music mp3 download review

Speak Now

2010-12-16T05:03:00.000-08:00

Taylor Swift | Format: Audio CD

Deluxe two CD edition including eight bonus tracks. 2010 release, the third album from the Country/Pop superstar. Speak Now is the follow-up to her multi-million-selling 2008 album, Fearless. The 21-year-old singer/songwriter wrote the entire album on her own and co-produced with longtime collaborator Nathan Chapman, who worked with her on Fearless and her 2006 self-titled debut. Features the single 'Mine'.

View Products Details

With "Speak Now" Taylor Swift ups the singer/songwriter aspect of her art and turns down the radio-ready emphasis a notch. It is a little less calculated and a little more comfortable than her last two, especially 2008's non-stop hit factory "Fearless."

It is also less focused and tight, but since this is Swift's debut effort without any co-writers, her melodies and lyrics composed independently, this was inevitable. The result is akin to comfort food - unpretentious, honest and warm. She has the natural talent and flair for catchy song craft to make a less precious recording - which "Speak Now" certainly is - work especially well.

Because Swift was clearly given more leeway to do as she pleases both her strengths and excesses are more prominently on display than previously. A few of her melodies sound simple and similar to one another, and she is often bursting with lyrics, with every other tune or so a bit overwritten. However, this is also one of the strengths of "Speak Now." It shows that Swift is the real deal - an artist from whom strong songs flow naturally.

Much has been made of the men whom Swift has written songs about, and that transparency shows her age, but "Speak Now" proves she does not need the controversy to validate the music. From the inventive, shrewd, near power-pop of "The Story of Us" and "Enchanted" to the elegant, apologetic "Back to December," these songs stand on their own.

Accents of country remain, but Swift is transitioning into pop/rock territory, and she cannot be blamed for it - at 20, she is, in spite of her major success, still finding her voice. "Mean" with its cheeky, smartly executed humor, is the only outright country tune.

"Someday I'll be living in a big old city and all you're ever gonna be is mean," she forecasts.

Her eye for detail and sense of levity are prominent. In the classy, tuneful title song she paints the picture of a wedding - which she hopes to put a stop to - in delightful detail:

"...and she is yelling at a bridesmaid somewhere back inside her room wearing a gown shaped like a pastry."

She also plays the role of big sister on "Innocent" and "Never Grow Up," affectionate odes to the importance of childhood. The latter especially demonstrates her depth as she sings of the importance of love, family and innocence.

"But don't make her drop you off around the block," she affectionately sings to her younger listeners about their mothers. "Remember that she's getting older too, and don't lose the way that you dance around in your PJs getting ready for school."

In an industry with plenty of flesh and flash and little substance, Taylor Swift remains refreshing and real, and "Speak Now" is just the right record for her to be releasing now - a collection of songs that proves the validity - and sincerity - of her still-burgeoning talent.

The Gift

2010-12-16T04:57:00.000-08:00

Susan Boyle | Format: Audio CD

She catapulted to international stardom overnight with 500 million YouTube hits, smashed music records around the world with her triumphant debut album and now Susan Boyle returns with her eagerly awaited second album, The Gift.

The Gift, sees Susan Boyle and world acclaimed producer Steve Mac reunited to present a breathtaking seasonal album. Featuring yule time favourites ‘The First Noel’ and ‘O Holy Night’, Susan also fearlessly takes on iconic pop songs including ‘Don’t Dream It’s Over’ and ‘Perfect Day’ giving them a new identity.

Also making her musical debut on The Gift is American medic and winner of the International Susan Search, Amber Stassi. Amber & Susan perform a stunning and inimitable rendition of ‘Do you Hear What I Hear’.

Now with a beautiful seasonal album she will, once again, defy critics and preconceptions.

Susan explained; "When making this album, I really wanted the songs to touch hearts. Music has always been a companion to me, particularly on special occasions. I wanted there to be a mix of songs that would flow with all our moods this holiday season. As much as the season is a time for reflection, it is also a time for fun and enjoyment with those closest to us."

View Products Details

The Gift, Susan Boyle's sophomore album, presents the listener with another set of masterful performances by an artist who shows herself to be in complete command of her instrument. Every song is superbly crafted to showcase Boyle's satiny soprano to absolute perfection.

Once again, as with her blockbuster debut I Dreamed A Dream, a somewhat eclectic mix of songs has been assembled, offering Boyle the chance to transform unexpected selections with her unique interpretations. Each song is delivered with delicacy and emotion. Boyle always manages to find the emotional core of her material, whether it be a pop classic like Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah or an oft-recorded Christmas standard. She is a master at eliciting an emotional response from her listeners that mirrors the feelings she expresses in song. Steve Mac, who produced both albums, understands that her voice should be the focal point of every song, and as with her debut he gives her the ideal setting to showcase her skills. The result is an album replete with songs polished to gem-like perfection.

