What are you listening to and WHY might anyone be interested? (Vol.IX)

So far today :

Claire Holley - Hush

Patty Griffin - Impossible Dream

Laura Cantrell - Kitty Wells Dresses

Now:   Heritage Blues Orchestra - And Still I Rise

More prog rock,

Airbag - All Rights Removed 2LP

Turn up, close eyes, and empty the day's work pressures away........fantastic escapism. Bass you can feel through the sofa from the diminutive PMC Twenty.23.....amazing. G

Bell as conductor

Dear EJ,

The Boult recording of Sibelius' Seventh Symphony was from a broadcast concert in the 1960s, issued on a series of CDs that is sadly now withdrawn. The issues were by IMG in partnership with the BBC Music Library. Amazon may have second hand examples for sale, and these will not be expensive, because Boult is no longer noted as a significant Sibelius conductor.

The treasure that series unearthed was something special, though the recordings could be hit and miss, as they were air-check tapes of live performances, rather than in any way finished productions.

On occasion there were blazing, inspirational concerts captured without patchy or plain bad recordings, and often of great artists playing music that was not the repertoire that the commercial companies were recording them in ...

The Boult recording mentioned falls into this category. I am not sure that anything would have been better done in the studio, and am fairly sure that the perfection possible with editing and retakes would have ironed out quite a lot of what is so grand about that Sibelius Seventh from Boult - the sweepand power, and the contrasts drawn, all tied in to a momentum that observes the form and the emotion of the music in the most satisfying equilibrium. It does tend to make the studio recording of even Beecham sound a little tame!

But this being Boult on one of his best days, we are treated to a Toscanini-like intensity but without hair-raising moments of edge of the seat ensemble playing, as the orchestra was clearly on fire - inspirationally - but the usually serene Boult seems to have caught fire as well,while completely retaining his sense of architecture.It is fascinating for me - considering Boult the musician - that on his day he could pour his musicality into the music of Sibelius, rather than say Brahms, or Elgar, which were much nearer the repertoire he is associated with nowadays with so much freedom even compared to the best of what he was famous for!

On Sibelius' seventieth birthday there were two broadcasts of live concerts,each containing one of his symphonies, by two rather unlikely sounding Sibeleans: Boult and Klemperer! Both performances were very happily enjoyed by the composer.

ATB from George

Segerstam is a fine Siblius conductor

damm

Spotify just provide 3 songs of it

Haven't played these discs for a long time, and surprised how much more enjoyable I find them compared to a few years ago.

Cheers,

EJ

Dear EJ,

Quartets, you and me both!

Just listened to the Opus 95, Opus 130, and Opus 133 [Great Fugue] by Beethoven, played by the Busch Quartet. These never seem to fail as music or performances for me.

The Great Fugue is actually played by the Busch Chamber players in a group of about 17 players I would imagine. This was recorded in 1941, while Busch was recovering from a heart attack, and he felt unable to play the first violin part as one to part. He brings an intensity to this that if not discovered would be unimaginable for me.

I got this Great Fugue recording today, and though the other late Quartet recordings I have had one two sets of LPs, and two different sets of CDs, this is my third set of CDs, so as to get the previously unavailable Great Fugue.

The company is EMI, and here they have licensed the American Columbia Great Fugue and Opus 130 quartet recordings from Sony BMG.

The American Columbia recordings are nothing to write home about, but the music making would survive being dragged through a hedge backwards, and still be sublime!

ATB from George

PS: That means I bought three CDs for one sixteen minute track only. I must be mad, but am still as pleased as punch with this!!!!!!!!

and then

Vinyl

Keep going George. Much more fun to share music than hardware isn't it?

Listening to the Busch in op.132 now, on an old EMI transfer. Despite the background noise being the fifth player (or, you might imagine listening on a windy day at the beach), the performance is unparalleled. 

EJ

John Scofield says that BB King was one of his biggest influences.The early recordings shows why.

Probably favour Split at the moment but only because I'm a little more familiar with a couple of the tracks.Will definitely be hunting down more of their albums.TCFTB is a second press still A1 but on the black Liberty.The sound quality on both albums is stunning.

Oh and thanks for the little nudge I needed to go and collect them.   

CD

A little known piece of vinyl. Chris Youlden was lead singer with Savoy Brown at their peak in the late '60s early '70s. I bought this album because I loved his vocals with Savoy Brown but it didn't get much play early on as it wasn't as bluesy as I was expecting but as I've aged, some 40 years later, it's grown on me. 

Thought I would join you Groundhogs.......

Original Vinyl

R.I.P.

Yes, tragic loss. Looks like its going to be a bit of a JJ evening.

2 x LP - BACK/ON/BLACK 180gram © 2005 limited to 1000 copies : )

Peter Hammill / lead vocals, acoustic guitar, piano (3)
Hugh Banton / organs, oscillator, piano, bass (2,5), vocals
Guy Evans / drums, tympani, percussion
David Jackson / saxes, flute, vocals
Guests:
Nic Potter / bass (1,3,4)
Robert Fripp / electric guitar (3)

Released - 1970

Just bought a copy on evilbay.

Terrific and very refreshing performance.

Sara Watkins - Midnight Sun

I don't have any Nickel Creek albums, but I do enjoy Sara's solo efforts.