Cornel Campbell - Money (1983)

Perhaps best known for the series of "Gorgon rock" records he cut with legendary producer Bunny Lee, reggae singer Cornel Campbell was born in Jamaica in 1948. As a teen he recorded his first material for Studio One, cutting a series of ska sides both as a solo artist and as one half of a duo with Alan Martin; from 1964 to 1967 Campbell seemingly disappeared from the music business, finally resurfacing as a member of the short-lived rocksteady harmony trio the Uniques. As the decade ended, he helmed the Eternals, scoring a number of Studio One-generated hits including "Queen of the Minstrels" and "Stars," but in 1971 he again went solo after teaming with Lee, a pairing which spotlighted Campbell's distinctive falsetto to stunning effect.

Despite earning acclaim for a self-titled LP issued on Trojan two years later, in 1975 he shifted from the lovers rock sensibility of recent efforts to the more explicitly Rastafarian approach of records like "Natty Dread in a Greenwich Farm" and "Natural Fact," both of which emerged among his biggest hits to date. Later that year, Campbell and Lee also launched "The Gorgon," a boastful smash which yielded a series of hit sequels.

While 1977's "The Investigator" heralded a successful return to lovers rock, Campbell's commercial clout waned in the years to come, and in 1980 he and Lee parted ways; subsequent pairings with producers including Winston Riley, Niney the Observer, and King Tubby failed to re-create the excitement of past sessions. In 2005, his career experienced a renaissance when he joined the German techno-dub team Rhythm & Sound on their single "King in My Empire." In 2013 he teamed the London-based dub band Soothsayers for the album Nothing Can Stop Us, part of the Strut label's collaborative series Inspiration Information.                

"Money" was released in 1983, produced by Delroy Wright and Junjo Lawes, recorded and mixed in Channel One.

Tracklist:

You're My Lady	3:15
Mister D. J.	3:39
Your Love	3:49
Stranger In Love	4:00
Oh Rastaman	3:26
You Need Sympathy	3:56
Don't Try To Break	3:33
Money	3:05

Cornel Campbell - Money (1983)
(192 kbps, front cover included)

Bunny Striker Lee - The Cool Operator

One of the most influential and prolific producers in reggae history, Bunny "Striker" Lee pioneered the art of the dub — expanding the parameters of studio technology like no Jamaican producer before him, he and his engineeer, the equally-legendary King Tubby, maximized the creative possibilities of each and every rhythm to generate a seemingly endless series of mixes spread across literally thousands of recordings.


Edward O'Sullivan Lee was born in Jamaica on August 23, 1941; he entered the music industry in 1962 via his brother-in-law, the great reggae singer Derrick Morgan, landing a job as a record plugger for Duke Reid's famed Treasure Isle label. By the mid-1960s, Lee was working with Ken Lack's Caltone imprint, producing his first record, Lloyd Jackson and the Groovers' "Listen to the Beat," in 1967. His first significiant hit, Roy Shirley's "Music Field," followed later that year on WIRL, and upon founding his own Lee's label, he reeled off a series of well-received sides including Morgan's "Hold You Jack," Slim Smith's "My Conversation" and Pat Kelly's "Little Boy Blue."
As the decade drew to its close, Lee was among the most successful producers in reggae, and by 1971 he was working side-by-side with engineer King Tubby, who almost singlehandedly invented dub by taking existing master tapes and — after cutting out vocals, bringing up the bass lines and adding and subtracting other instruments — creating new rhythm tracks for sound system DJs to voice over. Later adding delays, fades and phasing to his sonic arsenal, Tubby was already renowned throughout the Jamaican music industry by the time he began collaborating with Lee, but together, the duo produced the finest music of their respective careers — unlike most of his producer peers, Lee recorded his celebrated studio band the Aggrovators with Tubby's remixing skills firmly in mind, crafting deep, dense rhythms strong enough to survive even the most strenuous studio reworking, and together they unleashed some of the most enduring dub versions ever cut. At the peak of his career — essentially the period from 1969 to 1977 — Lee produced thousands of records, forging a labyrinthine discography of vocal sides, DJ records and dub versions, each disc seemingly spun off from another. Among Lee's most influential projects was a 1974 collaboration with singer Johnny Clarke which yielded a series of roots-reggae classics including "None Shall Escape the Judgement" and "Move Out of Babylon"; that same year, he also helmed Owen Grey's smash "Bongo Natty," while the 1975 Cornell Campbell hit "The Gorgon" launched a number of like-minded "Gorgon rock" records. At one time or another, Lee also worked with everyone from Jackie Edwards to Alton Ellis to Ken Boothe, and for all of his experimental instincts, he also possessed a commercial flair equal to any of his contemporaries.

