JEFF BECK - Original Album Classics (2008) 5xCD / FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

The 2008 box set Original Album Classics rounds up Jeff Beck's first five albums after the departure of Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood: Rough & Ready, Blow by Blow, Jeff Beck Group, Wired, Jeff Beck with the Jan Hammer Group Live. Each album is presented as a paper-sleeve mini-LP, making this a handsome, affordable way to get the bulk of Beck's '70s catalog.  by Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Rough And Ready (1971)

1 Got The Feeling

Written-By – Jeff Beck

2 Situation

Written-By – Jeff Beck

3 Short Business

Written-By – Jeff Beck

4 Max's Tune

Written-By – M. Middleton

5 I've Been Used

Written-By – Jeff Beck

6 New Ways / Train Train

Written-By – Jeff Beck

7 Jody

Written-By – B. Short, J. Beck

Jeff Beck Group (1972)

1 Ice Cream Cakes

Written-By – J. Beck

2 Glad All Over

Written-By – A. Schroeder, J. Beck, R. Bennett, S. Tepper

3 Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You

Written-By – B. Dylan

4 Sugar Cane

Written-By – J. Beck, S. Cropper

5 I Can't Give Back The Love I Feel For You

Written-By – B. Holland, N. Ashford, V. Simpson

6 Going Down

Written-By – Don Nix

7 I Got To Have A Song

Written-By – D. Hunter, Lula Hardaway, Paul Riser, S. Wonder

8 Highways

Written-By – J. Beck

9 Definitely Maybe

Written-By – J. Beck

Blow By Blow (1975)

1 You Know What I Mean

2 She's A Woman

3 Constipated Duck

4 Air Blower

5 Scatterbrain

6 Cause We've Ended As Lovers

7 Thelonius

8 Freeway Jam

9 Diamond Dust

Wired (1976)

1 Led Boots

Bass – Wilbur Bascomb

Clavinet – Max Middleton

Drums – Narada Michael Walden

Guitar – Jeff Beck

Synthesizer – Jan Hammer

Written-By – Max Middleton

2 Come Dancing

Bass – Wilbur Bascomb

Clavinet – Max Middleton

Drums – Ed Green*, Narada Michael Walden

Guitar – Jeff Beck

Synthesizer – Jan Hammer

Written-By – Narada Michael Walden

3 Goodbye Pork Pie Hat

Bass – Wilbur Bascomb

Drums – Richard Bailey

Electric Piano [Fender Rhodes] – Max Middleton

Guitar – Jeff Beck

Written-By – Charlie Mingus

4 Head For Backstage Pass

Bass – Wilbur Bascomb

Clavinet – Max Middleton

Drums – Richard Bailey

Guitar – Jeff Beck

Written-By – Andy Clark, Wilbur Bascomb

5 Blue Wind

Drums, Synthesizer – Jan Hammer

Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar – Jeff Beck

Written-By – Jan Hammer

6 Sophie

Bass – Wilbur Bascomb

Clavinet, Electric Piano [Fender Rhodes] – Max Middleton

Drums – Narada Michael Walden

Guitar – Jeff Beck

Written-By – Narada Michael Walden

7 Play With Me

Bass – Wilbur Bascomb

Clavinet – Max Middleton

Guitar – Jeff Beck

Synthesizer – Jan Hammer

Written-By – Narada Michael Walden

8 Love Is Green

Acoustic Guitar – Jeff Beck

Bass – Wilbur Bascomb

Piano – Narada Michael Walden

Written-By – Narada Michael Walden

Jeff Beck With The Jan Hammer Group Live (1977)

1 Freeway Jam

2 Earth (Still Our Only Home)

Lead Vocals – Jan Hammer

3 She's A Woman

Rhythm Guitar, Harmony Vocals – Fernando Saunders

4 Full Moon Boogie

Lead Vocals – Tony Smith 

5 Darkness / Earth In Search Of A Sun

Synthesizer [String] – Steve Kindler

6 Scatterbrain

7 Blue Wind

Rhythm Guitar – Steve Kindler

Credits:

Bass – Clive Chaman (tracks: CD1, CD2), Fernando Saunders (tracks: CD5), Phil Chen (tracks: CD3)

Drums – Cozy Powell (tracks: CD1, CD2), Tony Smith (tracks: CD5)

Drums, Percussion – Richard Bailey (tracks: CD3)

Guitar [Guitars] – Jeff Beck (tracks: CD2, CD3)

Guitar, Effects [Special] – Jeff Beck (tracks: CD5)

Keyboards – Max Middleton (tracks: CD3)

Piano – Max Middleton (tracks: CD1, CD2)

Synthesizer [Moog, Oberheim, Freeman], Electric Piano, Timbales – Jan Hammer (tracks: CD5)

Violin – Steve Kindler (tracks: CD5)

Vocals – Bobby Tench (tracks: CD1, CD2)

JEFF BECK - Original Album Classics (2010) 5xCD / FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

