Leonard Cohen - Live in London (2009)

Leonard Cohen - Live in London (2009)

This two-CD collection presents the historic performance of 25 classics drawn from Leonard Cohen's 40-year repertory, including such favorites as "Hallelujah," "Everybody Knows," and "Suzanne." Live in London was recorded live on July 17, 2008 at London's 02 Arena and fully captures and recreates the songwriting legend's extraordinary return to the stage on his first tour in 15 years. It is his first new recording since 2004's gold-certified Dear Heather.

For over four decades, Leonard Cohen has been one of the most important and influential songwriters of our time, a figure whose body of work achieves greater depths of mystery and meaning as time goes on. His songs have set a virtually unmatched standard in their seriousness and range. Sex, spirituality, religion, power - he has relentlessly examined the largest issues in human lives, always with a full appreciation of how elusive answers can be to the vexing questions he raises. But those questions, and the journey he has traveled in seeking to address them, are the ever-shifting substance of his work, as well as the reasons why his songs never lose their overwhelming emotional force. Documentaries, awards, tribute albums and the ongoing march of artists eager to record his songs all acknowledge the peerless contribution Cohen has made to what one of his titles aptly calls "The Tower of Song."
In 2008 Leonard Cohen embarked on his first tour in 15 years. Quickly recognized as musical folklore in the making, 29 of the original dates sold out almost immediately, leaving fans and critics alike hailing the show as a once in a lifetime experience. By popular demand, the Canadian/UK tour was extended and by the end of that year it had reached 84 markets worldwide, selling more than 700,000 tickets. The Live In London release fully captures and recreates the extraordinary show from that tour that earned Cohen more than 80 five-star reviews for his performances...Thor Jarc

320 @
347 MB

Tracklist:

CD 1

01 Dance Me to the End of Love 6:20
02 The Future 7:20
03 Ain't No Cure for Love 6:16
04 Bird on the Wire 6:14
05 Everybody Knows 5:52
06 In My Secret Life 5:02
07 Who by Fire 6:35
08 Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye 3:47
09 Anthem 7:20
10 Introduction 1:29
11 Tower of Song 7:07
12 Suzanne 3:46
13 The Gypsy's Wife 6:42

CD 2

01 Boogie Street / Sharon Robinson 6:57
02 Hallelujah 7:20
03 Democracy 7:08
04 I'm Your Man 5:41
05 Recitation / Neil Larsen 3:53
06 Take This Waltz 8:37
07 So Long, Marianne 5:24
08 First We Take Manhattan 6:15
09 Sisters of Mercy 4:56
10 If It Be Your Will / Webb Sisters 5:22
11 Closing Time 6:15
12 I Tried to Leave You 8:33
13 Wither Thou Goest 1:27

The Hollies - Another Night (1975) (Remaster Edit 2004)@320

The Hollies - Another Night (1975) (Remaster Edit 2004)

Out of print in the U.S. this '04 reissue features the hit 'I'm Down' and 7 bonus tracks 'Hello Lady Goodbye', 'Another Night' (live), '4th of July Asbury Park (Sandy)' (live), 'I'm Down' (live), 'Come Down to the Shore', 'Born to Run' and 'Why Don't You Call'. 17 tracks in all.

When "Another Night" was released way back in the seventies, critics blasted it and signaled as the end of the Hollies' long line of hits. I have always disagreed; "Another Night" contains some of the best tunes they ever recorded, and the addition of seven extra tunes makes this a classic CD. It's all here: their soaring unparalleled harmonies, restrained musicianship, and their haunting arrangements. "Another Night" is a great song, with a hypnotic opening and dynamic rhythmic pulse; "Sandy" written by Bruce Springsteen, is gorgeous and surpasses the writer's version; "Lonely Hobo Lullabye" is a mournful yet poignant look at wandering; "I'm Down," is typical Hollies harmonies soaring above a great melody; "Give Me Time," joins that list of Hollies greats; the live versions of "Another Night" and "Sandy" are not as good as the studio tracks, but entertaining nonetheless. I even liked their cover of Springsteen's "Born to Run." The Hollies were one of the great bands of the sixties/seventies, and have given us such wonderful classics as "Air That I Breathe," "He Ain't Heavy" and "Long Cool Woman." ...Michael Butts