By the early 1980s, however, Tubby was running his own studio and producing his own records, and although they continued to collaborate on occasion, both the quality and quantity of Lee's recordings began to slide; he later purchased producer Joe Gibbs' former Kingston-area studio, making a few half-hearted attempts at working with digital technology but otherwise easing into retirement as the years passed, his place in reggae history assured.

Here we have a compilation with 20 tracks from the vaults of Bunny Lee. Containing hit upon hit & works from some the biggest and also finest names in 1970's reggae. Including Cornell Campbell's "The Gorgon" and U-Roy's "Gorgonwise" flipside. Also the battling 'Straight to Jazzbo Head" from I-Roy and later on Jazzbo's good humoured response "Straight to I-Roy Head". Another highlight is the wonderful "Mr Chatterbox" from The Wailers complete with a DJ intro from the man called Bunny Lee.

Bunny Striker Lee - The Cool Operator
(192 kbps, front cover included)

Cornel Campbell - Natty Dread In A Greenwich Farm (1975)

Born 1948 in Kingston, Jamaica, Cornel Campbell got his start in the early 1960s at Studio One. In 1967 he became a member of short-lived Uniques. By 1969, Cornel had his own group called the Eternals.

Cornel sings in a falsetto style and made his mark as a lovers rock singer (although he did record a string of rasta hits in the mid 70s). He recorded 'Stars' and 'Queen of the Minstrels' at Studio One during the late 60s and moved on to Bunny Lee's studios in 1971. By 1984 their relationship ended and Cornel's career and output slowed considerably.                   

"Natty Dread in A Greenwich Farm" was produced by Bunny Lee, mixed by King Tubby and backed by the Aggrovators.

Tracklist :
Why Did You Leave Me To Cry
I Am Just A Country Boy
Somebody Has Stolen My Girl
King's Heart
I Wonder Why
Lost In A Dream
Duke Of Earl
Natural Facts
The Sun
Girl Of My Dreams
Dance In A Greenwich Farm
Natty Dread In A Greenwich Farm

Cornel Campbell - Natty Dread In A Greenwich Farm (1975)
(192 kbps, cover art included)

Mance Lipscomb - Trouble In Mind

Like Leadbelly and Mississippi John Hurt, the designation as strictly a blues singer dwarfs the musical breadth of Mance Lipscomb.

Born on April 9, 1895 in Navasota, TX, Lipscomb was a sharecropper/tenant farmer all his life who didn't record until 1960, "songster" fits what Lipscomb did best. A proud, yet unboastful man, Lipscomb would point out that he was an educated musician, his ability to play everything from classic blues, ballads, pop songs to spirituals in a multitude of styles and keys being his particular mark of originality.

He appeared at numerous blues and folk festivals throughout the '60s, released several albums on Arhoolie and even one for a major label, Reprise, in 1970. Four years later, Lipscomb retired from the festival circuit and passed away on January 30, 1976 in his hometown of Navasota, TX. He was 81.

With a wide-ranging repertoire of over 90 songs, Lipscomb may have gotten a belated start in recording, but left a remarkable legacy to be enjoyed.        


Tracklist:

Corrina, Corrina
Rock Me Mama
Mama Don't Allow
Get Away Blues
Shine On Harvest Moon
Good As I Am To You
Baby Please Don't Go
Get Away Blues
Trouble In Mind
Going Down Slow
Night Time Is the Right Time
Long Way To Tipperary
So Different Blues
Ella Speed
See You Mama Every Night
Late Hours Blues
Nobody Cares For Me
Shorty George Cut Down


These recordings wer done in 1964 at Mance Lipscomb's home in Navasota, TX.

Mance Lipscomb - Trouble In Mind
(192 kbps, cover art included)

Max Collie's Rhythm Aces - Stomp Off, Let's Go

Trombonist John Maxwell "Max" Collie was born on February 21, 1931, in Australia but relocated to England in 1963. A fine trad player, he has led Dixieland-oriented combos ever since, usually under the name of the Rhythm Aces

He played with several different jazz band before forming his own group Max Collie's Rhythm Aces in February 1966.

They released their first record in 1971 and in 1975 they won a world championship in traditional jazz against 14 North American jazz band.





Tracklist:                           

A1	Stomp Off, Let'S Go	4:32
A2	Chimes Blues	4:58
A3	Doctor Jazz	4:00
A4	Brownskin Mama	2:40
A5	High Society	4:09
B1	Snag It	6:20
B2	Moarie	3:20
B3	Baby Brown	3:00
B4	Cakewalking Babies From Home	6:52

Max Collie's Rhythm Aces -  Stomp Off, Let's Go
(256 kbps, cover art included)

Monty Sunshine's Jazzband - The Glory Of Love

Monty Sunshine (9 April 1928 – 30 November 2010) was an English jazz clarinetist, who is known for his clarinet solo on the track "Petite Fleur", a million seller for the Chris Barber Jazz Band in 1959. Sunshine variously worked with the Eager Beavers, the Crane River Jazz Band, Beryl Bryden, George Melly, Chris Barber, Johnny Parker, Diz Disley and Donegan's Dancing Sushine Band.