There And Back (1980)
1 Star Cycle
Guitar – Jeff Beck
Keyboards, Drums – Jan Hammer
2 Too Much To Lose
Drums – Simon Phillips
Guitar – Jeff Beck
Keyboards – Jan Hammer
3 You Never Know
Drums – Simon Phillips
Guitar – Jeff Beck
Keyboards – Jan Hammer
4 The Pump
Bass – Mo Foster
Drums – Simon Phillips
Guitar – Jeff Beck
Keyboards – Tony Hymas
5 El Becko
Bass – Mo Foster
Drums – Simon Phillips
Guitar – Jeff Beck
Keyboards – Tony Hymas
6 The Golden Road
Bass – Mo Foster
Drums – Simon Phillips
Guitar – Jeff Beck
Keyboards – Tony Hymas
7 Space Boogie
Bass – Mo Foster
Drums – Simon Phillips
Guitar – Jeff Beck
Keyboards – Tony Hymas
8 The Final Peace
Guitar – Jeff Beck
Keyboards – Tony Hymas
Flash (1985)
1 Ambitious
Producer – Nile Rodgers
Vocals – Jimmy Hall
2 Gets Us All In The End
Producer – Arthur Baker
Vocals – Jimmy Hall
3 Escape
Producer – Jeff Beck, Nile Rodgers
Programmed By [Fairlight] – Jan Hammer
4 People Get Ready
Producer – Jeff Beck
Vocals – Rod Stewart
5 Stop, Look And Listen
Producer – Nile Rodgers
Vocals – Jimmy Hall
6 Get Workin'
Producer – Nile Rodgers
Vocals – Jeff Beck
7 Ecstasy
Producer – Arthur Baker
Vocals – Jimmy Hall
8 Night After Night
Producer – Nile Rodgers
Vocals – Jeff Beck
9 You Know, We Know
Producer – Jeff Beck, Tony Hymas
10 Nighthawks
11 Back On The Streets
Jeff Beck's Guitar Shop (1989)
1 Guitar Shop
2 Savoy
3 Behind The Veil
4 Big Block
5 Where Were You
6 Stand On It
7 A Day In The House
8 Two Rivers
9 Sling Shot
Who Else! (1999)
1 What Mama Said
2 Psycho Sam
3 Brush With The Blues
4 Blast From The East
5 Space For The Papa
6 Angel (Footsteps)
7 Thx138
8 Hip-Notica
9 Even Odds
10 Declan
11 Another Place
You Had It Coming (2001)
1 Earthquake
2 Roy's Toy
3 Dirty Mind
4 Rollin' And Tumblin'
5 Nadia
6 Loose Cannon
7 Rosebud
8 Left Hook
9 Blackbird
10 Suspension
Credits:
Backing Vocals – Curtis King (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), David Simms (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), David Spinner (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), Frank Simms (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), George Simms (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), Jimmy Hall (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), Tina B (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11)
Drums, Percussion – Terry Bozzio (tracks: 3-1 to 3-9)
Guitar – Jeff Beck
Keyboards, Synthesizer – Tony Hymas (tracks: 3-1 to 3-9)
Musician – Arthur Baker (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), Barry De Souza (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), Carmine Appice (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), Curly Smith (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), Doug Wimbish (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), Duane Hitchings (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), Jan Hammer (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), Jay Burnett (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), Jimmy Bralower (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), Nile Rodgers (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), Richard Scher (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), Rob Sabino (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11), Tony Hymas (tracks: 2-1 to 2-11)

THE DOORS - Legacy : The Absolute Best (1983-2003) 2CD / RM / FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Truth be told, most casual Doors fans only need a well-assembled single-disc collection, containing all the hits and radio staples. Since that doesn't exist -- Rhino's 2001 collection The Very Best of the Doors missed too many key songs to suit the bill -- they'll have to settle for the comprehensive 2003 Rhino compilation Legacy: The Absolute Best, a double-disc set that replaces the previous double-disc Doors comp, the 1985 set The Best of the Doors. That collection contained 19 tracks, the number of songs that are on the first disc of this exhaustive 34-track overview. Every one of the tunes from The Best of the Doors is on Legacy, but not in the same order, since the songs on this compilation are put in roughly chronological order. Legacy also tries to give equal weight to each of the Doors albums, pulling anywhere from four to eight tracks from all the studio albums, adding "Gloria" from Alive, She Cried and a previously unissued "Celebration of the Lizard" to the end of the record. This winds up giving a thorough overview of the band's peak, whether it's on the familiar hits or on strong album cuts like "My Eyes Have Seen You" or "The Changeling." There are a couple of omissions -- most notably "Love Street" and "Summer's Almost Gone" from Waiting for the Sun and also "Ship of Fools" and "Land Ho!" from Morrison Hotel -- but overall, this draws as complete a picture as possible. It still may be a little bit much for those who just want the hits (they're all here, plus a whole lot more), but there's little question that Legacy is the best Doors compilation yet assembled. by Stephen Thomas Erlewine  
Tracklist 1:
1 Break On Through (To The Other Side) 2:29
2 Back Door Man 3:34
3 Light My Fire 7:08
4 Twentieth Century Fox 2:33
5 The Crystal Ship 2:34
6 Alabama Song (Whisky Bar) 3:19
7 Soul Kitchen 3:35
8 The End 11:46
9 Love Me Two Times 3:16
10 People Are Strange 2:12
11 When The Music's Over 11:02
12 My Eyes Have Seen You 2:29
13 Moonlight Drive 3:04
14 Strange Days 3:09
15 Hello, I Love You 2:16
16 The Unknown Soldier 3:25
17 Spanish Caravan 3:01
18 Five To One 4:27
19 Not To Touch The Earth 3:54
Tracklist 2:
1 Touch Me 3:12
2 Wild Child 2:38
3 Tell All The People 3:21
4 Wishful Sinful 2:58
5 Roadhouse Blues 4:04
6 Waiting For The Sun 4:00
7 You Make Me Real 2:53
8 Peace Frog 2:58
9 Love Her Madly 3:18
10 L.A. Woman 7:51
11 Riders On The Storm 7:10
12 The Wasp (Texas Radio And The Big Beat) 4:15
13 The Changeling 4:21
14 Gloria 6:18
15 Celebration Of The Lizard 17:01
Notas
Original album sources:
Tracks 1.01 to 1.08: from The Doors
Tracks 1.09 to 1.14: from Strange Days
Tracks 1.15 to 1.19: from Waiting For The Sun
Tracks 2.01 to 2.04: from The Soft Parade
Tracks 2.05 to 2.08: from Morrison Hotel
Tracks 2.09 to 2.13: from L.A. Woman
Track 2.14: from Alive, She Cried
Track 2.15: previously unissued