320 @
150 MB

Tracklist:

01. Another Night 3.57
02. 4th July, Asbury Park (Sandy) 4.11
03. Lonely Hobo Lullaby 4.18
04. Second Hand Hang-Ups 4.32
05. Time Machine Jive 3.19
06. I'm Down 4.13
07. Look Out Johnny (There's A Monkey On Your Back) 3.35
08. Give Me Time 3.11
09. You Gave Me Life (With That Look In Your Eyes) 3.52
10. Lucy 5.12
11. Hello Lady Goodbye (Bonus) 3.56
12. Another Night (Bonus)(Live) 3.40
13. 4th July, Asbury Park (Sandy) (Bonus)(Live) 4.11
14. I'm Down (Bonus)(Live) 4.04
15. Come Down To The Shore (Bonus) 3.51
16. Born To Run (Bonus) 4.08
17. Why Don't You Call? (Bonus) 3.17

Peter Fox - Stadtaffe (2008)@320

Peter Fox - Stadtaffe (2008)

I find German difficult to listen to in any musical genre as I'm not a native or fluent speaker. The language sounds harsh to my ears. In spite of this, I do enjoy German music in limited doses. Rammstein anyone?
However this CD is classified, it is pleasingly lyrical. Because of this, I would get expect Peter Fox to gather many international fans.
Somewhere in the world (I will let you, the reader, discover where) this CD genre is listed as reggae. I would not classify this music as such since it does a disservice to both reggae and Peter Fox and may either disappoint or turn people off to listening. I also find referring to this CD as dance music as trivializing. This CD is not "boom-sha-ca-la-ca" or "bump and grind" American MTV tripe. However, it does make you want to move!
If you have a chance to view Peter Fox's video of "schwarz zu blau" (a title on this CD) - it will be clear the intent is neither classically reggae nor dance music. This video is currently played on German MTV and the CD (Stadtaffe) is currently #2 in our local German large electronics retail store...J. Pand

Fantastic album! Every song is good - a rarity nowadays... I heard "Alles Neu" first in October when travelling thru amsterdam. I hunted it down when I got back to the states and EVERYONE who has heard it loves it. My husband immediately stole my copy. Strangers have asked my husband when he is stopped at traffic lights what it is he is listening to. I speak no german, but the translated lyrics I have read have impressed me as well. Witty with a viral beat, and a respectful nod to real music (que the strings!) - you will not be able to get this album out of your head. I fully expect it to catch fire on a global level...Heather Kippa

Peter Fox is an awesome artist. The melodies, rhythms and production of are top notch. I speak German and so can appreciate the lyrics (more or less as I'm not fluent). He has a great sound. If the best songs were played at a club in the U.S., the dancefloor would be full. An A+ effort from the underappreciated German music scene...R. G. Shaw

320 @
92 MB
Genre: Electronic, Hip Hop, Reggae
Cover

Tracklist:

01 Alles Neu (4:18)
02 Schwarz Zu Blau (3:35)
03 Haus Am See (3:36)
04 Kopf Verloren (3:21)
05 Das Zweite Gesicht (3:53)
06 Der Letzte Tag (3:42)
07 Ich Steine, Du Steine (3:16)
08 Lok Auf 2 Beinen (3:44)
09 Stadtaffe (3:39)
10 Fieber (Feat. K.I.Z.) (3:32)
11 Schuttel Deinen Speck (2:51)
12 Zucker (Feat. Vanessa Mason) (3:13)
13 Shostakovitchovitch (Instr.) (7:49)
14 Saint Tropez (Instr.) (3:35)

Janis Joplin - Joplin in Concert (1972)(1998)