Boyle's version of Lou Reed's Perfect Day is another stunning reinterpretation along the lines of Wild Horses from her first album. Her sensitive and nuanced vocals elicit both the joy of remembered happiness and the melancholy longing for lost love. To the three pop songs offered - Perfect Day, Hallelujah and Don't Dream It's Over - she brings depth, subtle power and unexpected passion. The rich instrumental and choral accompaniment provide the base above which Boyle's sweet soprano soars. She builds to the climax of every song through intense yet controlled emotion. Boyle understands, as many do not, that the power of a performance can come as readily from a singer's expression of the complex emotions a song evokes as it can from the raw power of her voice.

Even on what must be the millionth cover of Cohen's Hallelujah, Boyle manages to bring a surprising freshness. It is another song of love and loss, and her vocals are suffused with a regret that is tinged with anger. The result is an achingly beautiful rendition, the equal of any who has gone before her. Don't Dream It's Over is a more hopeful song, delivered with sensitivity. It is worth remarking that at the end the line, "We know they won't win," is repeated several times, as if to emphasize the singer's own determination to triumph in spite of the bullies and the critics who at times have tormented her. Just as with her version of Madonna's You'll See, Don't Dream It's Over is an affirmation that she has proven her detractors wrong, but in place of the former's angry intensity there is quiet assurance.

The other songs in the collection are for the most part Christmas classics. All of them are sung with a lovely reverence. O Holy Night and Away In A Manger are a standouts. Boyle's crystalline voice soars to worshipful heights, sweet and pure without being cloying. A traditional Scottish version of Auld Lang Syne offers a beautiful new interpretation that reinvigorates the Hogmanay (New Year's Eve) standard. The album ends on a grace note with an utterly beautiful rendition of O Come All Ye Faithful. To sum up, in The Gift Susan Boyle offers us a captivating album that provides a feast for both the senses and the soul.

MICHAEL - Michael Jackson | Format: Audio CD

2010-11-29T03:18:00.000-08:00

Michael Jackson, one of the most widely beloved entertainers and profoundly influential artists of all-time, made an indelible imprint on popular music and culture.

Five of Jackson’s solo albums – “Off the Wall,” “Thriller,” “Bad,” “Dangerous” and “HIStory,” all with Epic Records, a Sony Music label – are among the top-sellers of all time.

MICHAEL is the much anticipated album of newly completed recordings from Michael Jackson. The creative process never stopped for the King of Pop who was always planning for his next album; unbeknownst to many fans around the world Michael Jackson was writing and recording songs continuously everywhere from a friend’s home in New Jersey to studios in Las Vegas and Los Angeles with a small group of handpicked collaborators. Now, through the unique stories that will be told about the songs that comprise MICHAEL, fans will get mind-blowing insight into how this artist worked and a chance to hear the songs he most recently created along with tracks that Michael had a desire to bring to fruition.

View Products Details

Track Listings
1. Hold My Hand (Duet with Akon)
2. Hollywood Tonight
3. Keep Your Head Up
4. (I Like) The Way You Love Me
5. Monster (Featuring 50 Cent)
6. Best Of Joy
7. Breaking News
8. (I Can t Make It) Another Day (Featuring Lenny Kravitz)
9. Behind The Mask
10. Much Too Soon

Featuring Norah Jones

2010-11-29T03:13:00.000-08:00

Besides selling 40 million albums and winning 9 Grammys in less than 10 years, over the years Norah Jones has collaborated with dozens and dozens of artists from across the spectrum of music. This album collects Norah's favorite collaborations from 2001-2010 into one amazing collection: legends like Ray Charles, Willie Nelson and Herbie Hancock, rock artists ranging from Foo Fighters to Ryan Adams to Belle and Sebastian, hip hop luminaries OutKast, Q-Tip and Talib Kweli. No matter the genre however, Norah's enchanting voice is the common denominator and while the partners are varied, she ends up owning every song and this album is a wonderful collection that holds together brilliantly. The album is a testament to Norah's status as one of the most in-demand and tasteful musical connectors in music.

View Products Details

1. Love Me - The Little Willies
2. Virginia Moon - Foo Fighters featuring Norah Jones
3. Turn Them - Sean Bones featuring Norah Jones
4. Baby It's Cold Outside - Willie Nelson featuring Norah Jones
5. Bull Rider - Norah Jones and Sasha Dobson Listen
6. Ruler Of My Heart - Dirty Dozen Brass Band featuring Norah Jones
7. The Best Part - El Madmo Listen
8. Take Off Your Cool - Outkast featuring Norah Jones
9. Life Is Better - Q-Tip featuring Norah Jones
10. Soon The New Day - Talib Kweli featuring Norah Jones
11. Little Lou, Prophet Jack, Ugly John - Belle & Sebastian featuring Norah Jones Listen
12. Here We Go Again - Ray Charles featuring Norah Jones
13. Loretta - Norah Jones featuring Gillian Welch and David Rawlings
14. Dear John - Ryan Adams featuring Norah Jones
15. Creepin' In - Norah Jones featuring Dolly Parton
16. Court & Spark - Herbie Hancock featuring Norah Jones
17. More Than This - Charlie Hunter featuring Norah Jones
18. Blue Bayou - Norah Jones featuring M. War

Celtic Thunder

2008-06-14T21:30:00.000-07:00

Celtic Thunder : Celtic Thunder

Audio CD (March 18, 2008)
Original Release Date: March 18, 2008
Number of Discs: 1

View CD Details

For Celtic Thunder, Sharon Browne has teamed up with Grammy-nominated Irish songwriting and composing veteran Phil Coulter to produce a show that includes an eclectic mix of songs ranging from the traditional "Mountains of Mourne" and "Come By the Hills" to international hits such as "Brothers in Arms" and "Desperado," as well as original compositions by Coulter, who has written hits for Elvis Presley ("My Boy") and the Bay City Rollers, and performed with Van Morrison, Tom Jones, and the Rolling Stones. The ensemble numbers in Celtic Thunder reflect the power of the vocalists, who range in age from 14 to 40, and feature songs that celebrate a common Celtic heritage.

