Black Sabbath - Mob Rules (1981/2014) [24-192]

 

After a steady decline in both inspiration, mental stability, and commercial appeal throughout the second half of the '70s, metal icons Black Sabbath were reborn with 1980's Heaven and Hell. The album would be their first with new vocalist Ronnie James Dio, whose passionate, controlled wail broke new ground for the band and helped drive a comeback. 

1981's Mob Rules was a quick follow-up to Heaven and Hell, continuing the momentum of that record's energy as well as its shift away from dark metal to more commercial hard rock.



 

Prince - Transmission Impossible (3 CD, 2017/FLAC)

Despite the tragic passing of Prince, the music world remains as eager as ever to hear previously unreleased material by this genius of composition and performance. 

This triple CD set includes just such material, featuring on Disc One in the set the entire album Purple Rain recorded live at various venues in the years since the original record release in 1984. Including too, as bonus cuts, some of the non-album b-sides of singles taken from PR, this disc gets the set off to a flying start.

 Disc Two includes television appearances made by Prince across the decades, during which he performs numbers relevant to the time or the subject of the appearance. Featuring the great man's musical spots on Saturday Night Live, The Late Show, The VH1 Fashion Awards, Solid Gold, and even a rare 1979 appearance on Soul Train, among numerous others, this collection features the finest and least heard appearances he made throughout his career.

Disc Three concludes the set in style, with a rare small club/aftershow party from 1988, when Prince performed in front of a 'by invitation only' intimate crowd, playing the kind of funk-driven set he would never perform in front of a regular audience. With all tracks and sets throughout featured in fine audio quality, all taken from broadcast recordings, this collection will surely end up among the standard Prince live collections out there.


 

Paul Simon discography 1965-2011 [FLAC]

Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American musician, singer-songwriter and actor. Simon's fame, influence, and commercial success began as part of the duo Simon & Garfunkel, formed in 1964 with musical partner Art Garfunkel. Simon wrote nearly all of the pair's songs, including three that reached No. 1 on the U.S. singles charts: "The Sound of Silence", "Mrs. Robinson", and "Bridge over Troubled Water".

 

The Who - A Quick One (1966/2015) [24/96]


Originally released in 1966, A Quick One is the second studio album by The Who. Featuring songs including "Heat Wave" (a cover), "So Sad About Us", and "Don't Look Away", the album has been ranked at #383 in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time and was described by the magazine as "absolutely perfect, poignant pop".





  • Roger Daltrey - lead vocals, trombone and bass drum on "Cobwebs and Strange"
  • John Entwistle - bass guitar, French horn, trumpet, lead vocals, backing vocals
  • Pete Townshend - lead and rhythm guitars, penny-whistle, keyboards, vocals
  • Keith Moon - drums, percussion, tuba, vocals


 

Uriah Heep - Chaos & Colour (2023) [Hi-Res FLAC]

Chaos & Colour, the energetic and triumphant 25th studio album from British hard rock legends and progenators Uriah Heep, bristles with explosive classic rock guitars, supreme harmonies, and Heep’s famously generous keyboard foundation. 

Led by founding member Mick Box, it is no surprise that themes of light, love and, ultimately, positivity are constant through the eleven tracks. Opener “Save Me Tonight” shows the band’s weighty yet blistering chops, whilst “One Nation, One Sun” is a journey of soaring balladic contemplation. “Fly Like An Eagle” emanates magic and mystery in a way that the late, great Ronnie James Dio would have heartily approved, and “Closer To Your Dreams” is a battle cry for all rockers to get out there and do it, with Shaw imploring that “So many have tried but slipped away/Now it’s time for you to have your say.” Throughout the album, Bernie Shaw’s timeless vocals are expertly supported by keyboardist Phil Lanzon, bassist Dave Rimmer and Box, with Russell Gilbrook on drums rounding out exceptional performances throughout. Produced at Chapel Studios by Jay Ruston, and engineered by Pieter Rietkirk, Chaos & Colour is a superb album of quality hard rock from the pioneers of the genre who continue to create top class material. Old fans will be reinvigorated whilst new fans will surely find Chaos & Colour an exceptional discovery.


- Bernie Shaw / lead vocals
- Mick Box / lead guitar, vocals
- Phil Lanzon / keyboards, vocals
- Dave Rimmer / bass, vocals
- Russel Gilbrook / drums, percussion