Born in Stepney, London, he along with Lonnie Donegan, Jim Bray and Ron Bowden, formed the back line of what was the embryo Chris Barber Band. Ken Colyer was the first trumpet player, with Sunshine on clarinet, and the original 1953 band took the Colyer name until there was a split from Colyer in May 1954. Pat Halcox - who only turned the band down originally as he wanted to carry on his studies - took over the spot, and the band formally adopted the Chris Barber Jazz Band as its title.
The band quickly made an international reputation following their inaugural tour of Denmark, before their professional debut in the United Kingdom. Sunshine stayed with the band for several years, until he left around 1960, to be replaced by Ian Wheeler. He formed his own band, staying true to the original six man line up, whilst Barber expanded his band membership to seven, then eight and finally to eleven.

In January 1963, the British music magazine NME reported that the biggest trad jazz event to be staged in Britain had taken place at Alexandra Palace. The event included George Melly, Diz Disley, Acker Bilk, Chris Barber, Kenny Ball, Ken Colyer, Alex Welsh, Bob Wallis, Bruce Turner, Mick Mulligan and Sunshine.

Sunshine returned to play a reunion concert with the original Chris Barber Band at the Fairfield Halls, Croydon in June 1975. This was well received, and the band reformed once again for an international reunion tour in 1994. Sunshine retired from music around 2001.

Monty Sunshine's discography is extensive, and CDs have been issued of recordings with Colyer and Barber, as well as with his own band.

He died in November 2010, at the age of 82.


Tracklist:

A1	Wolverine Blues	4:45
A2	Yellow Dog Blues	4:13
A3	Sweet Sue	3:30
A4	Bugle Boy March	3:40
A5	Wild Cat Blues	2:59
A6	Margie	2:30
B1	The Glory Of Love	5:28
B2	Put On Your Old Grey Bonnet	2:50
B3	Riverboat Shuffle	4:16
B4	Mood Indigo	3:27
B5	What's The Reason	4:00

        
Monty Sunshine's Jazzband - The Glory Of Love
(256 kbps, cover art included)

Zebra – Live Rock mit Brecht/Weill Songs und Balladen (Amiga, 1987)

 

The band Zebra was established in the early eighties as a follow up to the band "Klinik - Formation" in the GDR. Members were Ekkehard Kind (voc), Uli Ackermann (g), Matthias Nilius (keyboards), Milo Herrmann (sax, fl), Jens Streifling (sax) Willi Reichert (dr) and Achim Gerber (bg). Later Albrecht Neumann (dr), Elmar Schwenke (keyb, ex-Logo), Larry Brödel (voc) and Olaf Mehl (voc) joined the project.

Zebra recorded in 1986 an live LP with rock versions of Brecht/Weill-songs, which was released in 1987.  In this and in the following year the band toured in the UdSSR. The band broke in 1989, Jens Streifling went to West Germany and played later with BAP, and Elmar Schwenke served at the army.

Side 1:
1. Erstens vergeßt nicht ... Ballade vom angenehmen Leben
2. Ballade von der Unzulänglichkeit menschlichen Strebens
3. Ruf aus der Gruft – Vision in Weiß
4. Ballade von der Höllenlili
5. Lied von der harten Nuß

Side 2:
1. Ballade von den Seeräubern
2. Alabama-Song
3. Die Moritat von Mäckie Messer
4. Anstatt-daß-Song
5. Erstens vergeßt nicht ... Kanonensong
6. Song von Mandeley

Zebra - Live Rock mit Brecht/Weill Songs und Balladen (Amiga)
(320 kbps, vinyl rip, front and back cover included)

John Coltrane - Soultrane (1958)

In addition to being bandmates within Miles Davis' mid-'50s quintet, John Coltrane (tenor sax) and Red Garland (piano) head up a session featuring members from a concurrent version of the Red Garland Trio: Paul Chambers (bass) and Art Taylor (drums).

This was the second date to feature the core of this band. A month earlier, several sides were cut that would end up on Coltrane's "Lush Life" album. "Soultrane" offers a sampling of performance styles and settings from Coltrane and crew. As with a majority of his Prestige sessions, there is a breakneck-tempo bop cover (in this case an absolute reworking of Irving Berlin's "Russian Lullaby"), a few smoldering ballads (such as "I Want to Talk About You" and "Theme for Ernie"), as well as a mid-tempo romp ("Good Bait"). Each of these sonic textures displays a different facet of not only the musical kinship between Coltrane and Garland but in the relationship that Coltrane has with the music.

