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Books & Scores |
American Singers
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A complete collection of profiles on singers that Whitney Balliett has written for The New Yorker. "Whitney Balliett is, without a rival in sight, the most literate and knowledgeable living writer on jazz." -Alistair Cooke
The Tenors
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Five noted writers on music discuss the art and personalities of five operatic superstars
The Soul of Rock 'N Roll
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From amazon.com:
"The Soul of Rock 'N Roll highlights and celebrates the powerful influence of African Americans in rock music, and this work is a 'must read' for any person who considers themselves a serious fan of ROCK 'N ROLL!"
Jazz Singers
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Nat "King" Cole, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, and Sarah Vaughan are among the 20 unforgettable vocalists presented in lively interviews by fine music commentators, coupled with classic photos.
The great singers : from the dawn of opera to our own time
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Henry Pleasants recreates the personalities and performances, the lives and art of "the great singers" who have left their mark on our musical culture.
Ponselle, a singer's life
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Porgy And Bess
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(Vocal Score). Titles include: Jasbo Brown Blues * Summertime * A Woman Is a Sometime Thing * Here Come de Honey Man * They Pass by Singin' * Oh Little Stars * Gone, Gone, Gone * Overflow * My Man's Gone Now * Leavin' for the Promise' Lan' * It Take a Long Pull to Get There * I Got Plenty O' Nuttin' * Buzzard Song * Bess, You Is My Woman * Oh, I Can't Sit Down * I Ain't Got No Shame * It Ain't Necessarily So * What You Want Wid Bess? * Oh, Doctor Jesus * Strawberry Woman * Crab Man * I Loves You, Porgy * Oh, Hev'nly Father * Oh, de Lawd Shake de Heavens * Oh, Dere's Somebody Knockin' at de Do' * A Red Headed Woman * Clara, Clara * There's a Boat Dat's Leavin' Soon for New York * Good Mornin', Sistuh! * Oh, Bess, Oh Where's My Bess * Oh Lawd * I'm on My Way.
Ma Rainey and the Classic Blues Singers
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A critical discussion of Ma Rainey, Bessie Smith and the 'Classic' women singers of the 'twenties who first put blues on record and established its relationship to jazz.
The great singers: from the dawn of opera to our own time
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Great Women Singers of My Time
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English music critic Herman Klein goes over the great women singers of the early 20th century
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Articles & Databases |
The Performing songwriter
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RILM abstracts of music literature with full text (RAFT) expands and enhances the unrivaled global bibliography of writings on music with the addition of a million pages of full-text content from more than 200 key periodicals. Coverage includes articles and reviews as well as obituaries, editorials, correspondence, advertisements, and news. Full publication runs back to the first issue will be present for most journals.
African American Music Reference brings together 50,000 pages of text reference, biographies, chronologies, sheet music, images, lyrics, liner notes, and discographies which chronicle the diverse history and culture of the African American experience through music. The database is constantly expanding to include comprehensive coverage of blues, jazz, spirituals, civil rights songs, slave songs, minstrelsy, rhythm and blues, gospel, and other forms of black American musical expression.
Downloadable ebooks and escores including Berklee Press publications. NOTE: Works best on iOS or Android devices using the Boundless app
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Audio & Video |
Rapture
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From allmusic.com:
"Rapture gave Baker one moving hit after another, including 'Sweet Love,' 'Caught up in the Rapture,' 'Same Ole Love,' and 'No One in This World.' Praising Baker in a 1986 interview, veteran R&B critic Steve Ivory asserted, 'To me, singers like Anita Baker and Frankie Beverly define what R&B or soul music is all about.' Indeed, Rapture's tremendous success made it clear that there was still a sizeable market for adult-oriented, more traditional R&B singing." - Alex Henderson
I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You
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From allmusic.com:
"While the inclusion of 'Respect' -- one of the truly seminal singles in pop history -- is in and of itself sufficient to earn I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You classic status, Aretha Franklin's Atlantic label debut is an indisputable masterpiece from start to finish. Much of the credit is due to producer Jerry Wexler, who finally unleashed the soulful intensity so long kept under wraps during her Columbia tenure; assembling a crack Muscle Shoals backing band along with an abundance of impeccable material, Wexler creates the ideal setting to allow Aretha to ascend to the throne of Queen of Soul, and she responds with the strongest performances of her career..." - Jason Ankeny
Bessie Smith: The Collection
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From the publisher:
"Backed by a rotating roster of jazz stars, Smith's potent delivery made her a peerless star of classic female blues, combining a fiercely independent, almost defiant approach with subtly effective tinges of vulnerability." - Marc Greilsamer
I Am: Sasha Fierce
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From cduniverse.com:
"I Am. Sasha Fierce represents another change of pace for Beyoncé. Unlike the relatively streamlined, retro-soul inflected B'Day, I Am... is a sprawling two-disc set designed to reflect two conflicting sides of Beyoncé's musical personality. The first disc sports reflective, sometimes moody ballads, while the second, attributed to Beyoncé's brash alter ego, Sasha Fierce, is loaded with propulsive dance-floor fillers."