JOHN MCLAUGHLIN / CARLOS SANTANA - Love Devotion Surrender (1973) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Love Devotion Surrender is an album released in 1973 by guitarists Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin, with the backing of their respective bands, Santana and The Mahavishnu Orchestra. The album was inspired by the teachings of Sri Chinmoy and intended as a tribute to John Coltrane. It contains two Coltrane compositions, two McLaughlin songs, and a traditional gospel song arranged by Santana and McLaughlin. It was certified Gold in 1973. In 2003, Love Devotion Surrender was released on CD with alternative versions as bonus tracks.

Both men were recent disciples of the guru Sri Chinmoy, and the title of the album echoes basic concepts of Chinmoy's philosophy, which focused on "love, devotion and surrender." Sri Chinmoy spoke about the album and the concept of surrender:

 Unfortunately, in the West surrender is misunderstood. We feel that if we surrender to someone, he will then lord it over us....But from the spiritual point of view...when the finite enters in the Infinite, it becomes the Infinite all at once. When a tiny drop enters into the ocean, we cannot trace the drop. It becomes the mighty ocean.

For both men the album came at a transitional moment spiritually and musically: Love Devotion Surrender was a "very public pursuit of their spiritual selves." Carlos Santana was moving from rock toward jazz and fusion, experiencing a "spiritual awakening," while McLaughlin was about to experience the break-up of the Mahavishnu Orchestra after being criticized by other band members. Santana had been a fan of McLaughlin, and McLaughlin had introduced Santana to Sri Chinmoy in 1971, at which time the guru bestowed the name "Devadip" on him, and the two had started playing and recording together in 1972. According to his biographer Marc Shapiro, Santana had much to learn from McLaughlin: "He would sit for hours, enthralled at the new ways to play that McLaughlin was teaching him," and his new spirituality had its effect on the music: "the feeling was that Carlos's newfound faith was present in every groove.

A hopelessly misunderstood record in its time by Santana fans -- they were still reeling from the radical direction shift toward jazz on Caravanserai and praying it was an aberration -- it was greeted by Santana devotees with hostility, contrasted with kindness from major-league critics like Robert Palmer. To hear this recording in the context of not only Carlos Santana's development as a guitarist, but as the logical extension of the music of John Coltrane and Miles Davis influencing rock musicians -- McLaughlin, of course, was a former Davis sideman -- this extension makes perfect sense in the post-Sonic Youth, post-rock era. With the exception of Coltrane's "Naima" and McLaughlin's "Meditation," this album consists of merely three extended guitar jams played on the spiritual ecstasy tip -- both men were devotees of guru Shri Chinmoy at the time. The assembled band included members of Santana's band and the Mahavishnu Orchestra in Michael Shrieve, Billy Cobham, Doug Rauch, Armando Peraza, Jan Hammer (playing drums!), and Don Alias. But it is the presence of the revolutionary jazz organist Larry Young -- a colleague of McLaughlin's in Tony Williams' Lifetime band -- that makes the entire project gel. He stands as the great communicator harmonically between the two very different guitarists whose ideas contrasted enough to complement one another in the context of Young's aggressive approach to keep the entire proceeding in the air. In the acknowledgement section of Coltrane's "A Love Supreme," which opens the album, Young creates a channel between Santana's riotous, transcendent, melodic runs and McLaughlin's rapid-fire machine-gun riffing. Young' double-handed striated chord voicings offered enough for both men to chew on, leaving free-ranging territory for percussive effects to drive the tracks from underneath. Check "Let Us Go Into the House of the Lord," which was musically inspired by Bobby Womack's "Breezing" and dynamically foreshadowed by Pharoah Sanders' read of it, or the insanely knotty yet intervallically transcendent "The Life Divine," for the manner in which Young's organ actually speaks both languages simultaneously. Young is the person who makes the room for the deep spirituality inherent in these sessions to be grasped for what it is: the interplay of two men who were not merely paying tribute to Coltrane, but trying to take his ideas about going beyond the realm of Western music to communicate with the language of the heart as it united with the cosmos. After three decades, Love Devotion Surrender still sounds completely radical and stunningly, movingly beautiful.