The bop-heavy solos that inform "Good Bait," as well as the "sheets of sound" technique that was named for the fury in Coltrane's solos on the rendition of "Russian Lullaby" found here, contain the same intensity as the more languid and considerate phrasings displayed particularly well on "I Want to Talk About You." As time will reveal, this sort of manic contrast would become a significant attribute of Coltrane's unpredictable performance style. Not indicative of the quality of this set is the observation that, because of the astounding Coltrane solo works that both precede and follow "Soultrane" - most notably "Lush Life" and "Blue Train" - the album has perhaps not been given the exclusive attention it so deserves.  

Tracklist:     

A1	Good Bait	12:26
A2	I Want To Talk About You	11:10
B1	You Say You Care	6:25
B2	Theme For Ernie	5:03
B3	Russian Lullaby	5:42

John Coltrane - Soultrane (1958)
(256 kbps, cover art included)    

Alice Coltrane - World Galaxy (1972)

Alice Coltrane had become a musical world unto herself by the time she issued "World Galaxy", recorded in late 1971. With jazz-rock fusion taking over the mainstream and the terminal avant-garde heading over to Europe, Coltrane stubbornly forged an insistent, ever-evolving brand of spiritual jazz that bore her own signature as much as it did her late husband's influence.

On the two days in November when "World Galaxy" was recorded, Coltrane chose drummer Ben Riley, bassist Reggie Workman, violinist Leroy Jenkins, saxophonist Frank Lowe, and timpanist Elayne Jones in addition to a string orchestra of 16 to help her realize her latest vision. Coltrane herself plays piano, harp, and organ on this date, sometimes within a single track, as she does on her glorious post-modal reworking of "My Favorite Things." This was a gutsy move, considering it was one of John Coltrane's signature tunes, but Alice has it firmly in hand as she moves from organ to harp to piano and back, turning the melody inside out wide enough for the strings to whip up an atmospheric texture that simultaneously evokes heaven and hell and skewers the prissy nature of the tune in favor of bent polyharmonics that allow the entire world of sound inside to play. The jazz modalism Coltrane presents on "Galaxy Around Olodumare" is quickly undone by Lowe in his solo and reconstructed into polyphony by the string section; it's remarkable. The harp work on "Galaxy in Turiya" (Alice's religious name) is among her most beautiful, creating her own wash of color and dynamic for the strings to fall like water from the sky into her mix. As colors shift and change, the rhythm section responds, and focuses them in the prism of Coltrane's textured harpistry. The album closes with another John Coltrane signature, "A Love Supreme," here given an out of this world treatment by the band with Jenkins playing full force through the middle of both channels.

There is a narration by Coltrane's guru inside it, a poem really, spoken by the great guru Satchidananda, which no doubt would have moved John Coltrane, but the real news is Alice's killer, funky breakbeat organ solo that covers the tune top to bottom in blues, in stark contrast to Jenkins' improvisation. This set may take some getting used to for some, but it's easily one of the strongest records Alice Coltrane ever released, and one of the finest moments in jazz from the early '70s.

Tracklist:

My Favorite Things	6:22
Galaxy Around Olodumare	4:15
Galaxy In Turiya	9:55
Galaxy In Satchidananda	10:25
A Love Supreme	9:58

Alice Coltrane - World Galaxy (1972)
(320 kbps, cover art included)

Gil Evans - New Bottle, Old Wine (1958)

Gil Evans' second album as a leader (a World Pacific set that has been reissued by Blue Note) features his reworking of eight jazz classics including "St. Louis Blues," "Lester Leaps In" and "Struttin' with Some Barbecue."

Evans' charts utilize three trumpets, three trombones, a french horn, a prominent tuba, one reed player, altoist Cannonball Adderley and a four-piece rhythm section. Most memorable is a classic rendition of "King Porter Stomp" featuring the exuberant altoist Cannonball Adderley, who is the main soloist on most of the selections. Other key voices include Evans' piano, guitarist Chuck Wayne and trumpeter Johnny Coles.

This is near-classic music that showed that Gil Evans did not need Miles Davis as a soloist to inspire him to greatness.    

Tracklist:

St Louis Blues	5:26
King Porter Stomp	3:17
Willow Tree	4:40
Struttin' With Some Barbeque	4:30
Lester Leaps In	4:16
'Round About Midnight	4:07
Manteca	5:16
Bird Feathers	6:54

Gil Evans - New Bottle, Old Wine (1958)          
(192 kbps, cover art included)

Chuck Willis - Let´s Jump Tonight! - The Best Of Chuck Willis 1951 - 56

Before he donned his jeweled turban as "The King of the Stroll" and topped the charts with rock & roll hits like "C.C. Rider" and "It's Too Late," Chuck Willis was a bona fide R&B star and one heck of a songwriter to boot. Let's Jump Tonight contains Willis's essential R&B tracks from that period (1951-56), along with some exciting previously unissued tracks.