The Essence of Billie Holiday
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From cduniverse.com:
"Though it is probable that her talent would have been discovered eventually, the fact that John Hammond put a teenage Billie Holiday in the studio in 1933 is one of jazz's more fortuitous occurrences. Surrounding Ms. Holiday with excellent players at such an early stage surely helped shape her musicianly approach to a tune. Her incredible, elastic sense of beat placement and playful toying with melodies are informed by the blues--Bessie Smith was her idol--and an improviser's perspective on interpretation. This excellent compilation, taken roughly from the first 10 years of her career, is a fine introduction to her artistry for newcomers as well as a great single disc sampling for the already converted. Quintessential renditions of 'God Bless the Child,' 'All of Me,' and 'The Man I Love' are included as well as an irrepressible, peppy 'What a Little Moonlight Can Do,' taken from her first commercial recording session."
Everything I Have Is Yours: The Best of the M-G-M Years
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From allmusic.com:
"The pop side of Billy Eckstine was emphasized during his period with MGM and many of these selections (including hit versions of 'Everything I Have Is Yours,' 'Blue Moon,' 'Caravan,' 'My Foolish Heart,' and 'I Apologize') feature his warm baritone backed by string sections... Although not as essential from the jazz standpoint as Billy Eckstine's earlier big-band dates, this two-fer features the singer at the peak of his powers; five ballad duets with Sarah Vaughan are a highlight." - Scott Yanow
The Stranger
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From allmusic.com:
"...Even if [Joel's] melodies sound more Broadway than Beatles -- the epic suite 'Scenes From an Italian Restaurant' feels like a show-stopping closer -- there's no denying that the melodies of each song on The Stranger are memorable, so much so that they strengthen the weaker portions of the album. Joel rarely wrote a set of songs better than those on The Stranger, nor did he often deliver an album as consistently listenable." - Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Moanin' All Over
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From allmusic.com:
"This ten-track, 26 1/2-minute mid-priced disc is a reissue of the Olympic Records LP Blind Lemon Jefferson (7134), and contains recordings originally made for Paramount Records in the 1920s, among them 'The Black Snake Moan.' Despite sonic cleansing, the tracks are still primitive-sounding, but Jefferson's distinctive singing and guitar playing can still be appreciated. For neophytes, this short, low-cost album provides a good curtain-raiser to Jefferson's work." - William Ruhlmann
Britney
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From allmusic.com:
"The title says it all -- that this third album is where it's all about Britney. Actually, the titles say it all: Britney is 'Overprotected,' she pleads 'I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman,' tries to let us all see 'What It's Like to Be Me.' All three songs are pivotal moments on Britney Spears' third album, the record where she strives to deepen her persona (not the same thing as her character, of course), making it more adult while still recognizably Britney." - Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Christina Aguilera
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From cduniverse.com:
"Christina Aguilera rocketed to the top of the charts with the smash hit 'Genie in a Bottle' from this self-titled debut and placed herself among a leading generation of young, multi-talented pop artists... Songs such as 'What a Girl Wants' with its guitar-driven melody, and the soulful gospel strain of 'So Emotional" show Christina Aguilera's polish. Some of the other tracks that stand out are the powerful "I Turn to You,' which was written by Diane Warren; 'Reflection,' which was produced by Matthew Wilder; and the dance floor mover 'Love Will Find a Way,' from hit makers Carl Sturken and Evan Rogers."