Emmylou Harris: All I Intended to Be

2008-06-14T21:23:00.000-07:00

Emmylou Harris : All I Intended to Be

On her second Nonesuch disc, Emmylou Harris assembles an extraordinary cast of veteran musicians and fellow singers, all of them longtime friends, for a set that indeed showcases this Nashville icon, and 2008 CMA Hall of Fame inductee, as all she has intended to be - a singularly expressive vocalist, a brilliant interpreter of other people's songs, a graceful and confident songwriter. In particular, the album displays Harris's ability to bring new life to songs that may have been overlooked, forgotten or lost along the way. Some of the most affecting material here may be the least well-known - though not for long: John Wesley Routh's celtic/country "Shores Of White Sands" and trucker-poet Mark Germino's heartrending story-song, "Broken Man's Lament."

View CD Details

Harris has chosen these songs with conceptual care. Like much of the gently uplifting All I Intended To Be, the stories may be bittersweet, the characters may be downtrodden, but somehow a sense of redemption always vanquishes regret. The shared history of all the artists involved deepens the feeling of hard-won wisdom that informs All I Intended To Be. Producer Brian Ahern was behind the boards for such early Harris classics as Elite Hotel, Pieces of the Sky and Blue Kentucky Girl. The players and guest stars are not only a veritable who's-who from the worlds of country, bluegrass and folk, but they have each intersected with Harris throughout her four-decade career as a recording artist. They include Dolly Parton, singers Pam Rose and Maryann Kennedy, dobro player (and longtime Seldom Scene member) Mike Auldredge, keyboardists Glenn D. Hardin (of Harris's Hot Band and Elvis Presley's legendary TCB combo) and Bill Payne (of Little Feat). Two songs - the June Carter tribute, "How She Could Sing The Wildwood Flower" and the breathtakingly beautiful "Sailing Round the Room" - were co-written by and performed with Kate and Anna McGarrigle. Singer-songwriter Karen Brooks, whose own eighties-era version of "Shores of White Sands" was the inspiration and thematic jumping-off point for this entire album, contributes backing vocals throughout; Randy Sharp, Brooks' singing partner, did the vocal arranging. (Harris won a 2005 Best Country Vocal Performance Grammy for her rendition of Sharp's "The Connection.") Harris's own songs, like the heartache ballad "Gold" and the elegiac "Not Enough," blend seamlessly with work by Patty Griffin ("Moon Song"), Merle Haggard ("Kern River") and Billy Joe Shaver ("Old Five and Dimers," from which the album title is taken). Harris revives what is arguably Tracy Chapman's most eloquent song, "Fast Car" notwithstanding - "All That You Have Is Your Soul," a cautionary tale with a simple but profound prayer of a chorus. Displaying the maturity, elegance and ease that distinguished All The Road Running, her best-selling 2006 collaboration with Mark Knopfler. Harris has created a riveting emotional and spiritual journey. All That I Intended To Be is everything a listener and fan could hope for.

Coldplay-Viva La Vida

2008-06-14T21:18:00.000-07:00

Coldplay : Viva La Vida

Audio CD (June 17, 2008)
Original Release Date: June 17, 2008
Number of Discs: 1
Label: Capitol

View Products Details

To say there has been a lot of anticipation for Coldplay’s fourth album, Viva La Vida, is an understatement. Having enlisted legendary leftfield producer Brian Eno, borrowed their album title from a painting by renowned Mexican artist Frida Kahlo and made tantalising remarks about sonic reinvention, the world has been curious (to say the least) to hear what the ‘new’ Coldplay might sound like. Viva La Vida definitely makes some departures from the band’s usual formula, which happens to be one of the most commercially successful rock-pop blueprints of recent years. The plangent chords, emotive melodies, stadium-rock rhythms and universal lyrical concerns remain, but Martin and co. have gone out on several limbs here, incorporating instrumental tracks ("Life In Technicolour"), using subtle North African and Latin elements ("Yes", "Strawberry Swing"), and overhauling previously strict verse-chorus-verse structures in favour of slightly more avant arrangements. The old Coldplay still shine through (see tracks like "Violet Hill" and the title song) but even their classic sound feels more muscular and confident. The band’s new flourishes, cosmetic and self-conscious as they may be, are enough to make Viva La Vida a welcome break from the old routine

Josh Groban : Awake Live CD/DVD

2008-06-14T21:09:00.000-07:00

Josh Groban : Awake Live CD/DVD

Disc: 1
1. Mai Listen
2. February Song
3. In Her Eyes
4. So She Dances
5. Un Dia Llegara
6. Pearls
7. Weeping
8. Machine
9. Awake

