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C U R T I S
H A R D I N G
ALL THE
REAL MUSIC!
Hard Pass all those trendy-indie
'Best Music' lists that taste like chrome!
These tunes will cross-knit your wits
and flipside your backside!
Shortcut to Music Players:
• BEST ALBUMS: 2021
• COOL SONGS: 2021
• COVER SONGS 2021
• BEST REISSUES: 2021
Alison Krauss + Robert Plant
B E S T
N E W
A L B U M S :
2 0 2 1
BEST ALBUMS 2021
by Tym Stevens
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This music player has songs from the following albums, in the same order.
• Curtis Harding, "If Words Were Flowers"
Psychedelic Soul.
Curtis only gets greater on each album with memorable tunes, a supple range, adventurous arrangements, and a feeling of all limits lifting.
(see also: Black Pumas, Greyhounds, Benjamin Booker)
• The Courettes, "Back In Mono"
Garage Rock and Girl Group.
'You wanted The Shangri-Las if they were also The Sonics and you got it!'... thanks to this Brazilian guitarist and Danish drummer.
(see also: The Crystals, Thee Headcoatees, The Raveonettes)
• Menahan Street Band, "The Exciting Sounds Of Menahan Street Band"
Cinematic Funk.
'Who's the headset flick who's a sex machine to all your dance floor kicks? Damn right.'
(see also: Isaac Hayes, Charles Bradley, Lee Fields)
• Bachelor, "Doomin’ Sun"
Indie Folk.
Semi-supergroup members (Jay Som, Palehound) unwind as a Indie Folk duo with sharp lyrics, warm introspection, canny melodies, and acoustic chops.
(see also: Meat Puppets, Aimee Mann, Hand Habits)
• Fay Hallam, "Modulations"
Groovy Mod.
Like a freshly discovered Library Music album of timeless grooviness, flowing all the get-go into your swingin' Go-Go.
(see also: Alan Hawkshaw, Piero Piccioni, Chris Joss, Shawn Lee)
• Autoramas, "Autointitulado"
Garage Wave.
Like Dick Dale jamming with Devo on Deimos, the Brazil quartet brings us more startlingly distorted Garage Surf with snappy New Wave spasms.
(see also: The Spotnicks, The Rezillos, The B-52's, Polysics)
• Brian Wilson, "At My Piano"
Baroque Pop.
You thought that Brian's harmonies and arrangements for The Beach Boys were sublime enough, but wait till you hear the core beauty of them on acoustic piano.
(see also: George Gershwin, Van Dyke Parks, Paul McCartney)
• The Black Keys, "Delta Kreme"
Bruising Blues.
The Blues is the original spark of Rock'n'Roll, and the fuse is still lit.
(see also: The White Stripes, Gary Clark Jr, Joanna Connor)
• Robert Plant + Alison Krauss, "Raise The Roof"
Alt-Roots.
Following their lauded album "
Raising Sand"
(2007), the troubadours interpret more folk, bluegrass, blues, and N'awlins gems.
(see also: Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazelwood, Isobel Campbell and Mark Lanegan, Gillian Welch and David Rawlins)
• Tristen, "Aquatic Flowers"
Baroque Pop.
Tristen excels at strong pop hooks with sly twists and open-hearted lyrics.
(see also: The New Pornographers, Jesca Hoop, Gabriella Cohen)
• The Limiñanas + Laurent Garnier, "De Pelicula"
Sin-ematic Garage.
An imaginary film noir soundtrack from the grimy Psyche duo and the dance DJ, eerie and edgy and errant.
(see also: Can, Robert Johnson and Punchdrunks, Calibro 35, L’épée)
• Robert Finley, "Sharecropper’s Son"
Rural Blues.
The roots soil is as fertile as ever, and Robert's rich soul and rural pride will regenerate you.
(see also: Muddy Waters, Big Mama Thornton, Albert King, Black Joe Lewis And The Honeybears)
• La Luz, "La Luz"
Baroque Surf.
The pulsing Surf ripples and dreamy Girl Group sighs grow more introspective and psychedelic this time, abetted by production wizard Adrian Younge.