Janis Joplin - Joplin in Concert (1972)(1998)

About half of this two-record set features Janis Joplin with Big Brother & the Holding Company in 1968, performing songs like "Down on Me" and "Piece of My Heart." The rest, recorded in 1970, finds her with her backup group, Full Tilt Boogie, mostly performing songs from I Got Dem Ol' Kozmic Blues Again Mama! Joplin puts herself out on-stage, both in terms of singing until her voice is raw and describing her life to her audiences. Parts of this album are moving, parts are heartbreaking, and the rest is just great rock & roll...W. Ruhlmann

Since Joplin was known primarily as a live performer, her studio work was often viewed as a kind of compromise at best. Cheap Thrills had some live vocals and simulated a Big Brother concert effectively, but it never claimed to be the genuine (i.e. 'live') article. So in 1972, about a year and half after her death, Columbia assembled these tracks from several different live performances with Big Brother and Full Tilt Boogie. It's "live,"--although some of the Big Brother tracks, notably "Down On Me" sound like they may have been doctored a bit--but somehow it doesn't quite convey the excitement of a Joplin concert the way "Cheap Thrills" did. There are several great moments though. "All Is Loneliness" is completely recast here. Where it had been a kind of an eerie chant, with a brief vamp, on the Mainstream lp, it now is now an extended vocal improvisation--among the best on record. Someone once said that no one sang the words "lonely" or "loneliness" with as much feeling as Janis. This track bears that assertion out. Although I loved "Pearl" and had great respect for the musicianship of Full Tilt, Joplin in Concert helps make the case for those who insist that Big Brother showcased Joplin in a way that her other bands could not match. She sounds like she's having the time of her life on "Road Block" and "Flower In the Sun." "Ego Rock" from a 1970 reunion concert has her in a classic blues one-upmanship battle with Nick Gravenites. She sounds much less strained here than on the Full Tilt Boogie tracks (also from '70). The FTB numbers, culled from tapes made during a Canadian train tour in the summer of '70, seem rawer than the Big Brother sides. It may have been a riotous time, but vocally, all that partying seems to have taken its toll. She tries to reach those high notes at the end of "Try," but she just can't pull it off. If these were the only extant tracks from her last days, you probably would have justified in saying that her voice was shot. The fact that she would go into the studio a few months later and record the triumphant "Pearl" proves otherwise...G. Kallahann

320 @
176 MB

Tracklist:

Big Brother & the Holding Co.

01 Down on Me 3:07
02 Bye Bye Baby 4:27
03 All Is Loneliness 5:45
04 Piece of My Heart 4:09
05 Road Block 2:59
06 Flower in the Sun 3:03
07 Summertime 4:45
08 Ego Rock / Nick Gravenites 8:02

Full Tilt Boogie Band

09 Half Moon 5:14
10 Kozmic Blues 5:45
11 Move Over 6:37
12 Try (Just a Little Bit Harder) 7:51
13 Get It While You Can 7:04
14 Ball and Chain 8:03

Van der Graaf - Godbluff (1975)(Remaster Edit 2005)

Van der Graaf - Godbluff (1975)(Remaster Edit 2005)

Van Der Graaf Generator's first album following their post-Pawn Hearts hiatus, 1975's Godbluff, could have been a major disappointment -- reunions were still viewed with suspicion in those days, all the more so since Peter Hammill's recent solo career had effortlessly carried the band's banner into the future. There was a chemistry between the group members, however, that no one player could ever recapture, and from the moment the needle touched the fanfare grooves of the opening "Undercover Man," it was clear that Van Der Graaf were still generating all the friction and fury they had ever pledged. The 2005 remaster recaptures the thrill of hearing Godbluff for the first time, sweeping aside the muffled miasma of earlier CD reissues with a clarity that lifts every nuance into earshot; indeed, thrilling though the bonus tracks are (recorded live in Rimini, Italy, on the re-formed band's first tour), the drop in sound quality is positively paralyzing, and it takes at least a few minutes for your senses to adjust. Once they have, it's business as usual, of course -- two cuts from Hammill's Silent Corner and the Empty Stage album are given the full-band treatment, and emerge even stronger than the original studio versions ever could. In fact, the only possible complaint about this album (which can then be applied to the reissue series as a whole) is that there hasn't been a single release of the full Rimini concert...D. Thompson

