Singer/songwriter Tanita Tikaram's debut album, Ancient Heart, stands as one of the most underappreciated albums of the 1980s, and she, along with Tracy Chapman, preceded the 1990s' onslaught of female singer/songwriters by almost a decade. Tikaram, who was only 19 when this album was released, created a melancholy and wistful work, mature beyond her years, of startling originality and honesty. While this album may be considered folkish and artsy, it never stoops to the clichés that dominated those styles of music in the later Lilith Fair years. Her near perfect signature song "Twist in My Sobriety" is a stark, sinuous, desperate torch song that managed to garner a bit of radio and video airplay in its day and sounded like nothing else then or since…

Royal Servants, the forerunners of the more widely known Eulenspygel, were formed by a couple of schoolboys from the town of Reichenbach in Swabia. Since 1964, they had been playing together as the Sounders, changing the name to Royal Servants in 1965. In the Summer of 1970, they decided to release an LP and the tracks were recorded in October 1970, in the tried and tested Jankowski studio, and mixed shortly afterwards. The LP was released under the title of "We" in an edition of probably one or two thousand copies, and has meanwhile become a quite sought-after collectors' item. The present CD, which was taken from the master tapes, includes the four songs from the first two singles as bonus tracks. It is thus a collection of all the recordings ever released by the Royal Servants. Only "The Blues Comin' My Way" had to be taken from vinyl and was digitally de-crackled, since the master tape of this track is now lost.

Vitamin Enhanced is a 6-disc box set by English psychedelic rock band Ozric Tentacles. It compiles the band's six first recordings, originally released in the 1980s. The first six albums were originally released on cassette, handmade by the band, and only sold at festivals and concerts. In 1993, the albums were transferred to CD, and the compiling box set was first released in November 1994 through the band's independent record label, Dovetail Records. The original pressing was limited to 5,000 copies. Not much later, the box set was withdrawn due to complaints from food company Kellogg’s, since they alleged the design of the box was too similar to their Corn Flakes one. It remains unknown how many box sets were sold before the withdrawal, but since then, the original 1994 box set has become a rare collectors' object…

They started in 1972 in Breda, a Southern-Holland town near the Belgium border (this explains the Flemish influence) when a group of students from both countries decided to create a Prog band. Not much is known about the story of Flyte between their formation and the moment in which they reach their definitive line-up including Lu Rousseau (lead vocals, percussion), Ruud Worthman (acoustic and electric guitars), Jack van Liesdonck (acoustic and electric piano, clavinet, synthesizer), Leo Cornelissens (electric organ, mellotron, string ensemble, vocals), Hans Marynissen (percussion) and Peter Dekeersmaeker (bass, vocals) with whom they released their one and only album "Dawn Dancer" on the Don Quixote micro label in 1979…

Like the artist himself, the music on this brilliant album defies all categories, embracing Terry Callier's wide range of influences and experiences. Callier's musical kaleidoscope is filled with funk, rock, folk, jazz, and even classical influences. "Dancing Girl" opens the album with Charles Stepney's majestic orchestration. This opus is the album's pinnacle, moving with soft intensity toward soul-stirring crescendos. Songs like "What Color Is Love" and "Ho Tsing Mee (A Song of the Sun)," an elegant antiwar prayer of confusion, somehow avoid clichés or take them to another level. "You Goin' to Miss Your Candyman" was made popular by Urban Species when they sampled it on "Listen" in the early '90s, and not surprisingly, it sounds better in its original form. No matter where you turn, Callier's passionate voice captures the sweeping drama of the human condition. A lost romantic amid "concrete front yards," this album is a must-have for any music connoisseur.

Probably the best of all the many albums Longhair waxed during his comeback. A tremendously tight combo featuring three horns and Dr. John on guitar delightfully back the Professor every step of the way as he recasts Solomon Burke's "Cry to Me" and Fats Domino's "Whole Lotta Loving" in his own indelible image and roars, yodels, and whistles out wonderful remakes of his own oldies "Big Chief" and "Bald Head."

Having traveled the dusty road previously with alt rock singer Mark Lanegan, U.K. production duo Soulsavers turn to the equally tortured soul Dave Gahan (Depeche Mode) on The Light the Dead See, but this European union still opens their album with a mournful harmonica. Of course, Soulsavers have long been the production duo who prefers the sounds of spaghetti westerns to synthesizers, while making their guests sound as grand and grave as Leonard Cohen lost in the high lonesome, so this Depeche in exile is a perfect fit. Brooding across canyons here, Gahan is somewhere between James Dean and a preacher in this atmosphere, and even if his talk of darkness, the Devil, saviors, and the price you pay has all been covered with the Mode, he still sounds renewed, making sliding the downward spiral sound as intoxicating as ever, even when he explains what waits for those who hit the bottom…