Quick! Name an album on which John McLaughlin plays piano and Jan Hammer plays drums. Give up? The answer: the much loved but often maligned 1973 collaboration between Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin, Love, Devotion and Surrender. (At this time John was still MAHAVISHNU and Carlos was not quite yet DEVADIP.) Now if anyone out there in musicland can determine on which cuts John McLaughlin played the piano and Hammer played the drums - you win a prize! 

In 1973, Carlos Santana had become mesmerized by the music of the Mahavishnu Orchestra. His interest became so strong that he literally followed the band on tour across America. He and McLaughlin became friendly. One night John McLaughlin had a dream that the two should record an album together. He took that dream to Clive Davis, the head of Columbia Records, and Love, Devotion and Surrender was born.

LDS delivers some of the hottest playing you are ever going to hear. John McLaughlin and Carlos Santana play their respective butts off, especially on the inspirational "Let Us Go Into The House Of The Lord". The rapid-fire machine gun bursts and call and responses make for an electric guitar Nirvana. Other musicians assembled for the recording included Santana compatriots Armando Peraza, Don Alias, Doug Rauch and Mike Shrieve. John McLaughlin brought along Jan Hammer, Billy Cobham and the legendary organist Larry Young. Imagine a Latin Mahavishnu Orchestra! 

At the time of this recording’s release, the patience and reverence afforded gurus was waning. This could help explain the relatively poor sales of Love, Devotion and Surrender relative to expectations. After all a smiling Sri Chinmoy, in all of his splendid grandeur, was pictured on the album cover. It may also help explain the many negative reviews. In hindsight, you will probably find that most of these reviews came from Santana fans that just couldn’t figure out what was going on with their hero. 

Despite all outward appearances, the fact of the matter was that this album pointed much more in the direction of John Coltrane than it did any guru or religious movement. Santana is, like McLaughlin, a devoted Coltrane admirer. McLaughlin and Santana even make the effort of trying to pull off “A Love Supreme,” and it works very well. (Even the vocals are effective). An acoustic treatment of “Naima” does the master proud, too. The other players are strong on all tunes. Cobham, in particular, is a powerhouse. 

In recent years, Love, Devotion and Surrender has begun receiving the praise it so richly deserves. (Bill Laswell has even released a well-received remix.) LDS remains a milestone in the history of fusion music. We can only hope that McLaughlin and Santana will find an opportunity to record together again soon, something both men have hinted at.

Tracklist:

