The Handsome Family – Unseen (2016)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/48 kHz | Time – 42:09 minutes | 497 MB | Genre: Country, Folk
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Loose Music
The Handsome Family is an alternative country and Americana duo consisting of husband and wife Brett and Rennie Sparks formed in Chicago, Illinois, and currently based in Albuquerque, New Mexico. They are perhaps best known for their song “Far from Any Road” from the album “Singing Bones”, which was used as the main title theme for the first season of HBO’s 2014 crime drama True Detective. The band’s 10th album, “Unseen”, was released in September 2016, the first new release on the band’s own label and through long-time label Loose in Europe.
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Ben Haim Trio – Enlighten (2023)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 01:10:47 minutes | 2,60 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Meridian Records
Guy Figer is a passionate chamber musician, soloist, concertmaster and pedagogue. Hailed for his “exciting, assertive playing” (Fanfare Magazine) and for his “excellent playing” (American Record Guide), he is the first prize winner at the Paul Ben Haim competition, twice in a row, in violin and in chamber music. Among his other awards are the Thomastik Infeld Prize of the Prague / Vienna / Budapest summer academy and annual scholarships from the America Israel Cultural Foundation. He was also a finalist at the “Vittorio Gui” chamber music competition in Florence, Italy. Figer has appeared as a soloist with numerous orchestras in Israel and abroad and has been broadcast on Israeli radio, Vienna Radio, on WFMT Chicago and on WQXR New York. He often performs in Europe, North America and his native Israel. Since 2005 Guy is a member of the Figer-Khanina Duo, together with pianist Anna Khanina. The Duo’s debut CD was released under the label New Focus Recordings and is distributed by Naxos of America. Currently Figer is based in Israel. An avid pedagogue, he serves as a faculty member at the Israeli Conservatory Tel Aviv and teaches regularly at the “Keshet Eilon” national violin seminars.
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Sun Ra – El Is A Sound Of Joy! (1968/2019)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 47:42 minutes | 413 MB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © RevOla
Shining sounds from the dawn of the Sun Ra Arkestra. ‘El is A Sound of Joy’ was recorded in 1956 and appeared the following year on the very first Saturn LP, Super-Sonic Jazz. Incredible is the fact that saxophonist Charles Davis, here providing the soulful baritone anchor line (counterpoint to Sun Ra’s formidable left hand), remains in the front-line of today’s Sun Ra Arkestra directed by Marshall Allen. Shuffle swing breakdown jets leisurely, casually, masterfully, painting lush, post-modern impressions of ancient future worlds, of space, of time… of Chicago’s elevated trains… Reaching for the sky, for Joy… The Joy coda dovetails magically into the intro theme of ‘Black Sky And Blue Moon’, before downshifting into another dimension of romantic outrospection. We follow The Nu Sounds, aka Cosmic Rays, on a faraway journey to the land of late-50s Chicago singing groups, the Arkestra supporting with quiet grace, pulsing in Nubians of Plutonia mode. An uncanny blend of antique blackness and bright satellites, ethereal voices perfectly in tune; thanks to Ra’s disciplined coaching (plus Modern Harmonic’s expert remastering), their sweet dynamics and exact harmonics are crystal clear. Flute solo from Marshall Allen. Hearts swelling like the full moon, ripening in the darkness to the point of bursting.
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The Five Stairsteps – Stairsteps (1971/2021)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 31:22 minutes | 1,33 GB | Genre: R&B, Funk
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Legacy Recordings
The Five Stairsteps, known as “The First Family of Soul” and later “The Invisible Man’s Band”, was an American Chicago soul group made up of five of Betty and Clarence Burke Sr.’s six children: Alohe Jean, Clarence Jr., James, Dennis, and Kenneth “Keni”, and briefly, Cubie. They are best known for the 1970 song “O-o-h Child”, listed at number 402 on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
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The Count Basie Orchestra – High Voltage (1970/2015)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 34:23 minutes | 336 MB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © MPS
High Voltage (subtitled Basic Basie Vol. 2) is an album by pianist and bandleader Count Basie featuring performances recorded in 1970 and released on the MPS label.
A dozen generally excellent standards are given overly brief interpretations by the Count Basie Orchestra. Chico O’Farrill was responsible for the arrangements and he should have given the band more space in which to explore these tunes. Since only one number exceeds four minutes in length, none get much beyond the melody.