(see also: The Neptunas, Susan And The Surftones, Shantih Shantih, Frankiie)
• La Femme, "Paradigmes"
ModPsycheLoungeRave.
France's coolest band pumps the dream party (and upstairs orgy) with Go-Go pop, gauzy psyche, cooing songbirds, beatnick rap, brash horns, and clang guitars.
(see also: Manfred Hübler And Siegfried Schwab, Casino Music, Air, Pepe Deluxe)
• Joel Culpepper, "Sgt. Culpepper"
Baroque Soul.
From its clever title in, this smart Soul record delivers the real feels with dynamic frills.
(see also: Imani Coppola, Liam Bailey)
• Mike Edison + Guadalupe Plata, "The Devil Can’t Do You No Harm"
Garage-abilly Gospel Noir.
The Rockabilly growler and Spanish Garagers collide in a reverb-soaked recital of hymnals, folklore, and midnight tremelo.
(see also: Link Wray, Tom Waits, The Limiñanas)
• Gary Louris, "Jump For Joy"
Singer Songwriter.
The prime mover of The Jayhawks does a rare solo turn, stripping it down to melodic folk confessionals with occasional electronic textures.
(see also: latter Beatles, America, Wilco)
• Cha Wa, "My People"
New Orleans Funk.
Timeless Funky gumbo to ignite the fiyo in your bayou.
(see also: The Meters, The Wild Tchoupitoulas, The Soul Rebels)
• Nicole Atkins, "Memphis Ice"
Eclectic Soul.
The Rock'n'Soul chameleon revises her acclaimed "
Italian Ice"
(2020) album in new mellow Memphis Soul terms.
(see also: Patsy Cline, Dusty Springfield, Gemma Ray, Hannah Williams)
• El Michels Affair, "Yeti Season"
Eerie Cinematic.
Like a moody Bollywood psychedelic soundtrack with flourishes of Turkish funk and Spaghetti Westerns, groovy and heady.
(see also: Sheila Chandra, Dengue Fever, Ikebe Shakedown, Ghost Funk Orchestra)
• Tash Neal, "Charge It To The Game"
'70s Rock Redux.
The London Souls duo made one brilliant album of timeless Classic Rock
(2015). Now Tash Neal and Chris St. Hilaire are making solo work, with Tash going full Thin Lizzy while Chris pursues Calypso beats and mellow songwriter tunes.
(see also: Thin Lizzy, early Lenny Kravitz)
• Adia Victoria, "A Southern Gothic"
Alt-Roots.
The Flannery O'Connor of Americana music, getting more ambitious and complex amid the atmospheric production of T-Bone Burnett.
(see also: Lucinda Williams, Rhiannon Giddens)
• Micky Dolenz, "Dolenz Sings Nesmith"
Singer Songwriter.
Micky, the heart of The Monkees, gives a full-hearted tribute to the brainy one, covering many of his '70s solo songs. The version of "
Circle Sky" with an Indian orchestra is astounding.
(see also: The Flying Burrito Brothers, Crosby Stills And Nash, Poco)
• St. Vincent, "Daddy’s Home"
Askew Soul.
Our mercurial hero relaxes on the angular art-pop in favor of a warm mid-'70s sultry Soul groove.
(see also: Laura Nyro, Annie Peacock, Rickie Lee Jones, Feist)
• Orquesta Akokán, "16 Rayos"
Cuban Mambo.
The group keeps Cuba's vibrant musical traditions alive with their vital roof-raisers.
(see also: Perez-Prado, Afro Latin Vintage Orchestra, The Souljazz Orchestra)
• Eddie 9V, "Little Black Flies"
Soul Blues.
That wonderful place between Chess and Stax where the blues shouts like sunshine.
(see also: J.B. Lenoir, Eli "Paperboy" Reed, James Hunter Band)
• Caleb Landry Jones, "Gadzooks, Vol. 1"
Art Psyche.
The cracked actor pours out more potent ideas in one song than most do in an album, a sparkling cascade of luminous delirium.
(see also: Syd Barrett, Skip Spence, Julian Cope, Crispin Hellion Glover)
• Cedric Burnside, "I Be Trying"
Gutbucket Blues.
