Mary Black-No Frontiers Mary Black’s No Frontiers was an audiophile favorite back in the day. I hadn’t thought about this record, or played it, in decades. A mention of it somewhere brought it to mind and I thought, man, that was a pretty good album. After several fruitless searches through the “miscellaneous” wall of records here, I gave up and bought an early pressing via a UK seller. Now I remember why this record was beloved. (And it’s usually after I buy another copy that I find the one I had). Anyway, back to Mary Black.   There are some great songs on here—not... Read More

Cochemea Gastelum- All My Relations A mixture of native American chanting with some surprisingly vibrant percussion work, led by a horn player known for backing the late Sharon Jones with the Dap-Kings, Cochemea’s All My Relations is not only a sonic treat but a spiritual journey that alternates between trance and jazz with the kind of percussive sparkle and tone that make it “demo” material. A musically astute friend (thank you, Chris) brought his copy over to my place for a listen a few weekends ago. In no time, I took a quick photo of the cover and bought it immediately after... Read More

Nathan Davis- Makatuka This album, released a year before the recently reviewed “6thSense in the 11thHouse,” was recorded in the same Pittsburgh studio, by the same engineer, with a different band, the Nathan Davis Sextet. It also features a vocalist, Wheeler R. Winstead, whose soulful groove adds another dimension to an album chock full of surprises. This is a record of virtuoso horn playing, from the range of saxes and clarinet played by Davis (who could wring out just about every sound imaginable from those instruments) to some glorious trombone work by Nelson Harrison. These players... Read More

Jim Hoke –The Floating Zone Jim Hoke is one of those unsung, working musicians who often remain under the radar of the general public, but are well-known and respected by other musicians: Paul McCartney included Jim on four tracks of his latest album; Jim has worked with pretty much everybody: Billy Joel, Dolly Parton, Boz Scaggs, Buddy Guy, Steve Earle, Joan Baez and a long, long list of others. He has toured with Emmylou Harris and NRBQ; George Jones recorded one of Jim’s songs. Jim’s latest album, “The Floating Zone” calls upon some of the notable performers with whom Jim has... Read More

Peter Ledermann’s Direct Grace Records Most of us know of Peter Ledermann through his Soundsmith company, one of the small handful of companies that “retips” phono cartridges. In more recent years, Peter has proven to be a prolific innovator of a range of phono cartridges and accessories. But, did you know Peter also had a record label? One that produces and distributes direct to disc records? It’s called Direct Grace Records. http://www.directgrace.org/Home.html Direct to disc records have, in my experience, been some of the best sounding LPs I have heard. Sadly, many are... Read More

David Lindley- El Rayo-X Speakers Corner Re-Master  David Lindley is a national treasure. He’s been doing this a long time, and has appeared on a lot of famous records, including a number of the big hit albums starting in the ‘70s, many from musicians based or recorded in Los Angeles: Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne, James Taylor, Terry Reid, Graham Nash, Little Feat and hundreds of other records (and as many live appearances) as a sideman wielding a variety of stringed instruments. He’s had bands (Kaleidiscope; El Rayo-X) and still tours, often as a one-man show. I’ve... Read More

Nathan Davis- The 6th Sense in the 11th House Life is a wonderfully strange thing sometimes, small worlds and hidden treasures in plain sight: I had been hunting for copy of Nathan Davis’ The 6th Sense in the 11thHouse, released in 1972. The record, if not rare, doesn’t seem to be all that common or well-known in the audiophile community. There was a promo copy on Discogs for stupid money, and I kept my eye out.  One night, sleepless, I hit e-Bay to set up a search/alert for the record when up popped a “New Listing” for a sealed promo copy for very reasonable... Read More

Black Cat Bones-Barbed Wire Sandwich   An important album by a short-lived band known for the association of various members with a number of other early heavy rock and blues rock bands, among them, Leaf Hound, Atomic Rooster, Cactus, Foghat and Free. Kossoff and Simon Kirke, of Free, left the band before this–– the band’s sole release––was recorded but a number of the tracks have same raw swagger and unpolished sound as Tons of Sobs, Free’s first album (and, to me, Free’s best). Admittedly, there’s no Paul Rodgers here. But what is here is very, very good at times if... Read More

Air-Air    This is a stunning record. Composed and performed by a band with a long working relationship with Herbie Mann (who produced the album), its vocal parts shine with soulful beauty thanks to Googie Coppola, the professional moniker of Carol Brooks, whose writing, performance and voice are central to the magic of this album. The rest of the band—Tom Coppola (Googie’s partner), John Siegler and Mark Rosengarden achieve something remarkable—a jazz album that has soul but is not trapped by either genre; there is an ethereal quality to this record that is both uplifting and... Read More