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No Jacket Required (Album of the Day)
Monday, July 6, 2015
Hard though it is to imagine Phil Collins being denied entrance to a restaurant for improper attire, it actually did happen, and inspired the title of NO JACKET REQUIRED. With his third solo album, the performer joined a very exclusive club as one of the 1980s' most successful hitmakers; the collection spun off four Top Ten singles: “One More Night,” “Don't Lose My Number,” “Take Me Home” and “Sussudio,” which topped the U.S. chart on this day in 1985. The remaining tracks are equally distinctive, mixing upbeat horn and drum-driven songs with more thoughtful and atmospheric material to striking effect, and making the set's Album of the Year Grammy entirely justified. If you have any interest in mainstream pop of the last 30 years, the Diamond-certified NO JACKET REQUIRED is required listening.
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BOX SELECTION (THEIR 8 RAK ALBUMS 1974-1983) (Album of the Day)
Friday, July 3, 2015
London soul band Hot Chocolate came together in 1968 and soon began recording for producer Mickie Most's RAK label. Most's Midas touch brought the group a steady stream of hits in England until 1975's “You Sexy Thing” put them in charts all over the world. The massive success of that oft-revived disco classic tends to obscure the rest of Hot Chocolate's catalog, something BOX SELECTION (THEIR 8 RAK ALBUMS 1974-1983) aims to rectify. This affordable set gathers all the studio albums recorded during the band's original incarnation, and every 1 is a winner. The 72 remastered tracks here include such U.K. Top Tens as “Emma,” “Put Your Love In Me,” and “So You Win Again,” which topped the British singles chart on this day in 1977. Highly polished productions, hook-filled songs and the charisma of frontman Errol Brown make Hot Chocolate quite addictive, and one taste of BOX SELECTION will keep you coming back for more.
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Tracy Chapman (Album of the Day)
Thursday, July 2, 2015
Tracy Chapman was attending Tufts University and playing local coffeehouses when a fellow student passed one of the singer-songwriter's demos to his father, a music publisher. Chapman's sound – intimate and infused with social conviction – was out of step with the synth-pop and hair metal then on the radio, but that turned out to be its strength, as audiences had grown thirsty for meaning in their music. Spurred by a strong performance at Nelson Mandela's 70th birthday tribute concert at Wembley Stadium, TRACY CHAPMAN topped the U.K. album chart on this day in 1988 and soon followed suit in America, going on to sell nearly 20 million copies worldwide and win three Grammys. With tasteful acoustic accompaniment, Tracy's vision and voice ring clear on 11 originals including “Talkin' 'Bout A Revolution,” “Baby Can I Hold You” and Top Ten single “Fast Car.” A touchstone album of the 1980s, whose simplicity and sincerity ensures it will always sound fresh.
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ON TOUR WITH ERIC CLAPTON (Album of the Day)
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
Husband and wife team Delaney & Bonnie Bramlett caught the ear of George Harrison with their second album; the Beatle subsequently recommended them to his friend Eric Clapton, then looking for an opening act for a Blind Faith tour. “For me, going on [with Blind Faith] after Delaney and Bonnie was really, really tough, because I thought they were miles better than us,” Clapton later recalled, and the legendary guitarist began sitting in with the duo's band. Delaney & Bonnie & Friends' ON TOUR WITH ERIC CLAPTON captures the illustrious group – which included Dave Mason, Leon Russell and Rita Coolidge among the “friends” – on their final December 1969 U.K. tour date. A sublime blend of blue-eyed soul, country and gospel, the album showcases the Bramletts at their live best, and was the pair's most commercially successful album. Delaney was born on this day in 1939, and to mark the occasion, we'll give ON TOUR WITH ERIC CLAPTON another spin.
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Real People (Album of the Day)
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
By the time of REAL PEOPLE's 1980 release, Chic masterminds Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards were among the most in-demand producers in the world as artists like Sister Sledge and Diana Ross sought out their services. But if others were hoping Rodgers and Edwards could make them dancefloor queens, the duo were looking beyond disco for their own group. While there's no shortage of grooves to get you moving and The Chic Strings make a welcome return, REAL PEOPLE fuses old-school soul, new wave, guitar-riff rock and funk to strike a tone that's more melancholy than celebratory. “Rebels Are We,” “Chip Off the Old Block” and the title song are just some of the distinctive tracks here, all of which serve as reminders that Chic included some truly brilliant instrumentalists. REAL PEOPLE turns 35 years old today, but its adventurous and insistent edge still feels contemporary.