Cedric's roughhewn strummers and tough clangers resonate like a wounded soul grown as tempered as steel.
(see also: R.L. Burnside, Elmore James, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion)
• Aaron Lee Tasjan, "Tasjan! Tasjan! Tasjan!"
Melodic songwriter.
Tasjan is one of those singer-songwriter-showmen and crack melodicists (practically minted from a factory in 1971) who seem like they can do anything, and so far has.
(see also: latter Beatles, early Elton John, Harry Nilsson, Elliott Smith)
• Amythyst Kiah, "Wary + Strange"
Alt-Roots.
Gutpunching the roots industry with her bluegrass protest song "
Black Myself", Kiah returns with wildfire sophistication, a soulful range, and palpable restlessness.
(see also: Odetta, Our Native Daughters, The Carolina Chocolate Drops)
• The Secret Sisters, "Quicksand"
Country.
In this 4-song EP, the Rogers sisters make more suprising leaps forward in song craft and harmonies with two originals, plus covers of The Strokes and Fiona Apple.
(see also: The Everly Brothers, Alison Krauss, I'm With Her)
• St. Paul And The Broken Bones, "The Alien Coast"
Art Soul.
The Alabama Soul outfit leap another light year with this mercurial extravaganza, a textural passion tour by turns moody, brash, jazzy, tough, dreamy, and finally triumphant. Wow!
(see also: Eddie Hinton, Curtis Harding, Nathaniel Rateliff And The Night Sweats)
C O O L
S O N G S :
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All the REAL MUSIC
beyond the box!
Nevermind Gloss Pop, Stepford Idols, Karaoke Choruses ("woh-oo-oh"), Ego Brats, Emo Prats, Plinky Folk, Brittle Bombast, Vegas Country, Smug Thug, Mope Noodling, De-mixed Throb, and Robot-o-Tune schlock! >
Here's the
D R E A M
J U K E B O X !
Boogie with more bounce to the ounce
than a Bounce House!
COOL SONGS 2021
by Tym Stevens
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This jukebox is sequenced into groups of sound, instead of randomly.
All the songs elasticize their genres.
Get your groove on in this sonic order.:
Rockabilly! Surf! Beat! Garage!
Psyche! Classic Rock! Glam! Alt-Roots!
Blues! Soul! Funk! Africana!
World! Riot Grrrl! Alt-Rock! Electro!
Alt-Rap! Alt-Jazz! Cinematic!
RESIST! Happy Holidays!
St. Vincent; Tash Neal;
Adia Victoria; Lera Lynn
13 hours of thinky, wiggly music, featuring the following fine folks in this exact order!:
• Rockabilly! • Jimmy Dale Richardson, Lily Locksmith, Miranda And The Beat, The Honkabillies, and The Courettes.
• Surf / Shindig! • Surf Zombies, Underwater Bosses, Autoramas, Mike Edison + Guadalupe Plata, Lord Huron, Shannon And The Clams, Los Mambo Jambo, Pokey LaFarge, and Las Cafeteras.
The Courettes;
Las Cafeteras; Shadow Show
• Beat / Garage! • The Courettes, Cupid's Carnival, Lindsey Buckingham, The Fratellis, Shadow Show, Triptides, David Menke, The Exbats, The Shadracks, The Tremolo Beer Gut, Ghost Woman, Night Beats, and The Routes.
• Psychedelic / Beatlesque! • Tristen, Groovy Uncle, La Luz, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, Taraka, Mickey Dolenz, La Femme, The Limiñanas, Tele Novella, Crowded House, Martina Topley-Bird, Heartless Bastards, Satellite Jockey, Caleb Landry Jones, Diamond Hands, Aaron Lee Tasjan, and Gary Louris.
La Luz; La Femme;
Martina Topley-Bird; Art d'Ecco
• Classic Rock / Glam! Silver Synthetic, Reigning Sound, Tash Neal, DJ Williams + Tash Neal, Art d'Ecco, The Devils, Liz Phair, Neal Francis, Gloria, Midnight Sister, Liam Kazar, and Weyes Blood.
