Led Zeppelin - The Complete Studio Recordings (10 CD, 1993/FLAC)

 

The Complete Studio Recordings is a ten compact disc box set by the English rock group Led Zeppelin, released by Atlantic Records on 24 September 1993. It contains all nine of the original Led Zeppelin studio albums digitally remastered, plus an expanded version of the posthumous release Coda. The discs are physically paired together in double-disc booklets and arranged in chronological order, with the exception of Presence (placed between Houses of the Holy and Physical Graffiti) being paired with Houses of the Holy in order to keep the two discs of Physical Graffiti together in the same case.

Four bonus tracks were added to the Coda disc. These were the previously unreleased "Baby Come On Home" which had appeared on Led Zeppelin Boxed Set 2 (1993), along with the previously unreleased tracks that had surfaced on the 1990 box set: "Travelling Riverside Blues" and "White Summer/Black Mountain Side", as well as the "Immigrant Song" B-side "Hey, Hey, What Can I Do". This expanded version of Coda created for the box set was also later released to digital stores in 2007 with the digital release of the full Led Zeppelin catalog, but with "Travelling Riverside Blues" omitted due to it already being included in BBC Sessions (1997).  

Led Zeppelin I

Led Zeppelin II

Led Zeppelin III

Led Zeppelin IV

Houses of the holy

Presence

Physical Graffiti

In Through The Out Door

CODA

tracklist & info 

Renaissance 1969-1979 [FLAC]

 

The history of Renaissance is essentially the history of two separate groups, rather similar to the two phases of the Moody Blues or the Drifters. The original group was founded in 1969 by ex-Yardbirds members Keith Relf and Jim McCarty as a sort of progressive folk-rock band, who recorded two albums (of which only the first, self-titled LP came out in America, on Elektra Records) but never quite made it, despite some success on England's campus circuit.

The band went through several membership changes, with Relf and his sister Jane (who later fronted the very Renaissance-like Illusion) exiting and McCarty all but gone after 1971. The new lineup formed around the core of bassist Jon Camp, keyboard player John Tout, and Terry Sullivan on drums, with Annie Haslam, an aspiring singer with operatic training and a three-octave range. 

1969 - Renaissance

1971 - Illusion

1972 - Prologue

1973 - Ashes Are Burning

1974 - Turn Of A Cards

1975 - Scheherazade And Other Stories

1976 - Live At Carnegie Hall

1977 - Novella

1979 - Azure D'or

Electric Light Orchestra - Eldorado (1974/2022) [SACD ISO]

Electric Light Orchestra leader Jeff Lynne did more than figuratively reach for the sky on Eldorado. Daring to be bold, and creating imaginative worlds that invite the listener to escape the mundane, the visionary composer-musician achieved a multidisciplinary fantasia and, in the process, a prog-rock landmark. Nearly 50 years later, the concept album's brilliance can be experienced like never before in cinematic fashion.

 

Ronnie Earl 1987-2022 [FLAC]

One of the finest blues guitarists to emerge from the 1980s, Ronnie Earl's emotionally rich, technically dazzling playing style crisscrosses the genre's history and often incorporates elements from jazz, soul, and rock. Solo and with longtime band the Broadcasters, he has released dozens of albums resulting in multiple "Guitar Player of the Year" prizes. Influenced by spiritual themes, Earl's instrumental acumen has fueled celebrated recordings including 1993's Still River and 1996's Language of the Soul. After 2000's The Colour of Love cracked the Top 200, he signed with Canada's powerhouse independent Stony Plain for 2004's I Feel Like Goin' On. 2009's Healing Time charted internationally, while 2016's Maxwell Street delivered a raucous tribute to Chicago blues. 2019's Beyond the Blue Door was a star-studded collection of blues, R&B, and rock covers. Earl followed it up with 2020's socially conscious Rise Up, and 2022's cover-heavy Mercy Me. 

VA - Troubadours Of British Folk (3 CD, 1995/FLAC)

 Rhino's Troubadours of British Folk series, encompassing three volumes, four decades, 49 songs, and almost as many performers, is a model genre retrospective. For those who want a representative collection of the style's highlights, it covers virtually all of the major performers and innovators of British folk, represented by their best-known (and usually best) songs. For those who want an introduction/guide to the form, it's equally useful, serving as an excellent foundation to build upon if you're motivated to seek out more albums by these performers after an initial taste. Volume One covers the mid-'50s to the early '70s, encompassing skiffle (Lonnie Donegan), elder statespersons (Ewan MacColl), virtuoso guitarists (Davy Graham, Bert Jansch, Martin Carthy), traditional singers (Jean Redpath, Shirley & Dolly Collins), singer-songwriters (Donovan), and early efforts by the major players of British folk-rock (Fairport Convention, Pentangle, The Incredible String Band, Steeleye Span). Then there are names which are virtually unknown these days in the States, like the Young Tradition, Anne Briggs, and Wizz Jones. Along with some expected classics (Fairport's "Fotheringay," Donegan's "Rock Island Line," Jansch's "Needle of Death") are some rare coveted treasures, like MacColl's "Dirty Old Town" (eventually covered by The Pogues) and Graham's "Angi" (popularized by Simon & Garfunkel). The liner notes, with quotes from many of the artists and extensive commentary, are great, as they are for each volume of the series.