The Very Best of Connie Francis
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From cduniverse.com:
"Connie Francis's first hits compilation contained the ten chart singles she scored from the start of 1958 to the fall of 1959, tracing both her ability to resurrect old chestnuts as Top Ten hits with 'Who's Sorry Now' and 'My Happiness' and the nearly equal success she enjoyed with rock & roll songs like 'Lipstick on Your Collar' and 'Stupid Cupid.' Other, lesser hits aspired to the same styles -- 'I'm Sorry I Made You Cry' was a retread of 'Who's Sorry Now' and 'Fallin was another rocker -- but the big hits were enough to make Francis the hottest singer of the period, and these were the recordings that gave her that status." - William Ruhlmann
Live Through This (performed by Hole)
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From allmusic.com:
"Courtney Love completely revamped Hole before recording their second album, keeping only Eric Erlandson in the lineup. That is one of the reasons why Live Through This sounds so shockingly different from Pretty on the Inside, but the real reason is Love's desire to compete in the same commercial alternative rock arena as her husband, Kurt Cobain. In fact, many rumors have claimed that Cobain ghostwrote a substantial chunk of the album, and while that's unlikely, there's no denying that his patented stop-start dynamics, bare chords, and punk-pop melodies provide the blueprint for Live Through This." - Stephen Thomas Erlewine
First Issue: The Dinah Washington Story: The Original Recordings
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From allmusic.com:
"...The set chronicles Washington's evolution from a strictly jazz and blues vocalist in the Bessie Smith tradition to an important crossover artist who could appeal equally to the pop audience. The collection is not entirely hit-oriented -- although it rounds up her important R&B and pop singles, including the crossover hits 'What a Diff'rence a Day Made' and 'Baby, You've Got What It Takes' (a duet with Brook Benton), there is also an early bluesy session with Lionel Hampton and a few notable album tracks that show the variety of material she handled..." - Greg Adams
Ella Fitzgerald, The Early Years: Part 1: With Chick Webb and his Orchestra
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From cduniverse.com:
"Listeners used to Ella Fitzgerald's later work may be surprised by this two-disc collection of her first recordings, made in the mid-to-late '30s with the good-timey Chick Webb Orchestra. For one thing, it's pure swing in the Benny Goodman/Woody Herman tradition, with little of the blues influence of her later, more ballad-heavy work. Bouncy tunes like the sly 'When I Get Low I Get High' and the novelty 'Mr. Paganini,' along with offbeat selections like 'Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen,' predominate, lending these two discs the giddy spirit that's the hallmark of the best swing music. What's even more surprising is Fitzgerald's voice. Whether due to her tender age (she was about 17 when she started singing with Webb) or the style of the times, Fitzgerald often sings in a high, breathy, girlish voice that's very much unlike her later honeyed tone. This may take some getting used to, but it's worth it."
The Sun Sessions CD
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From allmusic.com:
"This is it, your perfect starting point to understanding how Elvis -- as Howlin' Wolf so aptly put it -- "made his pull from the blues." All the source points are here for the hearing; Arthur Crudup's 'That's All Right (Mama),' Roy Brown's 'Good Rockin' Tonight,' Kokomo Arnold's 'Milkcow Blues Boogie,' Arthur Gunter's 'Baby, Let's Play House,' and Junior Parker's 'Mystery Train.' Modern day listeners coming to these recordings for the first time will want to reclassify this music into a million subgenres, with all the hyphens firmly in place. But what we ultimately have here is a young Elvis Presley, mixing elements of blues, gospel, and hillbilly music together and getting ready to unleash its end result -- rock & roll -- on an unsuspecting world." - Cub Koda
George and Ira Gershwin in Hollywood
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From cduniverse.com:
"Original recordings of songs and music composed by George and Ira Gershwin for the Hollywood factory dreams, and performed by [outstanding] personalities of the screen. A truly tribute to a unique musical partnership in the twentieth century."