320 @
133 MB
Genre :prog. Rock

Tracklist:

01 The Undercover Man 7:32
02 Scorched Earth 9:43
03 Arrow 9:47
04 The Sleepwalkers 10:41
05 Forsaken Gardens Live / previously unreleased / Bonus 7:57
06 A Louse Is Not a Home Live / previously unreleased / Bonus 12:48

Bob Dylan - Together Through Life

Bob Dylan - Together Through Life (2009)

By all accounts Together Through Life arrived quickly, cut swiftly by Bob Dylan and his touring band in the fall of 2008, surprising the label upon its delivery a couple months later, then rushed into stores in April '09, just a half year after the release of the monumental archive project Tell Tale Signs. Given the speed of its creation, it fits that that album has a spontaneous, kinetic kick, feeling so alive that it's a little messy, teeming with contradictions, crossed signals and frayed ends. That liveliness turns Together Through Life into a much lighter affair than its weighty predecessor Modern Times, which was tinged with doom and had thematic unity, two things missing from this comparatively breezy affair. If Together Through Life is about any one thing it is, as its title and cover photo elliptically suggest, the enduring power of romance, how it provides sustenance and how its absence can make life hard. But all this suggests that Dylan has turned in a meditation of the meaning of life and love here, when its core charm is its very modesty. It's an old-fashioned 10 tracks, clocking in at 45 minutes, a simple set of songs co-written with Robert Hunter - Jerry Garcia's lyricist and previous Dylan collaborator, co-writing the irresistibly jaunty "Silvio" in 1988 - and delivered without adornment, its clean yet earthy production slyly emphasizing the musical variety here. Sonically, this is right in line with Dylan's 2000s albums, the sound of a well-lubricated traveling band easing into the same chords they play every night, but this isn't strictly roadhouse rock & roll: Dylan remains fixated on pre-rock & roll American music, emphasizing the blues but eager to croon love-struck ballads. In this context, David Hidalgo's accordion - which appears so often it soon ceases to be noteworthy - can suggest a romantic stroll down Parisian streets or a steamy sojourn with Doug Sahm on a Tex-Mex border town, but everything here is recognizably, thoroughly Dylan's mythic picturesque America that stretches from the hazy past to the barbed present. While the music is proudly, almost defiantly, rooted in the past, with Dylan borrowing Willie Dixon's "I Just Want To Make Love To You" wholesale for the riotous "My Wife's Home Town," there's no avoidance of the present here, with Bob even going so far as to turn the omnipresent catch phrase "It's All Good" into a mordantly funny rocker. Dylan's not just aware of the modern-day vernacular he's wound up with an album that fits the spirit of '09: it's troubled but hopeful, firmly in favor of love and romance, but if that fails there are always romantic dreams and sardonic jokes to get you through life...S. Erlewine

320 @
242 MB

Tracklist:

CD 1

01 Beyond Here Lies Nothin' 3:50
02 Life Is Hard 3:39
03 My Wife's Home Town 4:15
04 If You Ever Go to Houston 5:48
05 Forgetful Heart 3:42
06 Jolene 3:50
07 This Dream of You 5:54
08 Shake Shake Mama 3:37
09 I Feel a Change Comin' On 5:25
10 It's All Good 5:27

CD 2

01 Theme Town Radio Hour (Interview Recorded in Studio B) 60:00

Jethro Tull - Aqualung , Diana Krall - Quiet Nights, Genesis - Nursery Cryme

Genesis - Nursery Cryme

Diana Krall - Quiet Nights

Jethro Tull - Aqualung