Review: Genre-defying trio Little Barrie & Malcolm Catto - their bassist Lewis Wharton is the third one, if you're wondering - have created an album brimming with explosive energy and diverse influences fusing rock 'n roll, deep funk, jazz, and fuzzy atmospherics. Barrie Cadogan (guitar/vocals) has played with everyone from The The to Primal Scream, but this LP moves well away from indie templates, employing a freeform approach, experimenting with tempos, volumes and textures. Tracks like 'Spektator' and 'Sick 8' showcase their ability to build subtle momentum and then let it slip back, allowing space for intricate instrumentation and lots of vivid expression.
Woke Up This Morning (My Baby She Was Gone) (4:21)
Ten Years Gone (6:40)
In My Time Of Dying (9:41)
Your Time Is Gonna Come (5:56)
Remedy (5:14)
The Lemon Song (9:02)
In The Light (9:17)
Shake Your Moneymaker (4:26)
Sloppy Drunk Blues (6:06)
Shapes Of Things (5:17)
Nobody's Fault But Mine (4:45)
Heartbreaker (5:56)
Bring It On Home (5:20)
She Talks To Angels (5:43)
Oh Well (4:06)
Band Intros (1:00)
Hey, Hey, What Can I Do (3:36)
You Shook Me (7:20)
Out On The Tiles (4:52)
Whole Lotta Love (5:44)
Custard Pie (Soundcheck) (5:14)
You Shook Me (Soundcheck) (8:09)
The Lemon Song (Soundcheck) (8:47)
Ten Years Gone (Soundcheck) (10:51)
Jam (Soundcheck) (10:39)
Review: The chemistry between Jimmy Page and The Black Crowes, caught here live in AL in 1999, produces a dynamic performance that brings fresh life to classic rock anthems. Tracks like 'Celebration Day' and 'What Is & What Should Never Be' are delivered with incredible precision, each riff from Page cutting through the mix, while the Crowes' rhythm section provides a perfect backdrop. Chris Robinson's vocals are raw and commanding, particularly on 'Heartbreaker,' where he channels the energy of the original while adding his own emotive twist. The blues covers, like 'Sloppy Drunk' and 'Mellow Down Easy,' show off the band's versatility, giving a loose, electric vibe that contrasts beautifully with the more structured Zeppelin classics. A live performance that captures both the spirit of the originals and the fire of the setting.
Don Covay & The Jefferson Lemon Band - "If There's A Will There's A Way" (3:36)
Harvey Mandel - "Baby Batter" (3:40)
Review: Climactic, psychedelic soul and blues brilliance by Don Covay, co-written by Donny Hathaway and backed by a proto-Balearic sweetmeat on the B, Harvey Mandel's 'Baby Batter'. The A-side was originally released one year after (1972) the B-side (1971) on the American Janus label, and the tracks provide a palpable contrast, drawing on the same idiom yet approaching it with remarkable difference. Covay's lyrics are, thematically, overflowing with determination, despite the psychic conflict at the track's heart. Is there any resolution? "The sweeter you, look, mama... the bitterer you treat me..."
Review: Kenny Burrell's Guitar Forms stands as a cornerstone of the jazz guitar genre, offering a masterful display of various styles, from the engaging Latin combo performance of 'Moon and Sand' with the Gil Evans Orchestra to the bluesy tones of 'Downstairs' and 'Terrace Theme'. Other highlights include the luxurious treatment of Harold Arlen's 'Last Night When We Were Young.' Burrell's thoughtful and concise solos, along with his switch to acoustic classical guitar on tracks like 'Prelude #2' and 'Loie,' further demonstrating his musical talent. Mastered by Ryan K. Smith at Sterling Sound from the original analogue tapes and pressed onto 180-gram LPs at Quality Record Pressings, this audiophile reissue offers a definitive listening experience. Supervised by Chad Kassem, CEO of Acoustic Sounds, the album is packaged in high-quality gatefold sleeves with tip-on jackets by Stoughton Printing Co. With its rich repertoire and impeccable production, Guitar Forms is a easy purchase for any jazz enthusiast's collection, representing the timeless artistry of Kenny Burrell and his abilities in the jazz guitar genre.