• Alt-Roots! • Rhiannon Giddens + Francesco Turrisi, Robert Plant + Alison Krauss, Lera Lynn, Adia Victoria, Allison Russell, Joan Armatrading, Bedouine, Nicole Atkins, Kira Skov, The Breeders, The Secret Sisters, Della Mae, Theo Lawrence, Sierra Ferrell, Sharon Van Etten + Lucinda Williams.
Nicole Atkins; Robert Finlay;
Lady Blackbird; Steve Cropper;
Delvon Lamar Organ Trio
• Blues! • Mr. Airplane Man, Buffalo Nichols, Madi Diaz, The Black Keys, Joanna Connor, Cedric Burnside, Avey Grouws Band, Robert Finley, Ghalia Volt, Eddie 9V, and Amythyst Kiah.
• Soul! • Curtis Harding, Izo FitzRoy, Nathaniel Rateliff And The Night Sweats, Ruby Velle And The Soulphonics, Black Pumas, Lake Street Dive, PM Warson, The Secret Sisters, Aaron Frazer, Lady Blackbird, The Buttshakers, Thee Sacred Souls, Anderson East, Ben Pirani, and Steve Cropper.
• Funk / Mutant Disco! • The Bamboos, Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio, The Grease Traps, True Loves, St. Vincent, Redtenbacher's Funkestra, Joel Culpepper, Menahan Street Band, Cha Wa, George Porter Jr and Runnin' Pardners, Orgone, Emma-Jean Thackray, Lake Street Dive, Mndsgn, Cimafunk, Gizelle Smith, Art d'Ecco, Pond, and Khruangbin + Leon Bridges.
Tony Allen; Altin Gün
• Africana! • Bacao Rhythm And Steel Band, Adrian Younge, Femi Kuti, Tony Allen, Joan As Police Woman, Mdou Moctar, Funkwrench Blues + Bombino, and Nahawa Doumbia.
• World! • Orquesta Akokán, Cochemea, Altin Gün, El Michels Affair, and La Femme.
We Are Lady Parts;
Guerilla Toss;
Django Django;
Kae Tempest; K-OS
• Riot Grrrl! • Lady Parts, Sleater-Kinney, Ottis Coeur, LIINES, Mujeres Podridas, KT Tunstall/DeepVally/Peaches, Taraka, Porvenir Oscuro, SASAMI, Deap Vally, Garbage, Du Blonde, Amyl and The Sniffers, Fake Fruit, Pom Poko, Gustaf, and Bachelor.
• Alt-Rock! • Parquet Courts, Fashion Pimps And The Glamazons, White Denim, Habibi, Django Django, Martina Topley-Bird, Spoon, Gabriella Cohen, Deerhoof, Elvis Costello, Jane Weaver, CIVIC, St. Vincent, Guerilla Toss, and Superstate/Graham Coxon.
• Electro! • Working Men's Club, Fatima Al Qadiri, Stats, and Marie Davidson.
• Alt-Rap! • The Bug, Kae Tempest, K-OS, Ty Segall + Denée Segall, The Allergies, She Drew The Gun, Common + Brittany Howard, Ceramic Dog + Marc Ribot, Moor Mother, Slimkid 3, and Flying Lotus.
Ghost Funk Orchestra; Kandle;
The Limiñanas; Elena Satine
• Alt-Jazz! • Esperanza Spalding, Sons Of Kemet, The Lasso, and Terence Blanchard.
• Cinerama / Soundtracks! • Nicholas Britell, Sndtrak, Tommy Guerrero, Menahan Street Band, Ghost Funk Orchestra, St. Paul And The Broken Bones, Gizelle Smith, Gloria, Roy And The Devil's Motorcycle, Kandle, Billie Eilish, The Tremolo Beer Gut, Alan Evans Trio, The Limiñanas, La Femme, Fay Hallam, The Coral, Delaney Davidson + Neil Finn, St. Vincent, Wax Tailor + Dave Gahan, Lera Lynn, Ludwig Goransson, Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Lady Parts, the cast of ENCANTO, Seatbelts + Elena Satine), Sparks + Adam Driver, and Jefferson Airplane
(Marcel Dettmann and Gabriel Mounsey Remix).