Willis was a master vocalist who could swing effortlessly from heartrending ballads to rollicking jump blues. His plaintive singing and intuitive phrasing on songs like "My Story," "I Feel So Bad," and "You're Still My Baby" showcase a soulful jukebox balladeer in his prime.

Willis delivers a stirring interpretation of Fats Domino's style on "Going to the River," and on wild tunes like "Rule My House" and "Blow Freddy Jackson" his full-throated shouting is every bit as powerful as the roof-raising sax solos he sets up. Thrilling music from a very influential R&B stylist.


Tracklist:

1		Be Good Or Be Gone
2		Let's Jump Tonight
3		Can't You See
4		It's Too Late Baby
5		I Rule My House
6		My Baby's On My Mind
7		Loud Mouth Lucy
8		My Story
9		Wrong Lake To Catch A Fish
10		Don't Deceive Me (Please Don't Go)
11		My Baby's Coming Home
12		Going To The River
13		I Feel So Bad
14		You're Still My Baby
15		What's Your Name
16		Keep A Knockin'
17		If I Had A Million
18		My Heart's Been Broken Again
19		I Don't Mind If I Do
20		Blow Freddy Jackson
21		If I Were You
22		Lawdy Miss Mary
23		Search My Heart
24		One More Break
25		Bless Her Heart
26		Charged With Cheating

Chuck Willis - Let´s Jump Tonight!
(256 kbps, front cover included)

Merle Haggard & The Strangers - Someday We´ll Look Back - Rest In Peace!

Merle Haggard, an icon of American music, died at his home in California on Wednesday, April 6, 2016. It was the singer, songwriter, and musician’s 79th birthday. In 2008 he battled lung cancer, and was hospitalized in December 2015 with double pneumonia. Haggard returned to the stage soon after, but was sidelined again in February due to continuing health concerns. “A week ago Dad told us he was gonna pass on his birthday,” Merle’s son and lead guitarist, Ben, revealed the day his father died, “and he wasn’t wrong.”

"Someday We'll Look Back" is a terrific early-'70s LP from Merle Haggard, one that showcases not only his exceptional songwriting skills, but also his rich, subtle eclectism. Much of the album is given over to ballads, including both lush, string-laden country-pop crossovers and simple, folky tunes, but there are also hints of twangy Bakersfield honky-tonk and blues, as well as western swing. But what really makes the record so distinctive is the quality of the material. Haggard's original songs - including "Someday We'll Look Back," "Tulare Dust," "I'd Rather Be Gone," "One Sweet Hello" - are uniformly excellent, while he invests considerable emotion into covers of Tommy Collins' "Carolyn," Dallas Frazier and Elizabeth Montgomery's "California Cottonfields," and Roger Miller's "Train of Life." The result is one of the finest albums he ever recorded. 


Tracklist:                           

A1	Someday We'll Look Back
A2	Train Of Life
A3	One Sweet Hello
A4	One Row At A Time
A5	Big Time Annie's Square
A6	I'd Rather Be Gone
B1	California Cottonfields
B2	Carolyn
B3	Tulare Dust
B4	Huntsville
B5	The Only Trouble With Me

          
Merle Haggard & The Strangers - Someday We´ll Look Back   
(256 kbps, cover art included)

Buffy Sainte-Marie - Moonshot (1972)

For her seventh album, 1971's "She Used to Wanna Be a Ballerina", Buffy Sainte-Marie and her producer, Jack Nitzsche, worked in five recording studios in New York, Los Angeles, and London, and came up with a varied collection ranging from her characteristic folk protest to rock featuring Neil Young and Crazy Horse as a backup band.

For her eighth album, 1972's "Moon Shot", she stuck to one city, Nashville, working with producer/arranger/bassist Norbert Putnam and some of the same studio musicians who appeared on Young's then-recently released country-rock LP "Harvest". But as the advance single of Mickey Newbury and Townes Van Zandt's "Mister Can't You See" (which was well on its way to becoming Sainte-Marie's first Top 40 hit when the LP appeared) indicated, "Moon Shot" is, for the most part, a collection of pop/rock arrangements.

Sainte-Marie has not abandoned her primary political concern, the interests of Indians, but when she brings it up on this album, she has softened the message. "He's an Indian Cowboy in the Rodeo" is an upbeat love song that happens to involve Indians. "Native North American Child" is a celebration of Indian culture. And "Moonshot" is a playful reflection on the supposed wonders of Western science and technology that suggests "primitive" peoples actually may be far more advanced. Elsewhere, Sainte-Marie comes up with some appealing pop love songs, such as "You Know How to Turn On Those Lights" and the string-filled ballad "I Wanna Hold Your Hand Forever," worthy additions to the catalog of the songwriter who previously wrote "Until It's Time for You to Go." Sainte-Marie sings them in a gentle voice without the stridency and vibrato she sometimes uses, and Putnam and fellow arrangers Glen Spreen and Bill Pursell create lush settings for them. This is not the Buffy Sainte-Marie of her early political period, but the album demonstrates her versatility, and it works as an appealing pop effort.     