Star Time
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From allmusic.com:
"Star Time got everything right: it put Brown's hugely influential career into striking perspective, helping to complete his critical renaissance, and the richness of its music set a standard for box sets in general. It was no easy task to balance Brown's lengthy, multi-part funk workouts with the need to include all of his most significant tracks, and the compilers did an excellent job in deciding when and when not to truncate ("Cold Sweat," for example, must be heard in its entirety)." - Steve Huey
Sweet Baby James
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From allmusic.com:
"The heart of James Taylor's appeal is that you can take him two ways. On the one hand, his music, including that warm voice, is soothing; its minor key melodies and restrained playing draw in the listener. On the other hand, his world view, especially on such songs as 'Fire and Rain,' reflects the pessimism and desperation of the 1960s hangover that was the early '70s." - William Ruhlmann
Janis
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From allmusic.com:
"This three-CD box set is the most thorough and valuable retrospective of Janis Joplin's career. Besides including all of her most essential recordings with and without Big Brother & the Holding Company, this 49-song package features quite a few enticing rarities; 18 of the tracks were previously unissued. These include a 1962 home recording of the Joplin original 'What Good Can Drinkin' Do,' which marked the first time her singing was captured on tape; a pair of acoustic blues tunes from 1965 with backup guitar by future Jefferson Airplane star Jorma Kaukonen, an acoustic demo of 'Me and Bobby McGee,' a 1970 birthday song for John Lennon, and live performances from her appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1969." - Richie Unterberger
Surrealistic Pillow
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From allmusic.com:
"The second album by Jefferson Airplane, Surrealistic Pillow was a groundbreaking piece of folk-rock-based psychedelia, and it hit -- literally -- like a shot heard round the world; where the later efforts from bands like the Grateful Dead, Quicksilver Messenger Service, and especially, the Charlatans, were initially not too much more than cult successes, Surrealistic Pillow rode the pop charts for most of 1967, soaring into that rarefied Top Five region occupied by the likes of the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and so on, to which few American rock acts apart from the Byrds had been able to lay claim since 1964." - Bruce Eder
America's Blue Yodeler, 1930-1931
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From cduniverse.com:
"This fifth set of vintage Jimmie Rodgers performances includes some spectacular collaborations. While neither sounds fully comfortable, the meeting of Rodgers and Louis Armstrong on 'Blue Yodel No. 9' is a landmark date in music annals, two immortals finding a way to make seemingly disparate styles mesh on a short tune. Armstrong's wife at the time, Lil Hardin, accompanied the pair on piano. Rodgers also teamed frequently with Lani McIntire's Hawaiians on this set, often on throwaway tunes that Rodgers' vocals made enjoyable. There's another collaboration with a blues artist, this time Clifford Gibson on 'Let Me Be Your Side Track,' a great, bawdy innuendo number. Rodgers was paired with the Carter Family on two wonderful classic country numbers, the heartbreak tune 'Why There's a Tear in My Eye' and the gospel song 'The Wonderful City.'" - Ron Wynn
Joan Baez. Volume 1
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From cduniverse.com:
"In retrospect, Joan Baez's 1960 debut doesn't sound like the work of a person who would go on to be proclaimed the queen of folk music, but on the other hand, Bob Dylan's first album doesn't sound like he'd be named the king, either. A plainly-produced, live-sounding voice and guitar album--Fred Hellerman plays second guitar on a handful of tracks--featuring a repertoire of traditional folk songs, Volume 1 doesn't sound that different from the debuts of Carolyn Hester, Judy Collins or any number of other female folk singers who first gained prominence around this time. (In fact, Baez's less famous sister Mimi Farina clearly has the better voice of the two.) However, Volume 1 is a fine example of traditional folk as it was presented in the coffeehouses of Cambridge and Greenwich Village in the late '50s and early '60s."
Court and Spark
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From allmusic.com:
"Joni Mitchell reached her commercial high point with Court and Spark, a remarkably deft fusion of folk, pop, and jazz which stands as her best-selling work to date. While as unified and insightful as Blue, the album -- a concept record exploring the roles of honesty and trust in relationships, romantic and otherwise -- moves away from confessional songwriting into evocative character studies: the hit 'Free Man in Paris,' written about David Geffen, is a not-so-subtle dig at the machinations of the music industry, while 'Raised on Robbery' offers an acutely funny look at the predatory environment of the singles bar scene..." - Jason Ankeny
The Specialty Sessions
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From allmusic.com:
"Dig it: a collection of all 73 songs that Little Richard cut for Specialty Records from 1955 through 1959, including early working versions of hits including 'Long Tall Sally' and 'Slippin' and Slidin',' may seem like overkill to the casual listener, but if you're thinking of buying this three-CD box, chances are you're not a casual listener. And if you're not thinking about it, then you should be. This set covers only four years in Little Richard's career, but manages to sum up virtually everything you need to know about him..." - Bruce Eder
Any Love
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From allmusic.com:
"There were some who felt that Vandross suffered a slight slump when this album only reached the platinum level after two consecutive double-platinum winners. But 'Here And Now' was a huge smash, and by now the pop crowd was fully aware of Vandross' vocal charms and allure. 'She Won't Talk To Me' was a bit on the posturing side, but still managed to do decently, while there were also fine album cuts like 'I Wonder' and 'Are You Gonna Love Me.'" - Ron Wynn
The Immaculate Collection
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From cduniverse.com:
"If you're only going to get one Madonna record, or if you want to find out what the fuss is about, start here. The Immaculate Collection compiles the cream of Madonna's '80s singles, from the dancefloor innocence of 'Holiday' to the soul-searching pop of 'Live To Tell' and 'Like A Prayer' to the forward-looking, beat-crazy stylings of 'Vogue.' Included are a few singles, 'Vogue' among them, that didn't make it onto any of Madonna's proper studio albums, and a couple of cuts exclusive to the collection, most notably the weird, Lenny Kravitz-produced 'Justify My Love.'"
