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

Little bit of buzz around re the first album by Ibeyi due out Feb. Cannot comment further.

Still a big teaser... Happy New Year, Ewe!

   Finale time.

After a year, I think one of Hewitt's finest recordings. Her Fauré is classically poised, forceful at times - not a whiff of perfume in these performances. Hyperion's sound quality is close-up and brilliant.

EJ

A very special take on Bowie, jazz, ambient .....and other things - doesn't matter, definitely recommended for a listen

I also like this one a lot, while I even prefer her Bach work more. 

Love that album Bert, my favourite jazz release of last year...

Nigel is one of the greatest wordsmiths still working today.

Working New year's Day, I'm impressed.

Where will he stand when all the other wordsmiths go back to work tomorrow though?

SJB

Cresta ,

What the fook were we drinking?

Hewitt's lively and playful AotF. On the one hand very impressive; on the other hand, she keeps reminding me that the piano just lacks the gravitas that a big organ can bring to this music. Hewitt, however, comes quite far by ensuring great variety, and using all pianistic tools at her disposal. 

A 180 degrees different approach came out earlier in 2014, by Cédric Pescia (on the Aeon label). Also on a modern grand, but a very sparse, almost meditative performance. At times I prefer Hewitt's more animated and layered approach; but with Pescia there is never any question of him using the right tool for the job. Both are recommended.

EJ

Yup, she's known for her Bach. I think I have most of her recordings through the box that Hyperion issued a couple of years ago, but I don't know them all as well as I should. Her 2008 WTC surely is a winner, a bit heavy on the agogic accents but one of the few recordings that I can listen to in its entirety in a single session.

EJ

Simon and Garfunkel, the Collection.  I have a set of Focal 926s on home demo,  courtesy of the lovely Acoustica, and have been playing around with them for the last week or so. I'd already decided to order a set this Saturday but moving them another four inches from the wall has made a heck of a difference and this album,  which I know very well indeed,  sounds wonderful at the moment.

Streaming lossless via Deezer. This is such a good album, and proof that The SCI is more than just a live "jam band". Wonderful mix of studio songs, all extremely well produced!

Excellent early Philips digital live recording. Audience noise is rather high with quite a bit of coughing in the background but plenty of atmosphere and presence are kept in the recording.

I am ore impressed with Richter's piano playing than Schreier's voice which gets hard and flat at upper registers and a bit more theatrical than I would like.

Chaka's '78 debut album containing the mega hit 'I'm Very Woman' by Ashford & Simpson.

She's belting out via Kandid which I removed from the main system for now.

kuma,

I saw her live at the old Wembley Football ground in London summer 1975 as part of the Elton John all day concert.

She was outstanding.

As were the Eagles/ Beach Boys/Joe Walsh and a few others.

Grammy winning MacArthur Fellows 'Genius' Grant recipient Mandolin player Chris Thile's Bach effort.

An excellent digital recording by Edgar Meyer and mastered by Chris Bellman at Bernie Grundman. Nonesuch label offers clean but reasonably natural sounding modern digital recordings and vinyl is flat and quiet.

Performance wise it takes a bit to get used to the sound of Mandolin played like bullet train on some fast tunes. 

Technical excellence is unrefuted yet hard to determine how this set compares to more traditional reading. Nothing else it gives an interesting variations in textural differences from a violin which these sonatas are written for originally.

Personally I wish that he would have added a little more personal and playful touch.

EWF Spirit. '76 release. 

During the production their arranger/producer Charles Stepney died and Maurice White took over.

Stepney guided EWF earning them the seminal 'That's the Way of the World'. He has influenced and arranged for many of my favourite R&B artists such as Ramsey Lewis, Mini Riperton, The Emotions which share a similar sonic fingerprints.

That's cool!

She must have been the part of Rufus/Chaka Kahn back then?

   A LIVEly start to the day.

On CD:-

A nice quiet start of the Friday morning