View Products Details

Disc: 2
1. You Are Loved (Don't Give Up)
2. Mai
3. Un Dia Llegara
4. Un Giorno Per Noi
5. Now Or Never
6. So She Dances
7. February Song
8. Alla Luce Del Sole
9. Aurora (excerpt from The Sibelius Violin
10. Concerto) (Lucia Micarelli)

Following the best-selling album of 2007-the #1 Pop, quadruple-platinum Noël-singer, Josh Groban headlines a new CD+DVD set, featuring live versions of several of his hits plus appearances by Angelique Kidjo and Lucia Micarelli. Filmed in 2007 in Salt Lake City, in honor of his first arena concert, which was held in the same city where he performed at the 2002 Winter Olympics closing ceremonies, Awake Live raises up ever higher the most popular young Adult Contemporary star of our era.

It Is Time For A Love Revolution

2008-05-08T02:34:00.000-07:00

Lenny Kravitz

"We've all got our voice. And if I have this gift to play music, then I'm gonna talk about love," Lenny Kravitz says in a YouTube promo for his eighth studio album. Understood. Got it. The fact, though, is that Kravitz could be singing about old tires or bowling shoes in these songs and it wouldn't much matter, because in the basest and most primal way possible, they rock. Opener "Love Revolution" busts out a vibe that lingers, with Lenny barking a credo--clearly in his old-school element as drums pound and guitars get abused--and loving it.

View CD Details

Breaks come in the form of quieter songs like the Beatles-esque chill-pill "Good Morning" and the vintage Queen-like "A Long and Sad Goodbye," but the mission of Love Revolution is mostly to move the masses. And that it shall: fists will pump, feet will stomp, and attitudes will be copped. As listeners flip through the track list and discern influences as far-flung as James Brown, the Black Crowes, and Jimi Hendrix, they will feel not disdain for the lack of ingenuity but appreciation for the good sense Kravitz shows in following those artists' leads. In jumbling them up and making them his own, he proves that love revolutions need not be tame. They can be fierce. The best evidence arrives two tracks in: though "Bring It On" features the soothing sitar of Anishka Shankar, it bashes its way through the speakers as though fueled by kryptonite. It is bad-ass, in a word. And so is this album.

Pocketful of Sunshine

2008-05-08T02:25:00.000-07:00

by Natasha Bedingfield

On Pocketful of Sunshine, Natasha Bedingfield sounds like Joss Stone only bouncier. Nothing wrong with that. In fact, the brightness and buoyancy of this record will keep it spinning long after CDs that shoot for hipster credibility--with funked-up bells and fancy production whistles--have been deposited back into their jewel cases for all eternity.

View CD Details

Check it out: "Love Like This," with Sean Kingston, puts its hands in the air for puppy love--the kind that'll bring you back to your "middle school kiss"--and a couple of other songs follow the youth-themed suit. "Backyard" time-travels to an idyllic childhood, while "Freckles" fleshes out, for the benefit of the insecure, the beauty in imperfections. Elsewhere, Bedingfield is her indomitably upbeat self. Opener "Put Your Arms Around Me" reeks of reassurance and tenderness. "Happy" implores would-be gloom-and-doomers to snap out of it, and while the title track doesn't wander all that far lyrically, it benefits from a chanted verse brimmed in (positive) attitude. The vibe, overall, is beach-blanket warm and blue-sky ready. Sunshine earns a pocketful, if not more, of pop-music props.

Spirit

2008-05-08T02:14:00.000-07:00

Leona Lewis (Artist)

UK singer and songwriter Leona Lewis will release her debut album, Spirit, in America on April 8, 2008. For the first time, Clive Davis and Simon Cowell teamed up to sign Lewis to J Records/SyCo Music (Cowell's joint venture with Sony BMG), and are both actively involved in the recording process for Spirit. Lewis, a 22-year-old London native and winner of the hit TV show the X Factor, a British talent show, has broken all-time sales records there with Spirit entering the album chart at Number One and becoming Britain's fastest-selling debut ever.

View CD Details

Spirit has scanned more than two million copies worldwide since its release in November. In addition, Spirit's lead-off single "Bleeding Love" -- co-written and produced by OneRepublic frontman Ryan "Alias" Tedder -- was the U.K.'s best-selling single of 2007, claiming the Number One spot for seven weeks. Ushering in 2008, Leona received four prestigious Brit Award nominations, the UK equivalent of the Grammy Awards. Leona is currently in the studio recording two brand new tracks for the U.S. release of Spirit - "Forgive Me" by singer/songwriter superstar Akon and "Misses Glass" from the cutting edge producer/writers Madd Scientist and Rock City. Spirit is a mix of fresh pop and R&B, filled with "songs with a contemporary edge," as Lewis puts it, ranging from soulful up-tempo numbers ("I'm You," "The Best You Never Had," and "Whatever It Takes," which Lewis co-wrote) to ballads ("Better in Time," "I Will Be," and "The First Time I Ever Saw Your Face" -- a song that Roberta Flack made famous). Tracks were written and produced by an array of top-notch hit-makers, including Tedder, singer/songwriters Akon and Ne-Yo, songwriters Josh Alexander and Billy Steinberg, and songwriter/producers Dallas Austin, Stargate, J.R. Rotem, and Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald -- all of whom have worked with some of the biggest names in pop. In addition to gracing the covers of UK fashion publications like Harper's Bazaar, US media are touting Leona as the artist to watch in 2008: People Magazine labels her "the UK's hottest star in an "Introducing" piece," Vogue presents her in their "People Are Talking About - The Vogue 25 Cultural Highlights of 2008" and Entertainment Weekly declares her one of "8 To Watch in 2008."