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Tim Buckley (Album of the Day)
Monday, June 29, 2015
Tim Buckley was all of 19 when his self-titled debut hit the streets in 1966, but his passionate, insightful songs and distinctive multi-octave vocals have the assurance of a seasoned artist. Cut for Elektra Records, TIM BUCKLEY benefits from the talents of producer Paul Rothchild and engineer Bruce Botnick, (then working wonders for The Doors and Love) as well as string arranger Jack Nitzsche and a backing band that includes Van Dyke Parks on keyboards. Though Buckley's music would go through many stylistic permutations in his all-too-brief career, this initial release is firmly in the folk-rock vein and remains among his most accessible. Tim Buckley died 40 years ago today, and we'll give this superb collection another spin in his memory.
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Dream Weaver (Album of the Day)
Friday, June 26, 2015
Gary Wright had paid his dues with prog rockers Spooky Tooth before striking solo gold in 1975 with his Warner Bros. album THE DREAM WEAVER. Boasting a pair of No.2 hits – “Love Is Alive” and the immortal title track – the collection is a feast of keyboards, with Hammond organ, Fender Rhodes, Moog and ARP synthesizers bursting from every groove. The singer-songwriter's nine originals feature memorable melodies, spacey atmospherics and funky rhythms galore, and Wright gets stellar support from instrumentalists including drummer Jim Keltner, guitarist Ronnie Montrose and fellow keyboardist David Foster (yep, the future uber-producer). THE DREAM WEAVER may be 40 years old today, but its music remains timeless.
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The Best of Carly Simon (Album of the Day)
Thursday, June 25, 2015
Carly Simon was born 70 years ago today. A childhood stutter initially turned her to music (as she recalled, “I did the natural thing, which is to write songs, because I could sing without stammering”), a path that's led to millions of record sales worldwide. Signing with Elektra Records in 1970, she caught the crest of the singer-songwriter movement, scoring such Top 10 singles as “That's The Way I've Always Heard It Should Be,” the chart-topping “You're So Vain” and her duet with then-husband James Taylor, “Mockingbird.” These and such familiar hits as “Anticipation” and “Haven't Got Time For The Pain” grace THE BEST OF CARLY SIMON, an alluring 10-song snapshot of the first five years of her still-ongoing career. Happy birthday, Carly!
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Live + (Album of the Day)
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
The latest release from two-time Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Jeff Beck, LIVE + samples concerts from last year's hugely successful double-bill tour with ZZ TOP. Backed by vocalist Jimmy Hall, bassist Rhonda Smith, drummer Jonathan Joseph and guitarist Nicolas Meier. Beck dives deep into his five-decade-strong catalog to come up with 14 spellbinding live performances, including TRUTH's “Morning Dew,” “Superstition” “Hammerhead” and a terrific cover of “A Day In The Life.” The “+” in the title refers to a pair of aggressive new studio recordings, “Tribal” and “My Tiled White Floor,” which show a stark departure from the sound of the legendary axeman's Grammy®-winning 2010 collection, EMOTION & COMMOTION. Jeff Beck celebrates a birthday today, and LIVE + shows he continues to push the envelope of musical innovation.
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Minstrel In The Gallery - 40th Anniversary La Grande Edition (Album of the Day)
Tuesday, June 23, 2015
When it was originally released, MINSTREL IN THE GALLERY became Jethro Tull's fifth consecutive U.S. Top 10 album, peaking at #7, and reaching #29 in the band's native U.K. The last to feature the longtime lineup of Ian Anderson, Martin Barre, John Evans, Barrie Barlow and Jeffrey Hammond-Hammond, the set boasts elaborate production reminiscent of the 1972 classic THICK AS A BRICK, and its songs rock as hard as anything in Tull's vast and storied catalog. Anderson handles production chores as well as flute and vocals, and the 1975 collection features varied acoustic and electric arrangements including a near-side-long epic in “Baker St. Muse.” For the 40th Anniversary La Grande Edition, MINSTREL IN THE GALLERY has been expanded with a B-side, studio outtakes and BBC sessions as well as a full live disc of the band performing at the Olympia in Paris a few months prior to the album's release.
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