Sometimes, a greatest-hits set is timed perfectly to gather together a group's most successful and familiar performances just at the point when that group has passed the point of their maximum exposure to the public, but before the public memory has had a chance to fade. That was the case when Columbia Records assembled this compilation for release in early 1972. At that point, Blood, Sweat & Tears had released four albums and scored six Top 40 hits, each of which is heard here. But lead singer David Clayton-Thomas had just quit the group, so that the unit that recorded songs like "You've Made Me So Very Happy" was not working together anymore. And even when Clayton-Thomas returned, the band would continue to decline commercially. As such, BS&T's Greatest Hits captures the band's peak in 11 selections–seven singles chart entries, plus two album tracks from the celebrated debut album when Al Kooper helmed the group, and two more from the Grammy-winning multi-platinum second album.

The third part of the collection of classic 70-x rock-rock albums, released as part of the Original Album Series. Albums Doldinger's Motherhood "Motherhood", Diez & Bischof "Daybreak" and Dennis "Hyperthalamus" for the first time on CD.

Romance, Heartbreak, Love, Life. Great singing by a familiar and contemporary voice…this is a brilliant collage of music performed by Robert Lamm. Every song displays strong lead vocals, superb harmonies, and amazing delivery. "Too Many Voices" is actually a far stronger album than its shorter, previous incarnation, "In My Head". The six new songs add more organic textures (Schitzoid in particular rocks!) to balance out the beefed up, contemporary electronic production. The new running order, in particular, makes this album a better listen than the old version. The songs, of course, are all up to Robert’s high standards, and the guest spots from Phoebe Snow, Carl Wilson, et al are great-added treats.

When prominent members of successful bands make solo albums, they tend to take one of two approaches: either they try to avoid sounding like the parent groups, or they don't. Robert Lamm, keyboardist and singer with Chicago, for the most part went the former route with his first three solo albums, and there was much validity to that, if only because the band's most identifiable style – its horn sound – was played by others. Lamm did bring his familiar strengths to his solo albums, particularly his direct, personal way with lyrics and his eclectic musical taste. But usually you wouldn't mistake a track from one of those albums for a Chicago recording. His fourth album, Subtlety & Passion, is a different story. Most of the tracks on it would fit easily onto a Chicago album, especially one of the band's LPs from the mid-'70s.

On the Corner is a studio album by American jazz trumpeter, composer, and bandleader Miles Davis. It was recorded in June and July 1972, and released later that year by Columbia Records. The album continued Davis' exploration of jazz fusion, bringing together funk rhythms with the influence of experimental composer Karlheinz Stockhausen and free jazz saxophonist Ornette Coleman. Recording sessions for the album featured a changing lineup of musicians including bassist Michael Henderson, guitarist John McLaughlin, and keyboardist Herbie Hancock, with Davis playing the electric organ more prominently than his trumpet.

Santana is the third studio album by Santana. The band's second self-titled album, it is often referred to as III to distinguish it from the band's 1969 debut album. The album was also known as Man with an Outstretched Hand. It was the third and last album by the Woodstock-era lineup, and it was also considered by many to be the band's peak commercially and musically, as subsequent releases aimed towards more experimental jazz and Latin music.

The Chicago Transit Authority recorded this double-barreled follow-up to their eponymously titled 1969 debut effort. The contents of Chicago II (1970) underscore the solid foundation of complex jazz changes with heavy electric rock & roll that the band so brazenly forged on the first set. The septet also continued its ability to blend the seemingly divergent musical styles into some of the best and most effective pop music of the era. One thing that had changed was the band's name, which was shortened to simply Chicago to avoid any potential litigious situations from the city of Chicago's transportation department – which claimed the name as proprietary property. Musically, James Pankow (trombone) was about to further cross-pollinate the band's sound with the multifaceted six-song "Ballet for a Girl in Buchannon." The classically inspired suite also garnered the band two of its most beloved hits – the upbeat pop opener "Make Me Smile" as well as the achingly poignant "Color My World" – both of which remained at the center of the group's live sets.