Sex And the City [SOUNDTRACK]

2008-04-18T22:30:00.000-07:00

Sex And the City [SOUNDTRACK]

Track Listings
1. Labels or Love - Fergie (New Song)
2. All Dressed in Love - Jennifer Hudson (New Song)
3. The Look Of Love - Nina Simone (Madison Park vs Lenny B Remix)
4. New York Girls - Morningwood
5. All This Beauty - The Weepies
6. I Like The Way - Kaskade
7. It's Amazing - Jem (New Song)

View CD Details

8. How Deep Is Your Love - The Bird & The Bee
9. The Heart of the Matter - India.Arie
10. Auld Lang Syne - Mairi Campbell & Dave Francis
11. Kissing - Bliss
12. How Can You Mend A Broken Heart - Al Green with Joss Stone (Exclusive)
13. Walk This Way - Run-DMC with Aerosmith
14. SATC Movie Theme (New Version)

Daughtry

2008-04-18T22:21:00.000-07:00

Daughtry

Chris Daughtry starts his first post-American Idol disc with a song whose title reviewers coast to coast will be grateful for: "It's Not Over." What an understatement. For the Idol-watching rock fan's money, nobody--not even Southern-fried heartthrob Bo Bice in season four--stormed the stage with more raw talent.

View CD Details

That it translates so well to a solo disc (Daughtry was recorded with studio musicians; future discs will include a Daughtry-assembled band) proves all he needed was a little prodding, the kind the tube has gotten so good at. Here are a dozen songs that'll flick your rock & roll switch, whether you're a Creed fan, a club kid, or a mambo king: "Used To" and "Over You," a couple of early tracks, ought to arrive bundled with a road map they're so highway sing-along-ready, and "Feels Like Tonight" screws the lid on the premise that Daughtry can deliver a punchy pop-rock song without flinching.

Kate Voegele: Don't Look Away

2008-04-18T22:13:00.000-07:00

Kate Voegele: Don't Look Away

The musical landscape is teeming with singer/songwriters, many of them quite capable, but only a handful have something truly distinctive to offer. Kate Voegele belongs in the latter category. Don't Look Away, Voegele's first full-length album (MySpace Records), is a revelation, as the 20-year-old writer/singer, belying her tender years, delivers songs of depth and insight with a powerfully seductive voice that maintains a fierce presence amid dynamic rock grooves and infectious pop hooks. Produced by the veteran Marshall Altman (Matt Nathanson, Mark Broussard), Don't Look Away is a bravura effort from an old soul with a youthful spirit; think of her album as a female parallel to John Mayer's Room for Squares--at once a zeitgeist-capturing landmark and the launchpad for a viable career.

View CD Details

The tracks range from the rootsy acoustic ballad "Wish You Were," with its mandolin and accordion filigree, and the sparse, piano-based "Kindly Unspoken" to the widescreen heartbreak anthem "Only Fooling Myself" and the ironically titled "It's Only Life," a soaring expression of female empowerment, which Voegele describes as "a motivational, uplifting song about dealing with situations rather than trying to hide from them." "One Way or Another" is an edgy rocker about romantic victimization, while the punchy "Chicago," she says, "is a metaphorical representation of any kind of escape, about just needing to get away. The line at the end of the chorus is, `I'll be on the seven o'clock to Chicago,' so it refers to a specific city, but it's universally applicable."

Little Voice

2008-04-18T22:07:00.000-07:00

Singer: Sara Bareilles

For many listeners, Little Voice will be their first exposure to this soulful singer/songwriter, but it's actually Sara Bareilles' second record. Her first, the self-released Careful Confessions, led to a deal with Epic. Since then, Bareilles has opened for Marc Broussard and Maroon 5. She's also become a bonafide soundtrack queen with tracks featured in female-centric films Girl Play, Loving Annabelle, and Monster-in-Law. As with her out-of-print debut, the UCLA grad wrote every song on her first major label recording (Little Voice features re-worked versions of several demo numbers).

View CD Details

Like the portrait on the back of the CD--Bareilles in strappy black dress and lace-free high-tops--the piano-playing chanteuse combines the sweet with the scruffy. While her jazzy pop melodies are radio-ready, her relationship-oriented lyrics can be unexpectedly salty ("Bottle Up" and "Come Round Soon" wouldn't pass FCC muster). A little profanity here and there, however, doesn't indicate tough-girl attitude--Amy Winehouse can rest easy--so much as a desire to express herself freely. As Bareilles explains in "Love Song," "I'm trying to let you hear me as I am." (Not surprisingly, her degree is in communications.) Fans of Sarah McLachlan and Alicia Keyes will find much to like here.

