not pivoted to a rustic six-string, some open chords, and a notebook of rhyming couplets, but he has sought to give Blackbirds and the Sun of October a decidedly different tone than his previous records. Though born in Italy, Albanese has spent the last few years working in Berlin; in fact, his entire career has developed while he was living in the city. As may be familiar to those who have entered the family-and-kids phase of life, his roots beckoned him, and, a couple of autumns ago, he left the modern, urban cityscape of Berlin and returned to his more pastoral birthplace where, unsurprisingly, his inspiration experienced something of a shift.

Woo hoo! There’s a new Offspring album And it’s better than I expected The three singles released before it varied in style – with only one of them, “Light It Up“, being traditional 1990s-style punk music – and this made me mildly nervous.