It doesn't take long for the atmosphere that surrounds Nahemah's fourth release, 'A New Constellation' to reveal itself. Opener 'Much Us' is the sort of song that could be boring but instead draws the listener in, swirling and floating around several layers of ambience and methodical riffs. In fact, the song itself doesn't have any memorable hooks or catchy melodies, the appeal instead comes from the sprinklings of almost post-rock like melodies that hover ominously in the background while the thoroughly metal structure rages on almost constantly. Nahemah do well in blending an almost death metal sound with other non metal styles like progressive rock and (a bit more prominently on some songs) post-rock in particular…

Jethro Tull and Comus had a baby, and they named it Gravy Train. That's not strictly accurate, of course, but as the band's eponymous debut opens with the fluid changes of "The New One," it's not too far of a reach, either. Richly harmonic, daringly jam-laden, and peppered with guitar roars that simply defy comparison, Gravy Train is the sound of the British underground at its most joyously liberated peak - a time when a bunch of apparent freaks could simply go into a major recording studio and let rip. Except Gravy Train's concept of "letting rip" has more in common with a symphony orchestra than the Edgar Broughton Band. Without, of course, the orchestra. But there's a moment in the midst of "Think of Life" that cannot help but put one in mind of later Deep Purple, as the flute and guitar battle for supremacy, while the blues workout "Coast Road" is as breathtaking as any of that genre's better-feted exponents…

Foreigner - Foreigner (1977). Blissful feelings arise at the mere mention of 70s arena rock. It gives listeners the permission to have fun, sing along to aircraft-hangar-size choruses, play air guitar solos, forget about any troubles, recall the experience of a first kiss, and quite simply, rock out. Few albums better instill these pleasures than Foreigner’s 1977 self-titled debut album, a five-times platinum blockbuster chock full of salacious riffs, soaring vocals, edgy beats, and lyrics that practically demand to be shouted.
Spearheaded by guitar hero Mick Jones, fresh off success with Spooky Tooth, Foreigner rallied around a talented collective pulled from the U.S. and U.K…

This album features three complete John Peel sessions recorded in 1975, 1976 and 1977. None of these have ever been released before. This CD is the second volume of Caravan's BBC radio sessions and between them the albums feature every available session that the band performed for Radio1. The John Peel sessions include tracks from the albums, "Cunning Stunts", "Blind Dog At St Dunstans" and "Better By Far". Personnel includes Pye Hastings, Mike Wedgwood, Geoffrey Richardson, Dave Sinclair, Richard Coughlan, Jan Schelhaas and Dek Messecar. The CD is released with the full cooperation of the band and features an eight-page booklet with comprehensive liner notes, band photos and detailed recording information.

Recorded live between 1973 & 1976. The title of this CD should actually be called "Steve Miller Band Live". As for the quality of these live performances, they aren't bad, and credit should be given for the inclusion of early Miller material like "Going to Mexico," "Going to the Country,"and "Seasons," making this of interest to Miller fans.

Peggy Lee is in fine voice throughout this jazz-flavored set, backed by ensembles arranged by Benny Carter, Billy Byers, Billy May, and Shorty Rogers. One of her better recordings from the early ’60s.
Where some of Peggy's albums in the 1960's included much forgettable contemporary material that hasn’t stood the test of time too well, this album features a program of songs that range from contemporary show tunes ("I Beleive In You" and "The Sweetest Sounds"), an excursion into the blues ("See, See Rider") and the great American song book ("When The Sun Comes Out" and "I’ve Got The World On A String") plus a few lesser known numbers for good measure.

Although Druid's future seemed promising, the band failed to record more than two albums, leaving only 1975's Toward the Sun and 1976's Fluid Druid to their name. In 1995, BGO packaged both albums as a two-disc set, saving fans the hassle of locating each album separately. Druid is guided by lead vocalist Dane, who harbors a voice that is both high and sharp, but manages to customize it with the surrounding instruments. Both albums contain lush, relaxing harmonies with simple articulation and a free flowing folk-infused style that's illuminated by the keyboard and Mellotron applications. With parallels arising to that of Yes in Druid's musical composition, the songwriting isn't as intricate or as sensational, but it is delicately poetic and even romantic at times…

George Russell was one of the most forward-thinking composers and arrangers on the jazz scene during the 1950s, but his work was generally more appreciated by musicians than the jazz-buying public. New York, New York represents one of many high points in his career. He assembled an all-star orchestra, including pianist Bill Evans (a frequent participant on Russell's recordings), Art Farmer, Bob Brookmeyer, John Coltrane, and Milt Hinton, among others. In Rodgers & Hart's "Manhattan," Russell has the soloists playing over the orchestra's vamp, while he also creates an imaginative "East Side Medley" combining the standards "Autumn in New York" and "How About You." His original material is just as striking as his arrangements, while vocalist Jon Hendricks serves as narrator between orchestra segments.