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The Chi-Lites – Steppin’ Out (Bonus Track Version) (1983/2014)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 01:03:56 minutes | 1,31 GB | Genre: R&B
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Legacy Recordings
Formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1959, The Chi-lites were originally called the Hi-Lites, but had to change their name as there was a similarity with another groups name at the time. The ‘C’ in the groups ‘Chi-Lites’ name derived from their hometown’s city, Chicago. Prior to the first incarnation Eugene Record, Clarence Johnson and Robert Lester recorded with the group The Chanteurs, who released material on the Renee Records imprint in 1959. By 1968, the group had been signed to the Brunswick Records imprint, where Eugene began his long and fruitful collaboration with, the singer / songwriter, Barbara Acklin. In 1969 they acheived their first national hit with the song ‘Give It Away’ beginning a successful period that would reap many musical rewards throughout the Seventies. In 1971, they released the song ‘Have You Seen Her’, which charted in the U.S. and the U.K. respectively, reaching the number 3 spot. There then followed a series of chart entries, including ‘Oh Girl’ in 1972, ‘Homely Girl’ in 1974, ‘It’s Time For Love’ in 1975 and ‘You Don’t Have To Go’ in 1976..
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The Doors – Morrison Hotel (50th Anniversary Remastered Deluxe Edition) (1970/2020)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 01:54:04 minutes | 4,28 GB | Genre: Rock
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Rhino – Elektra
The Doors fifth studio album, Morrison Hotel, will be reissued in October for its 50th anniversary.
The album was recorded in late 1969/early 1970 and released in February 1970. It’s newly remastered for this release by Bruce Botnick and this version is included on CD and as 180g vinyl record.
The goodies are all on the bonus CD with more than an hour of unreleased recordings taken from the sessions for Morrison Hotel.
Botnick says: “There are many takes, different arrangements, false starts, and insightful studio conversations between the band – who were in the studio – and producer Paul Rothchild – who was in the control room. It’s like being a fly on the wall.”
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The Doors – Morrison Hotel (50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) (2020)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 01:54:04 minutes | 2,45 GB | Genre: Rock
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Rhino – Elektra
MORRISON HOTEL: 50TH ANNIVERSARY DELUXE EDITION 2CD/1LP includes the original album newly remastered by The Doors’ longtime engineer and mixer Bruce Botnick, plus a bonus disc of unreleased studio outtakes, and the original album on 180-gram virgin vinyl.
For this new collection, the original album has been expanded with more than an hour of unreleased recordings taken from the sessions for Morrison Hotel. These 19 outtakes transport listeners into the studio with Jim Morrison, John Densmore, Robby Krieger, and Ray Manzarek for an unprecedented perspective on the making of the album.
Among the treasure trove of unreleased outtakes are also rough versions of Morrison Hotel tracks “Peace Frog” and “Blue Sunday,” as well as The Doors rarity “I Will Never Be Untrue.” The collection also captures some incredible session outtakes of the band jamming on cover versions of the Motown classic “Money (That’s What I Want)” and B.B. King’s “Rock Me.”
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The Doobie Brothers – The Warner Bros. Years 1971-1983 (2016)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 06:53:35 minutes | 15,55 GB | Genre: Rock
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Rhino – Warner Records
Includes 10 newly remastered classic albums from The Doobie Brothers, including:
The Doobie Brothers
Toulouse Street
The Captain And Me
What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits
Stampede
Takin’ It To The Streets
Livin’ On The Fault Line
Minute By Minute
One Step Closer
Farewell Tour
This expansive box set from Rhino features all nine of the Doobie Brothers’ studio albums from their original 1970s Warner Bros. run plus their 1983 Farewell Tour live album. Beginning with their 1971 self-titled debut, when the band was fronted by founding singer/guitarist Tom Johnston, through 1980’s Michael McDonald-led One Step Closer, it covers their two major eras as they slowly shifted from boogie rock bar band into the soulful soft rock giants of their later years. Hits like “China Grove,” “Black Water,” “Takin’ It to the Streets,” and “What a Fool Believes” are all here as well as their first live album, which mostly features their late-period lineup with the addition of a couple of special Johnston appearances that serve as an end cap to their career. Although the Doobies would reunite again in the late ’80s, their original Warner Bros. years remain their best-known period. ~~ AllMusic Review by Timothy Monger
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Joanna Connor – 4801 South Indiana Avenue (2021)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 43:56 minutes | 499 MB | Genre: Electric Blues, Blues Rock, Female Vocal
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © KTBA Records – Joanna Connor
Chicago-based slide guitar virtuoso and singer-songwriter, Joanna Connor, best known as one of the reigning Queens of blues rock guitar, releases her 14th album on Joe Bonamassa’s new independent record label Keeping The Blues Alive. The new album, the follow up to her critically acclaimed studio album “Rise,” was produced by Joe Bonamassa in Nashville. Joanna and Joe and the rest of the musicians on the album dug deeply and conjured up an authentic, alive and kicking set of Chicago Blues.