Review: Dark Horse Records has put together this limited edition pressing of Nina Simone's seminal debut studio album, Little Girl Blue, in honour of its 65th anniversary. Originally released in February 1959, this special pink vinyl reissue features a 12x12 insert with an introduction by Dhani Harrison and of course the record itself includes many an iconic track. Take your pick from the likes of 'My Baby Just Cares for Me' and 'I Loves You, Porgy' which showcase Simone's early brilliance and hint at her profound influence on music in the decades to come. This collector's item is a tribute to Simone's timeless sound.
Review: Dynamite Cuts have got another red hot bit of funk on their hands here with Brian Auger's Oblivion Express the subject of this reissue of two of his most blissed out sounds. The first is a magic cover of Marvin Gaye's timeless 'Inner City Blues' from his most iconic album, What's Going On. In this outfit's hands the groove becomes a little more deep and languid, with funky guitars and steamy vocals sinking you into a real romantic vibe. The second is an original tune, 'Voices Of Other Times,' that explores more uplifting soul vibes.
Country Girl: Whiskey Boot Hill/Down, Down, Down/Country Girl (I Think You're Pretty) (5:08)
Everybody I Love You (2:30)
Review: The 50th anniversary of Deja Vu by Crosby, Stills & Nash gets marked with this specially celebratory reissue. It has been remastered for the occasion and comes with original artwork. Back when this one was released first in March 1970 by Atlantic Records, the record soon went on to top the pop album chart for a week and generated three Top 40 singles. These are the well known 'Woodstock', 'Teach Your Children', and 'Our House' while many other highlights also feature. A timeless classic for sure.
Review: This 1977 album marked a sublime chapter in the trio's career, showing their unparalleled vocal harmonies and masterful musicianship. Often hailed as their most accessible album, it seamlessly blends folk-rock sensibilities with heartfelt lyricism. Reissued on pristine 180-gram vinyl, the warmth of this record shines through every groove, providing a listening experience as timeless as the music itself. Opening with 'Shadow Captain', the outfit sets the tone with rich vocal layers and Russ Kunkel's understated yet captivating percussion. Tracks like 'See The Changes' and 'Carried Away' exemplify their ability to create beauty through simplicity, with Nash's songwriting and Crosby's harmonies reaching extraordinary heights. The album's emotional centerpiece, 'Cathedral', is a profound and reflective masterpiece, echoing the introspective brilliance of their earlier work while standing out as one of Nash's crowning achievements. Songs like 'Anything At All' and 'Just A Song Before I Go' further underscore the trio's knack for blending authenticity with melodic perfection. Even with moments like 'Fair Game' and 'I Give You Give Blind' slightly veering toward experimentation, the album remains cohesive and compelling. From the poignant storytelling to the impeccable sound quality of this vinyl reissue it endures as an essential in the folk-rock canon.
Review: Beth Hart's You Still Got Me is a powerful statement with her dynamic vocal range and emotional depth spread across 11 tracks. The album opens with the edgy rock-blues of 'Savior With A Razor', featuring Slash's gnawing guitar, before diving into a collection of confessional and observational pieces. The title track is a poignant ballad, reflecting a heartfelt moment with her husband, while songs like 'Drunk on Valentine' offer a jazzy, Tom Waits-inspired vibe. Hart explores resilience in tracks like 'Little Heartbreak Girl' and captures raw emotion in 'Don't Call the Police', a poignant response to social issues. The album's eclectic sound is enriched by contributions from Eric Gales, whose guitar elevates 'Suga N My Bowl'. With a blend of rock, blues and jazz, You Still Got Me is an emotional journey that highlights Hart's artistry and authenticity. Her ability to weave personal narratives with broader themes results in a cohesive and impactful listening experience.
Los Chicos Tristes (feat Jensine Benitez - El Michels Affair remix) (2:41)
Review: Ahead of their new album Sonido Cosmico, Hermanos Gutierrez return with a smouldering single which shows off their affinity for wistful guitar soliloquies on a short n' sweet 7". The brothers' sound is rooted in 1950s Latin American rock n roll, all quivering tremolo and languid reverb as a casing for their mesmerising melodies. 'Low Sun' captures that melancholic moment as the day shortens in evocative fashion, making this a record primed for sentimental moments aplenty whether you're playing the record for yourself or an audience of kindred chillers who appreciate Balearic vibes hailing from the Southern Hemisphere.