Tracklist:                                                       

A1	Not The Lovin' Kind
A2	You Know How To Turn On Those Lights
A3	I Wanna Hold Your Hand Forever
A4	He's An Indian Cowboy In The Rodeo
A5	Lay It Down
A6	Moonshot
B1	Native North American Child
B2	My Baby Left Me
B3	Sweet Memories
B4	Jeremiah
B5	Mister Can't You See

Buffy Sainte-Marie - Moonshot (1972)
(192 kbps, cover art included)

Joe Bataan - Salsoul

No recording artist has more impeccable street credentials than Joe Bataan, the originator of the New York Latin Soul style that paralleled Latin bugalu and anticipated disco. His musical experience began with street corner doo-wop in the 1950s, and came to include one of the first rap records to hit the charts, 1979's "Rap-O, Clap-O".



In between these milestones, he recorded classic albums like "St. Latin's Day Massacre", a perennial favorite in the salsa market, "Salsoul", which gave the record label its name and helped spark the national explosion of urban dance music, and "Afrofilipino", which included one of the very earliest New York disco hits, an instrumental version of Gil Scott Heron's "The Bottle".

Born Peter Nitollano, of African-American/Filipino parents, Joe Bataan grew up in Spanish Harlem, where he ran with Puerto Rican gangs and absorbed R&B, Afro-Cuban and Afro-Rican musical influences. His music career followed a pair of stints in Coxsackie State Prison. Self taught on the piano, he organized his first band in 1965 and scored his first recording success in 1967 with "Gypsy Woman" on Fania Records, . The tune was a hit with the New York Latin market despite the English lyrics sung by Joe, and exemplified the nascent Latin Soul sound. In early anticipation of the disco formula, "Gypsy Woman" created dance energy by alternating what was fundamentally a pop-soul tune with a break featuring double timed hand claps, . Joe would take this tendency even further on his influential "Salsoul", which fused funk and latin influences in slick yet soulful orchestrations.

"Salsoul" remains influential as a rare groove cult item, but pointed to the future at the time of its release. The LP embodied the artist's highly deliberate and culturally aware musical concept. Bataan theorized the '70s next big thing as a hybrid: an Afro Cuban rhythm section playing Brazilian influenced patterns over orchestral funk. In many ways, his vision was on the money, though most of the money would go to others, and mainstream stardom would elude him. He did, however, get in on the ground floor of the new trend as an early hit maker.

Joe Bataan - Salsoul
(192 kbps, front cover included)

Animals - Live At The Club A Go-Go (1963) - Happy Birthday, Eric Burdon!

Let´s celebrate Eric Burdon´s 75th birthday with an Animals live recording from the Club A Gogo, Newcastle-on-Tyne, December1963           

In 1964, the Animals exploded onto the international music scene when their intense and ominous version of the folk standard "House of the Rising Sun" became a hit single in England and the United States. But in 1963, they were just another group from Newcastle-on-Tyne eager to show audiences they had something special.

"Live at the Club a Go-Go" was recorded during a December 1963 appearance at a nightspot in Newcastle, several months before they cut their debut single, where the group was serving as both opening act and backing band for the great American blues harmonica player Sonny Boy Williamson. This release only features tracks by the Animals without Williamson, but it offers a vivid picture of the band's raw intensity and drive as they charge through a set of blues and rock standards with an energy and passion they rarely matched in the studio. The quality of the audio is flawed but serviceable.


Tracklist:

1	Let It Rock
2	Gotta Find My Baby
3	Bo Diddley
4	Almost Grown
5	Dimples
6	Boom Boom
7	C. Jam Blues

Animals - 1965 - Live At The Club A Go-Go 
(320 kbps, cover art included)          

VA - Wintergarten - Musik des neuen Berliner Wintergartens - Ouvertüre - Finale (Volume 1)

Here´s the first volume of the "Wintergarten Edition", an album with recordings related to the famous Berlin cabaret "Wintergarten". It was released on the occasion of the re-opening of the "Wintergarten" in September 1992. The album features tracks by André Heller, Josephine Baker, Maurice Chevalier, Marlene Dietrich, Friedrich Holländer and others.

The Central Hotel opened in the year 1880 in Friedrichstraße. A special attraction for its guests was the “jardin de plaisanterie” or winter garden. Situated in a magnificent glass hall reminiscent of a crystal palace, it covered some 2,000 sq. m. and was unrivalled in quality and size at the time. The guests at the plush hotel delighted in promenading through the garden with its palm trees, evergreen shrubs and creepers, fountains and grottoes. The first concerts were held the same year.

