Despite having two newer albums since this was recorded, “All Around” from her self-titled second album is still a major favorite of mine. A great late-summer song. Here is the song, with video…enjoy!
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Category Archives: Music, Video & Print
The Latest at The Speakeasy
The Audio Speakeasy is doing quite well for a young forum! We were very fortunate in that we could invite over some good friends for conversation, and some of us feel it is almost like a reunion of sorts. Still, we are looking to beef up the community and get more of our old friends over to join us, as well as make some new ones. We have a lot of potential, and the staff and I have been looking forward to building a new community in perhaps a different direction than other audio and music forums out there. We want to be flexible and incorporate some new topic areas that others have overlooked. I’m also very proud to have a staff that is experienced and eager to improve our forum to be the best music and audio forum on the web. Be sure to stop by, sign up and pay us a visit! The link is over on the sidebar. From the main site, follow the link to the forum and you’ll be on our doorstep!
Review: Return To Forever – The Anthology (2008)
Coinciding with their reunion tour in 2008, Concord has issued a recent compilation of Return To Forever’s tracks from their “classic line-up” (as many call it) with Stanley Clarke, Chick Corea, Al Di Meola (or Bill Connors on this group’s first recording) and Lenny White. There was an anthology from several years ago, but it only covered their tracks on the Polydor label. This is the first compilation to include their best-selling Romantic Warrior album from the Columbia family.
What is different about this release is that all of the tracks are remixed from the original multitrack tapes. Many who know my tastes already know how I feel about most remixes, but in this case, their earlier albums had quite a dated, “old” sound to them. The remixes actually clean up the sound substantially, and you can hear more of the parts clearly now. With one more disc to the set, the group’s entire output could have been anthologized, but you won’t be left wanting for any missing tracks on this set, especially since it has Romantic Warrior in its entirety (which is many listeners’ favorite). I’ve enjoyed this one quite a bit, despite the remixes. Recommended!
The Audio Speakeasy
New to our family of sites is The Audio Speakeasy, a forum dedicated to music and audio/video hardware. If you are interested in discussing some of the newest releases and their sound quality, or want to improve your listening experience, we’re the new, up and coming place to do it at! We aim to provide an upbeat, informative discussion forum where you can speak your honest opinion. Register today at the site! Visit the main page, and follow the links to the forum to do so. You never know who you may run into at the Speakeasy…
A Lost Classic: Junior’s “Ji”
Criminally overlooked. That is how I would describe Norman “Junior” Giscombe. A pioneer of the UK R&B invasion of the 80s (which would include Sade, Loose Ends, Billy Ocean, Soul II Soul and others), Junior landed at #2 on the R&B charts (and #30 on the Top 40) with “Mama Used To Say,” a major hit that was unavoidable in 1982. The follow-up hits were “Too Late” and “I Can’t Help It.” The album, Ji, made a splash in the U.S. when it was released, but his subsequent albums failed to make much of an impression, and nowadays, most remember him only for his biggest hit.