John Lennon and Yoko Ono: Double Fantasy

"Double Fantasy was supposed to be a love album — instead, it became a death album. John Lennon was murdered within days of its release, and these songs became part of the world's mourning process. The achievement of this remastered version is that it lets you hear the music as it was meant to be: a celebration rather than a farewell. Lennon's voice sounds incredibly robust — check out the doo-wop exuberance of '(Just Like) Starting Over.' He and Yoko Ono take turns singing lead; after he snarls 'I'm Losing You,' Ono responds with 'I'm Moving On.' But the overall effect is two musicians sharing an emotional journey, culminating in the gorgeous 'Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy).' This edition adds a second disc with an Ono-supervised Stripped Down remix, which puts even more focus on the vocals. ... Five years after becoming a househusband, Lennon had fallen back in love with rock & roll" (Rob Sheffield, "John and Yoko's Last Labor of Love, Revisited," Rolling Stone, 10/14/10, p. 101).
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J. S. Bach: Goldberg Variations (Simone Dinnerstein, piano)

"The Variations are named after Johann Gottlieb Goldberg, who may have been the first performer. ... The tale of how the variations came to be composed comes from an early biography of Bach by Johann Nikolaus Forkel: "[For this work] we have to thank the instigation of the former Russian ambassador to the electoral court of Saxony, Count Kaiserling, who often stopped in Leipzig and brought there with him the aforementioned Goldberg, in order to have him given musical instruction by Bach. The Count was often ill and had sleepless nights. At such times, Goldberg, who lived in his house, had to spend the night in an antechamber, so as to play for him during his insomnia. ... Once the Count mentioned in Bach's presence that he would like to have some clavier pieces for Goldberg, which should be of such a smooth and somewhat lively character that he might be a little cheered up by them in his sleepless nights. Bach thought himself best able to fulfill this wish by means of Variations'" (Wikipedia).
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Vinicius Cantuária and Bill Frisell: Lagrimas Mexicanas

"The guitarists and songwriters Bill Frisell and Vinicius Cantuária recently completed a new album, 'Lagrimas Mexicanas,' and they are performing the poignant jazz- and Latin-infused material at (Le) Poisson Rouge early next year" ("On the Horizon," New Yorker, 12/20 & 27, 2010).
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Giacinto Scelsi: Piano Works 4

"Stephen Clarke, a Canadian pianist who revels in the challenges of difficult new music, played a concert at Le Poisson Rouge on Monday evening to celebrate the release of 'Giacinto Scelsi: Piano Works 4,' his latest contribution to the Mode label’s CD series devoted to this idiosyncratic Italian composer’s music. ... Listeners who associate Scelsi with the spare, often gnomic works of his final two decades (he died in 1988) would have found the 10-movement Suite No. 5 ('Il Circo,' 1935) and 'Hispania' (1939) puzzlingly uncharacteristic. In these Scelsi is outgoing, energetic, at times picturesque. To capture a Spanish sensibility, in 'Hispania,' for example, he wove references to delicate guitar figuration into his otherwise forceful piano writing, and borrowed a flamenco move — gradually speeding up a repeating chord progression — while keeping his distance from this music’s traditional harmonies and themes" (Allan Kozinn, "Pianist Revels in Scores That Dare the Ear," New York Times, 1/4/11).
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Jeff Beck: Emotion & Commotion

"Two time Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee Jeff Beck's first studio album in seven years, Emotion & Commotion, arrived earlier this year to critical praise and chart success and has now been nominated for five Grammy® awards including Best Rock Album, Best Rock Instrumental Performance ('Hammerhead'), Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals ('I Put A Spell On You' with Joss Stone), Best Pop Instrumental performance ('Nessun Dorma'), and Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical (for Steve Lipson). ... Emotion & Commotion ... features ... several songs accompanied by a 64-piece orchestra. ... Beck used a number of musicians to help create the album's diverse sound including guest appearances from Imelda May ('Lilac Wine'), Olivia Safe ('Elegy For Dunkirk,' 'Serene'), and Stone (Grammy-nominated 'I Put A Spell On You' and 'There's No Other Me')" (Mike Ragogna, "Press Releases, Grammy Style," Huffington Post, 12/2/10).
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Charles Lloyd Quartet: Mirror

"Here’s an extremely fine jazz album you just might have missed last year. Charles Lloyd, 72, a tenor saxophonist and flutist of meditative disposition, has been spinning yarns lately with a bright, young rhythm section, featuring Jason Moran on piano, Reuben Rogers on bass and Eric Harland on drums. First convened as a working quartet several years ago, the group, which will appear at the Rose Theater on Jan. 29, made its recorded debut with a rollicking live album, 'Rabo de Nube' (ECM), in 2008. 'Mirror,' released in September, is the follow-up. ... Mr. Moran, best known as a bandleader ... has also been maturing as a sideman. ... The earthy flutter created by Mr. Rogers and Mr. Harland, sensitive and self-assured, plays an equally defining role. And Mr. Lloyd stands at the center of the swirl, on the serenely swinging title track as on a version of Brian Wilson’s 'Caroline, No,' communicating a great range of human emotion with his zephyrlike phrasing" (Nate Chinen, "Critics' Choice," New York Times, 1/4/11).
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Chris Tomlin: And If Our God Is For Us ...

