Streamnotes: February 28, 2025

Most of these are short notes/reviews based on streaming records from Napster (formerly Rhapsody; other sources are noted in brackets). They are snap judgments, usually based on one or two plays, accumulated since my last post along these lines, back on January 27. Past reviews and more information are available here (24416+ records).

New Music

_thesmoothcat & Wino Willy: Ready, Set (2024, Sinking City): New Orleans rapper Josh Henderson, with beatmaker Charles Corpening. B+(*) [bc]

Ab-Soul: Soul Burger (2024, Top Dawg): Los Angeles rapper Herbert Stevens IV, sixth album since 2011. B+(***) [sp]

Beatenberg: The Great Fire of Beatenberg (2024, Leafy Outlook): South African pop/rock band, out of Cape Town, fourth album since 2011, as African bands go, they sound a lot like Vampire Weekend, but more consistently African. B+(***) [sp]

Being Dead: Eels (2024, Bayonet): Garage rock band from Austin, second album, title usually capitalized -- no idea why, perhaps to distance themselves from the group Eels, which I initially assumed was responsible for this album. This got enough praise to his 82 in my EOY Aggregate, but all I hear is tuneless and senseless. B- [sp]

BigXthaPlug: Take Care (2024, United Masters): Rapper Xavier Landrum, from Dallas, second album. B+(**) [sp]

Kimmi Bitter: Old School (2024, self-released): Discogs says that's her real name. Country singer-songwriter, from San Diego, second album, aims for retro, which means Patsy Cline and Wanda Jackson. B+(**) [sp]

Body Count: Merciless (2024, Century Media): Gangsta rapper Ice-T's metal band, eighth album since their eponymous 1992 debut, back cover promises: "Start to finish, with Merciless, Body Count is back for an even bloodier murder spree than anything they've done before." Fourth of that series I've heard, which I've generally found tolerable, perhaps because the fusion seems even more comic than their unadulterated roots. B+(***) [sp]

Kaitlin Butts: Roadrunner! (2024, Soundly Music): Country singer-songwriter from Oklahoma, based in Nashville, third album. Some high concept here, which doesn't always work. B+(*) [sp]

Kasey Chambers: Backbone (2024, Metropolitan Groove Merchants/Essence Music Group): Singer-songwriter from Australia, 1999 debut was a pretty credible country album, released an album every 2-3 years up to 2018, then a gap until this one. She's still credible in country, except for the live closer, where she's a rock star. B+(**) [sp]

Luke Combs: Fathers & Sons (2024, Columbia Nashville): Country singer-songwriter, from North Carolina, fifth album since 2017, all charted 1-2 country, 1-6 pop. Super voice, songs themed to the title are sensitive and considered enough my personal indifference must be just that. B+(**) [sp]

Ernest: Nashville, Tennessee (2024, Big Loud): Last name Smith, had some success as a songwriter before he got his own contract, third album since 2019. B+(**) [sp]

Fashion Club: A Love You Cannot Shake (2024, Felte): Alias for Pascal Stevenson, from Los Angeles, who plays most instruments and sings, although the credits include a dozen guest spots. Second album. Has a shoegaze fuzz I like, but I don't know what it means. B+(**) [sp]

Foxing: Foxing (2024, Grand Paradise): Rock band from St. Louis, fifth album since 2013, must have been confused in my mind with someone else, as they're way too hyperbolic for my taste. B- [sp]

Friko: Where We've Been, Where We Go From Here (2024, ATO): Indie band from Chicago, or duo -- Niko Kapetan (guitar/vocals) and Bailey Minzenberger (drums) -- first album, I'm only a bit impressed, and have no idea what genres like "chamber pop" and "noise pop" might mean. B+(*) [sp]

Jake Xerxes Fussell: When I'm Called (2024, Fat Possum): Folksinger from North Carolina, fifth album since 2015, built from music "that holds lifelong sentimental meaning, contemplating the passage of time and procession of life's unexpected offerings." James Elkington produced, adding bits that still feel pretty minimal. B+(**) [sp]

David Gilmour: Luck and Strange (2024, Sony): Famed Pink Floyd guitarist, did a nondescript solo album in 1978, returned with another roughly every decade since, this his fifth (not counting a couple live albums). Some signature guitar, plus keyboards recorded before Rick Wright died in 2008. B [sp]

Girl Ultra: Blush (2024, Big Dada, EP): Pop singer Mariana de Miguel, from Mexico City, released an LP in 2019, and has several EPs since 2017, this one 7 songs, 14:37. B+(*) [sp]

Groovology: Almost Home (2024 [2025], Sugartown): Mainstream jazz quartet from Honolulu, Aaron Aranita (woodwinds, piano) wrote five songs, David Yamasaki (guitar) two more (one reprised), Scott Shafer (drums) two, Ernie Provender (bass) one). B [cd]

Muriel Grossmann: The Light of the Mind (2024, RR Gems): Saxophonist, mostly tenor but plays them all, born in Paris, grew up in Vienna, wound up in Ibiza, 16th album since 2007, quartet with guitar, keyboards, and drums, strong whiff of Coltrane throughout. B+(***) [sp]

Tim Heidecker: Slipping Away (2024, Bloodshot): Folkie singer-songwriter, albums go back to 2000, has a rep for comedy. B [sp]

Homeboy Sandman: Nor Can These Be Sold (At Least by Me) (2024, self-released): Brooklyn underground rapper, many albums, third variation on this title, presumably for uncleared samples, but on Bandcamp with a "name your price." B+(**) [sp]

Ale Hop & Titi Bakorta: Mapambazuko (2025, Nyege Nyege Tapes): Peruvian composer Alejandra Luciana Cárdenas, based in Berlin, half-dozen albums since 2017, first one I've heards, so I have little sense of how this collaboration with a Congolese guitarist fits in. Actually, he seems dominant. B+(***) [sp]

Inert: 2Inert (2024, self-released): Rock singer-songwriter from Cincinnati, Mark Messerly, almost all of his previous credits are with the band Wussy, where he's played bass since 2005. Second album on his own, plays guitar here, in a group with violin, cello, and pedal steel guitar. Has a bit of Dylan in his voice. B+(**) [sp]

Sarah Jarosz: Polaroid Lovers (2024, Rounder): Singer-songwriter, originally from Austin, based in Nashville, plays guitar/banjo/mandolin, seventh album since 2009, has some Grammy awards, and seems less and less like a niche artist. B+(**) [sp]

Jax: Dear Joe, (2024, Atlantic): Singer-songwriter Jacqueline Miskanic, or Gregg since she got married, first album after nearly a decade of singles, in a career that includes American Idol and thyroid cancer and a RIAA Gold hit that probably got this released, but not pressed. Christgau describes this as "utterly original," but didn't review it until after the Dean's List deadline, possibly because it got zero tracked reviews (but AOTY has 573 user ratings, but the User Score is 11, which raises more questions than it answers -- I can't recall ever having seen a rating that low). First play just annoyed me until the song "Zombieland" got my attention. Two (maybe three) more songs could register as pop, which got this a much needed second play -- much of the album is barely sketched out, easily obscured by outbursts of anthemizing. That's all I can afford, or perhaps stand, at the moment, but enough bits signify to make wonder if this might not just be smart ("spicy is better than bland") but prophetic ("we'll be laughin' when the Walmarts hit the fan"). A- [sp]

Cody Jinks: Cody Jinks Sings Lefty Frizzell (2024, Late August): Singer-songwriter from Texas, started in a thrash metal band called Unchecked Aggression before switching to outlaw country, where he has a dozen-plus albums since 2006, and moderate success since 2016. Needless to say, no one sings Frizzell like Lefty, but this is pleasant enough on its own terms. B+(*) [sp]

Eugenie Jones: Eugenie (2024 [2025], Open Mic): Jazz singer, fourth album since 2013, writes about half of her material, with covers like "Natural Woman," "Work Song," "Trouble Man," and "It Don't Mean a Thing." B+(**) [cd]

Justice: Hyperdrama (2024, Ed Banger/Because Music): French electronica duo, Xavier de Rosnay and Gaspare Augé, fourth studio album since 2007, they also have three live albums, six EPs, singles back to 2004. Grammy seems to like them. B [sp]

Jerry Kalaf: Safe Travels (2024, self-released): Drummer, composed this for piano-bass-drums trio plus string quartet (two violins, viola, cello), which gives it classical airs I rarely enjoy. Tolerable enough. B [cd]

Kehlani: Crash (2024, Atlantic): R&B singer-songwriter, last name Parrish, fourth studio album since 2017, along with as many mixtapes. B+(**) [sp]

b>Kehlani: While We Wait 2 (2024, Atlantic): Mixtape, came out a couple months after the studio album Crash, title refers back to a 2019 mixtape. I can't tell much difference. B+(**) [sp]

Khruangbin: A La Sala (2024, Dead Oceans): Psych-surf-dub-funk instrumental rock band, started at St. John's Methodist Church in Houston, name is the Thai word for airplane, first album 2015, after an album with Vieux Farka Touré and two EPs backing Leon Bridges, back on their own, and not totally vocal-free. B+(**) [sp]

Ella Langley: Hungover (2024, Sawgod/Columbia): Country singer-songwriter from Alabama, first album after a 2023 EP. Heavy on the drinking songs, but "Nicotine" too. [Later reissued with five extra tracks I haven't heard, as Still Hungover.] B+(**) [sp]