In 1888 the stage was extended and fitted with the large, semicircular apron later regarded as its hallmark. The appropriate technical facilities were installed to allow for performances by acrobats. Both the management of the theatre and the press refered to the Wintergarten for the first time as a variety theatre.

In the year 1895 the Wintergarten scored a world premiere when the Skladanowsky brothers brought the sensational new art of cinematography to the stage.

In 1900 the management was changed and further conversion work was carried out. The famous starry sky was installed in the auditorium, which has already been fitted with a concert shell, main stage and scene bay. The Wintergarten ranked as the best of the 80-odd variety theatres in Berlin at the turn of the century. No new act, no sensation and no great entertainer could afford to ignore the Wintergarten. The theatre played host to many opera and circus stars, the best-known dancing girls, virtuoso performers, the clowns, Grock and Charlie Rivel, the marvellous juggler, Rastelli, and the incredible escape artist, Houdini. Stars, entertainers and muses of every nationality regarded an engagement at the Wintergarten as an honour.

Variety theatre boomed in the Roaring Twenties and the Wintergarten was in its heyday. During these crazy years full of eccentric fashions, demure divas and talented characters it were Claire Waldoff and Otto Reutter, in particular, who leaved their mark on the Wintergarten.

After 56 years of shows and a final performance on 21 June 1944 the Wintergarten was destroyed in a bombing raid. The most spectacular variety theatre Germany has ever known lied in ruins.

The name "Wintergarten" was taken on by a theatre in Potsdamer Strasse in 1992.

VA - Wintergarten - Musik des neuen Berliner Wintergartens - Ouvertüre - Finale (Volume 1)
(256 kbps, cover art included)

Lindval (Linval) Thompson - Cool Down

The first thing to understand about "Cool Down" is that, like many other early reggae records, it has been issued a number of times by the same labels. Often the same songs are present but in a different order and with different artwork. Not that it's a particularly big deal, but a certain Clocktower LP pressing even credits Thompson as "Lindval," so look out for that if you think it might bother you.

That having been said, this offering will likely not disappoint fans of rocker's reggae. Bunny Lee's "flying cymbal" production dominates the session and consequently the listener might recognize several of these cuts from dub compilations on Blood & Fire. "Black Princess Lady," for example, can be heard in dub form on "Tapper Zukie's In Dub" as "Rush I Some Dub" and it's downright difficult to find a dub record without a version of "Money Money."

Generally speaking, though, this is not a dub record. Only the last song on each side is followed by a dub version. These are straight-ahead rockers with no frills and, depending on the pressing, rather muddy production. It is also worth mentioning that "Money Money" and "Blood Gonna Run," among others, find Robbie Shakespeare at his slippery and infectious best. Serious basslines throughout.   - allmusic.com     

1. Cool Down Your Temper
2. Jah Jah The Conqueror
3. Big Big Girl
4. No Escape
5. Long Long Dreadlocks
6. Dreadlocks Dub
7. Don't Cut Off Your Dreadlocks
8. Black Princess Lady
9. Blood Gonna Run
10. Money Money
11. Don't Trouble Trouble
12. Double Trouble Dub

Lindval Thomspon - Cool Down
(192 kbps, front cover included)

Luiz Bonfa & Antonio Carlos Jobim - Orfeu Negro (Soundtrack, 1959)

"Black Orpheus", the film by Marcel Camus, and its soundtrack, were the signposts by which the world first learned of samba and bossa nova and fell in love with it. Therefore, it is staggering to consider that it took until 2008 for a definitive edition of the soundtrack to be released, one that assembled all the songs and music heard in the film. After all, this is the score that created the partnership of composer Antonio Carlos Jobim and poet Vinicius de Moraes, and introduced the brilliant and influential guitarist Luiz Bonfá. 

The sounds of the various samba schools from the carnival parades are accompanied by the gorgeous instrumental interludes by Bonfá (including the now ubiquitous "Manha De Carnaval," written with poet Antonio Mara), and the songs of de Moraes and Jobim (including "A Felicidade," as sung by Elizeth Cardoso). The songs may be well known now; the music of the favelas, as practiced by the escolas de samba with their agogo bells, atabaques drumming, stomping batacuda solos, and duels, folk line chants, and unusual (even now if one thinks about it) blend of African rhythms, dissonance, and extended harmonics, is still revolutionary today.  

Luiz Bonfa & Antonio Carlos Jobim - Orfeu Negro (Soundtrack, 1959)
(256 kbps, cover art included)

King Tubby‎– King Tubby's "Rastafari Dub" (1974 - 1979)

King Tubby didn't make any bad records in the '70s. Even his less appreciated digital era isn't worthy of the scorn it receives.

