Contacted by phone at his home just south of San Francisco, Chester Thompson is quick in his response to a question about a record he made in three hours on a Sunday afternoon fifty years ago, Powerhouse. 'I was a young man, and it was an opportunity to show people that I could play a Hammond B-3 organ.' Little did Thompson know then that he was showing people who would place him on an unexpected career path into the whirlwind of pop music.

A host of accomplished conductors including Daniel Harding, Daniele Gatti, Bernard Haitink and Eliahu Inbal lead the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in these performances of Mahler's Symphonies Nos. 1-10. Recorded in Amsterdam over two seasons in 2010/11, the collection also includes 'Das Lied von der Erde'.

It’s nice to see that one of my all-time favourite drummers is still swinging, or should I say, still funking, which is for me, the genre of music that Billy Cobham has become best known for. The other two musos in this trio, Bill Bickford on guitars and Wolfgang Schmid on bass are unknown names to me. At least that was the case until I did some Internet research and discovered that they have a wealth of albums and projects under their respective belts.This album was recorded live at FEIERWERK,Munich,Germany. It is a vibrant affair and a very clear recording. The performance is incredibly slick especially considering the complexity of the playing. Whether or not there were any over-dubs before the CD was pressed is not clear but it sounds really "live" with some audience noise coming through during the songs.

The follow-up to "Warning'' was performed with much of the same band. The energy level seems to have dipped a bit, and the songs are not as memorable. The "Summit Afrique" suite is the best moment, but even that doesn't leave a lasting impression. A rather forgettable effort that was obviously aimed at the commercial jazz audience.

This was one of the earliest entries in the GRP catalog. It's a keyboard-dominated session, and definitely has a commercial sound to it. There are, however, enough drumming calisthenics to satisfy the intended audience. Cobham's band is not as exciting or as distinguishable as those from his days in the '70s, but the personnel are certainly adequate for the music being played. In particular, "Slow Body Poppin'" contains a fine Larry Carlton-influenced solo by Dean Brown. The remake of "Stratus" was interesting, but does not do the original justice. This is recommended mostly for the Cobham faithful.

Life And Times is a much over looked album from the master of funky fusion percussion. It starts off with a Mahavishu Orchestra inspired track "Life and Times" with all intense and wild fluid guitar lines and some complex drumming, but it gets better. John Scofield though is not John McLaughlin but he has his moments to shine, especially his acoustic work. "Siesta" is a beautifully laid back piece with some nice bass clarinet playing juxtaposed with piano and is an apex of the albums strength, along with "Song for a friend" parts 1 and 2, which are very similar, but become a good combination of tunes and worth the extra inclusion. "East Bay" is a cool piece of jazzy funk with just a bit of sleaziness added for good measure. Good album, worth stealing if you can get your hands on it.

This album is a radical departure from the rest of Bill's recorded work as it is the first time he has recorded an album of straight-ahead jazz standards. The album has been anticipated for a long time by his many fans who cover genres as diverse as jazz, hip-hop & rock. It must be stressed that this album is very much a jazz CD and not a dance floor record. It is however, a superb album.

Simply Demis Roussos album by Demis Roussos was released Aug 03, 2010 on the Union Square Music label. Demis Roussos became a household name in the '70s when his single 'Forever And Ever' was a huge #1 hit in several countries and ensured his success across Europe and Latin America with a singing career than now spans five decades. Simply Demis Roussos music CDs This comprehensive set presents his best loved songs, with over two and hours of Roussos magic.

The east German Thrash Metal band TormentoR was formed in the year 2006 by Max Seipke in the age of 12 years. In the year 2010 the band went into the studio, once again with producer Evil, to record their debut album “Violent World”. After the recording was done, Christian Schomber on bass and Kevin Hauch on the rhythm guitar became new members of the band. “Violent World” was released in 2012 via Iron Shield Records. The album mostly got good feedback from Rock Hard, Metal Hammer, Heavy and many more! Following the release they toured through Saxony, Brandenburg and Poland and established their name in the underground scene. Morbid Realization is a very well structured album.This is an old-school teutonic thrash metal album for the 21st century – and for that I admire Tormentor thoroughly. Tormentor have successfully managed to capture a much-loved era in thrash metal history, and bring it to fresh ears in the 21st century. More power to them!

In 2017 Hideous Divinity celebrate their 10th year of activity with the release of their 3rd full length “Adveniens”, once again via Unique Leader Records. Recorded, Mixed and Mastered at Stefano Morabito's 16th Cellar Studio during autumn 2016, “Adveniens” is the result of an extensive 3-years in the making songwriting process, bringing you Hideous Divinity in their darkest and heaviest shape ever.