Merce Lemon: Watch Me Drive Them Dogs Wild (2024, Darling): Singer-songwriter, from Pittsburgh, second album, shows up on my country list but why isn't obvious. B+(*) [sp]

Ravyn Lenae: Bird's Eye (2024, Atlantic): R&B singer-songwriter from Chicago, dropped last name Washington, second album after a couple EPs, has a nice groove it but never jumps out of it. B+(**) [sp]

Los Campesinos!: All Hell (2024, Heart Swells): Indie rock band from Wales, name from Spanish translates as "the peasants," released five albums 2008-13, only their second album since. B+(*) [sp]

Post Malone: F-1 Trillion (2024, Mercury/Republic): Actual name Austin Post, stage name adopted at 15 reportedly came out of "rap name generator," his first albums got him slotted in my "rap" file, but here at least he sings much more than he raps, and gets tagged as country, which may or may not include his Super Bowl duet with Beyoncé. Or maybe it's just this album, his sixth, all big hits, which with fifteen certified all-star duets crashed the country charts harder than Beyoncé did. Some decent stuff here, but runs long. B [sp]

MC Lyte: 1 of 1 (2024, Sunni Gyrl/My Block/Vydia): Rapper Lana Moorer, her 1988 debut is remembered as the first by a female rapper, released five more albums through 1998, only three since. B+(**) [sp]

Scotty McCreery: Rise & Fall (2024, Triple Tigers): Country singer-songwriter, started by winning American Idol season, quickly cashing in with a 2011 album. This is his sixth, his songwriting and voice above average without ever suggesting he might ever break out of the mold. Sample line: "done a lot of good living, just sitting on the porch." B+(*) [sp]

Lizzie No: Halfsies (2024, Miss Freedomland/Thirty Tigers): Singer-songwriter, last name Quinlan, second album, plays guitar and harp, slotted folk, shows up in some country lists, but I'm not hearing why -- she doesn't even have a Nashville connection, having grown up in NJ and moved to NYC. Well, if not the sound, maybe the songs? B+(**) [sp]

Nobro: Set Your Pussy Free (2023, Dine Alone): Girl-punk band from Montreal, founded and led by bassist-singer Kathryn McCaughey, first studio album after EPs going back to 2016. Same attitude/vibe as the earlier EPs, but the songs hold up better. A- [sp]

Nobro: Live Your Truth Shred Some Gnar (2021 [2022], Dine Alone): Seven track EP, 20:43, at least on Spotify. Discogs shows 5 releases, all with 11 songs (31:47), most LPs with the title EP on the first side, and the 2020 EP Sick Hustle on the other. B+(**) [sp]

Nobro: Sick Hustle (2020, Dine Alone, EP): Four songs, 11:04. B+(*) [sp]

NxWorries: Why Lawd? (2024, Stones Throw): Duo of rapper Anderson .Paak and producer Knxwledge, released an album in 2016, Yes Lawd!, followed by remixes, and now this second album. B+(***) [sp]

Noel Okimoto: Hō'ihi (2024 [2025], Noel Okimoto Music): Drummer, from Hawaii, title translates to "respect, reverance," leads an octet with trumpet and sax, but neither as prominent as the vibes. B [cd]

Joy Oladokun: Observations From a Crowded Room (2024, Amigo): Singer-songwriter from Arizona, parents Nigerian, moved to Los Angeles, then to Nashville. Several albums, the last two quite good. B+(***) [sp]

Pearl Jam: Dark Matter (2024, Republic): Grunge rock band from Seattle, went multi-platinum with their debut in 1991, I've always credited grunge and gangsta with my turn away from rock/pop in the 1990s toward jazz/roots, and it's safe to say I've never had the slightest interest in this band. (Disliking Nirvana, as I did, at least took some will power.) This one I only bothered with once it hit the top of my unheard metacritic list, and I doubt I'll give it a second spin, but as background goes, I've enjoyed virtually every moment of this one, which I'm pretty sure has never happened before. B+(**) [sp]

Benjie Porecki: All That Matters (2024 [2025], Funklove Productions): Pianist, also plays organ, hype sheet says he has many previous sessions but this is first in my database. Trio with bass and drums. Six originals, four covers (notably Hampton Hawes, and organ for Sam Cooke). Nice album. B+(**) [cd]

PyPy: Sacred Times (2024, Goner): "Psych-punk garage pop band from Montreal," which is nichey enough for their densely hooked crunch. Third album, the others from 2007 and 2014. B+(***) [sp]

Red Clay Strays: Made by These Moments (2024, RCA): Country rock band from Alabama, second studio album. B+(*) [sp]

Reyna Tropical: Malegría (2024, Psychic Hotline): Band from McAllen, Texas, principally singer-songwriter Fabi Reyna with miniaturist beats by Neclail Diaz. The value of the spoken word is hard to discern (and not just the Spanish), but I love the musical stretches, even when the whispers seem too insignificant to credit. B+(***) [sp]

Chase Rice: Go Down Singin' (2024, Broken Bow): Country singer-songwriter from Florida, fifth album since 2012. Sometimes seems like the perfect country singer, but more when he eases back than when he pushes hard. Includes a duet with Lori McKenna. B+(***) [sp]

Serengeti: Palookaville (2024, CC King): Underground rapper from Chicago, dropped this late December, dispenses with his usual characters, who I never cared that much about anyway, for a deeper focus on vibe and nuance, which is where he's always shined. A- [sp]

Shellac: To All Trains (2017-22 [2024], Touch and Go): Noise rock band founded by Steve Albini (guitar, formerly of Big Black, but better known as a producer), Bob Weston (bass), and Todd Trainer (drums), all credited with vocals, debut album 1994. Sixth studio album, first in a decade, the last sessions recorded shortly before Albini's death. Short (10 songs, 28:13), which is probably just as well. B+(*) [sp]

Jae Sinnett: The Blur the Lines Project (2024 [2025], J-Nett Music): Drummer, I had him filed under vocals but just one here, has a dozen-plus albums back to 1986, runs a fairly hot fusion quintet with Ada Rovatti (tenor sax) and Allen Farnham (keybs), jacking up oldies from Edgar Winter, Steppenwolf, and Led Zeppelin. B+(*) [cd]

Steve Smith and Vital Information: New Perspective (2024 [2025], Drum Legacy): Drummer, fusion group, been around a long time, trio with keyboards (Manuel Valera) and bass (Janek Gwizdala). Fusion, two plays leaving little impression. B [cd]

Brittney Spencer: My Stupid Life (2024, Elektra): Singer-songwriter from Baltimore, started singing in church but moved to Nashville to try her hand at country music. First album after a couple of EPs. B+(**) [sp]

St. Lenox: Ten Modern American Work Songs: In Honor of the 10-Year Reunion of the NYU Law Class of 2014 (2024, Don Giovanni/Anyway): Folk singer-songwriter Andrew Choi, day job attorney, has four previous Ten Songs albums (back to 2015), starting with more generic themes (e.g., Memory and Hope, Young Ambition and Passionate Love), but eventually the work grind gets you down. B+(***) [sp]

Billy Strings: Highway Prayers (2024, Reprse): Bluegrass singer-songwriter, actual name Apostol, dozen-plus albums since 2013. B+(*) [sp]

Dave Stryker: Stryker With Strings Goes to the Movies (2024 [2025], Strikezone): Guitarist, originally from Omaha, came up in soul jazz groups (Jack McDuff, Stanley Turrentine), had a long-running group co-led by Steve Slagle, has been releasing a new album every January for as long as I can remember. This one is different, with a string orchestra arranged and conducted by Brent Wallarab, includes some horns (especially trombones), with the occasional guest soloist. Eleven movie themes. I swear I don't automatically hate every album with strings, but this is a good example of why I enjoy so few. B- [cd]

Rose Tang & Patrick Golden: A White Horse Is Not a Horse (2024, ESP-Disk'): Tang, who "plays in about 30 bands and ensembles in New York and Seattle," wrote the lyrics, and plays guitar, keyboards, and small percussion, improvising with Golden on drums. Earlier in life, she was a "prize-winning journalist," who had studied in China and Australia, and was dubbed by one "high school politics (Maoist/Marxist) teacher" as "Wild Horse Running off the Reins." Motto: "Learn through play. Play by ear. Fuck the rest." Impressive, even on piano, but miffed me a bit when the words lost coherence and the singer tried to compensate with volume. B+(***) [cd]

Jesse Terry: Arcadia (2024, Wander): A singer-songwriter I hadn't noticed before, seventh album since 2009. Gets some guitar help, which often saves you from having to pay attention, but sometimes it's better when you have to. B+(***) [sp]

Leon Thomas: Mutt (2024, EZMNY/Motown): Second album, first singles (2012) released as Leon Thomas III, doesn't seem to be related to the jazz singer (1937-99), although the dates (III was b. 1993) aren't impossible. B+(**) [sp]

Richard Thompson: Ship to Shore (2024, New West): English folk singer-songwriter, goes way back, starting in the 1960s with Fairport Convention. B+(**) [sp]

