Music Room

All of the talk of Steely Dan here in the music room recently has got me revisiting some old tunes.Does anybody know what the backing singers sing repeatedly in the background of Show Biz Kids?A quick web trawl for the lyrics does not reveal an ...

Went to see him and his band at the Lowry in Salford last night.Fantastic evening. In great form with awesome backing. The Lowry is a great venue with good acoustics, as we were up in the Gods.The new album "The Old Kit Bag" has been released by...

Here's some interesting news on the new LA Philharmonic home due to open in October. bout my series tickets already and just waiting for the event. those who gave 5 mil were invited to the first trial concert last week, I however could not attend due...

After reading the article in Hi Fi plus by a member of the public who wrote in and said his copy sounded crap as as it was copy write protected and he changed it for another which sounded incredible. I investigated myself and no-one seems to know much...

The musical highlight of the evening has been the South Bank Show on Herbie Hancock. What an astonishing musician he is. I knew about the Miles recordings, 'Headhunters' and 'Rockit' but some of the things in between (was it the Mwaishi Orchestra?)...

Hi folks.I've a spectacular ability to miss good gigs - generally because I don't know they're happening. Other than trawl the music mags (which I have started doing again after a sabbatical), is there a place on the internet which allows forthcoming...

Barnes and Noble have introduced a rather novel CD auditioning device at their high turnover shops. It consists of a number of listening points and bar code reader points spread through out the CD shelves and a server containing excerpts of all the...

This has been on constant play in my car and at home all week.Has more of an alt.country feel than previous and is a bit more consistent than the last couple of their albums. More jangly guitars too, one track(Numbered Days) even reminded me of...

I recently bought a "best of" CD on Verve, and have really enjoyed it. Can anyone make some recommendations about other explorations in Nina's work?Many thanks in anticipation!

Ah, the solo piano! No other genre brings one closer to the heart and mind of a composer than solo piano works. A symphony or other large orchestral work may show off a composer's public persona and orchestration abilities and the string quartet may...

There is a new(ish) record shop near Berwick Street Soho called... "The Sounds of the Universe" in Broadwick Street, off Berwick Street, opposite the frilly pants shop, Agent Provocateur. They (SotU, not AP) have a decent range of groove music, from...

One of my favourite bands.Just wondered what you guys think of 'Monday at the hug and pint'?I'm a tad disappointed in this one after the marvellous 'the red thread'.I love the introduction of classical instruments on some tracks but the album seems to...

Gerry Mulligan .. Reunion with Chet Baker (Fontana). I love the Mulligan quartet. Chet Baker has a beautiful clear tone on this date and Mulligan fills in for the missing piano with lovely bass riffs, I'm reminded of how Uillean pipes do this in Irish...

Hi Folks,I scored a bit of a music bargain last night: 100 classical records and about 40 60s schlock like Bacharach, Beatles and Bach in Bossanova -somebodies old collection from the 60s and 70s for A$80. Some guy was selling his parents old...

My music purchases tend to go in cycles a bit from one genre to another, no particular plan here just that's what happens. Anyway recently I seem to have bought a lot of heavyish rock albums and some very good ones so thought I'd do a quick review of...

Having waited two months, the new Wire CD finally arrived at my flat before I left for work this morning, while in a spooky moment the vinyl version arrived at work as I got there this morning.It's very, very good. The short, slabby, breakneck songs...

Just noticed that the South Bank Show tonight is about Herbie Hancock. ITV1 22.45-11.45 Video+ 246165

Hi folks,does anybody happen to know which version of "Unchained Melody" was on the soundtrack for the Patrick Swayzee film "Sam"?Thanks in advance,Markus

I picked up a "teaser" 45 EP of the new Radiohead album Hail to the Thief. If you are a die hard Radiohead fan like I am, then you will love this new recording. Its got flavors of OK Computer, and some new shit that will blow you away. Recording...

Rented 'die another day' last night. Ugh, Madonna sounds like a bad copy of Daft Punk - terrible.Dan

Just checking I'm not missing something but this version of the Love track isn't on any of Calexicos albums is it?

This sounds interesting. A solo release by Paddy McAloon drawing on his experience of being temporarily blind. He listened to short wave radio conversations and took snippets of random dialogue to build into songs. Some of the text is then spoken by...

Bonnie Raitt is doing a limited venue UK tour in June. Just ordered my Manchester tickets Steve D

I believe I reported about the Shostakovich Seventh Symphony Valery Gergiev performed in August / September 2001, both in the Netherlands and in London, at the BBC Proms, with a combined orchestra of the Rotterdam Philharmonic and the Petersburg Kirov...

Not the band the label.Dorfmeister, Thievery Corperation and others let loose on Astrid Gilberto, Sahah Vaughn, Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone, Billy Holliday etc.Three 180g slabs, two tracks a side. A really great set of reworked songs which stand up...