Drummer Billy Cobham was fresh from his success with the Mahavishnu Orchestra when he recorded his debut album, which is still his best. Most of the selections showcase Cobham in a quartet with keyboardist Jan Hammer, guitarist Tommy Bolin, and electric bassist Lee Sklar. Two other numbers include Joe Farrell on flute and soprano and trumpeter Jimmy Owens with guitarist John Tropea, Hammer, bassist Ron Carter, and Ray Barretto on congas. The generally high-quality compositions (which include "Red Baron") make this fusion set a standout, a strong mixture of rock-ish rhythms and jazz improvising.

Recorded in Japan in July 1973, this massive, three-LP live album was available outside the United States in 1974 but held back from domestic release in the U.S. It features the same "New Santana Band" that recorded Welcome, and combines that group's jazz and spiritual influences with performances of earlier Latin rock favorites like "Oye Como Va."

From Japan, an already consecrated prog state of art, comes - close in modern, alternative and resonating times - the band NAIKAKU (full name is Naikaku-No-Wa, with the meaning of Internal Nuclear Tide). At first Satoshi Kobayashi (bass) and Kazumi Suzuki (flute) formed the band, in mid-1998, and initiated their music, but eventually the lineup grew towards an eclectic sextet, drummer Norimitsu Endo, guitarist and trumpeter Mitsuo Muraoka, flutist Naoko Higashi and guitarist Kei Fushimi joining…

“I felt that it was time for me to tackle on this theme of Standards. Each and every established Jazz artist must at one point of his career record a “Standards” Album. It is an homage to the tradition and a proof of his improvisational accomplishments. I accepted this challenge and took the titles of famous Jazz Standard compositions and translated them into my interpretation of what the Standards of today in Jazz should be. For me “Normas” is the documented sounds of a musician’s pilgrimage through our planet, interpreting it’s mysteries with sound.”

On his 1988 solo effort Talk to Your Daughter, singer/guitarist Robben Ford proves himself a master of sophisticated blues-rock guitar playing. The material is quite strong, and all the musicians perform at the highest level, but it's Ford's stellar soloing that makes this release. Fans of flailing '80s rock virtuosos would do well to check out Ford's exceptional work on Talk to Your Daughter. The musician's colorful yet controlled improvising and harmonic mastery is a rare and beautiful sonic treat. The title track is dripping with soulful, well-placed guitar lines that play like a master lesson of up-tempo blues phrasing that guitarists would do well to study. Other standouts include "Born Under a Bad Sign" and "Ain't Got Nothin' But the Blues." The fine arrangements and especially Vinnie Colaiuta's sharp drumming are all tightly wound with crisp, clear production that tops off "Talk to Your Daughter," making it a shining success. Listeners fond of Ford's work with the Yellowjackets and numerous side gigs, as well as guitarists and all musicians, should enjoy this very professional, succinctly executed offering. First rate!

‘We don’t feel comfortable calling Dear a return to our slow and heavy style,’ says Tokyo’s amplifier worshipping experimental metal institution Boris. ‘We’ve been heavy since day one.’ And it’s true. From the droning thunder of their Absolutego debut and through the cinematic crescendo of albums like Flood, the bombastic licks of the Heavy Rocks records, the punk rage of Vein, the bottom-dwelling psychedelia of Akuma no Uta and Pink, and the grimy thump of Attention Please and New Album, Boris has always attempted to search out new ways to level listeners with their sound. On the 25th year of their existence, the trio delivers Dear, an album they describe as ‘heavenly far beyond heavy.’ Though Boris has traversed a broad swath of sonic territories, they have always been consistent in their embracing of excess, pushing their myriad of approaches and stylistic forays to points of intoxicating absurdity.

John Harle's epic CV includes soundtracks, classical works and drama, all of which feed into the saxophonist's ambitious song cycle about "dark London". Its tales of the Limehouse Ripper, Spring Heeled Jack and the Highgate Vampire are centred a few centuries back, with words from William Blake and John Dee, though most of the lyrics are by Marc Almond, along with Tom Pickard and Iain Sinclair. There are splashes of cabaret and jazz, but the echoing, crepuscular atmosphere is dominated by Almond's impressive neo-operatic singing (some distance from electro-pop!), with a thumping, galloping finale that uses an extract from Blake's "prophetic book" Jerusalem. Dark but dashing.

The best thing about this album is that it contains tons rarities…