Recent Reissues, Compilations, Vault Discoveries

Amadou & Mariam: La Vie Est Belle (1998-2022 [2024], Because Music): Duo from Mali, Amadou Bagayoko and Mariam Doumbia, 1989 debut translates as The Blind Couple of Mali. Dates are iffy here: this draws on six 2004-17 albums on Because Music (including Remixes), while reviews suggest a start date of 1998 (their first European album), and mention that the last cut was a single from 2022, although "Mogolu" appears to be new here, if not necessarily a new song. Not sure this improves on their better albums, but the beats -- even the remix ones -- eventually won me over. A- [sp]

Homeboy Sandman: Rich 2.5 (2023-24 [2025], self-released): Brooklyn rapper Angel Del Villar II, lots of records since 2007, this appears to be a compilation of two recent albums -- Rich (2023) and Rich II (2024) -- "Plus Four Butters Remixes!" B+(***) [sp]

My Black Country: The Songs of Alice Randall (2024, Oh Boy): Randall was born in Detroit, grew up in DC, graduated from Harvard, has written six novels starting with a "reinterpretation and parody' of Gone With the Wind, got a job teaching writing at Vanderbilt (in Nashville), where she ran into Steve Earle, who pointed her toward songwriting. This tribute offers 11 of her songs, by as many artists -- most (possibly all) roots-oriented black women. Doesn't grab hard, but impresses with staying power. B+(***) [sp]

Super Disco Pirata: De Tepito Para El Mundo 1965-1980 (1965-80 [2024], Analog Africa): Seems to be mostly Colombian cumbia, bootlegged and reprocessed in Mexico. Starts with some cheesy disco keyboards, but goes hard on the rhythm. B+(***) [sp]

Old Music

Amadou & Mariam: La Confusion (2017, Because Music): The famed "blind couple of Mali," met in the 1970s, started recording in the 1980s, moved to Paris in 1996, where they were signed by EmArcy, breakthrough was Dimanche à Bamako (2004), their first on this label. Not counting Remixes, this is their fourth -- and not counting the 2024 compilation, their most recent. I don't have the patience to fully sort this out, but so far it's not clear this doesn't rank with their better albums. B+(***) [sp]

Louis Armstrong: What a Wonderful World (1967 [1988], MCA): With all the Armstrong I've heard -- 61 albums, a dozen or more multiple CDs -- I was surprised to find I had missed this item, released in Europe and Canada in 1968 but evidently not in the US until the CD era, to cash in on the last and probably the best remembered of his iconic 1960s pop hits. Bob Thiele claims six song credits (mostly with George Weiss), and he produced, laying the schmaltz on so thick that only the unique and still masterful Armstrong can cut through it. Several more gems here -- "Cabaret" you must know, "Dream a Little Dream of Me" you really should; "The Home Fire" and "Give Me Your Kisses" and "I Guess I'll Get the Papers and Go Home," too. He proved his genius in the 1920s, and spread it far and wide in the 1950s. In his waning days, all he needs is an occasional flicker to remind us he's incomparable. A- [r]

Louis Armstrong: Rhythm Saved the World [The Original Decca Recordings: Volume 1] (1935-36 [1991], MCA): You know him: trumpet player from New Orleans, started out with King Oliver and almost immediately eclipsed him, joined Fletcher Henderson to invent big band jazz -- in a group that also, and for much longer, featured Coleman Hawkins -- moving on to his landmark Hot Five and Hot Seven groups, not to mention backing some of the most brilliant singers of the 1920s, and becoming one himself, and by the time he turned 30, he was leading and starting in his own big band. Still, his records in the 1930s rarely matched expectations: the band never really challenged the star, and the label threw pretty much anything at him -- "La Cucaracha," "Red Sails in the Sunset," "Old Man Mose," "Solitude," "Shoe Shine Boy," "The Music Goes Round and Round," "I'm Putting All My Eggs in One Basket" -- hoping something would hit. Indeed, some things do. B+(***) [sp]

Louis Armstrong & His Orchestra: Heart Full of Rhythm [The Original Decca Recordings: Volume 2] (1936-38 [1993], MCA): His Orchestra gets cover credit, but the really hot stretch from 8-10, including a "Swing That Music" that really does, put Armstrong in front of Jimmy Dorsey's Orchestra. Armstrong's own crew seem less distinguished, with Luis Russell (piano) and Paul Barbarin (drums) the only names I recognize -- at least until J.C. Higginbotham shows up with his trombone, and is joined for "Struttin' With Some Barbecue" by Albert Nicholas, Wilbur de Paris, and Red Allen. A- [sp]

Louis Armstrong & His Orchestra: Vol. III: Pocketful of Dreams (1935-38 [1995], Decca Jazz): They switched up the title here, but this is all 1938 except for two takes of "Got a Bran' New Suit" from 1935 tacked onto the end, with several unreleased tracks -- mostly alternate takes -- slipped in. The beefed up band opens strong, but they thin out after 8 tracks, and Higginbotham and Russell depart after 16, but Armstrong is such a delight they're hardly missed. A- [sp]

Louis Armstrong: The Complete Town Hall Concert 1947 (1947 [2004], Fresh Sound): Released on 2-LP in the RCA Tribune series in 1983, copied to 2-CD a few years later (1992), all 21 tracks fit comfortably on a single CD (78:56). The set opened with Dick Cary (piano), Bob Haggart (bass), and Sid Catlett (drums), joined six tracks in by Peanuts Hucko (clarinet/tenor sax), Bobby Hackett (trumpet), and Jack Teagarden (trombone, a couple vocals plus his bit in "Rockin' Chair"), with drum relief from George Wettling (the encore?). This set the template for his later live albums, but you get an extra helping of old New Orleans classics. Not ideal sound. [NB: Napster fucked up and skipped every other song, so I had to play this twice to get everything. Christgau says this "is the Armstrong I play when I want the whole package." For that, I advise any of the four discs from The California Concerts, which offer peak performances -- the first from when "All Stars" meant Earl Hines and Barney Bigard; the last from when he had fully worked out his schtick with Velma Middleton -- although the "whole package" kept evolving up through the more subdued (and poignant) Louis in London in 1968.] A- [r]

Louis Armstrong: The Best Live Concert (1965 [1976], Disques Festival): Live set in Paris, with Armstrong coming off his big pop hit "Hello Dolly" -- the set list also includes "Cabaret," which he released as a single later, and "Mack the Knife," his biggest chart hit of the previous decade, as well as a broad selection of his standards, and a couple tunes I don't recall elsewhere ("Volare," "I Left My Heart in San Francisco"). Band is his standard hot five, but only Billy Kyle remains from even the later editions of the All Stars, and Jewell Brown won't make you forget Velma Middleton. Still comes close to justifying the hyperbolic title. [Later reissued on two separate CDs, even though it would fit on one. Seems like only a matter of time and copyright law before this gets resurrected on a single CD, like Fresh Sound did for Town Hall 1947.] A- [sp]

Louis Armstrong: The Best Live Concert Vol. 1 [Jazz in Paris] (1965 [2000], Gitanes Jazz/EmArcy): First half, 11 tracks, 39:32, I give it a slight edge, but dock it for being incomplete. B+(***) [sp]

Louis Armstrong: The Best Live Concert Vol. 2 [Jazz in Paris] (1965 [2000], Gitanes Jazz/EmArcy): Second half, 10 tracks, 39:07, a bit less exciting when the star takes his breaks, but those are part of the package; also docked for being incomplete. B+(***) [sp]

Louis Armstrong and Friends [Jazz in Paris] (1933-39 [2001], Gitanes Jazz/EmArcy): Everything here was recorded in Paris during the 1930s, but Armstrong is only present on the first seven tracks (1934), followed by other scattered sessions by long-forgotten bandleaders (Freddy Johnson, Arthur Briggs, Danny Polo) or singers (Greta Keller and Marlene Dietrich later made their way to greater fame in America, the latter more in movies). The Armstrong cuts are brilliant, but redundant to US recordings. The others are credible, especially on songs as catchy as "I Got Rhythm" and "Sweet Georgia Brown." B+(***) [sp]

Louis Armstrong: The Complete Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings (1925-30 [2000], Columbia/Legacy, 4CD): Discogs has the whole package scanned, so you can see the care that went into compiling "the most important recordings in the history of jazz." I didn't buy this when it came out, because I already had multiple copies of most of it: JSP's 4-CD Hot Fives and Hot Sevens, which improved on the sound quality of Legacy's first Armstrong releases (1989-93, starting with The Hot Fives and extending into the big bands of 1931, as well as the superb 4-CD selection of early Armstrong on Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1994): roughly speaking, it gives you the better half of this more focused set, mixed in with truly extraordinary highlights from earlier and slightly later -- including select cuts from his sessions with blues singers (and Jimmie Rodgers -- I also own Affinity's 6-CD box of The Complete Recordings of Louis Armstrong and the Blues Singers, which isn't all great but is valuable history). One pass through all 255 minutes here is no way to listen, especially with expectations so high that anything not instantly recognized is likely to seem a bit off. But I have no doubt that further listening would sustain the expected grade. [PS: The first three CDs have also been released separately, in 2003, as Vol. 1 through Vol. 3. I had them listed in my database with their 4-star Penguin Guide grades, so I rather arbitrarily assigned them minimal A- grades: aside from the covers, I have no idea what the packaging looks like, but it is almost certainly a downgrade from the box. Still, I wouldn't be surprised to upgrade any/all of them should I have the opportunity to give them more time. There is also a sampler. Given that Complete was released in long-box format, I'll use the sampler for the cover gallery.] A [sp]