1. A Love Supreme (7:48)

2. Naima (3:09)

3. The Life Devine (9:30)

4. Let's Go Into The House of the Lord (15:45)

5. Meditation (2:45)

Total time - 38:57

Line-up / Musicians

- Carlos Santana / guitars, vocals

- John McLaughlin / Guitar, piano

- Larry Young / organ

- Doug Rauch / bass

- Billy Cobham / drums

- Don Alias / drums

- Jan Hammer / drums

- Mike Shrieve / drums

- Armando Peraza / Congas, Bongos

JAMES GANG - Yer' Album (1969-2010) RM / SHM-CD / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The James Gang's debut LP, Yer' Album, was very much a first record and very much a record of its time. The heavy rock scene of the period was given to extensive jamming, and four tracks ran more than six minutes each. The group had written some material, but they were still something of a cover band, and the disc included their extended workouts on Buffalo Springfield's "Bluebird" and the Yardbirds' "Lost Woman," the latter a nine-minute version complete with lengthy guitar, bass, and drum solos. But in addition to the blues rock there were also touches of pop and progressive rock, mostly from Walsh who displayed a nascent sense of melody, not to mention some of the taste for being a cutup that he would display in his solo career. Walsh's "Take a Look Around" must have made an impression on Pete Townshend during the period before the album's release when the James Gang was opening for the Who since Townshend borrowed it for the music he was writing for the abortive Lifehouse follow-up to Tommy. If "Wrapcity (i.e., Rhapsody) in English," a minute-long piano and strings interlude, seems incongruous in retrospect, recall that this was an eclectic era. But the otherwise promising "Fred," which followed, broke down into a pedestrian jazz routine, suggesting that the band was trying to cram too many influences onto one record and sometimes into one song. Nevertheless, they were talented improvisers, as the open-ended album closer, Jerry Ragavoy and Mort Shuman's "Stop," made clear. After ten minutes, Szymczyk faded the track out, but Walsh was still going strong. Yer' Album contained much to suggest that the James Gang, in particular its guitarist, had a great future, even if it was more an album of performances than compositions. by William Ruhlmann  
Tracklist:
1 Tuning Part One (Introduction) 0:39
Written-By – B. DeCoteaux, B. Szymczyk, J. Fox
2 Take A Look Around 6:20
Written-By – Joe Walsh
3 Funk #48 2:47
Written-By – Jim Fox, Joe Walsh, Tom Kriss
4 Bluebird 6:01
Written-By – Stephen Stills
5 Lost Woman 9:06
Written-By – C. Dreja, J. Beck, J. McCarty, K. Relf, P. Samwell-Smith
6 Stone Rap 0:59
Written-By – B. Szymczyk, J. Fox, J. Walsh, T. Kriss
7 Collage 4:03
Written-By – J. Walsh, P. Cullie
8 I Don't Have The Time 2:50
Written-By – Jim Fox, J. Walsh
9 Wrapcity In English 0:57
Written-By – J. Walsh
10 Fred 4:11
Written-By – J. Walsh
11 Stop 12:00
Written-By – J. Ragovoy, Mort Shuman
Credits:
Arranged By – Bill Szymczyk, The James Gang
Arranged By [Strings] – Bert "Super Chart" De Coteaux
Bass – Tom Kriss
Choir – The Dunn Chorus
Drums – Jim Fox
Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals – Joe Walsh

JAMES GANG - Rides Again (1970-2009) RM / SHM-CD / APE (image+.cue), lossless

With their second album Rides Again, the James Gang came into their own. Under the direction of guitarist Joe Walsh, the group -- now featuring bassist Dale Peters -- began incorporating keyboards into their hard rock, which helped open up their musical horizons. For much of the first side of Rides Again, the group tear through a bunch of boogie numbers, most notably the heavy groove of "Funk #49." On the second side, the James Gang departs from their trademark sound, adding keyboard flourishes and elements of country-rock to their hard rock. Walsh's songwriting had improved, giving the band solid support for their stylistic experiments. What ties the two sides of the record together is the strength of the band's musicianship, which burns brightly and powerfully on the hardest rockers, as well as on the sensitive ballads. by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Tracklist:
1 Funk #49 3:54
Written-By – Peters, Fox, Walsh
2 Asshtonpark 2:04
Written-By – Peters, Fox, Walsh
3 Woman 4:37
Written-By – Peters, Fox, Walsh
The Bomber (Medley) (5:39)
4.1 Closet Queen
Written-By – Peters, Fox, Walsh
4.2 Bolero
Written-By – Ravel
4.3 Cast Your Fate To The Wind
Written-By – Guaraldi
5 Tend My Garden 5:44
Written-By – Joe Walsh
6 Garden Gate 1:36
Written-By – Joe Walsh
7 There I Go Again 2:50
Written-By – Joe Walsh
8 Thanks 2:20
Written-By – Joe Walsh 
9 Ashes The Rain And I 4:56
Written-By – Dale Peters, Joe Walsh

Credits:

Arranged By – The James Gang
Arranged By [Strings] – Jack Nitzsche (tracks: 9)
Bass – Dale "Bugsley" Peters
Drums, Percussion – Jim Fox
Guitar [Six String] – Dale "Bugsley" Peters (tracks: 9)
Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals – Joe Walsh
Pedal Steel Guitar – Rusty Young (tracks: 6)

JAMES GANG - Thirds (1971-1990) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

The James Gang Rides Again set the stage for the group's third album to propel them to Top Ten, headliner status, but that didn't happen. The band was on its last legs, rent by dissension as Walsh became the focus of attention, and the appropriately titled Thirds reflected the conflict. Among the nine original songs, four were contributed by Walsh, two each by bass player Dale Peters and drummer Jim Fox, and one was a group composition. But it was Walsh's songs that stood out. His "Walk Away," was the first single, and it climbed into the Top 40 in at least one national chart, the group's only 45 to do that well. "Midnight Man," the follow-up single, was another Walsh tune, and it also made the charts. The Fox and Peters compositions were a step down in quality, particularly Peters'. But the problem wasn't just material, it was also musical approach. James Gang Rides Again had emphasized the band's hard rock sound, which was its strong suit. But they had never given up the idea of themselves as an eclectic unit, and Thirds was their most diverse effort yet, with pedal steel guitar, horn and string charts, and backup vocals by the Sweet Inspirations turning up on one track or another. At a time when Walsh was being hailed as a guitar hero to rank with the best rock had to offer, he was not only submerging himself in a group with inferiors, but also not playing much of the kind of lead guitar his supporters were raving about. As a result, though Thirds quickly earned a respectable chart position and eventually went gold, it was not the commercial breakthrough that might have been expected. by William Ruhlmann 
Tracklist:
1 Walk Away 3:32
Written-By – Walsh
2 Yadig? 2:32
Written-By – Peters, Fox, Walsh
3 Things I Could Be 4:18
Written-By – Fox
4 Dreamin' In The Country 2:58
Written-By – Peters
5 It's All The Same 4:10
Written-By – Walsh
6 Midnight Man 3:27
Written-By – Walsh
7 Again 4:03
Written-By – Walsh
8 White Man / Black Man 5:38
Written-By – Peters
9 Live My Life Again 5:24
Written-By – Fox
Gang – Dale Peters, Jim Fox, Joe Walsh