Mariah Carey
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From allmusic.com:
"This extremely impressive debut is replete with smooth-sounding ballads and uplifting dance/R&B cuts. Carey convincingly seizes many opportunities to display her incredible vocal range on such memorable tracks as the popular 'Vision of Love' (featured during her television debut on The Arsenio Hall Show, an appearance noted by many as her formal introduction to stardom), the energetic 'Someday,' and the moody sounds of the hidden treasure 'Vanishing.' With this collection of songs acting as a springboard for future successes, Carey establishes a strong standard of comparison for other breakthrough artists of this genre." - Ashley S. Battel
Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite
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From cduniverse.com:
"Although Al Green and Marvin Gaye are obvious touchstones, Maxwell avoids vocal theft, instead appropriating the way those singers inextricably meld their music and their sensuality. The breathy quiet-storm sax that closes out 'Welcome' is as much a part of the sexual vibe as the sinewy funk and propulsive rhythm of 'Ascension (Don't Ever Wonder).' Oozing with sensuality, Urban Suite is a soundtrack for an evening of romance."
Thriller
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From Amazon.com:
"The highly-polished sound of Quincy Jones's production sounds almost organic compared to Jackson's more recent work, and in the same regard, Thriller was significantly slicker than its predecessor, Off the Wall...On the song 'Thriller,' Jackson indulged his taste for the juvenile and invited Vincent Price to rap in a really scary voice. With Thriller the album, Jackson created a different kind of monster--a hit album of such magnitude that it would have an irrevocable impact not just on the singer's art, but on his altogether kooky life." - John Milward
Definition of a Band
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From allmusic.com:
"Mint Condition's third album, Definition of a Band is the smoothest effort yet from the swingbeat group. Again, lead singer Stokley Williams steals the show with his surging, passionate vocals, which are so affecting that you often wish that the songwriting was more distinguished, along the lines of the hit single 'What Kind of Man Would I Be.'" - Leo Stanley
Muddy Waters
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From allmusic.com:
"A postwar Chicago blues scene without the magnificent contributions of Muddy Waters is absolutely unimaginable. From the late '40s on, he eloquently defined the city's aggressive, swaggering, Delta-rooted sound with his declamatory vocals and piercing slide guitar attack. When he passed away in 1983, the Windy City would never quite recover." - Bill Dahl
...But Seriously
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From allmusic.com:
"Spawning four hit singles, But Seriously topped the charts on both sides of the Atlantic. While pursuing much of the same formula as on No Jacket Required, there was also a move toward more organic production as Collins abandoned some of the drum machines and prominent keyboards in the up-tempo numbers in favor of live instrumentation. The decision was a good one as there's no doubt that tracks such as 'Find a Way to My Heart' and 'Hang in Long Enough' have enough bite to outlast his more dated sounding mid-80s material." - Geoff Orens
Sign "o" the Times
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From allmusic.com:
"Fearless, eclectic, and defiantly messy, Prince's Sign 'O' the Times falls into the tradition of tremendous, chaotic double albums like The Beatles, Exile on Main St., and London Calling -- albums that are fantastic because of their overreach, their great sprawl. Prince shows nearly all of his cards here, from bare-bones electro-funk and smooth soul to pseudo-psychedelic pop and crunching hard rock, touching on gospel, blues, and folk along the way." - Stephen Thomas Erlewine
The Birth of Soul
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From the publisher:
This absolutely essential three-disc box is where soul music first took shape and soared, courtesy of Ray Charles' church-soaked pipes and bedrock piano work.