Louis Armstrong: The Best of the Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings (1925-29, [2000], Columbia/Legacy): Sometimes the label would offer a cheap single-disc sampler to promote its more lavish box sets, and they did that here, with a generous 20 tracks (54:48), most stone cold classics -- even today "West End Blues" turned my head -- although they slipped in an alternate take to remind you that even as the copyrights have expired in Europe, they still have the originals. Mostly instrumentals, with only the first stirrings of the singer he would become. If, say, the only Armstrong you own is a later collection like 16 Most Requested Songs (1954-66 [1994], Columbia), you might look for this. [PS: I was going to offer Legacy's 2005 Jazz Moods: Hot as an alternative, as it draws from the same period, but the song count drops to 14, and the omissions include "West End Blues. On the other hand, it does deliver the hot.] A [sp]

Louis Armstrong: Satchmo Sings (1955, Decca): Credited as "with Orchestra," musicians unnamed. Brunswick, in 1961, reordered and cycled this as Sincerely Satchmo: Louis Armstrong Sings Standards, citing Sonny Burke, Sy Oliver, and The Commanders. Recording dates could be earlier, with this LP cobbled together from singles. Sounds like standards now, but Armstrong wrote one ("Someday You'll Be Sorry") and most of the others were relatively recent ("I Wonder," "Pledging My Love," "Your Cheating Heart," "Sincerely," "The Gypsy"). I tend to think of his later sessions with Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington as where he matured as a singer, but he was clearly ready here. A- [sp]

Louis Armstrong: Louis and the Angels (1957 [2001], Verve): In the mid-1950s, Armstrong recorded several key albums for Columbia, and in 1957 he recorded at least three albums for Verve -- collected as Pops Is Tops: The Verve Studio Albums and More -- but he doesn't seem to have been done with Decca, his main label for the 1930s and 1940s. Adding to the confusion is that Verve reissued this and a couple more late Decca albums. Ten (of 12) songs here either have "angel" or "heaven" in the title, and the others drop in a lyric. Sy Oliver produced, heavy on the strings and chorus. B- [sp]

Louis Armstrong: Satchmo Plays King Oliver (1959 [1960], Audio Fidelity): He got his start with Oliver in 1923, and followed him from New Orleans to Chicago, quickly outshining his mentor. A big part of the idea here seems to be to revive the old songs in state-of-the-art stereo -- at a time when reproductions of the originals were decidedly scratchy (they have since much improved) -- but the intervening decades have taken a bit of lustre off the music, while Armstrong has developed into a more skilled singer. Twelve songs, backed by "his Orch." (per the label; cover just has the title and a pic of star with trumpet, not cornet). They were his All-Stars at the time: Peanuts Hucko (clarinet), Trummy Young (trombone), Billy Kyle (piano), Mort Herbert (bass), and Danny Barcelona (drums). They were well schooled in this music, but not all that excited. [PS: Discogs lists a number of reissues of this album under various titles, including: Ain't Gonna Give Nobody None of My Jelly Roll (1964, Audio Fidelity); The Best of Louis Armstrong (1964 & 1970, Audio Fidelity; 1970, Camden, Bellaphon, Musidisc; 1993, Exit); Louis Armstrong and the All-Stars (1967, Concert Hall); With Love From . . . (1974, Capri); Louis Armstrong (1980, Impacto); Los Grandes Del Jazz 68 (1981, Sarpe); I Giganti Del Jazz Vol. 68 (1982, Curcio); plus a few more, undated. These are all literal reissues, but there is also an expanded edition, below.] B+(***) [r]

Louis Armstrong & the All-Stars: Satchmo Plays King Oliver (1959 [2000], Fuel 2000/Varèse Sarabande): A CD reissue of the 1960 LP, with a new cover, more credit for the band, and two extra songs, plus eight alternate takes, arrayed inline so you hear most songs twice before moving on. I never cared for that arrangement, and while it seems fairly harmless here, that one scarcely notices it suggests that the original music wasn't all that riveting. [PS: In 2018, Essential Jazz came out with The Complete Satchmo Plays King Oliver, which moved the alternate takes to a second CD, added various 1955-57 tracks of relevant material to the 76:29 "Master Takes" disc, and more 1926-50 tracks to "The Alternate Takes."] B+(**) [sp]

Louis Armstrong/Dukes of Dixieland: Louie and the Dukes of Dixieland (1960, Audio Fidelity): The Dukes were a New Orleans trad jazz band founded by Frank and Fred Assunto in 1948, up to 1974 when another group claimed the name. It's a bit shocking to note that as late as 1957 they recorded an album called Minstrel Time (but the cover shows no evidence of blackface, and I'm more bothered by the Confederate flag on the cover of their 1967 album, On Parade). I don't doubt that they were delighted to have Armstrong join them here, but they made few if any concessions in the song list, which not only includes "South" and "Dixie" but also "Washington and Lee Swing." Armstrong is most in control on the slow "Just a Closer Walk With Thee." [PS: This album was reissued as Louis Armstrong: Yeah! (1965, Fontana).] B [r]

Louis Armstrong & Duke Ellington: The Great Summit: Complete Sessions (1961 [2000], Roulette, 2CD): I've long been confused on this release, probably because the title of my 1990 single CD is The Complete Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington Sessions, which has exactly the same 17 songs that were reissued in 2000 as The Great Summit: The Master Takes. Those 17 tracks were originally issued on two LPs: Recording Together for the First Time (1961, same artwork but different title as my CD) and The Great Reunion (1963). Ellington wrote (or co-wrote) the songs, and plays piano, but not orchestra: the rest of the band is Armstrong's combo, aside from clarinetist Barney Bigard, who did considerable work with both leaders (but not recently). The band works perfectly: Duke keeps them swinging, while the others support but don't crowd Armstrong, who has never sounded so cool. The first disc always has been a rock solid A. The second, titled "The Making of the Great Summit," goes beyond "complete" with nine alternate takes and a 1:09 "Band Discussion on Cottontail." The music is at best redundant, but the false starts and blown notes are annoying, and the disc as a whole is worthless. Only question is how much to devalue this given that you're unlikely ever to give the second disc a second spin. B+(**) [sp]

Louis Armstrong: Let's Do It: Best of the Verve Years (1957-65 [1995], Verve, 2CD): An entry in Verve's Take 2 series of 2-CD compilations, a mixed bag series which picked up many of Verve's major 1950s artists, sometimes reissuing larger albums (like The Audience With Betty Carter), or combining 3-LPs on 2-CD (e.g., two Ben Webster sets, Music for Loving and Soul of Ben Webster), or sometimes compiling pieces from scattered LPs (like here). Armstrong didn't record a lot for Verve, and only the first duets with Ella Fitzgerald really panned out. They get a fair amount of space here, along with his lesser 1957 albums, and a couple of much later tracks (originally released on Fontana and Mercury). B+(*) [r]

Louis Armstrong: Disney Songs the Satchmo Way (1968 [1996], Walt Disney): Ten songs from Disney entertainments, a minor addition to the his song book efforts, done with a light touch and good humor, which is all you can hope for. Disney's own Tutti Camarata produced, with Maxwell Davies arranging, the strings mostly kept in check. Originally released in 1968 on Buena Vista. CD has new artwork, but no extra music. B+(***) [sp]

