Music
Invisible Hour by Joe Henry
I’ve been following the career of American artist Joe Henry since the release of his 1992 album, Short Man’s Room. It was an early alt-country classic, recorded with members of The Jayhawks, and was a fine example of his…
Mozart and Haydn Recital Decca Most Wanted Recitals Vol. 48
British soprano Jennifer Vyvyan, best known for premiering several roles in the operas of Benjamin Britten, possessed a voice of great beauty, with crystalline coloratura to rival that of Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, and lyric richness comparable to Lucia Popp. Tragically, Vyvyan…
Zoom by Rachid Taha
Rachid Taha, born in Algeria but who spent his formative years in France, has made a string of very good albums combining North African sounds with Western-style rock. His last album from 2009, Bonjour, was a very laid back…
Mosaic: Australian Guitar Concertos by Karin Schaupp
Karin Schaupp’s albums are like a breath of fresh air in the world of big, heavy classical music. No Beethoven or Brahms for her, rather the floral world of Peter Sculthorpe and Ross Edwards. She starts with ‘Mosaic’, the single…
Winter Pick by Justin Bernasconi
I’d heard really good things in advance about Winter Pick and I’m pleased to say it’s more impressive and even more diverse than what I expected. Singer–songwriter and guitar picker Justin Bernasconi is normally a member of country-leaning local outfit…
Natalie Merchant by Natalie Merchant
Natalie Merchant’s voice has always had an effect on me: deep and dark, beautiful and fragile, but also capable of great power and strength. It is a voice I have loved since I first heard her front the indie band…
The Phoenix And The Turtle by Beverley Martyn
After a long period of illness, Beverley Martyn has re-emerged with another of her sporadic recordings. Martyn is a name remembered by some from the amazingly creative folk–rock period of the late 1960s and early 70s England. She married the…
Beneath The Sun by Tom E Lewis
Born in Arnhem Land, actor and musician Tom E. Lewis has produced two very good albums to date. Sunshine After Rain, from 2006, used spoken word and atmospheric musical settings to great effect, though didn’t get to be heard…
Wrecking Ball: Deluxe Edition by Emmylou Harris
Back in the mid-nineties, my musical world was transformed by a handful of albums. Among them, Gillian Welch’s Revival, Richard Buckner’s Bloomed and Emmylou Harris’s Wrecking Ball each played a major part in my discovery of country music. With…
J.S. Bach: St John Passion by Richard Egarr & Academy of Ancient Music
Everyone knows the St Matthew Passion by Bach; despite whether or not you know the name, there is a high likelihood you will have heard parts of it here and there. Though what is often forgotten is that Bach originally…
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