Courtney Barnett; Janelle Monáe
• RESIST!! • Stereo Total, John Fogerty, Garbage, Death From Above 1979, The Jack Moves, Mexican Institute Of Sound, Gizelle Smith, Chris Isaak, Courtney Barnett, Tune-Yards, Janelle Monáe, Adrian Younge, Ringo Starr, Angelique Kidjo, Chris St. Hilaire, Monophonics, and Vivien Goldman.
• Happy Holidays! • Joel Paterson, The Pen Friend Club, and Blondie.
C O V E R
S O N G S
2 0 2 1
All the Best
COVER VERSIONS
of the year!
Music is the throughline of the human spirit.
Singing timeless songs in times of uncertainty brings us solace, offers out support, and bonds us in communion.
In (another) year that separated us from each other, sharing songs reaffirmed us as a people, honored our origins, and lit the way for the young.
There were an abundance of cover songs in 2021. Through them, we sought reflection, revelation, and renewal. Here’s a playlist of our mutual journey.
COVER SONGS 2021
by Tym Stevens
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Open direct Spotify playlist
in browser here.
List = Original By / Cover Artist
Songs are sequenced in the chronological order of the Originals.
• 1920s-'50s Covers •
Traditional Hymn /
Rhiannon Giddens + Francesco Turrisi •
Fats Waller /
Archie Shepp •
Cole Porter /
Tony Bennett •
Sammy Fain and Irving Kahal /
Cat Power •
Woody Guthrie /
The Secret Sisters •
Tampa Red /
Ghalia Volt •
Big Joe Williams /
The Black Keys •
Woody Guthrie /
Liz Vice •
Lil’ Son Jackson /
Alabama Slim •
Howlin’ Wolf /
Tony Holiday + Watermelon Slim.
• '60s Covers •
Bob Dylan /
Cha Wa + Alvin Youngblood Hart •
The Chantays /
The C33s •
Henry Mancini /
Messer Chups •
Lou Rawls/Sam Cooke /
Lady Blackbird •
The Pleasure Seekers /
Greg Townson •
Jimmy Reed /
Ronnie Wood + Mick Taylor •
Bob Dylan /
Carolyn Wonderland •
The Beatles /
Scary Pockets •
The Mamas And The Papas /
Omar Apollo •
James Brown /
Jason Isbell And The 400 Unit •
Ray Charles /
PM Warson •
Nina Simone /
Ledisi •
Liz Brady /
Olivia Jean •
Female Species /
La Luz •
Velvet Underground /
Iggy Pop •
The Beach Boys /
Brian Wilson •
Buffalo Springfield /
Dylan LeBlanc •
The Monkees /
Micky Dolenz •
The Monkees /
The Queers •
Albert King /
Harlis Sweetwater •
The Delfonics /
Paul Stanley's Soul Station •
Glen Campbell /
Black Pumas •
Aretha Franklin /
Jennifer Hudson •
Eddie Floyd /
Matt Berninger •
“Sesame Street” theme/Joe Raposo /
Reid Jamieson •
Minnie Riperton /
Bacao Rhythm And Steel Band •
Joni Mitchell /
Chelsea Wolfe •
Bob Dylan /
Bob Corritore •
Bob Dylan /
Eli "Paperboy" Reed •
The Rolling Stones /
Brad Marino •
The Beatles /
Violet Orlandi •
David Bowie /
We Are KING.
Rhiannon Giddens; Black Pumas;
The Coathangers; Angel Olsen
• '70s Covers •
Neil Young /
Kandle •
Paul and Linda McCartney /
Fernando Perdomo •
Badfinger /
Susanna Hoffs + Aimee Mann •
Led Zeppelin /
Dylan LeBlanc •
T-Rex /
The Kills •
Hound Dog Taylor /
GA-20 •
Stevie Wonder /
Patti Smith •
War /
Los Lobos •
The Rolling Stones /
The Band Of Heathens •
Sly And The Family Stone /
Dumpstaphunk •
Gordon Lightfoot /
Le Ren + Buck Meek •
Gordon Lightfoot /
Darling West •
William DeVaughn /
Orgone •
Billy Preston /
A.J. Croce •
Hall And Oates /
Lydia Hol •
Stevie Wonder /
Jon Batiste •
The Runaways /
Wanda Jackson •
Elvis Costello And The Attractions /
Juanes •
Iggy Pop /
The Lovely Eggs •
The Jam /
Las Lenguas Muertas •
Kleenex /
Habibi •
The Cars /
K-OS •
Donna Summer /
Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs •
Wings /
Scary Pockets.