Dingonek Street Band: Primal Economics (2018, Accurate): One-shot jazz band, led by trumpet player Bobby Spellman, who has a later nonet album under his own name, but all other credits since 2009 are group efforts. This group includes tenor sax (Greg Blair), baritone sax (Tyler Burchfield), soprano sax/clarinet (Emily Pecoraro), tuba (Josiah Reibstein, and drums (Buddy Bigboy). Touches of klezmer as well as New Orleans. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong: Ella & Louis (1956-57 [2021], Ober Entertainment/20th Century Masterworks): In Europe, copyrights expire after a very generous 50 years, whereas in America they can be extended as long as Disney thinks they can make money by monopolizing Mickey Mouse (and as long as US pols are willing to take some of that money to extend the favor). The longer copyrights have done little to keep American music in print -- even something as obvious as the Armstrong box above (and much more) is out of print (well, in this case the bits are still available, just not the bobs) -- while creating obstacles for importers and, more important right now, streaming companies. I have mixed views on Europe's post-copyright compilations: on the one hand, it generates a lot of opportunistic, redundant, and often slipshod product, but it also makes it possible for devoted fans and serious producers and compilers to keep the history alive, and keep it available (at least somewhere, somehow), and the best sets (which include JSP's and Proper's boxes, Fresh Sound's 1950s jazz, the deep blues and country catalogs of Document and Bear Family, Allen Lowe's book supplements, and the recent "revisits" by Ezz-Thetics) are real treasures. This is all preface to this particular album, which I'm only listening to by proxy -- I can stream the song list, just not attached to this particular artwork -- and only bothering with because Christgau gave it an A+, and I know that carries some weight with my readers. Why he picked this particular product I have no idea: my guess is that he's grown increasingly sentimental over Armstrong of late -- he picked Live in London as his favorite album of 2024 -- and this is music he's always loved but never written about; then he somehow stumbled on this particular CD, saw it as something new he could write about, that has some added value. Two problems here: one is that you can't buy (or stream) this in the US (at least it's not on Amazon); the other has to do with the selection and sessions. One of Christgau's best lines was when he described Norman Granz's "get rich slow" schemes. One of the most fruitful ones was getting Ella Fitzgerald to sing nearly everything in "the great American songbook." Pairing her with Armstrong was a side-project (their sessions aren't included in The Complete Ella Fitzgerald Song Books -- the 16-CD box of 1956-64 studio sessions released in 1993) but it was perfectly in character. They recorded three albums (1956-57) together: Ella and Louis, Ella and Louis Again, and Porgy and Bess. The big revelation here was how adroitly Armstrong, who had a reputation for gravel-voiced crude comedy, adapted to such sophisticated fare, but he is every bit as note-perfect as Ella, and arguably even sexier. Their first album -- the first 11 songs here -- still feels a bit tentative, as if two consummate professionals (and their overthinking producer) were trying to find the fit. It was remarkable enough, but their reunion on More Ella & Louis far surpassed it, as both artists are less reserved, even willing to flirt a little. The CD helps itself to five fine songs from the second album, but any compilation that omits "Let's Do It," "They All Laughed," "Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You," "I Won't Dance," "Our Love Is Here to Stay," and "A Fine Romance" is cheating you. By the way, the label here, Ober Entertainment, has been operating since 2020, making a specialty of picking up some famous album, then tacking on a few extra songs to create a bargain CD. The albums in their catalog are mostly obvious -- Monk's Music, Time Out, Mingus Ah Um, Concert by the Sea, At the Pershing, Jazz in Silhouette, and also a few non-jazz entries, like Moanin' in the Moonlight and Elvis Presley (the Dylan is renamed Debut Album) -- so any you pick up are likely to be enjoyed, but for me they mostly just muddy up the history. A- [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald/Louis Armstrong: The Complete Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong on Verve (1956-57 [1997], Verve, 3CD): Useful if you want to put all your eggs in one basket, with the first disc giving you all of Ella & Louis plus five tracks from More Ella & Louis, the second completing the album -- it was originally a double-LP which also required 2-CD -- with space for two bonus live tracks. The third disc gives you Porgy & Bess, where the stars are backed by (up against?) Russell Garcia's Orchestra and the Judd Conlon Singers, with a 10:50 "Overture" delaying their entrance for a surprisingly unmemorable "Summertime" -- beyond which Gershwin has never seemed whiter -- at least until Armstrong gets a more congenial band toward the end. It's unlikely you'll ever play the third disc a second time, but the first two may be the best available configuration for this wonderful pairing. B+(***) [sp]

PS: This music has been endlessly repackaged. I also have ratings for:

• Best of Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong on Verve (1957-57 [1997], Verve): A-
• Our Love Is Here to Stay: Ella and Louis Sing Gershwin (1956-59 [1998], Verve): B+
• For Lovers (1956-57 [2005], Verve): B

Fitzgerald has also sung a lot of Gershwin on her own. I gave The Complete Ella Fitzgerald Song Books (1956-64 [1993], Verve, 16CD) an A-, but didn't break out most of the component sets, which were also reissued on CD around then (based on earlier LPs, issued as they were recorded). The George and Ira Gershwin Songbook was released in 1998 on 4-CD, where all but 2 tracks on the 4th CD were alternate takes and remixes. There was an earlier Ella Sings Gershwin on Decca from 1950, with just Ellis Larkins on piano. This was reissued with some extra tracks from 1954 as Pure Ella, in 1994, and widely hailed, but I thought it "sounds thin and arch," and disposed of it with a B-.

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Song Book (1956 [1997], Verve, 2CD): Her first two singles were in 1936, with Teddy Wilson, better known for his work with Billie Holiday (now mostly remembered as her work with him), but she rose to prominence with Chick Webb, and took over his Orchestra when he died in 1939. She recorded with Decca until 1956, when Norman Granz picked her up, with the idea of her remaking the "great American songbook," which starts here, with eight classic songs per side for the 2-LP, plus three alternate takes for the CD reissue. Granz only wanted "hints of jazz," so he entrusted the music to Buddy Bregman, who added "rudimental strings" to a disciplined near-big band. Many fabulous songs, which she nails perfectly. The band never gets carried away, and the strings rarely help -- probably just what Granz wanted. [PS: I'm listening to the 1993 box set, but the component albums were later released separately, so I'll go with those release dates.] A- [cd]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Rodgers and Hart Song Book (1956 [1997], Verve, 2CD): Recorded a few months later, another batch of prime show tunes, although fewer I recognize as brilliant or at least clever. Buddy Bregman returns with orchestra, probably the same musicians but leaning a bit harder on the strings. This works fine when the songs are so good the arrangements hardly matter. The vocals are impeccable. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald With Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Song Book (1957 [1999], Verve, 3CD): Next in sequence, I reviewed this back in 2020, so as a placeholder I'll just recycle that review (with a couple minor edits): Key thing here is the band: Ellington and His Orchestra. They got co-credit on the original 1957 4-LP set, before "songbook" became a single word and a Fitzgerald trademark. She is, of course, miles ahead of any singer Ellington ever hired, adding import and sass to lyrics that were often just an afterthought -- but that may be because the band never really needed them. Two real solid CDs here, although I like some of their later live recordings, where she is less inhibited by Granz's songbook concept, even more. Third disc bogs down a lot, and not just the alternate takes and chatter (but you never have to play it). B+(**) [cd]

PS: Also previously rated:

• Day Dream: Best of the Duke Ellington Songbook (1956-57 [1995], Verve): B+ [cd]
• Ella Fitzgerald: The Very Best of the Duke Ellington Song Book (1956-57 [2007], Verve): B+(***) [r]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Irving Berlin Song Book (1958 [2000], Verve, 2CD): Back to formula here, this time with Paul Weston arranging and conducting, some of the same musicians but less notable and more strings (except on items like "Alexander's Ragtime Band," where they would be ridiculous). The formula seems designed to raise the singer's respectability -- something she took pains to demolish on her best live recordings -- the net effect of all this professionalism is to focus attention on the songwriters. This one excels because Berlin not only wrote great songs you all know, but more great songs you don't, so Ella can go 32 deep with him and never hint at scraping the barrel (although a couple sink under the arrangements). You may also discover that he can be as witty as Porter (e.g., "Tropical Heatwave"). A- [cd]

PS: There's also a live version, recorded a couple weeks later but unreleased until 2022:

• Ella Fitzgerald: Ella at the Hollywood Bowl (1958 [2022], Verve): B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Song Books (1959 [1998], Verve, 4CD): Nelson Riddle arranged and conducted, with a big band that included several stars (Benny Carter, Pete Candoli, Plas Johnson, Herb Ellis or Barney Kessel, Lou Levy or Paul Smith) plus a large string section. The first 1959 LP was Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Gershwin Song Book "recorded under the supervision of Norman Granz," which was quickly followed by Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Song Book "music arranged and conducted by Nelson Riddle," but by the end of 1959 (and again in 1964) the whole set was reissued on 5-LP with Book changed to Books. It appeared on 3-CD in 1987 (back to singular Book), even before the 1993 box, which packages it as a box-inside-the-box, including its own miniature book and a packet of supplementary artwork. That's the edition I'm listening to, although the post-box separate release in 1997 tacked on a 4th CD of alternate takes and remixes (probably best ignored). Some great songs, of course, though not as consistent as the Berlin or Porter. [PS: I listened to disc 4 on Spotify. It's functionally a very listenable sampler, maybe even a bit better than the others, as the repeats tend to focus on the better songs.] B+(***) [cd]

Ella Fitzgerald: The Very Best of the Gershwin Song Book (1959 [2007], Verve): A tight 12-song, 44:50 sampler. While there are more string-laden ballads than I would have picked, even they are done with impeccable taste -- you can count on Nelson Riddle for that much, and Ella is superb, even breaking out a bit of scat on "I Got Rhythm." A- [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Harold Arlen Song Book (1960-61 [1993], Verve, 2CD): Less famous than the earlier songwriters in this series, the obvious compensations are to cut the book back to six songs per side, and punch them up by bringing Billy May in. Perhaps Arlen's fame got diluted by working with so many lyricists -- serially with Ted Koehler, Yip Harburg, and Johnny Mercer, with further bits by Leo Robin, Ira Gershwin, and Billy Rose -- but the roster of songs is extraordinary, making this perhaps the most satisfying set in the series. A [cd]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Jerome Kern Song Book (1963 [2005], Verve): Winding down, they dialed this back to 1-LP, 12 songs composed by Kern, with various lyricists (Otto Harbach, Dorothy Fields, Oscar Hammerstein II, Bernard Dougall, Johnny Mercer) -- still, only "A Fine Romance" is as indelibly etched in my mind as the top 6-10 songs from previous volumes. Nelson Riddle returns to the helm, so you can expect a smooth and steady ride. The lesser known songs -- a couple more I do recognize -- are interesting, and Ella is supreme, as usual. [was: B+] B+(**) [cd]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Johnny Mercer Song Book (1964 [1997], Verve): Last volume in The Complete Ella Fitzgerald Song Books, a 13-song LP, again with Nelson Riddle arranging and conducting. Mercer was most often a lyricist, often with Harold Arlen, but claims two sole credits here. (This repeats one of seven titles from the Arlen songbook, "This Time the Dream's on Me," so omits some of his most famous songs, like "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive" (no way Riddle could have competed with Billy May on that one.) B+(***) [cd]