Robert Johnson, The Complete Recordings
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From cduniverse.com:
"This collection lives up to its title, containing every known recording by Johnson, including alternate takes. Though the 41 tracks in this double disc set were recorded in a span of only eight months (November 1936-June 1937), Johnson left behind a musical legacy that continues to influence and inspire. Features tracks like 'Sweet Home Chicago', 'Love In Vain' and 'Hellhound On My Trail', which are now considered Blues standards."
The Roulette Years: Volumes One/Two
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From cduniverse.com:
"This CD contains 24 selections, so one cannot complain about its brevity, but it would have been preferable to have Sarah Vaughan's Roulette albums reissued in full (a few have been) rather than putting out this sampler. For the beginner there are many fine performances on the jazz-oriented set, with Sassy's accompaniment ranging from guitar-bass duets and the Count Basie Big Band to string orchestras. Exact recording dates are not given (which is rather inexcusable), but the music is consistently enjoyable, with some of the high points being 'Just in Time,' 'Have You Met Miss Jones,' 'Perdido,' Round Midnight,' 'I'll Be Seeing You,' and 'Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most.'" - Scott Yanow
Sheryl Crow
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From allmusic.com:
"Hiring noted roots experimentalists Tchad Blake and Mitchell Froom as engineer and consultant, respectively, Sheryl Crow took a cue from their Latin Playboys project for her second album -- she kept her roots rock foundation and added all sorts of noises, weird instruments, percussion loops, and off-balance production to give Sheryl Crow a distinctly modern flavor. And, even with the Stonesy grind of 'Sweet Rosalyn' or hippie spirits of 'Love Is a Good Thing,' it is an album that couldn't have been made any other time than the '90s. As strange as it may sound, Sheryl Crow is a postmodern masterpiece of sorts -- albeit a mainstream, post-alternative, postmodern masterpiece." - Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Songs in the Key of Life
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From allmusic.com:
"Songs in the Key of Life was Stevie Wonder's longest, most ambitious collection of songs, a two-LP (plus accompanying EP) set that -- just as the title promised -- touched on nearly every issue under the sun, and did it all with ambitious (even for him), wide-ranging arrangements and some of the best performances of Wonder's career." - John Bush
Good Vibrations: Thirty Years of the Beach Boys
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From cduniverse.com:
"From a previously unreleased 1961 recording of their first single 'Surfin' to their 1988 #1, 'Kokomo,' Good Vibrations collects everything anyone would want to hear by The Beach Boys. The first disc in this 5-disc set collects the sun and surf hits like 'Barbara Ann' and 'Fun, Fun, Fun' that summed up the mythical California dream for generations of Americans. While The Beach Boys certainly created some wonderful rock and roll in their 1962-1966 heyday, it's for the brilliant music on discs two and three that they have become rock legends."
The Capitol Albums. Vol. 1
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From cduniverse.com:
"Although America wasn't the first to catch on to the Beatles, it certainly gave the Fabs a worldwide stage from which to launch their pop music invasion. During the space of 12 months in 1964, Capitol released four Beatles LPs that reshuffled various British Parlophone LPs, EPs, and singles. The result of this rejiggering was four unique titles that, along with those famed Ed Sullivan performances, were the introduction to this global phenomenon for millions in the United States. For the 40th anniversary of these releases, this 2004 set represents the first time these titles were ever available on CD, and features both mono and stereo (or 'duophonic') versions of all the songs."
Big Hits: High Tide and Green Grass
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From cduniverse.com:
"Like its 1969 second volume Through The Past Darkly, Big Hits (High Tide & Green Grass) is a fine collection of '60s Stones classics, but it's a rather bluesier one. This is exemplified by such rootsy tracks as the redefined Buddy Holly tune 'Not Fade Away' and the R&B bounce of Bobby Womack's 'It's All Over Now.' Not that the group's original songs were lacking in grit or attitude; the vituperative 'Get Off My Cloud,' delivered in Mick Jagger's best Sidcup dialect still sounds magnificent, as does Brian Jones's booming Vox pearl guitar on 'The Last Time' and Keith Richards's opening chords to the aforementioned 'Not Fade Away.' This is a disc to be handed down to your children."
