Having cut an album of standards on his first Warner Brothers album, In a Sentimental Mood (1989), Dr. John turned for its follow-up to a collection of New Orleans standards. On an album he described in the liner notes as "a little history of New Orleans music," Dr. John returned to his hometown and set up shop at local Ultrasonic Studios, inviting in such local musicians as Pete Fountain, Al Hirt, and the Neville Brothers and addressing the music and styles of such local legends as Jelly Roll Morton, Huey "Piano" Smith, Fats Domino, James Booker, and Professor Longhair. The geography may have been circumscribed, but the stylistic range was extensive, from jazz and blues to folk and rock. And it was all played with festive conviction - Dr. John is the perfect archivist for the music, being one of its primary proponents, yet he had never addressed it quite as directly as he did here.

Having an album release party in the London Zoo's Aquarium, where the emphasis would no doubt be on stillness, hush and the haunting beauty of the deep, just suits most 4AD label releases to begin with. Given that Brook is known for his mysterious, spare guitar work makes this record of the solo concert he gave there upon the appearance of Cobalt Blue all that more appropriate. Reproducing much of the content of that album but in a different running order, Aquarium consists solely of Brook, his guitar and preset synth/rhythm patterns. The result is quite fascinating; whether a listener thinks that the more stripped-down overall sound of the songs here works better as a result or prefers the generally lusher textures of the studio release must ultimately be up to individual judgment…

Guitarist Mike Stern, best-known for playing rock-oriented fusion and in more commercial settings, surprised many listeners by recording an album dominated by standards. Actually, there are three originals included among the 11 pieces, but Stern also digs into such songs as "Like Someone in Love," "Moment's Notice," Chick Corea's "Windows," and "Straight No Chaser." Among Stern's sidemen on this fairly straight-ahead but adventurous set are trumpeter Randy Brecker, Bob Berg on tenor, and keyboardist Gil Goldstein. This little-known release is well-worth acquiring.

Suitably grand in scale and far-reaching in its scope, this soundtrack is the first new music from Vangelis since 1990's The City. 1492 stands up well next to Vangelis's classic Chariots of Fire, due to his innate ability to get right inside the material and provide an integral part of the film itself. Vangelis succeeds in capturing the 15th-century mood, mixing rich choral portions with modern elements, and portraying the larger than life character of Columbus, complete with full-range, dynamic sound.

La célèbre épopée biblique relatant le meurtre d’Abel par Caïn est connue de tous, mais la mise en scène qu’Alessandro Scarlatti lui a dédiée l’est beaucoup moins. Thème récurant pour les oratorios italiens au XVIIe siècle, le sujet est traité ici à la manière d’une histoire policière. Avec un effectif musical réduit, il nous transporte dans un univers baroque étourdissant. Les accents lyriques sont d’une expressivité rare tandis que l’orchestre, faisant preuve de beaucoup de psychologie, exulte. Par bonheur, la prise de son est à l’avenant. Les divers plans sonores sont respectés avec une très belle transparence et une foule de détails sur les voix et sur les instruments.

The Very Best of Otis Redding wasn't the first Otis Redding compilation but it is the best of the single-disc collections, distilling the high points across his career (up thru the posthumous hits "(Sitting' On) The Dock of the Bay" and the heartbreaking "I've Got Dreams to Remember") in 16 tracks, every one a musical milestone and a soul music high-point of one kind or another. Although aimed at the casual listener and the neophyte fan, there are some astonishing realizations to be had in listening to this disc and looking at the chart placements of the early sides, and realizing just how uniform his musical influence is - "These Arms of Mine" and, especially, "Pain In My Heart," from 1962 and 1963, respectively, sold only a fraction of what his later singles did, yet they've been covered by so many artists since, that they're as familiar as any of the other, bigger hits on this disc. The collection is hardly comprehensive, but all of the major bases are touched, right down to his 1967 hit duet "Tramp" with Carla Thomas.

Greatest Hits: 1965–1992 is the first European compilation album by American singer-actress Cher, released on November 9, 1992 by Geffen Records. The album reached the top 10 in several European countries and topped the UK album charts for 7 non-consecutive weeks where it became the best-selling album by a female artist of 1992. Notable hit songs included in this album are "The Shoop Shoop Song" which charted at number 1 in more than 10 countries worldwide, "If I Could Turn Back Time" which was her biggest hit at the time and "I Got You Babe". Three new songs were also recorded for this album "Oh No Not My Baby" (originally sung by Maxine Brown), "Whenever You're Near", and a live recording of "Many Rivers to Cross" (originally sung by Jimmy Cliff).

A popular saxophonist and singer with a mellow, R&B-influenced style, Walter Beasley has led a successful contemporary and smooth jazz career. Following his emergence in the late '80s, he balanced his teaching career at Boston's Berklee College of Music with issuing a steady stream of lyrical, groove-oriented albums like 1997's Tonight We Love, 2002's Rendezvous, and 2007's Ready for Love, the latter of which spawned three number one Billboard smooth jazz songs, including "I'm Back" and "Steady as She Goes." He runs his own Affable Music label on which he issued 2019's Going Home.

Sambao is Kenny Barron's tribute to Brazilian music done his way. These original compositions by the peerless pianist combine jazz and samba in a modernistic way, with no copying of tunes from the master Antonio Carlos Jobim, and no hint of the populist Stan Getz approach due to the lack of a lead instrument, save Barron's attractive and inventive piano. He's accompanied by heavyweights of the Rio-cum-New York City scene, including guitarist Toninho Horta, bassist Nico Assumpção, and French-born percussionist Mino Cinelu. Barron's (and most people's) favorite jazz drummer Victor Lewis is included, reinforcing the rhythms expertly as usual.

Not to be confused with the platinum-selling glam metal miscreants active in the late 1980s, the original Skid Row blazed a much overlooked trail some 20 years prior, as one of Ireland's earliest contributors to the hard rock field. Skid Row began to coalesce in Dublin, Ireland in October 1967, around vocalist Philip Lynott, bassist Brendan "Brush" Shiels, drummer Noel Bridgeman, and guitarist Bernard Cheevers, who would be replaced the following January by a 16-year-old prodigy hailing from Belfast, north of the border, named Gary Moore. The quartet threw itself into playing pubs and working men's clubs so as to develop their chops and repertoire, eventually recording a 1969 single for Irish label Songs Records entitled "New Places, Old Faces."

When producer Norman Granz decided to let Charlie Parker record standards with a full string section (featuring Mitch Miller on oboe!), the purists cried sellout, but nothing could be further from the truth. There's a real sense of involvement from Bird on these sides, which collect up all the master takes and also include some live tracks from Carnegie Hall that - judging from the sometimes uneasy murmurings of the crowd - amply illustrate just how weirdly this mixture of bop lines against "legit" arrangements was perceived. The music on this collection is lush, poetic, romantic as hell, and the perfect antidote to a surfeit of jazz records featuring undisciplined blowing. There's a lot of jazz, but there's only one Bird.

Travellin' Tracks is a great collection of lively blues by slide guitar specialist Roy Rogers and harmonica wiz Norton Buffalo. Of the 11 songs recorded 5 are live recordings with Mercury Blues; Down In Mississippi; and Move On Way From Here recorded from The Sierra Nevada Taproom in Chico, CA (Love the Sierra Nevada Pale Ale too).
The song Hey There Grandpa is an appropriate change of pace mellow one otherwise Travellin' Tracks is all fast and fun and cool blues with a hip country tinge.