Ella Fitzgerald: Like Someone in Love (1957, Verve): Not in the Song Book series, but a more scattered set of standards given the same basic treatment, here by Frank De Vol and His Orchestra, mostly strings, the only musicians explicitly credited were Stan Getz (tenor sax) and Ted Nash (alto sax). [PS: A 1991 CD reissue added four tracks, but the current digital is back to the original 15.] B+(**) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald at the Opera House (1957 [1986], Verve): Title reminded me of other At the Opera House albums, one by Coleman Hawkins and Roy Eldridge, another by Stan Getz and J.J. Johnson. It turns out that all three come from a Jazz at the Philharmonic show on Sept. 29 in Chicago's Civic Opera House, where her set is backed by Oscar Peterson (piano), Herb Ellis (guitar), Ray Brown (bass), and Jo Jones (drums), with the others (also Lester Young, Illinois Jacquet, Flip Phillips, and Sonny Stitt) joining in for the finale ("Stompin' at the Savoy"). The CD reissue adds a second set from Oct. 7 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. Same songs (minus "Them There Eyes," but with "Oh, Lady Be Good!" added to the encore bash. I don't see any point in docking this for redundancy. It's good enough to play twice. A- [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella in Rome: The Birthday Concert (1958 [1988], Verve): More live albums than anyone needs, but this one is at least as good as At the Opera House, and offers a broader selection of key songs. She's just backed with a trio -- Lou Levy (piano), Max Bennett (bass), and Gus Johnson (drums) -- at least until the "Stompin' at the Savoy" finale, when Oscar Peterson's trio takes charge. A- [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Get Happy! (1957-59 [1998], Verve): This, including two extra tracks added to the CD, was cobbled together from seven sessions with five big bands, with Frank DeVol handling six tracks -- probably spare parts from other albums, shelved because they were too upbeat, with too much scat. We all know she's a great ballad singer, but I love it when she kicks up her heels on things like "Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar" and "Like Young." And I'll never turn down another "Blue Skies." Still, where's the title song? A- [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings Sweet Songs for Swingers (1958-59 [2003], Verve): "Sweet and Lovely," "Let's Fall in Love," "Makin' Whoopee," "Moonlight Serenade," "Can't We Be Friends," on down to "Lullaby of Broadway." Frank DeVol arranged and conducted. He's probably the least famous of her conductors, but he hits his mark as consistently as she does, although she's on a higher plane. Still, I'm afraid we're getting used to this excellence. [PS: CD reissue from 2003 has same 12 songs as the original 1959 album, but does credit Harry "Sweets" Edison on most tracks, along with "others unknown."] B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Hello, Love (1957-59 [2004], Verve): Scraps from three sessions, all with Frank DeVol arranging and conducting. More standards, but show ones this time, which means lots of strings and orchestral woodwinds, although you can hear a bit of tenor sax, credited to Ben Webster. B+(*) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas (1959-60 [2002], Verve): Even as much as I loathe Xmas music, I'm surprised to find that I never checked out this inevitable product. Frank DeVol arranged and conducted 12 relatively secular ditties, from "Jingle Bells" to "White Christmas," the only surprise "Good Morning Blues" (Count Basie/Eddie Durham/Jimmy Rushing). CD picks up an earlier single with Russ Garcia, and some alternate takes, expanding 34:00 to 52:14, and dropping the grade a notch. B+(*) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Clap Hands, Here Comes Charlie! (1961 [1989], Verve): Session recorded in Los Angeles, 14 scattered standards, backed by Lou Levy (piano), Herb Ellis (guitar), Joe Mondragon (bass), and Gus Johnson (drums). More classic song book fare from scattered sources, with "Cry Me a River" a standout (as it always is). B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Swings Gently With Nelson (1961-62 [1993], Verve): More with the Nelson Riddle Orchestra, following Ella Swings Brightly With Nelson (1962) -- 1958's similarly titled Ella Swings Lightly was done with Marty Paich's Dek-Tette, but Riddle appears on several of the Song Books. Standards like "Sweet and Slow," "The Very Thought of You," "My One and Only Love," and "Body and Soul." CD adds two spare tracks, one far from gentle. B+(**) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Rhythm Is My Business (1962 [1999], Verve): Mostly standards -- Ella gets a co-credit for "Rough Ridin'" -- and mostly upbeat, only a couple I associate with her. Bill Doggett plays organ, arranges and conducts a slightly short big band (3 trumpets, 3 trombones, 4 reeds, Hank Jones on piano, Mundell Lowe on guitar, two bass players, drums, but no string section. Ella, as usual, is up for anything. CD adds two extra tracks. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Sings Broadway (1962 [2001], Verve): Twelve songs from eight Broadway musicals dating from 1947-56, the CD adding nothing to the trim 34:05 LP. Frank DeVol arranged and conducted. As usual, this turns on the songs, some really excellent. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald/Count Basie: Ella and Basie! (1963 [1997], Verve): The late 1950s saw the emergence of Basie's "New Testament" band, which reached maximum power on an album that fully earned the title The Complete Atomic Basie. One thing the band did a lot of from 1956 on was to hook up with various singers, which included 1957 album with Ella and Joe Williams, followed by sessions with Nat King Cole, Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, Sarah Vaughan, Sammy Davis Jr., and many more. Here they reunite on what is basically another Song Book album -- only "Shiny Stockings" is really specific to Basie (or actually Frank Foster) -- although Basie puts a bit more oomph into Ellington and Waller than Riddle or DeVol would. CD adds some unnecessary alternate takes. B+(**) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: These Are the Blues (1963, Verve): Ten songs, from Bessie Smith and Ma Rainey via Leroy Carr and "Trouble in Mind" to Louis Armstrong, with "St. Louis Blues" the only base she's previously touched. Small group, keyed by Wild Bill Davis on organ, with Herb Ellis (guitar), Ray Brown (bass), Gus Johnson (drums), and Roy Eldridge (trumpet). B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Hello, Dolly! (1964 [2005], Verve): This makes me wonder if the idea behind the Song Books wasn't some kind of "world's greatest singer" competition, where she does all the standards just to prove that no one else does them better, or at least consistently as well. At some point you enter the phase where people start challenging you with new songs, which about sums up the first three here: "Hello, Dolly!" (a hit for Louis Armstrong), "People" (Barbra Streisand), and "Can't Buy Me Love" (the Beatles). Frank DeVol arranges and conducts, so beaucoup strings on "People" and a lot of brass on "Can't Buy Me Love" -- Big Band Beatles is still something I doubt we need, but this is proof of concept (much better than Count Basie or Ray Charles with the moptops). After that, she goes back to familiar territory -- "Volare" is the closest thing to a challenge, but it isn't that new, and she's done it before -- where she and they are faultless but also unexciting. B+(**) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella in Japan: 'S Wonderful (1964 [2011], Verve, 2CD): Two live sets, recorded three days apart in Tokyo, the first in Hibiya Kokaido Public Hall, the second in Hotel Okura. The Roy Eldridge Quartet backs, with Tommy Flanagan (piano), Bill Yancy (bass), and Gus Johnson (drums), and both discs add local musicians toward the end -- the first ends with a 10:53 "Jam Session." Two songs appear on both sets ("Cheek to Cheek" and "Bill Bailey" -- she does a lot of ad-libbing on the latter). Another good live album (or two). B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Whisper Not (1966 [2002], Verve): A dozen standards, ranging as far as "Old MacDonald Had a Farm" but some old favorites, arranged and conducted by Marty Paich. B+(**) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Brighten the Corner (1967, Capitol): Norman Granz sold Verve in 1961 to MGM, but he continued to produce Ella there through 1966, and again after 1973 when he founded his new label, Pablo. Verve declined as a jazz label over the 1960s, although producer Creed Taylor and arrangers like Claude Ogerman and Oliver Nelson had some success, until they moved on in the 1970s -- indeed, Verve's most memorable release of the late 1960s was The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967). After 1970, it virtually disappeared, as MGM went to PolyGram, which had picked up its own jazz label, EmArcy, from Philips, and ultimately to Universal Music Group, which revived Verve as its jazz label in 1999. Granz also managed Ella, but without his own label, he sent her to Capitol, and later to Atlantic, but a brief series of albums that under any other name would be long forgotten. This was her first post-Verve album, a collection of hymns -- one hesitates to use the word "gospel" as that suggests a measure of enthusiasm and joy that producer Dave Dexter Jr. has thoroughly precluded, not just through utterly bland arrangements but by hemming her in with the sedate backing vocals of the Ralph Carmichael Choir. Still, the cliché about singing the phone book comes to mind: even the most demure songs here are quite lovely, and few have ever been done this expertly. Then there's "I Shall Not Be Moved," where she stifles the temptation to sub "Stilled" for "Moved," but reminds you she could just as easily have aimed to raise the rafters. B+(*) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald's Christmas (1967, Capitol): From the same team that brought you the Brighten the Corner hymnal -- Dave Dexter Jr. (producer), Ralph Carmichael (choirmaster), Robert Black and Grace Price (arrangers) -- a very staid, pious, definitely not swinging Christmas. This reminds me of trying to sing these same songs when I was a child. And while she's much better at it than we were, I can still hear our voices in the penumbra here, and feel our (or maybe just my) embarrassment. PS: Streamers have a "Deluxe Edition" which merely appends Brighten the Corner. I think there is also a reissue combining this with Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas, which must produce cognitive dissonance as well as seasonal nausea. B- [r]

