LILA DOWNS: "Pecados Y Milagros"

Original released on CD Sony 8869 798272 2

(MEXICO 2011, October 18)

The album was recorded in Mexico City and New York. Lila Downs describes the album musically as having "a strong rock side" along with "traditional" and "Latino" songs. Celso Duarte is one of several collaborators to appear on the album, featuring on the first single "Palomo del Comalito". Other collaborations are said to include songs with rappers Illya Kuryaki and the Valderramas, Celso Piña and Totó la Momposina. Upon its release, "Pecados y Milagros" received general acclaim from most music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 89, based on 5 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim". The album has accounted for 9% of overall album sales for the Latin Top 100 albums and has reached and remained at number 2 on the Latin iTunes. The sales, chart position, and the heavily digital sales are records for Spanish-language albums released this year. The album debuted at number 57 on European Top 100 Albums after debuting at number 10 in Spain and Portugal and number 29 in France. After two weeks at number 39 on European Albums, the album moved up to a peak of number 20, spending a second week atop the French chart and climbing 3-1 in Italy. It's down 19-26 in Portugal. The album debuted at number 20 on French Physical Album Chart with sales of 10,500, becoming her highest peaking album on the chart. It debuted at number 10 on the French Digital Album Chart with sales of 2,000. The album debuted at number 68 at German Album Chart[10] and number 2 on German Downloads Chart. It has sold 30,000 copies in France alone since its release in October 2011. According to Downs' label Sony Music, the album set the record for selling 30,000 copies in Mexico in three weeks. (in Wikipedia)

CRUZ DE OLVIDO

(Letra y Música: Juan Zaizar)

Con el atardecer

Me ire de aqui

Me ire sin ti

Me alejare de ti

Con un dolor dentro de mi

Te juro corazón

Que no es falta de amor

Pero es mejor asi

Un dia comprenderas

Que lo hice por tu bien

Que todo fue por ti

La barca en que me iré

Lleva una cruz de olvido

Lleva una cruz de amor

Y en esa cruz sin ti

Me morire de astio

Culpable no he de ser

De que por mi puedas llorar

Mejor sera partir

Prefiero asi que hacerte mal

Yo se que sufrire

Mi nave cruzara un mar de soledad

Adios, adios mi amor

Recuerda que te ame

Que siempre te amaré

La barca en que me iré

Lleva una cruz de olvido

Lleva una cruz de amor

Y en esa cruz sin ti

Me morire de astio

KAREN SOUZA - "Essentials I"

Original released on CD Music Brokers 

(MEXICO 2011, March 1)

Karen Souza is a jazz singer born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, though she has lived in a number of places over the course of her life, including stints in Brazil, New York and around Europe. While Karen Souza´s voice may sound like it was made for jazz, she is in fact a relative newcomer to this genre of music. Her career began under various psydeonymns as she provided vocal support to a number of electronic music producers and was part of several International House hits. She can be found singing under these pseudonymns on albums such as Pacha Ibiza, FTV (FashionTV), Paris Dernier, Hotel Costes and Privé. She had just begun to flirt with the idea of singing to jazz when she was contacted and invited to join the production of the first volume of the series, "Jazz and 80s". No one imagined the success that the series would have almost over night. The producer of the series knew a good thing when he saw it and he quickly shared his enthusiasm in the project with Karen and made her and her voice an important part of each album.

Now that Karen had gotten her toes wet in the studio, her label decided it was time to dive in and they sent her and the rest of the Quartet on tour to Brazil in late 2009. The visit was a great success and Karen came into her own onstage, gaining confidence and ever tuning and refining her singing. On the heels of the Brazilian adventure, the label again stepped in and told Karen it was time to focus on her own material. To this effect they sent her to Los Angeles for a few months to work with and learn from some of the best songwriters in the business. It was there that she studied under the guidance of Pam Oland, a multiple Grammy nominated songwriter who has worked with stars like Whitney Houston, Earth, Wind and Fire and Aretha Franklin, to name a few. This period gave new direction to Karen's own composing and songwriting and has helped her develop her signature sound while continuing to please fans with her characteristic lush vocals. After her stint in LA, Karen began to dedicate herself exclusively to rehearsing both new and older material with the rest of the quartet and they have achieved a symbiosis that is a pleasure to watch. The Cooltrane Quartet with Karen in the lead is an act not to be missed, full of excellent jazz versions and brand new soloist material from a truly dynamic young artist.

