Faust ‘The Faust Tapes’* - whatever else you may think of him, Richard Branson deserves a knighthood for once releasing this wonderful LP for 45p. My personal realisation that there was a world far beyond Mungo Jerry, Slade and T.Rex*. Oh, and Deep Purple’s third album too (my old Unsung review refers);
Faust ‘71 Minutes of Faust’ - another of the £5 Faust bargains currently available from ReR’s website while final stocks last, this is an excellent supplement to the aforesaid LP with more unique music (‘Knochentanz’, ‘Baby’ and ‘Lieber Herr Deutschland’ for example, really rock - in a Faust way) and revised takes on things you’ll know from years before. But am I alone in finding the primal groove of ‘Munic/Yesterday’ akin to the Softs’ ‘We Did It Again’?
Faust ‘BBC Sessions+’ - invaluable supplement to the early albums with some otherwise unrecorded music and a great alt take of ‘Krautrock’;
Paul Weller ‘Fat Pop’ - ace, uplifting new album from a dude who makes it sound so easy. We take him too easily for granted, we really do;
Paul Weller ‘On Sunset Remixes’ - radical takes on five songs from last year’s ‘On Sunset’ opus. Weller’s on rude form at the moment;
Pat Travers ‘Makin’ Magic’ - proof that it wasn’t just the new wave creating a rumble back in ‘77. Hip-shakin’ rock’n’roll at its bestest;
David Clayton-Thomas S/T - his second self-titled LP from 1973 (on RCA) is a distinct improvement on the first one, featuring more of his own songs and a stronger vocal performance;
Traffic S/T - there’s something uniquely timeless about this record which makes it sound more modern to me now than it did when I first heard it as a teenager back in 1975, when it was already seven years old! The contrasts between Dave Mason’s feel good pop and Winwood/Capaldi’s moodier, headier fayre make the album what is. That these guys were barely out of their teens at the time is little short of miraculous;
The Beatles ‘Sgt Pepper’ - which I believe has become relatively unsung over the years when it remains if not the Fabs’ most enjoyable record, certainly their most inventive and influential one;
Deep Purple 'Come Hell Or High Water' - watched this on Sky Arts the other night, and rather enjoyed it, even if the soon to leave Herr Blackmore is clearly on bored autopilot. What a shame, because Mk II's final album (the aptly named 'Battle Rages On') was - and is - an vastly underrated album in Purple's oeuvre;
Keith Jarrett ‘The Celestial Hawk’ - a piano concerto in all but name, with some delightful, lyrical moments in its wannabe Rachmaninov kind of way. There are many worse ways to spend forty minutes;
Helen Charlston, Michael Craddock & Alexander Soares ‘Isolation Songbook’ - a Covid-inspired song cycle by fifteen contemporary composers, proving that genuine creativity can thrive in even the most restrictive of circumstances. This is truly an absorbing and rewarding listen, superbly performed throughout;
Arnold Cooke: Organ Sonata no.1 (Daniel Cook) - excellent rendition of a little-known but distinctive English organ work from 1971, showcasing the exceptional colours of the Willis organ of St. Bees Priory, Cumbria;
Bach: Cello Suite no.6 in D, BWV 1012 (Philip Higham) - Bach’s final and finest work for solo cello, beautifully played by a young Scottish virtouso on a modern instrument. The Allemande is particularly moving;
Brahms: Piano Concerto no.1 (Solomon/Philharmonia/Rafael Kubelik) - powerful and dramatic interpretation by pianist and conductor alike on this half-forgotten early LP from 1952;
Brahms: Symphony no.3 (Budapest Fest Orch/Ivan Fischer) - long awaited final disc in Fischer’s Brahms cycle is typical of the series: measured, serene and thoughtful, if a little lacking in heft;
Sibelius: Symphony no.7 (Oregon SO/James de Priest) - Sibelius’ compact, single movement symphony in a unique performance that emphasises its romantic elements;
Mendelssohn: Symphony no.5 ‘Reformation’ (Detroit SO/Paul Paray) - still good sounding Mercury recording despite being over six decades old;
Tchaikovsky: Capriccio italien; Beethoven: Piano Concerto no.3 (with Solomon); Vaughan Williams: Symphony no.6* (BBC SO or LSO*/Sir Adrian Boult) - classic recordings from the 1940s, and a reminder that Boult was so much more than an idiomatic interpreter of Elgar and Holst;
Vaughan Williams: Symphony no.3 ‘Pastoral’ (BBC SO/Martyn Brabbins) - sensitive, perfectly poised reading of this evocative score;
Messiaen: Catalogue d’oiseaux (Hakon Austbo) - how Messiaen managed to recreate birdsong in its environment using a conventional piano keyboard is a thing of wonder, and it’s faithfully realised in this magnificent set;
Beethoven: String Quartet Op.59 no.2 ‘Rasumovsky’ & Bartok: String Quartet no.3 (Juilliard Quartet) - fine new recording by current lineup of this legendary quartet;
Beethoven: String Quartet Op.127 (Hungarian String Quartet) - classic recording from the mid-60s;
Beethoven: Piano Sonata no.32, Op.111 (Wilhelm Kempff) - Kempff’s 1936 recording of Beethoven’s valedictory piano sonata is more varied in feel than his later versions but fascinating nonetheless.
*Shit bag bone on, shit bag oh penissey! (What I genuinely thought were the lyrics for Faust’s ‘J’ai mal aux dents’ back in the day. Says so much about my post-pubertal mindset - and my old Bush mono record player!)
Live your finest week, my friends.
Dave x
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