One of the best things about working freelance from home is that I now actually get the chance to listen to all (well, most) of the records and CDs that I have been accumulating. The most efficient and interesting way to do this is actually by just turning on our 100-disc player and hitting random play.
When I lived in NYC, I would get time to change the discs every 3 to 6 months. Now I’m listening to them every day, I find I get tired of them after about a month, which is pretty cool, because I’m hearing so much more of my collection than I ever did before. The reviews below are from discs that just came out of the player after a month or two.
Elis Regina: 'Elis, Como & Porque' (CD; ; 1969)
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Outstanding Elis album. The Menescal arrangements are superbly rhythmic, and everything has that delectable jerky-yet-light late 60s feel.
1 Aquarela do Brasil
(Ary Barroso)
• Nega do cabelo duro (Rubens Soares-David Nasser)
2 O sonho
(Egberto Gismonti)
3 Vera Cruz
(Márcio Borges - Milton Nascimento)
4 Casa forte
(Edu Lobo)
5 Canto de Ossanha
(Baden Powell - Vinicius de Moraes)
6 Giro
(Tibério Gaspar - Antônio Adolfo)
7 O barquinho
(Roberto Menescal - Ronaldo Bôscoli)
8 Andança
(Edmundo Souto - Danilo Caymmi - Paulinho Tapajós)
9 Récit de cassard [do filme "Les parapluies de Cherbourg"]
(M.Legrand - J.Demy)
10 Samba da pergunta
(Marcos Vasconcellos - Pingarilho)
11 Memórias de Marta Saré
(Gianfrancesco Guarnieri - Edu Lobo)
Compilation - Jackie Gleason: 'How Sweet it is! The Jackie Gleason Velvet Brass Collection' (CD; Razor & Tie; 1956-1959)
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This disc contains the original 'Velvet Brass' album, plus some extra bonus tracks, and Gleason's classic 'Melancholy Serenade'. It's very pleasant, although this disc has been somewhat superceded by my recently acquired 'romantic moods' 2cd set...
Compilation - Martin Denny: 'The very best of...The Exotic Sounds' (CD; Toshiba/EMI; 0)
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A very high quality Japanese compilation of Denny's work. To be honest, the whole Denny/Baxter exotica thing washed over me at first, but about 4 or 5 years ago it really started to hit home. This disc mixes classic early tracks like 'Quiet Village' and 'Hypnotique' with later pop cuts and even a track from his Exotic Moog album.