"Essentials" is a first collection (there's a number II also) of interesting and often surprising jazzy cover versions of carefully chosen great songs, that in original version are not jazzy at all. In my opinion some of them are true masterpieces, Radiohead's "Creep" and The Beatles' "Strawberry Fields Forever" should be mentioned here. Versions of Soft Cell's "Tainted Love" and Depeche Mode's "Personal Jesus" are great as well, but my favourite is Ian Dury's "Wake Up And Make Love With Me", because the fascinating chorus with french singer Renaud. In my opinion, no cover versions should be made from already perfect songs, but Karen always manages to add something. This way you never have the feeling that she tried herself at songs too big for her. And in every single song on this album her extraordinarily warm and soft voice fills the room with a most comfortable atmosphere. This album makes a perfect present too. Whether you give it to someone interested in Jazz, to someone who likes the original versions (easy), to someone who likes listening to relaxing music or just because of the special atmosphere the album builds up, I'm pretty sure people will like it. And it still seems to be sort of an inside-tip!

An Album For The Cold

Original released on CD Fish People 5099972986622

(EU 2011, November 21)

Kate Bush's "50 Words for Snow" follows "Director's Cut", a dramatically reworked collection of catalog material, by six months. This set is all new, her first such venture since 2005's "Aerial". The are only seven songs here, but the album clocks in at an hour. Despite the length of the songs, and perhaps because of them, it is easily the most spacious, sparsely recorded offering in her catalog. Its most prominent sounds are Bush's voice, her acoustic piano, and Steve Gadd's gorgeous drumming - though other instruments appear (as do some minimal classical orchestrations). With songs centered on winter, "50 Words for Snow" engages the natural world and myth - both Eastern and Western - and fantasy. It is abstract, without being the least bit difficult to embrace. It commences with "Snowflake," with lead vocals handled by her son Bertie. Bush's piano, crystalline and shimmering in the lower middle register, establishes a harmonic pattern to carry the narrative: the journey of a snowflake from the heavens to a single human being's hand, and in its refrain (sung by Bush), the equal anticipation of the receiver. "Lake Tahoe" features choir singers Luke Roberts and Michael Wood in a Michael Nyman-esque arrangement, introducing Bush's slippery vocal as it relates the tale of a female who drowned in the icy lake and whose spirit now haunts it. Bush's piano and Gadd's kit are the only instruments. "Misty," the set's longest - and strangest -cut, is about a woman's very physical amorous tryst with, bizarrely, a snowman. Despite its unlikely premise, the grain of longing expressed in Bush's voice - with bassist Danny Thompson underscoring it - is convincing. Her jazz piano touches on Vince Guaraldi in its vamp. The subject is so possessed by the object of her desire, the morning's soaked but empty sheets propel her to a window ledge to seek her melted lover in the winter landscape.

"Wild Man," introduced by the sounds of whipping winds, is one of two uptempo tracks here, an electronically pulse-driven, synth-swept paean to the Tibetan Kangchenjunga Demon, or "Yeti." Assisted by the voice of Andy Fairweather Low, its protagonist relates fragments of expedition legends and alleged encounters with the elusive creature. Her subject possesses the gift of wildness itself; she seeks to protect it from the death wish of a world which, through its ignorance, fears it. On "Snowed in at Wheeler Street," Bush is joined in duet by Elton John. Together they deliver a compelling tale of would-be lovers encountering one other in various (re)incarnations through time, only to miss connection at the moment of, or just previous to, contact. Tasteful, elastic electronics and Gadd's tom-toms add texture and drama to the frustration in the singers' voices, creating twinned senses: of urgency and frustration. The title track - the other uptempo number - is orchestrated by loops, guitars, basses, and organic rhythms that push the irrepressible Stephen Fry to narrate 50 words associated with snow in various languages, urgently prodded by Bush. Whether it works as a "song" is an open question. The album closes with "Among Angels," a skeletal ballad populated only by Bush's syncopated piano and voice. "50 Words for Snow" is such a strange pop record, it's all but impossible to find peers. While it shares sheer ambition with Scott Walker's "The Drift" and PJ Harvey's "Let England Shake", it sounds like neither; Bush's album is equally startling because its will toward the mysterious and elliptical is balanced by its beguiling accessibility. (Thom Jurek in AllMusic)