"For a musician all but unknown in New York or Los Angeles, Christian rocker Chris Tomlin had a standout December. As his new album, And If God Is With Us, climbed up the charts early in the month, his year-old Christmas album caught a seasonal updraft, giving Tomlin two albums in Billboard magazine's top 20 at the same time. Tomlin's rare distinction represents a first for the Christian music industry, and cements the dominance of the subcategory of Christian rock called Praise & Worship, of which Tomlin is the undisputed leader. And it is another milestone for a multimedia, hydra-headed organization known as Passion, which gave Tomlin his start and whose in-house label, Six Steps Records, produces his albums. Part revival meeting, part charity event, part national networking session, Passion drew some 22,000 college kids this week to Atlanta" (Paul O'Donnell, "Passion 2011: Chris Tomlin and the Christian Rock Revolution," Huffington Post, 1/7/11).
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Lost in the Trees: All Alone in an Empty House

"There is not a radio station that plays all the music I love. I dream of having my own radio station one day, so I can share the eclectic selection of music I love with others — I'm sure there are more of us who defy categorization, who live beyond the borders of 'adult contemporary,' 'modern country,' 'oldies,' or 'classic rock.' In fact, I am totally bored with much of the music of my past (all except Jackson Browne ...). So here is a totally random and incomplete list of what I am listening to now; it only includes albums that have come out in the last two years or so ... and that hint at what you would hear if you stopped by at my house when I was home. ... Lost in the Trees: All Alone in an Empty House. Here is another find that I owe to its mention in one of my favorite magazines, Garden and Gun (the first was the Avett Brothers). It's beautiful, creepy, orchestra-y, and definitely on the heavy rotation list. Plus, I just love the idea of being alone in an empty house" (Maria Rodale, "Music I Love Now: My Current Top 10," Huffington Post, 1/24/11).
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Hélène Grimaud: Resonances

"Atka took the stage first, sweeping right to the piano and striking a commanding pose. But with the keys covered and the lid down, there wasn’t much else he could do. He being a wolf. After he was led away, Hélène Grimaud entered, opened the lid and let loose with music from her new album, 'Resonances,' on Deutsche Grammophon. ... It was part of a gala evening at Bedford Post, an inn owned by Richard Gere, to raise funds for the Wolf Conservation Center in nearby South Salem, which Ms. Grimaud helped to found in 1999. ... Mozart's Sonata in A minor (K. 310), she said, is a rare work in which Mozart 'dropped his mask'" (James R. Oestreich, "No Howls, But Many High Notes at Hélène Grimaud's Performance for Wolves," ArtsBeat, 1/28/11).
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Photo: Hélène Grimaud's friend Atka the wolf once visited the Case Memorial Library.

Shakira: Sale el Sol

"Shakira's hips may not lie, but her Madonna turn on last year's She Wolf didn't always ring true. This quick follow-up, Sale El Sol (translation: The Sun Comes Out), lets Shakira be Shakira. The radiant results — with the Colombian crossover star singing mostly in Spanish — range from melodic ballads to punchy rockers and rhythmic fiesta-starters. The highlight? 'Rabiosa,' a dance-floor scorcher" ("Music," People, 11/1/10, p. 47).

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Dave Brubeck: Legacy of a Legend

"Dave Brubeck made his way to the Blue Note stage with apparent effort on Friday, the first night of a sold-out weekend run. 'My doctors told me I’m rushing things,' he said, a little breathlessly, once he had reached the piano bench. He didn’t go on to explain that he had undergone heart surgery in October, when he received a pacemaker, or that a handful of other concert dates had been postponed. He was back and eager to proceed, and that was what mattered, judging by the ensuing clatter of grateful applause. This was already shaping up to be a commemorative season for Mr. Brubeck. He’s the subject of a documentary, 'In His Own Sweet Way,' scheduled to run on Turner Classic Movies next Monday — his 90th birthday — after its premiere on Saturday at Lincoln Center. ... His stylish Columbia Records output has been repackaged for ... a two-CD compilation" (Nate Chinen, "Brubeck's Back, Conserving Resources," New York Times, 11/28/10).

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Rev. Johnny L. Jones: The Hurricane That Hit Atlanta

"Mr. Jones ... is a Bobby Bland-type singer, with a great gargly voice and a concentrated wariness that doesn’t break, even as he screams. For 53 years of Sunday mornings at Mount Olive Baptist Church in Atlanta he has been singing, preaching and recording it all. Some of those recordings came out long ago as LPs on the gospel label Jewel; the rest he’s been playing on the air during his Saturday morning radio programs (currently twice a month and streamable on WYZE-AM) or keeping at home. Dust-to-Digital, the Atlanta-based archival label, has just released a two-disc culling of the tapes as 'The Hurricane That Hit Atlanta,' and they display Mr. Jones as an amazing singer, full of inspired power, delay tactics and shrewd reassurances. (His rhythm sections were casually killer too, playing blues, gospel and R&B grooves stripped to the bone.) ... [T]he album ... stays electrifying from start to finish. Two hours isn’t enough" (Ben Ratliff, "Some Blustery Gospel, Some Blaring Metal," New York Times, 12/2/10).
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Air: A Baroque Journey