FRANK ZAPPA & THE MODERN OF INVENTION - Freak Out! (1966-1995) RM / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Freak Out! is the debut album by American band The Mothers of Invention, released June 27, 1966 on Verve Records. Often cited as one of rock music's first concept albums, the album is a satirical expression of frontman Frank Zappa's perception of American pop culture. It was also one of the earliest double albums in rock music (although Bob Dylan's Blonde on Blonde preceded it by a week), and the first 2-record debut. In the UK the album was originally released as a single disc.

The album was produced by Tom Wilson, who signed The Mothers, formerly a bar band called the Soul Giants. Zappa said many years later that Wilson signed the group to a record deal in the belief that they were a white blues band. The album features Zappa on vocals and guitar, along with lead vocalist/tambourine player Ray Collins, bass player/vocalist Roy Estrada, drummer/vocalist Jimmy Carl Black and guitar player Elliot Ingber, who would later join Captain Beefheart's Magic Band under the name Winged Eel Fingerling.

The band's original repertoire consisted of rhythm and blues covers; though after Zappa joined the band he encouraged them to play his own original material, and the name was changed to The Mothers. The musical content of Freak Out! ranges from rhythm and blues, doo-wop and standard blues-influenced rock to orchestral arrangements and avant-garde sound collages. Although the album was initially poorly received in the United States, it was a success in Europe. It gained a cult following in America, where it continued to sell in substantial quantities until it was discontinued in the early 1970s.

In 1999, it was honored with the Grammy Hall of Fame Award, and in 2003, Rolling Stone ranked it among the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time." In 2006, The MOFO Project/Object, an audio documentary on the making of the album, was released in honor of its 40th anniversary. This is Official Release #1.

One of the most ambitious debuts in rock history, Freak Out! was a seminal concept album that somehow foreshadowed both art rock and punk at the same time. Its four LP sides deconstruct rock conventions right and left, eventually pushing into territory inspired by avant-garde classical composers. Yet the album is sequenced in an accessibly logical progression; the first half is dedicated to catchy, satirical pop/rock songs that question assumptions about pop music, setting the tone for the radical new directions of the second half. Opening with the nonconformist call to arms "Hungry Freaks, Daddy," Freak Out! quickly posits the Mothers of Invention as the antithesis of teen-idol bands, often with sneering mockeries of the teen-romance songs that had long been rock's commercial stock-in-trade. Despite his genuine emotional alienation and dissatisfaction with pop conventions, though, Frank Zappa was actually a skilled pop composer; even with the raw performances and his stinging guitar work, there's a subtle sophistication apparent in his unorthodox arrangements and tight, unpredictable melodicism. After returning to social criticism on the first song of the second half, the perceptive Watts riot protest "Trouble Every Day," Zappa exchanges pop song structure for experiments with musique concrète, amelodic dissonance, shifting time signatures, and studio effects. It's the first salvo in his career-long project of synthesizing popular and art music, high and low culture; while these pieces can meander, they virtually explode the limits of what can appear on a rock album, and effectively illustrate Freak Out!'s underlying principles: acceptance of differences and free individual expression. Zappa would spend much of his career developing and exploring ideas -- both musical and conceptual -- first put forth here; while his myriad directions often produced more sophisticated work, Freak Out! contains at least the rudiments of almost everything that followed, and few of Zappa's records can match its excitement over its own sense of possibility. by Steve Huey  

"This is the voice of your conscience, baby..." The recording debut of the Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention is a brilliantly wicked counter-strike to the flower power sensibilities prevalent at the time of it's release in 1966. Arguably rock music's first true "concept album," Zappa's aural collage mashes together chunks of psychedelic guitars, outspoken political commentary, cultural satire, and avant-garde musical sensibilities, and then hides it all under cleverly crafted pop melodies. Not diminished in the slightest by the passage of time, Freak Out! remains as vital and relevant today as it was in the 1960's.

Frank Zappa's extraordinary 60+album output is, in essence, one single thematically related piece of music. True Zappaphiles (of which I am one) appreciate all aspects of this remarkable lifetime achievement, but the point of reviews like this are to point out the salient characteristics of individual albums.