Hard Candy Special Edition [Candy Box] [EXTRA TRACKS] [SPECIAL EDITION]

2008-04-18T22:02:00.000-07:00

It is a DVD-sized hinged box containing the CD (with 2 extra remix tracks), a 16-page full-color booklet, and a package of Starlite Mint candies.
The package is jewel case width, 8 inches tall, and 1 1/2 inch deep....has hard candy in the package.

View CD Details

Madonna’s eleventh, and final, studio album for Warner Bros., Hard Candy is a brilliant up-tempo collection that adds a hip-hop beat to the cultural icon’s club sensibilities, thanks to collaborations with Timbaland, Justin Timberlake, Pharrell Williams, and Nate "Danja" Hills. Following her previous studio album, 2005’s Confessions On A Dance Floor, which debuted #1 and has sold more than 8 million copies around the globe, Hard Candy punctuates the first 25 years of the album career of the most successful female artist in history with a musical exclamation point.

Human Clay

2008-04-18T21:56:00.000-07:00

Creed burst out of Florida with 1997's My Own Prison, a dark but commercial debut reminiscent of the early-'90s Seattle sound. Creed's moody guitar grunge and ardent lyrics, coupled with singer Scott Stapp's passionate vocals, helped My Own Prison sell millions. Human Clay demonstrates that this likable quartet hasn't messed with success; they turn in a sophomore outing rife with evocative moodiness, soaring guitars, and a dark, roiling, intense vibe.

View CD Details

"Beautiful" is but one of the winners on this strong 11-song CD. Haunting and indeed beautiful, the track is more delicate and seductive than most heard here, as is another lilting and mysterious entry, "Never Die," which boasts some Middle Eastern accents. "Higher" is typical Creed--safe, emotive guitar rock for the masses, but with a slight edge. Memorable hooks, Soundgarden-like guitars, and Vedder-like vocals make Human Clay at once compelling and effectively redundant. --Katherine Turman

Jazz Icons: Duke Ellington Live in '58

2008-04-05T20:33:00.000-07:00

Duke Ellington features the earliest-known filmed full-length concert by one of the 20th Century's greatest songwriters and bandleaders. Filmed at Amsterdam's famed Concertgebouw, this 80-minute concert features the 16-piece Duke Ellington Orchestra two years after their stunning performance at the 1956 Newport Jazz Festival,which Duke considered his second birth.

View CD Details

This epic performance includes legendary players Clark Terry, Johnny Hodges, Harry Carney, Paul Gonsalves, Quentin Jackson and Ray Nance performing some of the most beloved American music ever written.

Very Best of Smooth Jazz, Vol. 1

2008-04-05T20:31:00.000-07:00

This really hits the spot! The best sounds from JazzFM which is already my favourite Jazz radio station in one compilation. Classic favourites such as Grover's smooth tune 'Just the 2 of us'and Quincy's 'Razzamatazz' put you in the mood to take on some of the new hot smooth Jazz sounds on this album. The deep melodious music from Luther on "I'm only human" and Maysa Leeks "Gotta be Strong" enhance that relaxed moment.

View CD Details

This is definitley the one for warm summer nights lights low, glass of wine to hand and a circle of friends or that special someone reminiscing. Or selfishly indulge yourself by soaking in a hot tub with candles lit all around, sipping from a mug of herbal tea with this albums' powerful sounds enveloping your senses....mmmm bliss.

The Beatles: Let It Be

2008-04-05T20:24:00.000-07:00

Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
Original Release Date: May 8, 1970
Number of Discs: 1
Label: Capitol

Sloppy in conception, and even sometimes in the playing, Let It Be often gets a bad rap. Unfairly, as it's often as charming, well written, and (oh yeah) rocking as the Beatles' "better" albums; it's also more outright fun than Abbey Road, the masterpiece it followed into the stores. With Lennon and McCartney working together on the perfect "I've Got a Feeling," "Two of Us," and "Dig a Pony," it's hard to believe these guys were about to implode.

View CD Details

Track Listings
1. Two Of Us
2. Dig A Pony
3. Across The Universe
4. I Me Mine
5. Dig It
6. Let It Be
7. Maggie Mae
8. I've Got A Feeling
9. One After 909
10. The Long And Winding Road
11. For You Blue
12. Get Back

Jazz: A History of America's Music

2008-04-05T20:20:00.000-07:00

First off, let's get the kudos down: Geoffrey C. Ward and Ken Burns deserve far more than simple gratitude for bringing jazz to the limelight with this lavishly illustrated volume. The book features among its 500-plus pictures many of the previously unseen shots of musicians and venues glimpsed in Burns's 10-part documentary, Jazz. (See our Ken Burns Jazz Store for the lowdown on the series.) Jazz: An Illustrated History follows the film episode by episode, and it's filled with rich historical detail in the early chapters. Like the series, however, the book trails off after a certain point in chronicling jazz's history.

