Prior to becoming an ace mainstream jazz pianist in the U.S., native Jamaican Monty Alexander played on countless sessions at Studio One in Kingston -- well before reggae, rocksteady, and even ska crossed the seas.

This 1960 recording, reissued on a 1998 CD, was not only the debut recording of trumpeter Chuck Mangione but has the first appearances on record by tenor-saxophonist Sal Nistico, pianist Gap Mangione and drummer Roy McCurdy; altoist Larry Combs and bassist Bill Saunders complete the group.

Boogie-woogie pianist and Muddy Waters Band alumni Pinetop Perkins is in fine form on his second Telarc disc, Back on Top. These ten tunes cover familiar territory that most blues fans will know by heart, including "Hi-Heel Sneakers," "Kansas City," and "Down in Mississippi." Perkins' band, consisting of Denny Breau on guitar, Michael "Mudcat" Ward on bass, and Per Hanson on drums, helps breathe new life into the classic urban blues sound, and is joined sporadically by special guests Corey Harris and Sugar Ray Norcia.

The notes on the back of this album describe it as 'music to take a bath to'. I would absolutely agree with that. The main track starts off gently and immerses you in its warm and caressing sounds. Later you are scrubbed down with a gentle but firm sequence which builds up slowly to a semi-climatic cold splash, before soothing away your cares with a gently accoustic guitar close. At 20 odd minutes this is perfect relaxation listening. The other 2 tracks, using a vocoder voice sequence also build up over an aural landscape which hits the spot without the punch. Essential synthesizer listening.

This label was founded in 1977 by Pierre Verany, who has a passion for music and sound, and is now owned by Arion since 1997. It gathers a rich collection of recordings recognised for its quality and particularly appreciated by record collectors and audiophile lovers.

After racking up huge sales with Live, Foghat found themselves forced to choose between staying a hard rock cult group or trying to expand their success and become a full-on commercial phenomenon.

Music fans of the current generation who aren't familiar with the legendary French torch singer Edith Piaf should automatically go to track 13 here, where Raquel Bitton (a modern day French torcher who has dedicated much of her recent career to the music of Piaf) engages us in a tremendous version of the familiar "La Vie en Rose."

Music fans of the current generation who aren't familiar with the legendary French torch singer Edith Piaf should automatically go to track 13 here, where Raquel Bitton (a modern day French torcher who has dedicated much of her recent career to the music of Piaf) engages us in a tremendous version of the familiar "La Vie en Rose."

Music fans of the current generation who aren't familiar with the legendary French torch singer Edith Piaf should automatically go to track 13 here, where Raquel Bitton (a modern day French torcher who has dedicated much of her recent career to the music of Piaf) engages us in a tremendous version of the familiar "La Vie en Rose."

After years of session and live work (with Van Morrison, Jon Hendricks, John Lee Hooker), Lady Bianca made her solo debut with this 1995 record, released through Telarc.