• '80s Covers •
John Lennon /
Marilyn McCoo And Billy Davis Jr •
Blondie /
The Coathangers •
Gang Of Four /
Gail Ann Dorsey •
David Bowie /
Boise Cover Band •
X /
Violet Grohl •
X /
Jesse Dayton •
Yoko Ono /
Japanese Breakfast •
The Cyre /
Marc Collin •
Zapp /
The Heritage Orchestra •
Laura Branigan /
Angel Olsen •
Grace Jones /
Bacao Rhythm And Steel Band •
Men Without Hats /
Angel Olsen •
Roxy Music /
Peter Frampton Band •
Roxy Music /
Angel Olsen •
Bruce Springsteen /
King Hannah •
Bob Dylan /
Chrissie Hynde •
Bruce Springsteen /
Shakey Graves •
The Cars /
Bleachers •
R.E.M. /
Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit •
Peter Gabriel /
Lowland Hum •
Pixies /
A.A. Williams, and Tkay Maidza.
• '90s Covers •
The Gories /
The Shivas •
Nirvana /
The Dollyrots •
Bikini Kill /
Mike Watt •
R.E.M. /
Lauren O'Connell •
The Breeders /
Tune-Yards •
Soundgarden /
Brandi Carlile •
Bjork /
Julia Jacklin •
Guided By Voices /
Lauren O'Connell •
Radiohead /
Julian Lennon + Nuno Bettencourt •
Bob Dylan /
Mike Edison •
Bob Dylan /
Dave Gahan •
Lucinda WIlliams /
Robert Plant + Allison Krauss.
• '00s, '10s, and '20s Covers •
Queens Of The Stone Age /
The Vaccines •
Tame Impala /
The Wiggles •
Fiona Apple /
The Secret Sisters •
Paul McCartney /
Phoebe Bridgers •
Paul McCartney /
Josh Homme.
B E S T
R E I S S U E S :
2 0 2 1
Quality is timeless.
The Beatles,
with Billy Preston
BEST REISSUES 2021
by Tym Stevens
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Join up for free here.
Open direct Spotify playlist
in browser here.
This music player has songs from the following albums, in the same order.
• 1950s •
• Various Artists, "Rip It Up: The Best Of Specialty Records" (1952-’59)
The L.A. label scorched the party with crucial artists like Lloyd Price, Little Richard, The Soul Stirrers with Sam Cooke, Larry Williams, and Percy Mayfield (and Don And Dewey, not included here).
• Don Covay, "Hey There" (late-'50s)
Don is loved for his mid-'60s Atlantic Soul sides, but here's a fine sampling of his early Rocker platters.
• Nina Simone, "Nina Simone And Her Friends" (1959)
In the dawn of her career, Nina alternates songs with her colleages Chris Connor and Carmen McCrae.
Little Richard; Nina Simone;
Dick Dale; The Temptations
• 1960s •
• The Drifters, "We Gotta Sing! The Soul Years 1962-’71"
Beyond their first wave of classic hits, The Drifters did many more stellar sides across the changing decade.
• Dick Dale and his Del-Tones, "Wild Ideas" (1963)
A collection of Dick's roaring Surf tunes from his prime era.
• Enrique Torres + Les Baxter, "Joyas Musicales del Peru" (1964)
Upbeat Peruvian romance melodies with lush 'Exotica' arrangements.
• The Temptations, "Emperors Of Soul: The Rarities"
The Motown vaults yeild more treasures with these rare B-sides and alternate takes.