View CD Details

It gives background aplenty on early New Orleans music, the migration of jazz up the Mississippi to major urban centers, and the developments of swing and bebop. After bebop, the history gets a bit perfunctory. Dozens of major figures get mere sidebar coverage. Little is said of substance on Latin or Brazilian jazz, European contributions to the music, fusion, or umpteen smaller deviations from the mainstream. There are wonderful essays that highlight elements of jazz culture, particularly Gerald Early's consideration of race and white musicians in jazz and Gary Giddins's five-page essay on avant jazz. And there are fine sidebars as well. But developments during and after the 1960s are dealt with primarily in impressionistic guest essays rather than detail-oriented historical narrative. It is, of course, difficult to capture all jazz history in any single volume. So perhaps this ought to have been called Jazz: A Historical Appreciation, since the hundreds of images certainly create an intense sense of the music's milieu.

The Beatles: Revolver UK

2008-03-30T20:39:00.000-07:00

Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
Original Release Date: August 5, 1966
Number of Discs: 1
Label: Capitol

Revolver wouldn't remain the Beatles' most ambitious LP for long, but many fans--including this one--remember it as their best. An object lesson in fitting great songwriting into experimental production and genre play, this is also a record whose influence extends far beyond mere they-was-the-greatest cheerleading. Putting McCartney's more traditionally melodic "Here, There and Everywhere" and "For No One" alongside Lennon's direct-hit sneering ("Dr. Robert") and dreamscapes ("I'm Only Sleeping," "Tomorrow Never Knows") and Harrison's peaking wit ("Taxman") was as conceptually brilliant as anything Sgt. Pepper attempted, and more subtly fulfilling. A must.

View CD Details

Track Listings
1. Taxman
2. Eleanor Rigby
3. I'm Only Sleeping
4. Love You To
5. Here, There and Everywhere
6. Yellow Submarine
7. She Said, She Said
8. Good Day Sunshine
9. And Your Bird Can Sing
10. For No One
11. Doctor Robert
12. I Want to Tell You
13. Got to Get You into My Life
14. Tomorrow Never Knows

Best of Smooth Jazz

2008-03-30T20:30:00.000-07:00

Audio CD (October 28, 1997)
Original Release Date: October 28, 1997
Number of Discs: 1
Label: Warner Bros / Wea

song:

1. Maputo - Bob James/David Sanborn
2. Hippies On A Corner - Joe Sample
3. We're In This Love Together - Al Jarreau
4. Breezin' - George Benson
5. Daddy's Gonna Miss You - Yellowjackets
6. Rio De Janeiro Blue - Randy Crawford

View CD Details

7. Angela (Theme From 'Taxi') - Bob James
8. Midnight In San Juan - Earl Klugh
9. The Dream - David Sanborn
10. No Rhyme, No Reason - George Duke
11. 101 Eastbound - Fourplay
12. The Lady Wants To Know - Michael Franks
13. Nothin' But Love - Boney James

Jazz Icons: John Coltrane Live in '60, '61 and '65

2008-03-30T20:25:00.000-07:00

Actors: John Coltrane
Format: Best of, Black & White, NTSC
Language: English
Region: All Regions
Studio: Jazz Icons
DVD Release Date: September 4, 2007
Run Time: 95 minutes

Jazz Icons: John Coltrane provides an epic 95-minute overview of a true giant of 20th-century music. Three separate shows reveal Coltrane's ascending creative arc from hard bop innovator as a member of the Miles Davis Quartet in 1960 to consummate bandleader in 1961 to unrivalled jazz visionary in 1965. This DVD not only features Trane's classic quartet with Elvin Jones (drums), Jimmy Garrison (bass) and McCoy Tyner (piano), but also spotlights him onstage with other jazz legends including Stan Getz, Eric Dolphy and Oscar Peterson. Includes mind-blowing versions of his signature tunes "My Favorite Things" and "Impressions".

View CD Details

Ken Burns's Jazz: The Story of American Music

2008-03-30T20:16:00.000-07:00

Audio CD (November 14, 2000)
Original Release Date: November 14, 2000
Number of Discs: 5

This five-CD box set soundtrack to filmmaker Ken Burns's 10-part, 19-hour documentary Jazz spans nearly a century of jazz styles, from the martial rhythms of James Reese Europe to the soul-jazz of Grover Washington Jr. It includes time-tested classics like Benny Goodman's 1938 classic, "Sing, Sing, Sing"; John Coltrane's chanting 1965 immortal track, "A Love Supreme"; Billie Holiday's blue-ember ballad, "God Bless the Child"; and Ella Fitzgerald peeling off "A-Tisket A-Tasket." Bebop is represented by Charlie Parker's orchestral bop version of "Just Friends"; Thelonious Monk's nocturnal calling card, "'Round Midnight"; and Dizzy Gillespie's "Salt Peanuts" and "Groovin' High."

View CD Details

The jazz-instrumentalist-as-singer comes to life on Coleman Hawkins's "Body and Soul" and Horace Silver and the Jazz Messengers' "Doodlin'." Clifford Brown and Max Roach's "I Get a Kick out of You" epitomizes the hard-bop era, while Miles Davis's "So What" stands as the modal masterpiece. The cool school is in session with Chet Baker and Gerry Mulligan dishing out "Walkin' Shoes," and the Modern Jazz Quartet's soulful elegy "Django" straddles all the above musical orbits. As for Django Reinhardt, he's featured on "Shine" with the justly famed Le Quartet du Hot Club de France.

