When he began writing for this his third album, Bruce was tired of being labeled as AOR or "mellow." By God, this sure helped him shake that mellow label. He departs from the mostly-piano-strings-and-some-token-guitar formula of earlier albums and begins exploring his roots. This CD is much more jazzy and bold than the first two.

This DVD is a "must see" for anyone who is interested in the history of the folk revival of the 1960's, the earnest, folksy style of Pete Seeger or the work of the also tradition-oriented , although that fact was previously unknown to me, Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash. Also included on this DVD is a performance by the legendary Kentucky mountain music man Roscoe Holcombe that John Cohen, a previously reviewed performer on this series with the New Lost City Ramblers, did great service to the folk revival by bringing out of the Kentucky hills in the early 1960s to the wilds of ..... Greenwich Village. Pete wears his "world music" hat in this segment as well as he also brings in Scottish folksinger Jean Redpath in to link up the music of the Scotch-Irish immigrant Kentucky hills and the old country. A nice folk history moment. This DVD contains some very interesting and, perhaps, rare television film footage from two of Pete Seeger shows, packaged in one DVD, entitled "Rainbow Quest" (the whole series consists of six DVDs). Each show is introduced (and ends, as well) by Pete singing his old classic "If I Had A Golden Threat" and then he proceeds to introduce, play guitar and banjo and sing along with the above-mentioned artists.

Already an accomplished musician and songwriter, Bruce Hornsby released his debut "The Way It Is" with his band The Range at age 32 in 1986. Earning top 40 hits and Grammy recognition, its impact was immediate. A Virginia native, Hornsby presented a unique, distinguished sound, identifiable by his remarkable, whimsical piano playing. Both a brilliant songwriter and vocalist in addition to his keyboard prowess, Hornsby employs some '80s production elements in synthesizers and electronica, as well as some distinctly southern musicianship by the ever-underrated Range. Seven of the nine songs were co-written by Hornsby's brother John, and the songwriting is fantastic, marked by expansive arrangements, extremely accessible melodies, soulful and inspired performances, and expert musicianship. With a voice that can be equally haunting as endearing, Hornsby delivers feel-good rock numbers, phenomenal ballads, and socially conscious tunes such as the infamous title track. One of the finest debuts of the 80s, "The Way It Is" has aged extremely well and introduced a truly immense talent.

If only the Beatles would've recorded this in 1973, it would have the world recognition this masterpiece deserves. But they didn't, and Clifford's solo genious shines eternally here. It's my childhood, adulthood, something for every season. Atmospheric and quirky, lushously melodic and lyrically engaging. They just dont make them like this anymore. Charisma, who also had Genesis and other progressive intelligent pop rock circa the time, could have done more with this artist. As in "Clifford who?" being the usual reply to the question of peoples' consciousness of him. From the cover, thru every track, and the yearning to be able to hear much more like this, this album has a pride of place upon your shelf. So, buy it, and put it there. A classic you must enjoy, thru the years. Read the other reviews - adoring tributes to C.T.W. and 'Home Thoughts from Abroad'.

As a sampler, "Strangest" is pleasing from the first. It includes Nelson looking solo as well as under the Red Noise & Orchestra Arcana rubrics. There's some of his orchestral, some of his ambient, some of his jazzier side, some frantic Europop, & a hint of his sheer ability to rock out on a whim.

Perhaps more so than on any other Paul carrack solo project, Groove Approved represents the influence of the more commercial pop success of his work with Mike and The Mechanics in the mid to late 1980s. Released after the first two successful Mechanics albums (the self-titled 1985 album and Living Years), Groove Approved completely sheds Carrack Pub Rock sound and ventures on for a more period '80s pop feel far beyond what his previous solo project, One Good Reason, did.

Once upon a time, in the '70's, there was a genre of singers called "troubadors." Troubadors usually began their musical careers as folkies, and evolved into troubadors when they became better musicians. Yet, like folkies, they didn't sing songs; they sang stories. The finest of the Troubadors included Harry Chapin, Jim Croce, and Gordon Lightfoot. Today, only one troubador remains; Gordon Lightfoot. Now sixty, with a voice that has lost most of its resonance, Gord continues to make recordings. Yet, despite his loss of youth, he refuses to sink into maudlin self-pity, or pretend that he is still a young man. His title song "A Painter Passing Through" is the narrative of a troubador who lost his youth, found perspective, and still refuses to surrender, despite being past his prime.