Review: Spasibo Records present a fresh 7" by the Vicious Seeds, hailing from St. Petersburg. With vibraphonist Pavel Chizhik taking centre stage (Chizhik isn't usually a member of the band), 'Village Hassle' makes for a cleverly collaborative rare groove and instrumental reggae-soul release. The titular A-side flaunts Chizhik's vibraphone via the mix alone, fleshing out its low-end elements against a driven instrumental backbeat; 'Monthly Rainfall', meanwhile, goes for all-out slow-jammed soul by way of cross-sticked snares and offbeat chord plucks run through short-release springs.
Review: Craft Recordings Deluxe Edition of In Session, featuring the legendary collaboration between blues titans Albert King and Stevie Ray Vaughan, is an important new edition of this meeting of legends. This long-awaited release arrives for the first time on triple vinyl, capturing the historic 1983 performance at CHCH-TV studios in Ontario, Canada, where the two guitarists showcased their extraordinary talents. Initially hesitant to share the stage with Vaughan, King quickly recognised the young guitarist's immense skill, leading to a profound musical dialogue that reverberates throughout this recording. The set includes the audio debut of iconic tracks such as 'Born Under a Bad Sign', 'Texas Flood' and 'I'm Gonna Move to the Outskirts of Town', offering fans an unparalleled listening experience. As they exchange licks, Vaughan breathes new life into King's classic riffs, demonstrating the evolution of their craft. The remastered performance, pressed on high-quality 180-gram vinyl and housed in a gatefold jacket, celebrates a momentous occasion in blues history. This collection not only highlights the dynamic interplay between two guitar legends but also sets a new standard for live blues recordings.
Review: Originally recorded in 1966 during his remarkable comeback - he'd been playing since the 20s but was rediscovered by various musicologists and found a new audience at Newport and Philadelphia's folk festivals in 1963 - this album demonstrates why he became a beloved mainstay of the folk revival. Unlike traditional bluesmen, Hurt's style is rooted in melody and intricate fingerpicking, making him a profound influence on the folk musicians of the 60s. His dexterous guitar work, often feeling as if multiple players are involved, pairs seamlessly with his soothing, almost meditative voice. Tracks like 'Pay Day', 'Louis Collins', 'Spike Driver's Blues', and 'Make Me a Pallet on Your Floor' showcase his ability to transform folk and blues traditions into something uniquely personal. He even delivers a rare but successful slide guitar performance on 'Talking Casey'. A particularly stunning moment comes in 'Beulah Land', where his intricate cross-rhythms add new emotional depth to a traditional song. Every track exudes a gentle, comforting presence, as if Hurt himself is sitting beside the listener, easing their troubles. His voice, often described as a balm for the soul, remains as rich and warm as ever, untouched by time. A beautiful, healing and profoundly moving experience that continues to impress more than half a century later.
Review: Ohio-based instrumental organ trio Parlor Greens, known for their blend of soul, funk and blues, return with a new 7" that follows their acclaimed debut from 2024. Side-1 features 'Driptorch', which is driven by crunchy drums from Tim Carman, funky guitar riffs by Jimmy James and Adam Scone's expressive Hammond organ. The track delivers a high-energy, groove-filled adventure. On Side-2 ,'200 Dollar Blues', introduces a fresh, mid-tempo instrumental. This blues shuffle highlights James' searing Stratocaster solos, complemented perfectly by Scone's soulful organ work. Their interplay exudes a raw, electrifying energy, while Carman's steady, dynamic drumming grounds the track, making this one for fans of deep soul and blues.
Review: Muireann Bradley is a startling new talent in country and bluegrass from County Donegal in Ireland. I Kept These Old Blues absolutely calls back to a golden age of Americana, but Bradley’s Irish lilt comes through and entwines with her faithful Southern twang to make for an endlessly charming end result. Her playing is pitch-perfect, stripped to the bone finger-picking all the better to savour the songs and the way they’re sung. This is the cassette edition of the 2023 album, which is an ideal format to enjoy these charmingly olde worlde yarns sung the way they ought to be.
