Santana – Africa Speaks (2019)

Santana - Africa Speaks (2019)

Santana – Africa Speaks (2019)
EAC Rip | FLAC Tracks + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 471 MB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Concord Records | EU | Cat#: 00888072090842 | Genre: Pop Rock

No matter the numerous musical terrains Santana have traversed since the late 1960s, their trademark Afro-Latin sound is so recognizable it often dominates the band’s material. Not here; on Africa Speaks that sound is just one among many — some tunes here are almost unrecognizable as Santana). Produced by Rick Rubin, Africa Speaks was compiled from a whopping 49 songs, all recorded over ten days at Shangri-La in Malibu — many in a single take — most inspired by African melodies and polyrhythms. Continue reading “Santana – Africa Speaks (2019)”

Al Stewart – Year Of The Cat (1976) [1978, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Al Stewart - Year Of The Cat (1976) [1978, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Al Stewart – Year Of The Cat (1976) [1978, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Quality / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 819 MB (Hi-Res) + 242 MB (CD-Quality) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | Pressed in Japan | Cat#: MFSL 1-009 | Genre: Pop Rock

Al Stewart had found his voice on Past, Present & Future and found his sound on Modern Times. He then perfected it all on 1976’s Year of the Cat, arguably his masterpiece. There is no overarching theme here, as there was on its two immediate predecessors, but the impossible lushness of Alan Parsons’ production and Stewart’s evocative Continental narratives give the record a welcome feeling of cohesion that keeps the record enchanting as it moves from “Lord Grenville” to “Midas Shadow” to “Broadway Hotel,” before it ends with the haunting title track. Continue reading “Al Stewart – Year Of The Cat (1976) [1978, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]”

Atlanta Rhythm Section – The Polydor Years (2019) [8CD Box Set]

Atlanta Rhythm Section - The Polydor Years (2019) [8CD Box Set]

Atlanta Rhythm Section – The Polydor Years (2019) [8CD Box Set]
EAC Rip | 8xCD | FLAC Image + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 3.19 GB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Polydor / Caroline | Netherlands | Cat#: 0600753866603 | Genre: Classic Rock
Continue reading “Atlanta Rhythm Section – The Polydor Years (2019) [8CD Box Set]”

Paul Revere & Raiders – The Legend of Paul Revere (1990)

Paul Revere & Raiders - The Legend of Paul Revere (1990)

Paul Revere & Raiders – The Legend of Paul Revere (1990)
EAC Rip | 2xCD | FLAC Image + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 851 MB (CDs) + 15.7 MB (Scans) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Columbia / CBS | US | Cat#: C2K 45311 | Genre: Pop Rock

This double-CD set presents a real conundrum, on a lot of levels. For starters, on its face, 55 songs may well seem like overkill to the casual fan who only knows or remembers (or thinks they only remember) five or six big hits by Paul Revere & the Raiders. And there are more modest single-CD collections to be found on this band that seem less daunting Continue reading “Paul Revere & Raiders – The Legend of Paul Revere (1990)”

VA – Sony Super Audio CD – Ultimate Collection Volume 1 + Volume 2 (2001) [Hi-Res SACD Rip]

VA - Sony Super Audio CD - Ultimate Collection Volume 1 + Volume 2 (2001) [Hi-Res SACD Rip]

VA – Sony Super Audio CD – Ultimate Collection Volume 1 + Volume 2 (2001) [Hi-Res SACD Rip]
2x SACD Rip | ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz | FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz | Stereo & Multichannel
Hybrid SACD | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 6.65 GB (ISO) + 2.24 GB (FLAC Mch) + 2.02 GB (FLAC Stereo) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Sony Music Business Promotions | EU | Cat#: LSP9868412 | Genre: Pop, Jazz
Continue reading “VA – Sony Super Audio CD – Ultimate Collection Volume 1 + Volume 2 (2001) [Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

George Thorogood & The Destroyers – Greatest Hits: 30 Years Of Rock (2004)

George Thorogood & The Destroyers - Greatest Hits: 30 Years Of Rock (2004)

