New Arrivals: Over 10,000 Classical and Opera CDs!

Just when we were starting to get caught up with the huge 9,000 piece classical collection from a couple of months ago, we have been graced with two more very large collections totaling over 10,000 titles!  In the last two weeks, amongst many other smaller, we have purchased one of around 3,000 and another of over 7,000 CDs. Read the rest of this entry »

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In my years of listening to classical music of all genres and forms, there are a number of compositions which speak to me so profoundly or entertain me on so many levels that just one recording of it is never enough. My father has often asked me, “Why do you have so many versions of one piece?” Very bluntly I would reply, “Because no two performances are the same.”  This observation has only increased in truth for me as time has gone by. Verdi’s DON CARLO, Cilea’s ADRIANA LECOUVREUR, Puccini’s SUOR ANGELICA and Offenbach’s LES CONTES D’HOFFMANN top a very long list of my favorite operas – the Verdi and the Offenbach all the more because of the different versions which have been used.  Symphonically speaking, I have several takes on Respighi’s THE PINES OF ROME, while the most entries in my choral section are of the requiems of Verdi, Faure, and Durufle as well as Orff’s CARMINA BURANA. Comparing tempi, articulation, vocal timbre, phrasing, etc. can be a fun sort of way to dig deeper into favorites and discover new nuances in the hands of different artists. Some collectors may claim that a particular recording or performance is definitive, but I prefer to allow room for other possibilities by saying that I have favorite interpretations based on the talents and temperaments of the forces involved.

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Sorry, my copy of Belew's e was written all over... BY THE BAND!! (Reprinted with permission from Adrian Belew Presents)

Hi!  Remember me?  I’m the guy who broke the story that King Crimson was rumored to be over because a player in the scenario affixed situations to realities and created a rumored scheduling rift between when Fripp had wanted to do Crimson dates and the subject of this review, the Adrian Belew Power Trio had dates scheduled during that time.  When Fripp became aware of the scheduling rift, he took it as Belew not being as committed to KC as Fripp would have wanted.

Or so it is alleged.  I am not sticking my neck onto that chopping block again…

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Kristi Callan with The Jigsaw Seen “Sleep”/”Morning Glory” (Vibro-phonic Recordings 12023)

Now here’s a great collaboration! Having initially achieved recognition in the eighties as the lead singer of  Wednesday Week, Kristi Callan has continued to pad her resume with a string of shining moments. Aside from carving out a nice solo career for herself, Kristi has also performed and recorded with famed figures such as Dave Davies and The Ventures, and currently fronts Dime Box Band. Active since the late eighties, The Jigsaw Seen is renowned for their bewitching brew of psychedelic pop rock. Discs like “Shortcut Through Clown Alley,” “My Name Is Tom” and “Zenith” are classics of their ilk, and have dutifully awarded the Los Angeles band flocks of fans. Administered by Kristi’s haunting vocals, “Sleep” stands as an electrifying slice of orchestrated pop splendor. Built upon a solid foundation of classy string arrangements and trebly guitar work, the quirky atmospheric tune, which was composed by Kristi, sparkles with melodic radiance. Dipping their toes into the Oasis songbook, Kristi and The Jigsaw Seen deliver a drifting, dreamy cover of “Morning Glory,” set in an acoustic format. As evidenced by this musically literate single, Kristi Callan and The Jigsaw Seen make an artistically compatible team.

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Ok, I blog about music that I think is worth listening to.  I have written about people that I have seen in concert and music that I listen to on a regular basis.  I write about artists.  The question that I often ponder when making my musical choices is this:  What is the line that divides music between art and entertainment?  Is the latest boy/girl band that sings over recorded beats art or entertainment?  Personally, I consider it neither and closer to the eighth ring of hell.  No offense to those kids who were new on the block, the boys of the backstreet, or the menagerie of boys that danced in sync because at 18-20, I would have probably sold my soul for the money and chicks as well. Read the rest of this entry »

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Walt Wilkins is one of the finest singer/songwriters that you have never heard.  You may have heard his songs on the radio sung by the likes of Pat Green, but chances are; you haven’t heard Walt.  He is currently working a group of singer/songwriters dubbed “The Mystiqueros” Read the rest of this entry »

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Such was our discourse, a lengthy journey that would tear at our seams and restore our souls. It took 636 miles to reach this destination, this divine spot. Each mile counted was one in waiting, an eagerness accompanied each mile closer. The trek was arduous and most tiring, leaving with such little sleep and arriving at 3:40 in the morning to meet a line of cars entering the campgrounds. Bumper to bumper traffic more reminiscent of daytime gridlock in major metropolises than anything else. After many hours sitting in a line of cars as people of many ages imbibed spirits, beer, wine, and smoke we had arrived at our humble campground inebriated, the sun rising as we put up our tent. We had finally reached our destination, and this would be an indicator of the days to come. We had laid our weary heads down, we had arrived at Coachella. Read the rest of this entry »

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Jason Isbell is a singer, songwriter, and guitarist from Alabama who was an integral part of the Drive-By Truckers for 6 years and three albums.  He was with the Truckers from 2001 -2007 and released his first solo album “Sirens of the Ditch” in 2007. 

Since his debut release, Jason formed a band that is comprised of Matt Pence of Centro-Matic and some other Alabama musicians.  The band is dubbed “The 400 Unit” which is a reference to the psyche ward of an Alabama hospital.  Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit released a self title album in 2009.  Read the rest of this entry »

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