One of the best introductions to Jarre's music is this live compilation of his most significant compositions of the "classical" period (1976-1990). Originally released in 1987 the only regret is that is too short to cover such a big event as the concert was. This live record goes some way to recreating the spectacle and atmosphere of the record breaking concerts in Houston, Texas and Lyon, France (1987) - with the majority of the incidental commentary and sound bites coming from the Houston concert. These concerts where both huge affairs which featured immense laser lighting shows and in many cases local highways and road were shut off.

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Heather Phares, All Music Guide wrote: New age composer/keyboardist Davol had an early interest in music, receiving classical piano training as a child and studying jazz and classical harpsichord in college. Electronic music also interested him, and Davol began writing and recording his own pieces as a hobby while he studied microbiology. Some of the tapes he passed out to friends made their way to Silver Wave Records, who offered Davol a recording contract. In 1989, he released his debut album, Mystic Waves, and also received his Ph.D. in microbiology. Though he continued to write and record music, including his 1992 album The Nature of the Beast, Davol worked as a medical researcher until 1996, when he began writing music for multimedia along with his new age works.

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It's hard to tell exactly where NYC duo Delia Gonzales & Gavin Russom fit into electronic music's grand scheme; their work references '70s electro-boffins Tangerine Dream and Brian Eno, but also deftly encapsulates the current state of urban electronic composition. Major players in both the NYC art-electronics circuit and the DFA's gradual diversification process, Gonzales and Russom had already carved out a name for themselves in film, sculpture and performance art circles before they unleashed the blissed-out and brilliant "Casual Friday" under the moniker Black Leotard Front. The mighty synth-burner "El Monte" followed, and before long the buzz was fully substantiated by loads of press and inclusion on the label's now legendary #2 compilation. This brings us to Days of Mars, a bubbling hot collection of modern electronic craft created on arcane technology by a pair of soulmates who still believe in the ideals of art over logic. It's a leftfield masterpiece, equal parts krautrock precision and late-night trance-rave chilldown; given the opportunity, it could be this generation's answer to Music for Airports.

In 1978, Jeff Wayne recruited Justin Hayward to sing and perform on the highly acclaimed "War Of The Worlds" album. Wayne went on to produce the album, including Hayward's single "Forever Autumn", which became a worldwide hit. As a way of saying "thank you" for Hayward's contribution, two years later Wayne returns the favor by producing Hayward's 1980 album "Night Flight".

Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert a.k.a. Les Misérables in Concert is a concert version of the musical Les Misérables, produced to celebrate its 10th anniversary. It was filmed in October 1995 at the Royal Albert Hall and released on DVD and VHS in 1998 and re-released on DVD in North America in 2008. It stars Colm Wilkinson as Jean Valjean, Philip Quast as Inspector Javert, Michael Ball as Marius Pontmercy, Lea Salonga as Éponine, Judy Kuhn as Cosette, Ruthie Henshall as Fantine, and several others, and was directed by John Caird. The performers were chosen from London, Broadway and Australian productions of the show.

"220 Volt Live" is a recording from Tangerine Dream's tour of the USA in 1992. It is also the companion CD to the "Three Phase" video of the same tour featuring the same music. All in all, the concert is an inspired mix of the traditional Tangerine Dream elements of massed synthesiser choirs over sliding sequencer-driven rhythms with the newer elements of Linda Spa's bluesy sax playing, Zlatko Perica's guitar lines and a heavy drum-kit driven rock beat, so characteristic of many 90s Tangerine Dream studio albums. The main set consists of nine numbers, played in the usual TD live manner of two half-hour seamless segues.

Exit marks the beginning of a new phase in Tangerine Dream's music: Gone were the side-long, sequencer-led journeys, replaced by topical pieces that were more self-contained in scope, more contemporary in sound. Johannes Schmoelling's influence is really felt for the first time here; Tangram, for all its crispness and melody, was simply a refinement of Force Majeure's principles, and the soundtrack to Thief not an album proper. On Exit, listeners are introduced to electronic music's next generation, notably on "Choronzon" and "Network 23," which brought the sound of the dancefloor into the mix (it hasn't left since). That's not to suggest that Tangerine Dream has stopped creating eerie, evocative music; both "Pilots of Purple Twilight" and the stately "Exit" will feel familiar to fans, and the opening "Kiew Mission" is a captivating commentary on nuclear war that includes vocals after a sort (a woman's voice reading locations in Russian).

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Rodney Batdorf, All Music Guide wrote: Underwater Sunlight was the first album Paul Haslinger recorded with Tangerine Dream and his presence is immediately felt. With Haslinger, the group relied more heavily on strict structures and jarring compositional flourishes, which is only appropriate, since he came directly from a classical background. The group hadn't quite figured out how to fully incorporate these techniques into their music, but the results on Underwater are nevertheless fascinating.

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