George Thorogood & The Destroyers – Greatest Hits: 30 Years Of Rock (2004)
EAC Rip | FLAC Image + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 594 MB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Capitol Records | Cat#: 72435-98430-2-5 | Genre: Blues Rock

Released to celebrate the 30th anniversary of George Thorogood & the Destroyers — their first album may not have come out until 1977, but they cut their first sessions in 1974 — Capitol’s Greatest Hits: 30 Years of Rock was designed to replace 1992’s The Baddest of George Thorogood and the Destroyers as the band’s definitive single-disc overview. Considering that the 1992 disc is out of print (as is the exhaustive and exhausting 1997 double-disc set Anthology), this does indeed stand as the best compilation currently in print Continue reading “George Thorogood & The Destroyers – Greatest Hits: 30 Years Of Rock (2004)”

Peter Green – The Very Best Of Peter Green (1998)

Peter Green - The Very Best Of Peter Green (1998)

Peter Green – The Very Best Of Peter Green (1998)
EAC Rip | FLAC Image + Cue + Log | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 370 MB | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Wise Buy | Netherlands | Cat#: WB 886002 | Genre: Blues Rock

Peter Green is regarded by some fans as the greatest white blues guitarist ever, Eric Clapton notwithstanding. Born Peter Greenbaum but calling himself Peter Green by age 15, he grew up in London’s working-class East End. Green’s early musical influences were Hank Marvin of the Shadows, Muddy Waters, B.B. King, Freddie King Continue reading “Peter Green – The Very Best Of Peter Green (1998)”

Elton John – 17-11-70+ (1971) [2017, Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Elton John - 17-11-70+ (1971) [2017, Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Elton John – 17-11-70+ (1971) [2017, Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Format / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 1.63 GB (Hi-Res) + 467 MB (CD-Format) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mercury / UMC | EU | Cat#: 5728537 | Genre: Pop

The great thing about this early live record is its obscurity — not just that this isn’t one of his better-known records, but that the set list is a fanboy’s dream, heavy on album tracks, covers, and the kinds of song that make Elton John’s early work so individual. It’s not just that there are no hits here, but it’s that these six songs emphasize the spare, hard-rocking bluesy singer/songwriter that may not have written his own words, but always sang them with conviction and melodies that made them seem like his own. Continue reading “Elton John – 17-11-70+ (1971) [2017, Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]”

The O’Jays – Ship Ahoy (1973) [2001, Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]

The O'Jays - Ship Ahoy (1973) [2001, Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]

The O’Jays – Ship Ahoy (1973) [2001, Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD Rip | ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz | FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz | Stereo & Multichannel
Single Layer SACD | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 4.24 GB (ISO) + 2.55 GB (FLAC Mch) + 0.98 GB (FLAC Stereo) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Epic / Legacy | USA | Cat#: ZS 32408 | Genre: R&B

The “other” O’Jays album masterpiece, Ship Ahoy combined shattering message tracks and stunning love songs in a fashion matched only by Curtis Mayfield’s finest material. From the album cover showing a slave ship to the memorable title song and incredible “For the Love of Money,” Gamble and Huff addressed every social ill from envy to racism and greed. Eddie Levert’s leads were consistently magnificent, as were the harmonies, production and arrangements. “Put Your Hands Together” and “You Got Your Hooks In Me” would be good album cuts, but on Ship Ahoy they were merely icing on the cake. Continue reading “The O’Jays – Ship Ahoy (1973) [2001, Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

Michael McDonald – Motown Two (2004) [Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Michael McDonald - Motown Two (2004) [Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Michael McDonald – Motown Two (2004) [Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD Rip | ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz | FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz | Stereo & Multichannel
Hybrid SACD | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 3.54 GB (ISO) + 2.97 GB (FLAC Mch) + 1.28 GB (FLAC Stereo) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Motown | USA | Cat#: B0003472-36 | Genre: R&B