Louis Armstrong's "West End Blues" and "Potato Head Blues" and Duke Ellington's rousing rendition of Billy Strayhorn's anthem, "Take the A Train," and his moody "Solitude" show why they are the Olympian masters of this art form--and the most frequently featured artists in the series. Although Ken Burns tries bringing the music up-to-date with Wynton Marsalis, Cassandra Wilson, and two jazz-hip-hop-influenced tracks--Herbie Hancock's robotic "Rockit" and the French-language "Un Aige en Danger" by MC Solaar and bass legend Ron Carter--there are significant holes here. After Cecil Taylor and Ornette Coleman, the avant-garde period from the late 1960s to the 1980s is lacking. And aside from the bossa nova hit "Desafinado," Latin jazz is also missing. It's a tough task summarizing jazz in five CDs, and Burns has given us a vibrant and vivid multicolored aural portrait of the music. Eugene Holley Jr.

From Jazziz
Ken Burns Jazz - The Story of America's Music collects 94 tracks of music on five CDs along with 48 pages of annotation, explanation, and photographic documentation. It's all in the service of telling a tale of Americans working together, overcoming differences and conflicts, and moving toward a common goal. The general backdrop, of course, is the development of an indigenous music and its intertwinings with American life throughout the 20th century. But the central characters of this boxed-set story are really Burns, by now this country's pre-eminent documentary filmmaker; the producers at PBS, the original if no longer the dominant national television network; and the staffs of two major record labels, Verve and Columbia Legacy, who, in combination, possess a significant slice of jazz's history in their vaults.

Before it can be appreciated as a telling of jazz's tale, Ken Burns Jazz needs to be considered as the landmark in jazz promotion that it is. Burns is one of few Americans - maybe the only one - who could commandeer some 20 hours of television time dedicated to jazz, a music that, despite its rich history, now appeals to only a small minority of American ears. Burns has surrounded his 10-part PBS documentary with a book, a five-CD boxed set, a 20-track "best of" CD, and 22 single-artist discs that compile the work of artists profiled in the series. The musical output represents a rare and historic union of two companies that regularly compete for market share in jazz's reissue bins (and that's where much of the action is these days).

But this is about raising jazz's market share overall, and one need only read the evangelical zeal of Burns' liner notes to appreciate that. That's something we need not - in fact, should not - look at cynically. If the record executives are hopping on Burns' bandwagon, it's for a good reason: Besides the fact that jazz isn't heard all that much by general audiences, even when it is heard, it lacks context. For most people, jazz needs a storyline, a framework. Burns focused his lens in an effort to do just that, and it may prove to be the most powerful vehicle to drive jazz sales since the "young lions" movement of the early 1990s, when Wynton Marsalis and others were the focal points of resurgent interest in jazz.

As with that movement, discontent is likely to ripple throughout the jazz community in reference to the five-CD set. "What about Jackie McLean?" they'll cry. "Is Dizzy Gillespie's 'Manteca' all there is to Afro Cuban jazz?" they'll shout. "What about artists playing in clubs today, like Joe Lovano and Geri Allen and Greg Osby?" And let's not even talk about free improvisation. There are omissions to catch the eye of nearly any jazz lover.

But that's not the point. Ken Burns Jazz is the accompaniment to a film - the story as Burns tells it. In Burns' 10-part telling, the first nine episodes run through 1961, with the last summarizing the music since. This decision is a clear point of controversy, especially for those whose ears are more attuned to recordings of the '60s and beyond. Burns firmly contends that he is a historian, that he's telling a story of the inspiration behind the development of jazz.

Those taking Burns' project overall as a manifesto - that jazz stopped decades ago - are overreacting or misinterpreting. Taken on its own terms, a good deal of important detail is imparted as Discs One, Two, and Three move through the 1920s, '30s, and '40s. As one would expect, heaping helpings of Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington are laid out. There's also some music that helped give rise to jazz, like a 1919 recording of James Reese Europe's 369th U.S. Infantry "Hell Fighters" Band, two early Jelly Roll Morton tracks, and King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band, recorded in 1923. The first four discs support Burns' story quite well - that is to say, he succeeds in setting the music in a meaningful context for general listeners. But Disc Five, which moves from Armstrong's 1963 version of "Hello, Dolly!" to the Miles Davis Quintet's "E.S.P." (1965) to Herbie Hancock's 1983 MTV hit "Rockit" before ending with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra's "Take the 'A' Train" seems a confused hodgepodge - an attempt to cover too much ground. That's not surprising: Burns' story doesn't really deal in-depth with free jazz, fusion jazz, hip-hop jazz or contemporary forms of any stripe. He's waving the flag of jazz as sewn by its founders. And if this box sends listeners off to fill in the gaps or extend the tale themselves, there are any number of satisfying sequels to assemble.

Larry Blumenfeld, JAZZIZ Magazine Copyright 2000, Milor Entertainment, Inc.