Composer's name is listed where notable (i.e. Classical Performance, Jazz Performance).
For more information on any of the rock, pop and Jazz music featured on this program, I frequently utilize AllMusic , an excellent free database holding a huge plethora of information about music and the artists that make it.
| Composer | Performer | Title | Genre | Label | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Cream |
Crossroads |
Rock, Classic |
Polydor, 1968 |
I consider this recording of Crossroads, the live performance issued on Wheels of Fire, to be one of the single best live recorded songs that I've ever heard. One of those instances where you can really hear the musicians feeding off of each other, raising the performance level higher and higher with each bar of music. | |
N.S.U. |
BBC, 1998 |
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Outside Woman Blues |
BBC, 1998 |
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Spoonful |
Polydor, 1966 |
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|
Avenged Sevenfold |
Beast and the Harlot |
Metal |
Warner Bros, 2005 |
Alternating the negative attitude (Lamb of God) with the positive (Killswitch Engage) and the somewhat pessimistic that yet contains a gleam of hope (A7x, or at least the way I interpret them). These are three of the more promising bands in modern metal. | |
|
Lamb of God |
Descending |
Epic, 2006 |
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|
Killswitch Engage |
Breathe Life |
Roadrunner, 2005 |
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|
Claude Debussy (1862 - 1918) (also check out the excellent Wikipedia article on Debussy) |
St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, Leonard Slatkin, cond. |
La Mer (The Sea) |
Classical, modernist, post-romantic, "Impressionistic" |
Telarc, 1982 |
Composed between 1903 and 1905, during the middle part of his career, its full title was "La mer, trois esquisses symphoniques pour orchestre" (translated "The Sea, three symphonic sketches for orchestra"). This is one of a few works of Debussy that employs a full orchestra; he prefered to use solo instruments or smaller ensembles, so as to place more focus on instrumental color and timbre. La Mer is said to have been a favorite of such notables as Sviatoslav Richter. Debussy is popularly called an "impressionist" composer, but he probably might be better described as a "symbolist," influenced as he was by symbolist writers and poets such as Stéphane Mallarmé and Maurice Maeterlinck (who wrote the libretto for Pelléas et Mélisande). Yet Symbolism is a term used to describe a French poetry movement, which Debussy used almost exclusively for the text for his many songs, but the term is not properly used to describe his music. He, along with Igor Stravinski, can easily be credited with initiating what we might call the "modernist" movement in classical music (Debussy actually hated the use of the term "impressionist" in describing his music). However, the term "modernist" is more of an overall description of various trends of music that would eventually lead to what we now consider "post-modern", and does not apply to individual musical styles. So, as you can see, finding a properly descriptive term for this beautiful music can be a difficult task. |
|
The Moody Blues |
Tuesday Afternoon |
Rock, Classic, '60 |
Deram/Decca, 1967, 2006 |
Alternate take | |
Twilight Time |
BBC session from 1/1/1968 | ||||
Peak Hour |
BBC session from 9/20/1967 | ||||
Nights in White Satin |
BBC session from 1/1/1968 | ||||
Duke Ellington |
(Otto Make That) Riff Staccato
|
Jazz, Big Band, 40s |
Bluebird, 1988/1995 |
From the 1944-1946 Band Recordings, a set of the really great recordings that the Ellington Organization made with probably their best outfit, featuring some of their best recorded material. The edition that I'm using here is out of print, but these same recordings have been reissued in several combinations of box sets and smaller best-of compilations, and can be found with some dilligent research (although the cost of a good set might be expensive). But the hardest work often gives the most rewarding results. | |
In A Sentimental Mood |
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Prelude to a Kiss |
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|
Glenn Miller |
String of Pearls |
Jazz, Big Band, '40s |
Bluebird/RCA, 2001 |
from 4/22/44, recorded with the Army Air Force Band | |
In The Mood |
from 11/13/43, recorded with the Army Air Force Band. Much quicker tempo than usual here, but they are playing live, and you can hear the energy. | ||||
Londonderry Air (Danny Boy) |
from 10/30/43, again recorded with the Army Air Force Band. Here we have strings featured on the intro, leading into a rather sensitive arrangement. | ||||
|
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark |
Souvenir |
Rock/Pop, New Wave, '80s |
Virgin, 1981 |
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REM |
Oddfellows Local 151 |
Rock/Pop, Indie, 80s |
IRS, 1987 |
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The Beatles |
Little Child |
Pop/Rock, '60 s |
Capitol, 1963 |
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And I Love Her |
Capitol, 1964 |
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I'm Looking Through You |
Capitol, 1965 |
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Last Update: March 12, 2007
Email: saxman@siu.edu