Released in 1966, Freak Out! presented itself as the annunciation of a cultural revolution. Much like the Sex Pistols' Never Mind the Bollocks (1977), this was pop music as threat. But its scope goes far beyond this. The album begins with the proto-punk anthem, "Hungry Freaks, Daddy," a raw, blistering electric rave-up that works as well as "Anarchy in the U.K.," and stands up just as well. If this was all that remained of Freak Out!, it would still be a classic, but the album goes much deeper. Zappa works dilligently on perfectly realized pop songs built on cliche's, contrasting them with "reality songs" like "Motherly Love" (a brutal rocker that appeals for groupies to have sex with the band members), "You're Probably Wondering Why I'm Here" (a savage attack on the shallowness of the youth culture likely to consume the album), and most importantly, the strange, enigmatic "Who Are the Brain Police?" (in which people and objects are unreal, manufactured, interchangeable and subject to melting). The overly arranged love songs sit side by side with material that deconstructs them as false representations (particularly the '50s doo-wop parody "Go Cry on Somebody Else's Shoulder."

I'll never complain about 2 LPs on one CD, but the breakup of the two sections does hurt the psychological impact of the album somewhat. Keep in mind that Side 3 of the LP was where Freak Out! began moving the listener into deeper territory, throwing more light upon what had already occured. The sprawling, grungy blues of "More Trouble Every Day" kicks this off, with a savage, biting report of the Watts riots and the media coverage in a racially and economically divided America that has not changed much. Here, we're a million miles from the pop gleen of "Wowie Zowie" and "How Could I Be Such a Fool?" The next step takes us where no "popular" artist had dared step before.

"Help, I'm a Rock" is musical event in stasis, relieved by shock. Everything the album has been so far has mutated into a new form, an "abstract" pop where representations become more difficult to pin down. The "freak" threat now arises full-blown: but what is it? (These are not hippies, friends--but they are the dissafected, the "left behinds" who are rising up to claim a stake in the American dream--and they will transform it in a new image.) An atonal barbershop quartet taunts, "You're safe, mama. You're safe, baby." (Meaning of course, quite the opposite.)

Did Zappa believe this was actually going to happen? Possibly in 1966 he did, but not much longer. The message of Freak Out! is much larger than that--it amounts to nothing less than a demand for complete social/sexual/aesthetic emancipation. His conclusion lies in the side-long epic, "The Return of the Son of the Monster Magnet" Often castigated/dismissed as chaotic noise, close listening will reveal a very controlled hand at work. This is the soundtrack of the awakening of a new individual sensibility. Section 1 ("Ritual Dance of the Child-Killer") is a destruction of the innocence that allows people to accept a prefabricated reality (the "Brain Police"), while the avant-garde Section 2 ("Nullis Prettii") translates "No Commercial Potential," a slogan Zappa wore as his badge of honor.

Now or in 1966, this album is an audacious, vital masterpiece by one of the greatest artists of the century. (And did I forget to mention it's melodic, catchy and funny, too?)For the uninitiated, or the underinitiated, this is the perfect place to start what could be a lifelong dialectic with the most challenging, exciting and rewarding musicians/composers you will ever encounter.

The present-day composer refuses to die! Long live Frank Zappa.

Tracklist:

1. Hungry Freaks, Daddy 3:27

2. I Ain't Got No Heart 2:33

3. Who Are The Brain Police? 3:33

4. Go Cry On Somebody Else's Shoulder 3:39

5. Motherly Love 2:43

6. How Could I Be Such A Fool 2:11

7. Wowie Zowie 2:51

8. You Didn't Try To Call Me 3:16

9. Any Way The Wind Blows 2:54

10. I'm Not Satisfied 2:38

11. You're Probably Wondering Why I'm Here 3:38

12. Trouble Every Day 5:49

13. Help, I'm A Rock 4:43

14. It Can't Happen Here 3:55

15. The Return Of The Son Of Monster Magnet 12:16

The Mothers of Invention:

Frank Zappa: Leader and Musical director

Ray Collins: Lead vocalist, harmonica, tambourine, finger cymbals, bobby pin & tweezers

Jim Black: Drums (also sings in some foreign language)