• Laura Nyro, "Go Find The Moon: The Audition Tape" (1966)
In 20 minutes she nailed it: it was all already there, the songcraft, the voice, the lyrical ambition.
• Female Species, "Tale Of My Lost Love" (1966 +)
An unsung all-female Rock band gets a proper voerview, from their early Beat pop to their later country rock.
• The Who, "Sell Out" (Super Deluxe)
Theis edition unleashes all the goodies, expanding the 'radio jingle' concept album into a cornicopia of wondrous tunes and radio parodies.
• The Luv'd Ones, "Truth Gotta Stand" (1965-'67)
Char Vinnedge led the all-female band from Beatlesque pop to storming Jimi distortion. This collection of all their work is a must have.
Female Species; The Luv'd Ones;
Sly And The Family Stone; Joni Mitchell
• Johnny Cash, "Live At The Carousel Ballroom, April 24 1968"
Johnny and June setting the seeds of Outlaw Country to come, with their protest anthems, Dylan covers, and family mass.
• Various Artists, "It’s A Good, Good Feeling: The Latin Soul of Fania Records“ (mid-'60s +)
Soul is Soul, and this box set showcases how artists like Ray Barreto, Willie Colón, Joe Bataan, and Monguito Santamaria spread the sunshine, the vibes, and the parameters.
• Various Artists, "Summer of Soul" (rec. 1969)
The Harlem Cultural Festival, now immortalized with Questlove's "Summer Of Soul" documentary, was graced by The Chambers Brothers, The Staple Singers, Ray Baretto, Nina Simone, and the mighty mighty Sly And The Family Stone.
• Joni Mitchell, "Joni Mitchell Archives, Vol. 2: The Reprise Years (1968-1971)"
The queen of poetic introspection, quicksilver guitar, and elastic genres began her quest with these first four remastered albums, abetted by a 1970 concert.
• The Beatles, "Let It Be" (rec. 1969)
Forget the negative myths.
All of rock history's narratives about these sessions are wrong, and this deluxe box set, a comprehensive companion book, and Peter jackson's acclaimed 6-hour documentary "
Get Back" have now set all the records straight.
Aretha Franklin
• 1970s •
• The Beach Boys, "Feel Flows: The Sunflower and Surf’s Up Sessions 1969-1971"
When he got as ambitious as The Beatles in 1967 (the shelved "
Smile" album), The Beach Boys initially fought Brian Wilson, damaging his spirit and esteem. Ironically, they proved him right by embracing looser experiments, cosmic consciousness, and continuous remakes of that material.
• Neil Young, "Carnegie Hall 1970"
An intimate solo acoustic show away from CSNY and Crazy Horse.
• Roberta Flack, "First Take" (1970)
The best Soul Jazz vocalist staked her claim with this classic album.
• Aretha Franklin, "ARETHA" (1956-2015)
The first box set to encompass Aretha's entire career, from the early Gospel sessions to her triumphant performace at the White House.
• Erma Franklin, "Brunswick Essentials" (1970)
Unfairly overshadowed by her sister Aretha, Erma had many fine Rock'n'Soul sides of her own.
• John Lennon, "Plastic Ono Band" (1970)
John's cathartic break from The Beatles is still one of Rock's bravest recordings, both a raw folk confessional and a grungey punk bruiser.
• George Harrison, "All Things Must Pass" (1971)
One of the best double-albums ever made, remastered with a healthy addition of unreleased demos.
• Pastor T.L. Barrett and the Youth For Christ Choir, "I Shall Wear A Crown" (1971-'78)
'70s Gospel was especially soulful and funky, and here's a fine example of that.
Neil Young; Roberta Flack;
Eddie Hazel; Elvis Costello
• The Doors, "L.A. Woman" (1971)
The Door's final album as a quartet, with copious alternate takes and song sketches.
• O.V. Wright, "A Nickel And A Nail" (1971)
Besides Al Green, Hi Records had grand artists like the funky sass of Ann Peebles and the bluesy soul of O.V. Wright.
• Brainticket, "1971 Recording Session"
The multiculti Prog band, a more devious balance to Hawkwind, deserve all the limelight they can get.