Michael McDonald’s 2003 album of Motown covers, modestly titled Motown, was his biggest hit in well over a decade, so it only made sense that he returned with a sequel to the record a little over a year later — after all, might as well strike while the iron is hot. Logically titled Motown Two, the album follows the same blueprint as the first record, offering highly polished, professionally produced, expertly performed interpretations of gems from the Motown vaults; it’s the sound of young America in the ’60s reinterpreted for the adults of the new millennium. While the sound is the same, there are a couple of important differences this time around. Continue reading “Michael McDonald – Motown Two (2004) [Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

The Alan Parsons Project – Tales Of Mystery And Imagination (1976) [1994, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

The Alan Parsons Project - Tales Of Mystery And Imagination (1976) [1994, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

The Alan Parsons Project – Tales Of Mystery And Imagination (1976)
[1994, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Quality / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 862 MB (Hi-Res) + 236 MB (CD-Quality) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | US | Cat#: MFSL 1-204 | Genre: Progressive Rock

Tales of Mystery and Imagination is the debut studio album by English rock band The Alan Parsons Project. It was released on 1 May 1976 in the United States by 20th Century Fox Records and on 1 June 1976 in the United Kingdom by Charisma Records. The lyrical and musical themes of the album, which are retellings of horror stories and poetry by Edgar Allan Poe, attracted a cult audience. Continue reading “The Alan Parsons Project – Tales Of Mystery And Imagination (1976) [1994, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]”

John Lennon – Signature Box (2010) [Hi-Res] [Official Digital Release]

John Lennon - Signature Box (2010) [Hi-Res] [Official Digital Release]

John Lennon – Signature Box (2010) [Hi-Res] [Official Digital Release]
11x Discs | Hi-Res | FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz
Complete Digital Booklets
Total Size: 9.08 GB
Label: Apple / Capitol | Genre: Pop Rock

Originally released in 2010, the John Lennon Signature Box is an acclaimed collection that includes the eight remastered albums and an EP of Lennon’s non-album singles, all newly remastered in hi-res 96kHz/24bit digital resolution, plus several rarities available exclusively within the box set in 44.1kHz/24bit digital resolution Continue reading “John Lennon – Signature Box (2010) [Hi-Res] [Official Digital Release]”

Michael McDonald – Motown (2003) [Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Michael McDonald - Motown (2003) [Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Michael McDonald – Motown (2003) [Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD Rip | ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz | FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz | Stereo & Multichannel
Hybrid SACD | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 3.84 GB (ISO) + 3.10 GB (FLAC Mch) + 1.22 GB (FLAC Stereo) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Motown | US | Cat#: B0001194-36 | Genre: Soul, R&B

Michael McDonald never disguises what his seventh solo album is: the title Motown makes it clear that this 2003 effort is a tribute to the glory days of Berry Gordy’s Detroit empire. McDonald never strays too far from that thesis, occasionally dipping into the late ’70s for material (he takes on Marvin Gaye’s “I Want You”) and sometimes choosing to wax relatively obscure items from Motown’s vast, rich catalog, but for the most part, this is devoted to the songs that you know by heart, whether you were a kid in the ’60s or raised on oldies radio. Since this is McDonald, not a neo-soul neophyte Continue reading “Michael McDonald – Motown (2003) [Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

Sting – My Songs (2019) [Deluxe Edition, CD-Quality + Hi-Res] [Official Digital Release]

Sting - My Songs (2019) [Deluxe Edition, CD-Quality + Hi-Res] [Official Digital Release]

Sting – My Songs (2019) [Deluxe Edition, CD-Quality + Hi-Res]
[Official Digital Release]

Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 44.1kHz | CD-Quality / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Total Size: 552 MB (CD-Quality) + 941 MB (Hi-Res) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: A&M / Interscope Records | Genre: Pop

They’re his songs, so he can do whatever he wants with them. That seems to be the idea behind My Songs, a 2019 collection where Sting decides to revisit 15 of his most famous songs and tweak them for modern audiences. The inspiration behind the project was an updated version of “Brand New Day,” which he reworked at the end of 2018 not only so it’d have a shiny new arrangement for a New Year’s Eve gig Continue reading “Sting – My Songs (2019) [Deluxe Edition, CD-Quality + Hi-Res] [Official Digital Release]”