Passacaglia is a multi-colored musical dialogue between two unique characters who are leading figures in European jazz and contemporary music, Adam Bałdych and Leszek Możdżer. The repertoire ranges from free improvisations over works co-written by the musicians themselves to their very personal interpretations of themes by Erik Satie, Josquin des Prez and others.

Emboldened by the enthusiastic response to the muted Nothing Like the Sun and reeling from the loss of his parents, Sting constructed The Soul Cages as a hushed mediation on mortality, loss, grief, and father/son relationships (the album is dedicated, in part, to his father; its predecessor was dedicated to his mother). Using the same basic band as Nothing Like the Sun, the album has the same supple, luxurious tone, stretching out leisurely over nine tracks, almost all of them layered mid-tempo tunes (the exception being grinding guitars of the title track). Within this setting, Sting hits a few remarkable peaks, such as the elegant waltz "Mad About You" and "All This Time," a deceptively skipping pop tune that hides a moving tribute to his father.

Seasick Steve has been playing music all his life although he didn't start making a living at it until he was in his early sixties. He was born in Oakland, and took guitar lessons from K.C. Douglas who wrote the standard "Mercury Blues." He traveled the world busking, played as a session guitarist, and was befriended by Janis Joplin and Joni Mitchell in the '60s. In the '80s, he produced the first Modest Mouse album This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About. He moved to Norway with his wife and family in 2001, and started recording his quirky blues tunes on an old four-track tape machine. After a heart attack, he got serious about his career and cut Dog House Music, which sold over 200,000 copies with little promotion. An appearance on Jools Holland's BBC TV show, helped his next record, I Started Out with Nothin and I Still Got Most of It Left, go platinum in England…