Roy Estrada: Bass & guitarron; boy soprano

Elliot Ingber: Alternate lead & rhythm guitar with clear white light

SMALL FACES - Small Faces [1966] FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Just when the first-generation British Invasion bands galloped ahead into pop art in 1966, the Small Faces worked a heavy R&B groove on their 1966 debut. That's not to say that this pack of four sharp-suited mods were unaware of the times. If anything, no other British band of the mid-'60s was so keenly tuned into fashion, the four Small Faces capturing the style and sound of dancing pilled-up mods better even than the Who, possibly because the group could carry a groove better than the Who, as this tightly propulsive debut amply illustrates. Like many '60s debuts, The Small Faces is split between covers, songs the label pushed on the band, and originals, some clearly interpolations of songs they'd been covering in clubs. "Come on Children" echoes James Brown's "Think," and "You Need Loving" is based on Willie Dixon's "You Need Love." Later, Led Zeppelin would rework the Small Faces' "You Need Loving" into "Whole Lotta Love," and while it's easy to hear how Steve Marriott's raw-throated howl influenced Robert Plant as much as Marriott's heavy shards of guitar influenced Jimmy Page, what's striking about The Small Faces is that there is very little blues or rock & roll here: it's all hard-charging, driving R&B and soul, the emphasis all on the groove. By stressing the beat, the Small Faces carry themselves over some slight songwriting -- the band's energetic interplay carries them over the rough spots between "It's Too Late," "What'Cha Gonna Do About It," and "Sha La La La Lee," and that concentration even pushes them into trailblazing territory, as on the lean, ominous pulse of "E Too D." Such moments keep The Small Faces sounding fearless and fresh even when by other respects it is very much a record of its time.  by Stephen Thomas Erlewine  
Tracklist :
1 Shake 2:47
Written-By – Cooke
2 Come On Children 4:10
Written-By – Winston, Jones, Lane, Marriot
3 You Better Believe It 2:13
Written-By – Ragovoy, Lynch
4 It's Too Late 2:30
Written-By – Winston, Jones, Lane, Marriot
5 One Night Stand 1:44
Written-By – Lane, Marriot
6 What'Cha Gonna Do About It 1:54
Written-By – Potter, Samwell
7 Sorry She's Mine 2:40
Written-By – Lynch
8 Own Up 1:42
Written-By – Lane, Marriot
9 You Need Loving 3:50
Written-By – Lane, Marriot
10 Don't Stop What You Are Doing 1:50
Written-By – Winston, Jones, Lane, Marriot
11 E Too D 2:54
Written-By – Lane, Marriot
12 Sha La La La Lee  2:49
Written-By – Lynch, Shuman
13 What's A Matter Baby 2:48
Written-By – Otis, Byers
14 I've Got Mine 2:47
Written-By – Winston, Jones, Lane, Marriott
15 Grow Your Own 2:12
Written-By – McLagan, Jones, Lane, Marriott
16 Almost Grown 3:09
Written-By – McLagan, Jones, Lane, Marriott

SMALL FACES - Small Faces [1966] 

[1988] LONDON / FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

O Púbis da Rosa

JANIS JOPLIN - Janis (1962-1970) Sony / 3CD / FLAC

This three-CD box set is the most thorough and valuable retrospective of Janis Joplin's career. Besides including all of her most essential recordings with and without Big Brother & the Holding Company, this 49-song package features quite a few enticing rarities; 18 of the tracks were previously unissued. These include a 1962 home recording of the Joplin original "What Good Can Drinkin' Do," which marked the first time her singing was captured on tape; a pair of acoustic blues tunes from 1965 with backup guitar by future Jefferson Airplane star Jorma Kaukonen, an acoustic demo of "Me and Bobby McGee," a 1970 birthday song for John Lennon, and live performances from her appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1969. The real showstopper is the previously unissued, eight-minute version of "Ball and Chain" from Big Brother's first set at the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival (the cut on the Monterey Pop box set is from their second set). The more forgettable tracks from her solo albums are wisely excised, as are the Big Brother songs which did not feature her vocals. This is the rare multi-disc set of a major artist that manages to cover all the official milestones and present a bounty of worthwhile rarities at the same time. by Richie Unterberger

Track Listing CD 1

1 - What Good Can Drinkin' Do - 2:45

2 - Trouble In Mind - 3:03

3 - Hesitation Blues - 4:05

4 - Easy Rider - 2:24

5 - Coo Coo - 2:06

6 - Down On Me - 2:07

7 - The Last Time - 2:17

8 - All Is Loneliness - 2:20

9 - Call On Me - 3:38

10 - Women Is Losers - 5:08

11 - Intruder - 2:32

12 - Light Is Faster Than Sound - 2:32

13 - Bye, Bye Baby - 2:40

14 - Farewell Song - 4:24

15 - Flower In The Sun - 3:13

16 - Misery 'N - 4:10

17 - Road Block - 6:12

18 - Ball And Chain - 8:08

Track Listing CD 2

1 - Combination Of The Two - 5:52

2 - I Need A Man To Love - 4:53

3 - Piece Of My Heart - 4:28

4 - Turtle Blues - 4:31

5 - Oh, Sweet Mary - 4:16

6 - Catch Me Daddy - 4:56

7 - Summertime - 4:08

8 - Kozmic Blues - 4:24

9 - Try (Just A Little Bit Harder) - 3:58

10 - One Good Man - 4:11

11 - Dear Landlord - 2:33

12 - To Love Somebody - 5:19

13 - As Good As You've Been In This World - 5:27

14 - Little Girl Blue - 3:51

15 - Work Me, Lord - 6:38

16 - Raise Your Hand - 2:18

17 - May Be - 4:07

Track Listing CD 3

1 - Me And Bobby McGee - 4:49

2 - One Night Stand - 3:11

3 - Tell Mama - 5:48

4 - Try (Just A Little Bit Harder) - 8:16

5 - Cry Baby - 4:59

6 - Move Over - 3:42

7 - A Woman Left Lonely - 3:30

8 - Half Moon - 3:54

9 - Happy Birthday, John (Happy Trails) - 1:11

10 - My Baby - 3:46

11 - Mercedes Benz - 2:14

12 - Trust Me - 3:17

13 - Get It While You Can - 3:25

14 - Me And Bobby McGee - 4:30

O Púbis da Rosa 1

O Púbis da Rosa 2

O Púbis da Rosa 3