• Black Sabbath, "Vol. 4"
The current remastering campaign of their catalog includes an excellent remastering of this classic album, both beautiful and brutish.
• Tony Joe White, "Smoke From The Chimney"
A trove of unreleased demos from the master of Swamp Pop.
• Muddy Waters, "The Montreux Years" (1972, '74, '77)
Muddy experienced a career renaissance after his counterculture festivals dates that carried him through the decade.
• Can, "Live In Stuttgart 1975”
Losing their singer, the motorik band returned to their intense and entrancing freeform improvs.
• Experience Unlimited, "Free Yourself” (1977)
Before E.U. became a major '80s GoGo Funk band, they debuted here as a righteous Funk prog force with Fusion chops and Rock fury.
• Eddie Hazel, "Games, Dames, And Guitar Thangs" (1977)
The Jimi Hendrix of Funkadelic, in his only solo album, nailed it with funtastic originals, and legendary covers of The Beatles' "
I Want You" and The Mamas And The Papas' "
California Dreamin'".
• Elvis Costello And The Attractions, "Armed Forces" (1979)
The Angry Young Punk was among the most literate, as the scathing anti-Fascist commentary, slippery chord changes, and shrewd puns in this super deluxe box set proves.
The Delmonas
• 1980s •
• Various Artists, "Shake The Foundations: Militant Funk And The Post-Punk Dancefloor 1978-1984"
Concurrent with Mutant Disco in the US, the UK deconstructed dance music into an art soundscape that anticipated TechnoFunk and Industrial.
• Bush Tetras, "Rhythm And Paranoia: The Best Of" (early-'80s)
As part of that NYC scene, this PunkFunk combo married snotty swagger with bounding grooves, influencing everone from Romeo Void to Sonic Youth.
• Bob Dylan, "Springtime In New York: The Bootleg Series, Vol. 16 / 1980-1985" (1980)
Bob's most maligned period gets another chance, with stripped down alternate takes.
• The Delmonas, "Hello, We Love You! The Big Beat EPs" (late-'80s)
The female Garage band's work, before they morphed into Thee Headcoatees.
• Joe Strummer, "Assembly" (1986-'02)
A synopsis of the Clash leader's solo career, as compiled for Dhani Harrison's relaunched Dark Horse label.
• 1990s •
• Nirvana, "Nevermind" (1991)
This 30th anniversary bonanza includes four live concert recordings, charting the band's evolution from indie outsiders to world conquerors across four months.
• L7, "Wargasm: The Slash Years 1992-1997"
One of the greatest and most crucial grunge bands (then and now) gets their propers with this incendiary audit.
• David Bowie, "Brilliant Adventures (1992-2001)"
This box set documents David's restless style changes -often analogous to his late-'70s breakthroughs- with dance, art-rock, and ambient.
• Buena Vista Social Club, "Buena Vista Social Club" (1997)
When Ry Cooder recorded the veterans of the isolated Cuban music scene as an inpromptu group, they became a sensation triumphing on world tours.
• Supergrass, "In It For The Money" (1997)
What do you do when you make your "
Abbey Road" on your second album and everybody slept on it? Supergrass kept advancing, while you rubes can just catch up now.
Sharon Jones; Goat
• 2010s •
• Prince, "Welcome 2 America" (rec. 2010)
Prince's unreleased 2010 album sees official release.
• Various Artists, "The Daptone Super Soul Revue Live at the Apollo" (rec. 2014)
Sharon Jones brought her label mates to the legendary Apollo for a classic-style revue. How lucky that audience was to experience Sharon and The Dap-Kings, Charles Bradley, Antibalas, Menahan Street Band, and The Budos Band, along with worthy stalwarts like Saun + Starr, Naomie Shelton, and The Como Mamas.
• Goat, "Headsoup" (2012-'18)
The mysterious collective radiates somewhere between AfroBeat and Psyche Prog. This collection of rarities provides an alternate map.
(The title is a pun on The Rolling Stones' "Goats Head Soup" album.)
©
Tym Stevens
"A splendid time is guaranteed for all!"
See also:
• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2025
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• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2000-2010
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