Grooves...

More music available than you can shake a stick at. Here's what I've been listening to....

August 2020
T-Bone Walker "Complete Imperial Recording"

January 2015
Basement Tapes (Raw )   - Bob Dylan  [ 7/10 For outtakes and jams, pretty good, with some gems ]
McCarthy (Complete)    - McCarthy  [ 9/10 Saw them in the 80s in Oxford and always enjoyed. All recordings here, including BBC. Good indie political rock. Never knew they became Stereolab ]
Steeleye Span ( Early Recordings)   - Steeleye Span  [ 9/10 Early stuff that my Dad had on LP. Actually very good indeed, Traditional folk , electrified. Martin Carthy appears too  ]
Liege and Leaf  - Fairport Convention [ 10/10 Amazing electric folk ]
January 2013
Race the Loser  - Lau [ 9/10 Magical, folk/acoustic based music . Kris Drever plays guitar ]


November- December 2012
Collected - 10cc
Jake Bugg - Jake Bugg

September - October  2012
Sunken Condos - Donald Fagen [ cool jazzy, rock sounds, but I think Becker has the edge on solo albums ]
When I'm President - Ian Hunter and the Rant Band  [ he may be old, but he's still amazingly brilliant]

August  2012
The Great Deceiver  - King Crimson  [ more than stunning live performances of the ( 2nd) classic Crimson line up : "prog" rarely sounded better or more brilliant ]

July  2012
Searching for Sugarman - Sugarman [ I gave in to the hype : acceptable, not not earth-shattering or even that stunning, ( assuming you didn't experience him in SA.,,definitely NOT the new Dylan, neither then, nor now..]

June  2012
Moonshine - Bert Jansch [ I think this is a forgotten masterpiece....]
Tales from the barrelhouse - Seth Lakeman [ Typical Lakeman-style. Rhythmic and powerful acoustic music ]
Prince Heathen - Martin Carthy and Dave Swarbrick  [ Awesome English folk : guitar and fiddle-driven ]
Martin Carthy -   [ Self titled, brilliant and indispensable music  ]
The Collection - Style Council  [ the sound of my adolescence and log, hot summers  ]

April - May  2012
Mekanik Destriktiw Kommando - Magma  [ awesome !!!!!!]
Best of Moby Grape - Moby Grape  [ Surprisingly good Sixties rock ]
Encore - Tangerine Dream
The Gospel according to the men in black - The Stranglers [ Just like nothing on earth...]
Blunderbuss - Jack White  [ Its good, but is it awesome ?...]
All Saints - David Bowie Instrumentals  [ Description as per the tin...]

March 2012 
Contraband- Otis Taylor
Complete- Big Maceo Merriweather
Futurist Manifesto- Be Bop Deluxe  [ All albums...back to my roots and wonderful ]
Masters of the Ragtime Guitar- Duck Baker, Ton van Bergeyk etc  [ Brilliant and very enjoyable ]
Shakuhachi Music : A bell ringing in the empty sky- Gojo Yamaguchi [ Contemplative Japanese flute music ]
The English Riviera  - Metronomy
South of I-10- Sonny Landreth [ I've always enjoyed Sonny Landreth's contributions to various rock/blues groups and wondered what he sounded like on his own. His guitar (slide, especially ) is the key element and it is very good, but , for my taste, this veers too often to countrified rock, with hints of commercialised Cajun, and far too little bluesy stylings. Pleasant enough, but too close to AOR most of the time, for my liking ]
Home Again- Michael Kiwanuka
The Poison Glen- Altan   [ Competent, but little passion. Great technique, but not that exciting]

February 2012

I speak because I can- Laura Marling
Ragged Kingdom- June Tabor and the Oyster Band [ A second mention...its really good !] 
Heavy Sugar - A New Orleans R'n'B Collections ( that's from the 50s and 60s : real R'n'B  ! )

January 2012

Michael Kiwanuka    Hat tip for 2012...Old-style soul with a modern feeling
Luck in the Valley - Jack Rose

December 2011
Complete Imperial Recording- T-Bone Walker [10/10 - Texas Blues from the 1940s to 50s]
Stateless- Mathilda [7/10 - ]
Ragged Kingdom- June Tabor and the Oyster Band [10/10 - Modern interpretations of Folk and contemporary songs. Love will tear us apart never sounded so mournful]
The Geese and the Ghost- Anthony Phillips [6/10 - Old and Ex Genesis. OK, but not stunning]


Bottleneck Slide Guitar - Sam Mitchell  [ 8/10  What it says on the tin. Brilliant ]
Desire - Bob Dylan   [ 10/10  Among his best]

November 2011

Empire and Love- Imagined Village [8/10 - Re-invented English folk for the 21st Century]
Blues from the Gutter/Natural and Souful Blues- Champion Jack Dupree [10/10 - Wonderful music ]
Unfashionably Late - Linda Thompson
The Harrow and the Harvest -  Gillian Welch [8/10]
You can't teach an old dog new tricks - Seasick Steve [8/10 - It's true...catch him live ]


June - October 2011
Grace and Passion- Martin Simpson


May 2011

Shattered dreams: Funky Blues 1967 - 1972- Various
The Book of the Dead - Mick Harvey
Together - Talvin Singh and Niladri Kumar


November - March 2011

Lost - The Unthanks
Ashore - June Tabor
Mission Bell- Amos Lee
Smoke Ring for my Halo - Kurt Vile
Sweet Inspirations -  Various Artists ( songs by Spooner and Oldham ) 

My Goals Beyond - John McLaughlin 
Pancha Nadai Pallavi  - Shankar 
Jungle Blues - C W Stoneking 

 October 2010 


Metallic Spheres- The Orb ( with Dave Gilmour ) 

Band of Joy - Robert Plant 
Santiago - The Chieftans 
Too long in this condition- Alasdair Roberts ( plus friends :) 

 September 2010 


Croweology- The Black Crows 

Dream Attic - Richard Thompson 

 August 2010 


Hergest Ridge - Mike Oldfield 

Ommadawn - Mike Oldfield 
To scratch your heart - Early recordings from Istanbul 
Phaedra - Tangerine Dream 
Best of - Grin  [ Nils Lofgren pre-solo, but some great songs. I loved Lofgren in the 70's. Superb, straightforward rock. Sadly many of his 70's albums are no longer available, especially the top notch Night after Night his exceptional live recording. Springsteen is lucky to have him in his band ! ] 

 July 2010 

Fish Rising - Steve Hillage 
Half Smile - Hank Dogs 

 June 2010 

Counter Culture - Roy Harper 
Complete - Patrik Fitzgerald 

 May 2010 

Sea of Cowards - The Deadweather 
The King Sessions - Ivory Joe Hunter 
Signs of Life - Martin Carthy 
Motivation Radio - Steve Hillage 
Seasick Steve - Started out with Nothing, and got most of it left 

 April 2010 


Jellybread - Complete Blue Horizon Sessions ( Brilliant late Sixties Blues Soul, with Pete Wingfield ! ) 

Davey Graham - The Guitar Player 
The Hot Rats - Turn on 
The Besnard Lakes.....are the Roaring Night 
Steven Lindsay- Exit Music 
Jody Williams - Return of a Legend 

 March 2010 


Roy Hawkins - The Thrill is Gone 

Amos Milburn - Booze, Babes, Blues and Boogie 
Field Music - 
Joss Stone - Colour me Free 
Jimi Hendrix - Valleys of Neptune 

 February 2010


 Hope Sandoval and the Warm Inventions - Bavarian Fruit Bread 

Frank Zappa -Sheik Yerbouti