DORIS' Heart

Original released on CD Sony Music 88697927752

(UK, 5/9/2011)

THE DOORS: 40th Anniversary Mixes

A great value set that breathes new life into these classic albums. These are not the albums as we're used to hearing them, they have been remastered from the original tapes, generally speaking I am against this sort of thing but in this case they've managed to do something quite special. This isn't the usual rehash of out-takes and background noises, some of the layers you can hear on these recordings were originally left out because they would have been deamed offensive in the 1960s but under todays standards they're quite tame. By the end of the first album I was left feeling like I'd learned something new about the band and what they were trying to create as well as the limitations set on them by the morals of the day. All in all this is a fantastic set and is worth bying even if you already have all the original albums. (in Amazon)

Very good box set, remastered and some of the songs have added extras in them. Most noticeable on "Roadhouse Blues" and "L.A. Woman". I gave my old cds away that I had when I bought this box set. The sound quality has been improved, sounds louder and clearer on my system. All albums are great from one of the best and most underrated bands. The music never tires or sounds old or outdated, excellent musicians that experimented with different sounds. All albums sound different from the organ sound of the early albums to the more bluesy guitar driven sound of the later albums. Jim morrison with incredible vocals passion and poetic lyrics complimenting the amazing guitarist robbie krieger. John densmore and Ray manzarek providing great drums and incredible organs and keyboards. The box set is small and compact, cds are in cardboard sleeves of the original album art and photographs. Got it at a great price and I am very pleased with the purchase and the service. Great box set. (in Amazon)

Disc 1
  1. Break On Through
  2. Soul Kitchen
  3. The Crystal Ship
  4. Twentieth Century Fox [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  5. Alabama Song [Whisky Bar]
  6. Light My Fire
  7. Back Door Man
  8. I Looked At You [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  9. End Of The Night [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  10. Take It As It Comes [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  11. The End [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)

Disc 2
  1. Strange Days
  2. You're Lost Little Girl [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  3. Love Me Two Times
  4. Unhappy Girl [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  5. Horse Latitudes [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  6. Moonlight Drive
  7. People Are Strange
  8. My Eyes Have Seen You [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  9. I Can't See Your Face In My Mind [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  10. When The Music's Over [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)

Disc 3
  1. Hello, I Love You
  2. Love Street
  3. Not To Touch The Earth [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  4. Summer's Almost Gone [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  5. Wintertime Love [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  6. The Unknown Soldier
  7. Spanish Caravan [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  8. My Wild Love [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  9. We Could Be So Good Together [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  10. Yes, The River Knows [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  11. Five To One [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)

Disc 4
  1. Tell All The People [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  2. Touch Me
  3. Shaman's Blues [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  4. Do It [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  5. Easy Ride [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  6. Wild Child [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  7. Runnin' Blue [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  8. Wishful Sinful [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  9. The Soft Parade [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)

Disc 5
  1. Roadhouse Blues
  2. Waiting For The Sun [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  3. You Make Me Real [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  4. Peace Frog (New Stereo Mix Advanced Resolution GH Edit)
  5. Blue Sunday [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  6. Ship Of Fools [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  7. Land Ho! [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  8. The Spy [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  9. Queen Of The Highway [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  10. Indian Summer [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  11. Maggie M'Gill [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)

Disc 6
  1. The Changeling [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  2. Love Her Madly
  3. Been Down So Long [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  4. Cars Hiss By My Window [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  5. L.A. Woman
  6. L'America [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  7. Hyacinth House [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  8. Crawling King Snake [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  9. The WASP ( Texas Radio And The Big Beat ) [New Stereo Mix] (Advanced Resolution)
  10. Riders On The Storm

ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER 3