This collection ranges widely over Bowen’s solo piano output, from the larger, demanding, virtuoso Second Ballade in A minor, dating from about 1930, to the Three Miniatures, composed fifteen years previously following Bowen’s being invalided out of the Scots Guards. The earliest works on this volume are the Three Pieces, Op. 20, written around 1905. The piano writing is superb, perhaps influenced by Fauré and certainly impressionistic in intent; they reveal a young master’s mind………..

By the time 1988's Gringo rolled around, Journey had all but called it a day (until their reunion a decade or so later) and Gregg Rolie was going in a decidedly different direction than his tenure in either Journey or Santana. As "The Hands of Time" immediately makes evident, Rolie was shooting for the top of the pop charts, falling somewhere between Daryl Hall's "Dreamtime" and Don Johnson's "Heartbeat" on the musical landscape…

ICONOCLASTA is part of the "new generation" of progressive music still being produced, and one of the few progressive bands from Mexico. While Mexico is not an obvious hot bed of progressive coals, ICONOCLASTA makes a worthy attempt at creating quality progressive music…

Music from Le Grand Blond avec une Chaussure Noire (The Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe) and Le Retour du Grand Blond (The Return of the Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe) composed by Vladimir Cosma.

Mozart's concert arias are not really generically independent from his operas. They were mostly written for insertion into operas by a singer, often Mozart's girlfriend and then sister-in-law Aloysia Weber, who wanted to display her talents to their best advantage. As such, however, they stand out from other operatic arias as some of the most difficult vocal pieces Mozart composed. Several of these pieces are in Queen of the Night territory, with not just individual high notes but lengthy passages that require the singer to be melodic at the very top of her range. This 1994 release by French soprano Natalie Dessay, just hitting the very top of her game, has been a favorite among aficionados of Mozart's vocal music, and its reissue in Virgin Classics' budget line gives other listeners a chance to try it out. For sheer agility in the top register, it's hard to beat. Dessay not only hits the multiple examples of the E two octaves plus above middle C, she sounds good doing so, and she makes real music as the tune bounces around a few steps below that.

The Black Eyed Peas - Elephunk
EAC+LOG+CUE | FLAC: 426 MB | Full Artwork | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: Interscope # B0002854-02 | Country/Year: US 2004, 2003
Genre: Hip Hop, Pop | Style: RnB/Swing, Pop Rap, Conscious

Although nominally a rap group, Black Eyed Peas call upon so many forms of songwriting and production that slotting them into hip-hop is like slotting Prince into R&B – technically true, but very limiting. Elephunk, the group's third LP (and the first to feature Fergie), doesn't have top-notch rapping, but as driven by frontman Will.I.Am, it does possess some of the most boundary-pushing productions in contemporary, (mostly) uncommercial hip-hop, right up at the level occupied by Common and OutKast….

Jimmy Smith - Eight Classic Albums [4CD BoxSet] (2011) {Real Gone Jazz}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 1.41 Gb | MP3 @320 -> 715 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (jpg) -> 133 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2011 Real Gone Jazz | RGJCD257
Jazz / Soul Jazz / Hard Bop / Hammond B-3

Playing piano-style single-note lines on his Hammond B-3 organ, Jimmy Smith revolutionized the use of the instrument in a jazz combo setting in the mid-'50s and early '60s with his recordings for Blue Note Records, creating the template and setting the stage for what became known as soul-jazz. This four-disc box combines eight of his 1950s LPs for Blue Note, including A New Sound, a New Star, Vol. 1 (1956), A New Sound, a New Star, Vol. 2 (1956), The Incredible Jimmy Smith at the Organ, Vol. 3 (1956), At Club Baby Grand, Vol. 1 (1956), At Club Baby Grand, Vol. 2 (1956), The Sounds of Jimmy Smith (1957), A Date with Jimmy Smith, Vol. 1 (1957), and A Date with Jimmy Smith, Vol. 2 (1957).

Patrick's first solo album was the visionary “i” (a.k.a. “The Story of i” ) which was released in 1976 by Atlantic Records and won the highest place in the Polls which awarded him the very prestigious “Best Keyboard Album of the Year”, by Keyboard Magazine. That same year, Patrick also won the 1st place in that Poll, with the coveted title of “Best New Talent “. The very accomplished musicians Patrick chose to work and play with on his album were Jeff Berlin, (bass), Alphonse Mouzon (drums), Ray Gomez (guitar), Andy Newmark (drums), as well as 16 of the top Brazilian percussionists, having recorded the original tracks with them in Rio-de Janeiro at the beginning of 1975.

PROTECTOR’s comeback full album seems nothing less than their previous releases if not even more accomplished, in an equation of faithfulness to the old school Thrash on one hand and on the other one, the musical maturity acquired throughout a veteran career dating from the late 80s –the Thrash Metal’s golden era…

On previous releases, Natalie Dessay has established herself as perhaps the leading coloratura soprano of the day. Consider, for example, her artistry on the 1998 Lakmé. From the sensational fireworks heard in The Magic Flute's "Queen of the Night" arias that open and close this stimulating disc, her venture into the Mozart repertory is a resounding success. Dessay's elaborate embellishments in the arias from some of Mozart's little-known earlier works are as breathtaking–the high-flying aria from Ascanio in Alba leaves one begging for more. But roles like Pamina in The Magic Flute and Kostanze in The Abduction from the Seraglio are more properly the province of lyric sopranos, and often one feels the need for a voice with more expansive depth. Dessay nicely captures the tenderness in her affecting "Ach, ich fühl" lines, but Kostanze's "Martern aller Arten" would benefit from a juicier mid- and lower range. But the coloratura arias alone are worth hearing for their thrilling vocalism. –Dan Davis