Ella Fitzgerald: Misty Blue (1967 [1968], Capitol): Capitol Records is famously located in Hollywood, and we're used to the cliché of Hollywood producers spitballing X-meets-Y-with-Z concepts and turning them into projects. To some extent, Capitol did that with Sinatra and Cole, but they never got this simplistic. Concept here is Ella sings recent country hits, but with big band orchestration, like Ray Charles, so they brought in Sid Feller to arrange and conduct. It doesn't work, although a couple light spots were pleasant enough ("Walking in the Sunshine," "Don't Let That Doorknob Hit You"). "Born to Lose" reminded me enough of Charles I looked it up and found out why. If you have the 4-CD Charles box, you may understand that the formula rarely worked for him either, the exceptions coming early and taking us by surprise. Granz made us feel like Ella could sing anything and make it her own. Dave Dexter Jr. makes us realize that she shouldn't sing everything, even if she's really good at it. B [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: 30 by Ella (1968 [2000], Capitol): Concept here is explained below the title: "All-Time Favorite Songs in the Fantastic Fitzgerald Fashion With Benny Carter's Backing." It's fairly common for veteran singers to squeeze bits of their hits into medleys, and Ella certainly has way more songs fans want to hear than could ever be fit into a set, but this is surprisingly formalized: six medleys of six songs each adding up to 53:29 (per the original LP back cover) -- the CD adds "Hawaiian War Chant" as a 2:18 bonus, because why the hell not? I don't know how that adds up to 30 -- maybe producer Dave Dexter Jr. dozed off and lost count? The song choices and transitions are clever, and Ella is as dexterous as you'd expect in maneuvering through Carter's maze, but most of the songs slip by unnoticed -- isn't recognition the sole point of medleys? -- and the band billed as "Benny Carter's Magnificent 7" seems to be lacking something -- swing, I think. B+(*) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Sunshine of Your Love (1968 [1969], MPS/Prestige): Live album, produced by Norman Granz, recorded in San Francisco, the first side with Ernie Hecksher's big band, leading off with recent pop songs ("Hey Jude," "Sunshine of Your Love," "This Girl's in Love With You"), the second side with Tommy Flanagan's trio doing older standards (slipping in a Jobim). B+(*) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella (1969, Reprise): New label, new songs, produced by by Richard Perry -- opens with two by Smokey Robinson, includes two by Randy Newman, first side ends with "Got to Get You Into My Life," second side ends with "Knock on Wood." A young (26) Richard Perry produced: at this point his resume was thin and scattered (Captain Beefheart, Tiny Tim, Fats Domino), but became famous in the 1970s, especially with Barbra Streisand and Carly Simon. A respectable soul album at a time when songwriters were rising over interpretative singers (Dionne Warwick being the obvious comparison here). B+(*) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Things Ain't What They Used to Be (And You Better Believe It) (1969 [1970], Reprise): Norman Granz is back as producer, and he's brought in Gerald Wilson to arrange and conduct a star-laden very big band. Song selection falls short of ideal, but this is probably the most potent big band she's had in nearly a decade. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald in Budapest (1970 [1999], Pablo): Norman Granz sold Verve in 1961, but continued to produce her until she left Verve in 1967, after which he managed her, and gets credit for producing her live albums. When he launched his Pablo label in 1973, he rounded up the old gang and started producing new studio sets, while also releasing some of his store of live tapes. One of the best compilations of her live work was The Concert Years, a 4-CD Pablo box released in 1994, where the first disc combines a 1953 performance in Japan with two sets from 1966-67, and the later discs track her from 1971-83. This is another fine concert, backed by Tommy Flanagan's trio, long set at 78:17, hits many of her later high points, ending with "Mack the Knife" and "People." B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella à Nice (1971 [1982], Pablo): She was still managed by Granz in the years separating her Verve and Pablo records, so it's likely that her live act -- as opposed to her studio albums at Capitol -- never changed much. But this set offers one innovation: medleys. She starts with "Night and Day," followed by more Porter, then a "Ballad Medley" from "Body and Soul" to Gershwin, and "The Bossa Scene" (mostly Jobim), and later "Aspects of Duke," although she limits her Beatles bag to "Something" -- followed by "St. Louis Blues," closing out with "Close to You" and "Put a Little Love in Your Heart." Backed by Tommy Flanagan's trio. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald/Count Basie/Oscar Peterson/Stan Getz/Roy Eldridge/Eddie Lockjaw Davis/Ray Brown/Harry Edison/Al Grey/Tommy Flanagan/Ed Thigpen/Keeter Betts: Jazz at the Santa Monica Civic '72 (1972 [1991], Pablo, 3CD): I filed this under Jazz at the Philharmonic, and some sources credit the JATP All Stars, the nominal group that takes over after Basie's opening set. This show is regarded as the founding event of Norman Granz's Pablo label, much as the original 1944 Jazz at the Philharmonic First Concert led to Granz's Norgran, Clef, and Verve labels. But I figured I'd just go with the artist names on the front cover, in the order given, especially as that fits neatly in the series of Fitzgerald albums. The concert was originally released as four separate LPs, but by 1974 had been consolidated into a 3-LP box, which was converted to 3-CD in 1991. The first CD is mostly Basie, plus one track from the JATP All Stars (Getz, Davis, Eldridge, etc.), who fill the second CD except for an Oscar Peterson/Ray Brown duet. Ella headlines the third CD, backed by Flanagan's trio and, aside from a 4 song intermission, the Basie big band, with everyone piling on "C Jam Blues" for the finale. The word most often associated with Granz is "impressario," as his JATP shows were his labels were at least initially just a sideline to merchandise and promote his shows. The First Concert is especially notable, not just because "Blues #2" there has been nominated as the first rock and roll record but because the rhythm section was such a revelation (especially Les Paul on guitar and Nat King Cole on piano). The shows went on to generate dozens of albums, some with headline artist credits and many more just under the corporate logo. None of those, at least the dozen-plus I've heard, are essential, but most of them are jam sessions packed with loads of fun. If this seems less star-laden than the 1950s shows, it's because they're all getting older, not least Granz. His big three stars -- Basie, Fitzgerald, and Peterson -- got major revivals on Pablo (as did Eldridge and Edison, and others not present here, like Zoot Sims). The first two sets are fun as you'd expect, but Ella really earns her headline credit, and not just with her standards but also with a couple of outstanding then-new songs ("You've Got a Friend" and "What's Going On?"). B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Loves Cole: New Interpretations by Ella Fitzgerald of the Great Cole Porter Songs (1972, Atlantic): With her interlude at Capitol dead-ended, and Pablo not yet open for business, Granz produced this back-to-basics project, reuniting her with Nelson Riddle to recycle 13 songs from the first of her great Song Books. Unavailable as such on streaming, as Granz repossessed it in 1978 and reissued it as Dream Dancing. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Dream Dancing: Ella Fitzgerald & Cole Porter (1972-78 [1978], Pablo): Here Granz reclaims and recycles 1972's Ella Loves Cole, adding two newly recorded songs -- "Dream Dancing" and "After You, Who?" -- with Nelson Riddle arranging and conducting. While the new cuts don't add much, let's give this package a slight edge. But in both cases, the combination of singer, songwriter, and orchestra is a comforting delight. A- [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald/Joe Pass: Take Love Easy (1973 [1974], Pablo): Pass (1929-94, name shortened from Passalaqua), was a guitarist from New Jersey, started recording for Pacific Jazz in 1962, in Gerald Wilson's big band and small soul jazz groups (Richard Holmes, Les McCann) and cool (Bud Shank), but he quite literally came into his own when Norman Granz signed him to Pablo in 1973 and had him record a solo album, revealing enough to be called Virtuoso. Granz recorded him often -- Wikipedia credits him with 50 Pablo albums -- including this first duo with Fitzgerald. My first reaction here is that they take it way too easy, but after a career of dazzling us with speed, she amazes with how slow she can go without stalling. Pass takes it even easier, but adds just enough they return for more albums. B+(**) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella in London (1974, Pablo): Norman Granz sold Verve in 1961, but continued to produce Ella there through 1966. In 1973, he started a new label, Pablo, and he quickly rounded up several of his 1950s stars, starting with Ella. This one is a live set from Ronnie Scott's, backed by Tommy Flanagan (piano), Joe Pass (guitar), Keter Betts (bass), and Bobby Durham (drums). B+(**) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: "Fine and Mellow" (1974 [1979], Pablo): Subtitle is Ella Fitzgerald Jams with a long list of named stars: Harry Edison and Clark Terry (trumpet), Zoot Sims and Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis (tenor sax), Joe Pass (guitar), Tommy Flanagan (piano), Ray Brown (bass), and Louie Bellson (drums). Lots of good things here, including a stretch where Terry slings even more scat than Ella. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald at the Montreux Jazz Festival 1975 [1975 [1993], Pablo/OJC): With his new label, Granz seemed to be in a hurry to fill out the catalog, and the venue was famous enough to justify a live set. Nine songs, starting with "Caravan" and "Satin Doll," peaking with "It's All Right With Me," closing with "The Girl From Ipanema" and "T'aint Nobody's Bizness If I Do." Backed by Tommy Flanagan, Keter Betts, and Bobby Durham -- their names added to the 1993 CD cover. B+(***) [r]