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The Don Rendell / Ian Carr Quintet – Live (1968/2018)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 48:01 minutes | 1008 MB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Decca (UMO)
A jazz event… and a packet of crisps, please! The energy exuded by the group bounces off the walls and magnifies their imaginative enthusiasm to new heights. Apparently the original tape wasn’t in the best condition, so what we have here is a fine piece of archival reconstruction, though the slightly forward tone remains to ensure that we get to hear all of the instruments clearly. A nice chance to hear Carr and Rendell let off the leash.
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The Count Basie Orchestra – High Voltage (1970/2017)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 34:39 minutes | 1,38 GB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © MPS
“High Voltage” (subtitled “Basic Basie Vol. 2”) is an album by pianist and bandleader Count Basie featuring performances recorded in 1970 and released on the MPS label.
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The Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem – Hearty And Hellish: A Live Nightclub Performance (1962/2014)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 38:36 minutes | 857 MB | Genre: Folk
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Legacy Recordings
The Clancy Brothers are a family of singing Irish expatriates who have been important figures in re-popularizing their native music in North America and are still among the most internationally renowned Irish folk bands.
“Everything you’d expect from a Clancy Brothers live performance, with high-energy renditions of their classic tunes, Hearty and Hellish is a vibrant reminder of the level of charisma that was the staple of their performances. Recorded over three nights in the early ’60s at the Gate of Horn in Chicago, the Clancys plow through crowd favorites such as the rambunctious ‘Courtin’ in the Kitchen,’ ‘Johnny McEldoo,’ ‘Mountain Dew,’ and ‘The Rising of the Moon.’ Humorous satires of the British in ‘God Bless England’ and ‘Mr. Moses Ri-Tooral-I-Ay’ are introduced with classic Clancy stage banter that certainly adds an extra element of intimacy to the listening experience.
“Closing out the set with the driving anti-war statement of ‘Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ye,’ this is the Clancy Brothers in their most natural element and makes for a fine example of their power as live performers.”
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Tomas Ornberg – Tomas Ornberg’s Blue Five (1982/2013)
DSD64 (.dsf) 1 bit/2,8 MHz | Time – 45:40 minutes | 1,8 GB
FLAC (tracks) 24-bit/88,2 kHz | Time – 45:40 minutes | 859 MB
Studio Master, Official Digital Download | Artwork: Front cover | Genre: Jazz
What they have done through the years could be considered a tribute to the Chicago Jazz era and, in many ways, a recreation of the music of Clarence Williams. Both Louis Armstrong and Sidney Bechet are, of course, also among the important musicians who have inspired this band. No other band has so consistently made the Classic Jazz from this time – 1920 to 1930 – so alive and really revived it in such an authentic and positive way!
Read moreThe Black Keys – Attack & Release (Remastered) (2008/2021) [Official Digital Download 24bit/44,1kHz]
The Black Keys – Attack & Release (Remastered) (2008/2021)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 39:11 minutes | 435 MB | Genre: Blues Rock
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Nonesuch
The Black Keys’ fifth full-length LP, Attack & Release, follows their 2006 critically acclaimed Nonesuch debut Magic Potion, which the Chicago Tribune proclaimed, “a gritty, wild, minimalist masterpiece.” Produced by Danger Mouse (Gnarls Barkley, The Gorillaz, The Grey Album), Attack & Release was recorded at engineer Paul Hamann’s illustrious Suma Studio outside Cleveland, Ohio. Initial collaboration began when Danger Mouse (a. k.a. Brian Burton) approached the band to write songs for an album he was developing with the late R&B legend Ike Turner. As the band began composing tracks for Turner early last year, though, they quickly realized they were actually laying the groundwork for a new album of their own.
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