The Earliest Negro Vocal Quartets, 1894-1928
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From allmusic.com:
"A treasure trove for archivists, Earliest Negro Vocal Quartets (1894-1928) compiles 23 impossibly rare recordings spotlighting the African-American four-part harmony singing style which predated both jazz and the blues. The real treat here is the lone surviving recording by the Standard Quintette, 1894's 'Keep Movin';' a cylinder cut for Columbia, it is in fact the only black music recording of its time to survive into the 20th century, and as a piece of history alone it's invaluable." - Jason Ankeny
Phono-Cylinders. Volume One
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From the catalog:
"Cylinder reissues with everything 'from cornball comedy to military band selections to serious political speeches'--Insert."
Whitney Houston
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From allmusic.com:
"As big a hit as it was -- and it was a multi-platinum blockbuster, spinning off several chart-toppers -- it’s not easy to think of Whitney Houston’s 1985 debut as the dawning of a new era, but it was. Arriving in the thick of MTV, when the slick sounds of yacht-soul were fading, Whitney Houston is the foundation of diva-pop, straddling clean, cheery R&B and big ballads designed with the adult contemporary audience in mind." - Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Classic blues women
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Crazy blues (Mamie Smith & her Jazz Hounds) -- Papa de-da-da (vocal by Eva Taylor) -- My man rocks me (with one steady roll) (Trixie Smith & the Jazz Masters) -- Railroad blues (Trixie Smith) -- Yonder come the blues (Ma Rainey with her Georgia Band) -- Countin' the blues (Ma Rainey acc. by her Georgia Jazz Band) -- Daddy goodbye blues (Ma Rainey) -- Baby, I can't use you no more (Sippie Wallace with Clarence Williams' Blue Five) -- Bone orchard blues (Ida Cox) -- Nobody knows you when you're down and out (Bessie Smith) -- Barrel house flat blues (Mary Johnson) -- When a 'gator holler, folks say it's a sign of rain (Margaret Johnson with the Black and Blue Trio) -- Any-kind-a-man (Victoria Spivey and her Chicago Four) -- You can't tell the difference after dark (Alberta Hunter) -- Little drops of water (Henry Brown & Edith Johnson) -- Married man blues (Billie & Dee Dee Pierce) -- Careless love (Billie & Dee Dee Pierce) -- Stormy blues (Billie Holiday).
Doo Wop from Dolphin's of Hollywood. Vol. 1
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Led Zeppelin
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Disc 1 : Whole lotta love -- Heartbreaker -- Communication breakdown -- Babe I'm gonna leave you -- What is and what should never be -- Thank you -- I can't quit you baby -- Dazed and confused -- Your time is gonna come -- Ramble on -- Travelling Riverside blues -- Friends -- Celebration day -- Hey hey what can I do -- White summer/Black Mountain side.
Disc 2 : Black dog -- Over the hills and far away -- Immigrant song -- The battle of evermore -- Bron-y-aur stomp -- Tangerine -- Going to California -- Since I've been loving you -- D'yer mak'er -- Gallows pole -- Custard pie -- Misty Mountain hop -- Rock and roll -- The rain song -- Stairway to heaven.
Disc 3 : Kashmir -- Trampled under foot -- For your life -- No quarter -- Dancing days -- When the levee breaks -- Achilles last stand -- The song remains the same -- Ten years gone -- In my time of dying.
Disc 4 : In the evening -- Candy store rock -- The ocean -- Ozone baby -- Houses of the holy -- Wearing and tearing -- Poor Tom -- Nobody's fault but mine -- Fool in the rain -- In the light -- The wanton song -- Moby Dick/Bonzo's Montreux -- I'm gonna crawl -- All my love.
Hitsville USA: the Motown singles collection 1959-1971
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disc one: Money (that's what I want) -- Shop around -- Please Mr. Postman -- Jamie -- The one who really loves you -- Do you love me -- Beechwood 4-5789 -- You beat me to the punch -- Stubborn kind of fellow -- Two lovers -- You've really got a hold on me -- Come and get these memories -- Pride and joy -- Fingertips, part 2 -- (Love is like a) Heat wave -- Mickey's monkey -- Leaving here -- The way you do the things you do -- My guy -- Devil with the blue dress -- Every little bit hurts -- Baby I need your loving -- Dancing in the street -- My smile is just a frown (turned upside down) -- Needle in a haystack -- Baby love -- Come see about me -- How sweet it is (to be loved by you)
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