Ella Fitzgerald/Joe Pass: Fitzgerald and Pass . . . Again (1976, Pablo): Fourteen more standards, sung expertly, with solo guitar accompaniment, artful but demure enough one can be excused for missing much of it. B+(*) [r]

Ella Fitzgerald With the Tommy Flanagan Trio: Montreux '77 (1977 [1989], Pablo/OJC): Different songs from 1975, but same group, with Keter Betts (bass) and Bobby Durham (drums). B+(**) [sp]

Ella: Lady Time (1978, Pablo): Cover just has her first name, an understated minimalism reflected in the band: just organ (Jackie Davis) and drums (Louie Bellson). Standards, most songs she's done before (like "Mack the Knife") although the Fats Domino opener is one I don't recall hearing before. B+(***) [sp]

Greta Keller: Greta Keller Sings Kurt Weill (1953, Atlantic): Cabaret singer and actress (1903-77) from Vienna, moved to Berlin c. 1929, appearing in her first film in 1931, then on to Paris, New York and Hollywood, before eventually returning to Vienna. If her voice and mannerisms seem familiar, that's because she was the archetypal model others (including Marlene Dietrich) drew on -- Cabaret, for instance, kicks off with one of her recordings. This 10-inch LP (28:50) kicks off with with six Kurt Weill songs in English (three with Ogden Nash lyrics), and closes with one more, after a medley in German from Threepenny Opera -- some of my favorite music ever. Perhaps a bit too somber, but a remarkable voice. B+(***) [sp]

Ella Mae Morse: Capitol Collectors Series (1942-57 [1992], Capitol): Jazz/pop singer (1924-99), started in 1942 with a hit of "Cow-Cow Boogie" backed by Freddie Slack and His Orchestra, followed with several more hits (all collected here; doesn't seem to have recorded much of anything later, but continued to tour). B+(**) [sp]

PS: This appears to be identical to The Very Best of Ella Mae Morse (1942-57 [1998], Collectables), which I previously graded B and should now upgrade to match.

Bobby Vee: Legendary Masters (1959-68 [1973], United Artists): One of those "teen idol" singers who appeared in the early 1960s, born in North Dakota, last name Velline, had a couple memorable hits early on -- "Devil or Angel" (1960), "Take Good Care of My Baby" (1961), "The Night Has a Thousand Eyes" (1962) -- and hung on for a long career, touring until he got Alzheimer's in 2011 and died in 2016, but few albums after 1969. This has much more than anyone needs, including enough of I Remember Buddy Holly (1963) to quell my curiosity. B [r]

Limited Sampling

Records I played parts of, but not enough to grade: -- means no interest, - not bad but not a prospect, + some chance, ++ likely prospect.

Grade (or other) Changes

Sometimes further listening leads me to change an initial grade, usually either because I move on to a real copy, or because someone else's review or list makes me want to check it again. Also some old albums extracted from further listening:

The Brill Building Sound (1957-67 [1993], ERA, 4CD): 1619 Broadway, corner of 49th Street, 11 floors, built 1931, became a center for songwriters and publishers in the 1930s, at first focusing on big bands and musical theater. In the late 1950s some of their tenants to cash in on the rock and roll market, with considerable success during the 1961-64 period, which produced 52 songs collected here (vs. 10 for 1957-60, and 12 for 1965-67). Along with a similar operation at 1650 Broadway, their product has been designated a "sound," but unless you lived through this period, nearly everything here sounds like something else from someone more famous. If you didn't, among artists here, you really should have single-artist compilations of the Drifters and the Shirelles (who have much more, and even better, work elsewhere, as do Dion and the Everly Brothers, with one stray song each). The next tier is probably Bobby Darin and the Shangri-Las, or maybe Neil Sedaka, although their songs, plus a dozen more fluke hits, are likely to show up on other compilations (e.g., "girl groups") from the period. But I started listening to a lot of AM radio around 1961, so most of this music is not just familiar but deeply embedded. From 1964 on, my own interest moved pretty hard to the British Invasion. The Brill Building songwriters tried to cash in on that too, and had a few more big hits with what are not little-remembered bands (Manfred Mann, Paul Revere & the Raiders), and they still resonate with me. I don't really know what the afterstory was: immediate competition came from other song factories, especially Motown, but after Dylan, Lennon-McCartney, Jagger-Richard, et al., artists who didn't write their own songs went out of style, and in the 1970s FM eclipsed AM, focusing on longer album cuts at the expense of punchy little novelty singles. Meanwhile, the most famous Brill Building alumnus, Carole King, became a big star, singing her own songs. So this box works for me as nostalgic time capsule, although it misses at least as much of 1961-64 as it captures (a period quickly deprecated as obsolete as soon as the Beatles hit, perhaps even more quickly than the new wave/punks bemoaned the mid-1970s). For the later 1960s, I may have to crack open that 4-CD Nuggets box, but it won't be as cheerfully integrated at this sampler is. [was: A-] A [cd]

Loud, Fast & Out of Control: The Wild Sounds of '50s Rock (1951-59 [1999], Rhino, 4CD): I rescued this from my long-ignored archival shelves a couple weeks ago, and it's been my staple for the last 2-3 weeks, both as a morning pick me up and in the car. Structured as a randomized jukebox, draws on three main components: a core of rockabilly classics -- the big names (including Elvis, right after "My Boy Elvis"), some strategic covers (like Ronnie Hawkins' "Forty Days" and Johnny Burnette's "Honey Hush"), and less-famous novelties (like "Red Hot" and "Action Packed"); major rockers (Chuck Berry, Buddy Holly, Little Richard, Fats Domino, Bo Diddley, the Coasters, and Eddie Cochran -- who leads off two discs); and older jump blues that fit in seamlessly (like "Jump, Jive and Wail" and "Rocket 88"). Sure, anyone could score high with such obvious picks, but close to a quarter of these were under my radar, and few if any feel out of place -- e.g., the sequence of "Frenzy," "Koko Joe," and "King Kong" before the more familiar "Ubangi Stomp" and "Flying Saucers Rock & Roll." [was: B+] A

Corb Lund: El Viejo (2024, New West): Canadian country singer-songwriter, twelfth album since 1995, last year's reservations about "hit and miss" songs hard to recall after a revisit, where I found a "Deluxe Edition" with three extra songs (two new) finishing strong. [was: B+(***)] A- [sp]

Megan Moroney: Am I Okay? (2024, Columbia Nashville): Country singer-songwriter, second album, seemed consistently good when I first sampled this, qualities I appreciate even more now. [was: B+(***)] A- [sp]

Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From the First Psychedelic Era (1965-68 [1998], Rhino, 4CD): Back in 1972, rock critic and future Patti Smith guitarist Lenny Kaye compiled a 2-LP collection of late-1960s "psychedelic" rock, about half minor hits and the rest perfectly fitted: median chart position was 55, with "Psychotic Reaction" at 5, 5 more top-20 songs, 4 below 100, and 5 that didn't chart at all. I picked up the Sire reissue in 1976, and it immediately became a favorite. Rhino picked up on the idea, and starting in 1984 released a series of 12 LPs under the Nuggets name, with Volume 1: The Hits repeating 6 songs from the 2-LP, which they followed up with a CD series called Nuggets: Psychedelic Sixties (3 separate CDs, released 1986-89). In 1998, they reconceived the franchise, with this box set: Volume 1 completely reissues the original 2-LP, with 3 more CDs adding 91 more tracks (116 total, compare to 168 in the 12-LP series). Hard to say whether (or how much) the quality declines as the quantity piles on. I listened to a pretty average amount of rock in 1961-65, but cut way back during my asocial years (1966-72), so only a few of the scattered hits here -- "Wooly Bully" obviously, plus some things like "Louie Louie," "Laugh Laugh," and "She's About a Mover" -- hit a nostalgic nerve. Sure, this sounds very white, male, and American compared to at least 80% of the 1955-75 music I've been enjoying so much of late. But the sound is consistent and coherent, with its heavy guitar din, and resonates with a period I lived through, even if I wasn't very connected to it. B+(***) [cd]

PS: Rhino followed this box with Nuggets II: Original Artyfacts From the British Empire and Beyond (1964-69 [2001], Rhino, 4CD), which mostly focused on similar music from UK groups (most famously the Pretty Things, Small Faces, and the Move), with the Guess Who from Canada, and "beyond" extending as far as Os Mutantes.

Rechecked with no grade change:

Swamp Dogg: Blackgrass: From West Virginia to 125th St (2024, Oh Boy): B+(***) [sp]

Additional Consumer News:

Grades on artists in the old music section.

Music Weeks

Music: Current count 36534 [36534] rated (+0), 149 [149] unrated (+0).

Excerpts from this month's Music Week posts:

Notes

Sources noted as follows:

• [cd] based on physical cd
• [cdr] based on an advance or promo cd or cdr
• [lp] based on physical lp (vinyl)
• [dvd] based on physical dvd (rated more for music than video)
• [bc] available at bandcamp.com
• [r] available at napster.com (formerly Rhapsody)
• [sc] available at soundcloud.com
• [sp] available at spotify.com
• [yt] available at youtube.com
• [os] some other stream source
• [dl] something I was able to download from the web; may be freely available, may be a bootleg someone made available, or may be a publicist promo

Grades are probably self-explanatory, aside from B+, which is subdivided 1-2-3 stars, because most records that come my way are pretty good, but they're not all that good.