Good Morning Little Schoolgirl (False Start) (3:41)
Good Morning Little Schoolgirl (6:48)
The Hobbit (14:19)
I Can't Keep From Crying Sometimes (11:43)
Help Me (15:00)
I'm Going Home (9:54)
Review: Ten Years After's legendary performance at Woodstock in August 1969 remains a pinnacle moment in rock history, hailed as one of the festival's standout acts. Now, their complete hour-long concert, previously only part of larger compilations, is set for standalone release, one day before the 55th anniversary of their historic show. Led by guitarist Alvin Lee, the British blues rock band delivered an electrifying set featuring classics like Howlin' Wolf's 'Spoonful,' Sonny Boy Williamson's 'Good Morning Little Schoolgirl,' and the expansive 'I Can't Keep From Crying Sometimes,' clocking in at 18 minutes. The set's climax, 'I'm Going Home,' a Lee original, cemented their place in Woodstock lore with its powerful performance captured in the iconic Woodstock documentary. Remastered from the original two-inch multitrack tapes, Woodstock 1969 offers a fresh mix of Ten Years After's raw energy and virtuosity, presented on a double 180-gram vinyl pressing in a gatefold sleeve, accompanied by new liner notes by Chris Welch. This release commemorates a defining moment for the band and a milestone in rock music history.
Review: After a prolific 2023 which saw them release two albums of fried and wide-eyed instrumentals Harmons Gutierrez return with further explorations of their atmospheric taker on 1950s Latin American sounds. There's a sense of Morricone drama and expansive space to the duo's self-described cosmic sound, where the intricate guitar work collides with space-age effects processing to create a truly escapist listening experience. Steeped in the mystique of the desert, with an undeniable romance in their hearts while heading towards the stratosphere, Alejandro and Estevan Gutierrez show their craft has the potential to explore new vistas while staying true to the formula which has served them so well thus far.
Review: Today! is Skip James' second album, originally released in 1966. Now reissued via Craft Recordings over half a century later, this 180-gram LP comes pressed onto heavyweight vinyl with proper retrospective care and attention. An almost entirely solo effort from the blues master, the likes of 'Hard Time Killing Floor Blues' and 'How Long' give atmospheric takes on hard times, amounting to a haunting account of cross-desert drives, driftings, and down-on-one's-luck limit-experiences. This 180-gram LP pressed at QRP includes an obi with notes by Scott Billington, a paper-wrapped jacket and (AAA) lacquers cut from the original master tapes by Matthew Lutthans at The Mastering Lab.
Review: The Hermanos Gutierrez return with another album-lenfgth bang - Sonido Cosmico - hearing the sonorous siblings abandon the desert for the cosmos, having established a firm arenaceous grounding on their prior record El Bueno Y El Malo. Artfully produced by Dan Auerbach, the album brims the fiery 'stones: suspenseful, analogue-treated guitar dialogues - the crux of the brothers' project - all while playing up an arid Western aesthetic, with a stargazing propensity. Lead track 'Sonido Cosmico' indeed comes with a music video that finds the brothers atop a desert mountain observatory, surrounded on all sides by cacti and UFOs, and sporting telescopes and dowsing rods when they're not playing guitar. An album of dreamy instrumental delights; the planes of Arenillas indeed are a prime location to take alien flight.
Goin' To Sit Down On The Banks Of The River (2:37)
Tryin' To Get Home (3:03)
Lo, I Be With You Always (0:41)
I Am The Light Of This World (4:10)
Lord, I Feel Like Just Goin' On (4:37)
Devil's Dream (bonus track) (4:13)
Review: The 1960 Harlem Street Singer LP by South Carolinian blues and gospel singer Blind Gary Davis comes reissued by Concord Jazz. Met with critical acclaim at the moment of its release, this forty-minute window into Davis' lonesome world is perhaps best known for its prime haunter, 'Death Don't Have No Mercy', a great, morbid song, and Davis' most popular. "He'll come to your house and he won't stay long / he'll look in your bed and somebody'll be gone / death don't have no mercy..." Such moribund topics never did deter the best of Blues artists, and of course, Davis might be said to have had "seen death" or at least known death personally, having been blind since infancy. Further raw and rusty blues numbers like 'Tryin' To Get Home' and 'Great Change' further extend Davis' image as a Harlem veteran crooner, who's seen a lot and knows many people - pitiless scythed spectres included.
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