"Rastafari Dub" is another classic '70s dub album in the impressive Clock Tower catalog. On this record, King Tubby works his effects magic on the vocals of the era's best singers.

Johnny Clarke's "King of the Arena" opens the album with small tastes of smooth vocals echoed, reverbed, and dropped in to create the thick King Tubby sound. Those who enjoyed Jacob Miller's vocals on "King Tubbys Meets Rockers Uptown" will appreciate Rastafari Dub for its up-front use of the original vocal tracks.

The production is in the finest roots tradition, and only falls short of "King Tubbys Meets Rockers Uptown" because the originals don't have the godlike perfection that Augustus Pablo and Jacob Miller brought.

"Rastafari Dub" is King Tubby at his best, working behind the boards with the best material available to him at the time. The album has no shortcomings other than its former obscurity. The Clock Tower catalog is so deep with talent and gems...

Tracklist:
                           

A1	King Of The Arena Dub	3:16
A2	No Partial Dub	2:33
A3	Crazy Bald Head Dub	3:29
A4	A Living Dub	5:54
A5	Rastafari Dub	3:12
A6	Heartless Dub	3:12
B1	A Yard Dub	3:43
B2	Destroy Dub Style	2:54
B3	Book Of Numbers Dub	3:28
B4	Natty Roots Man Dub	3:53
B5	A Sunny Dub	4:17
B6	Jam Style Dub	3:57

King Tubby‎– King Tubby's "Rastafari Dub" (1974 - 1979)
(192 kbps, cover art included)

João Gilberto‎– O Amor, O Sorriso E A Flor (1960)

"O Amor, o sorriso è a flor" (Love, a Smile, and a Flower) is the second in the trilogy of formative bossa nova albums released by João Gilberto between 1959 and 1961.

The most essential albums recorded by João Gilberto are his first three, "Chega de Saudade" (1959), "O Amor, O Sorriso e a Flor" (1960), and "João Gilberto" (1961). All three remain extremely up-to-date and share in common a superb standard of quality in compositions, arrangements (mostly designed by Tom Jobim), and Gilberto's performances at the guitar and voice. These albums are quite literally the aesthetic and musical blueprints for a genre that would exert an irresistible worldwide influence on popular music.

The second LP recorded by João Gilberto, "O Amor, O Sorriso e a Flor", included the "Samba de Uma Nota Só" ("One Note Samba") by Tom Jobim/Newton Mendonça, which was immediately successful the previous year with the release of the single "Samba de Uma Nota Só" and became a classic of bossa nova. Gilberto also interpreted "Outra Vez" (Jobim), which had been recorded by Dick Farney and Elizete Cardoso with quite different results. It was the first time that Gilberto recorded the other classics, "Só Em Teus Braços" (Jobim), "Se É Tarde, Me Perdoa" (Carlos Lyra/Ronaldo Bôscoli), "Meditação" (Tom Jobim/Newton Mendonça), "Corcovado," "Discussão," and "Outra Vez."                


Tracklist

A1	Samba De Uma Nota Só
A2	Doralice
A3	Só Em Teus Braços
A4	Trevo De 4 Folhas
A5	Se É Tarde Me Perdoa
A6	Um Abraço No Bonfá
B1	Meditação
B2	O Pato
B3	Corcovado
B4	Discussão
B5	Amor Certinho
B6	Outra Vez

João Gilberto‎– O Amor, O Sorriso E A Flor (1960)
(256 kbps, cover art included)

King Tubby, Prince Jammy and Scientist - First, Second And Third Generation Of Dub (1981)

During the 1970s, Tubby's work in the studio gave rise to modern dub music. He had a long string of hit songs, and worked as a producer for some of Jamaica's most popular artists, including Lee Perry, Bunny Lee, Augustus Pablo and Yabby You. In 1973, he began recording vocals to put along the instrumentals. By the later part of the decade though, King Tubby had mostly retired from music, still occasionally recording remixes and tutoring a new generation of artists, including King Jammy and Scientist. In the 1980s, he focused on production for Anthony Red Rose, Sugar Minott and other popular musicians. He was shot and killed by unknown persons, probably in a robbery attempt, in 1989, February 06th.

"First, Second And Third Generation Of Dub" was mixed by King Tubby, Prince Jammy and Scientist at King Tubbys Studio, Waterhouse, Kingstone, Jamaica and released in the UK in 1981.

Tracklist:
01. First Generation - King Tubby
02. Second Generation - Prince Jammy
03. Third Generation - Scientist
04. Tubby's New Fashion - King Tubby
05. Prince Jammy On The Scene - Prince Jammy
06. Scientist At His Best - Scientist
07. Tubb's The Originator - King Tubby
08. Original Stylee - King Tubby,Prince Jammy & Scientist

King Tubby, Prince Jammy and Scientist - First, Second And Third Generation Of Dub (1981)

(192 kbps, cover included)