"Life has often been precarious for musicians, and it continues to be so. But at least the financial and psychological battles endured by musicians today tend to be less deadly than those waged by some of their predecessors. The violinist Daniel Hope — an engaging speaker during a concert of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center ... said that during wars in the Baroque era, trumpeters would be sent first into the fray. The enemy would try to shoot them to knock out their musical signal. Mr. Hope offered the anecdote while introducing 'La Guerra Così Nominata di Sua Maestà' ('War, so Named by His Majesty'), a piece by Johann Paul von Westhoff, a 17th-century German composer and favorite of Louis XIV. Westhoff’s music was featured in a program of Baroque music that explored the roots of the modern violin and featured excerpts from 'Air: A Baroque Journey,' Mr. Hope’s recent Deutsche Grammophon CD" (Vivien Schweitzer, "No Musicians Harmed in Playing This Concert," New York Times, 12/13/10).

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Julian Lage: Sounding Point

"The guitarist Julian Lage, a featured presence in Gary Burton’s new band, takes another turn in the spotlight here, drawing from 'Sounding Point' (EmArcy), last year’s impeccably polished debut. His rhythm section is the same here as on the album, with the cellist Aristides Rivas, the bassist Jorge Roeder and the percussionist Tupac Mantilla" (Nate Chinen, "Jazz Listings," New York Times, 11/5/10).
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Carrie Underwood: Some Hearts

"Some Hearts is the debut album from country pop singer Carrie Underwood, released in the United States on November 15, 2005. It has been certified seven times platinum in the U.S. (RIAA) and three times platinum in Canada (CRIA). On December 4, 2006, Some Hearts was named the number-one selling album of the year in all genres at the Billboard Music Awards. It is also the best selling debut album by a solo female country music artist in history and the best selling album by an American Idol alumnus in the United States. The album contains the #1 singles 'Inside Your Heaven', 'Jesus, Take the Wheel', 'Don't Forget to Remember Me', 'Wasted', and 'Before He Cheats', her biggest hit to date. To promote Some Hearts, Carrie embarked on her very first solo tour, which was called Carrie Underwood: Live 2006. The tour started April 4, 2006 and ended November 30 of the same year. With 7,074,000 copies sold in the United States, Some Hearts is listed as one of the 100 Best Selling Albums of All Time" (Wikipedia).

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The Bad Plus joined by Wendy Lewis: For All I Care

"This is the first Bad Plus album to include a vocalist. ... Although the Bad Plus are known for playing inventive covers of rock songs, this is their first album to exclusively feature cover songs. ... 1. 'Lithium' - 4:46 (Nirvana; Kurt Cobain) 2. 'Comfortably Numb' - 6:41 (Pink Floyd; David Gilmour/Roger Waters) 3. 'Fém (Etude No. 8)' - 3:20 (György Ligeti) 4. 'Radio Cure' - 6:40 (Wilco; Jay Bennett/Jeff Tweedy) 5. 'Long Distance Runaround' - 3:43 (Yes; Jon Anderson) 6. 'Semi-Simple Variations' - 3:32 (Isadore Freed/Milton Babbitt) 7. 'How Deep Is Your Love' - 3:39 (The Bee Gees; Barry Gibb/Maurice Gibb/Robin Gibb) 8. 'Barracuda' - 3:21 (Heart; Ann Wilson/Michael DeRosier/Nancy Wilson/Roger Fisher) 9. 'Lock, Stock and Teardrops' - 4:08 (k.d. lang; Roger Miller) 10. 'Variation d'Apollon' - 4:33 (Igor Stravinsky) 11. 'Feeling Yourself Disintegrate' - 4:47 (The Flaming Lips; Michael Ivins/Steven Drozd/Wayne Coyne) 12. 'Semi-Simple Variations (Alternate Version)' - 1:11 (Isadore Freed/Milton Babbitt)" (Wikipedia).

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Bruce Springsteen: Darkness on the Edge of Town

"On May 26th, 1978, Resorts International opened the first legal casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Bruce Springsteen's Darkness on the Edge of Town was released one week later. ... Born to Run's grand, 'wall of sound' canvas was perfect for a kid with big dreams, but Darkness was made by a grown up asking new questions, and it has a much more stripped-down, grounded sound that is somehow hugely cinematic. ... Soon after critic Jon Landau (his future manager) famously anointed him 'The Future of Rock and Roll,' Springsteen was caught up in a protracted legal battle over publishing rights with his manager, Mike Appel, which kept him from recording or releasing any music for the next three years. And he was wrestling with his own demons. ... So it made sense that this young, scruffy boardwalk rat might ... once he was allowed back in the studio, make a record that was a fierce, clear-but-bleary-eyed look at the hard truths of modern American adulthood" (Peter Birkenhead, "Meet the Old Boss," Huffington Post, 10/6/10).

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